WRECK-IT RALPH:
THE ROGER RABBIT OF VIDEO GAME MOVIES AND JUST AS FUNNY AND CHARMING!
By Nico Beland
Movie Review: **** out of 4
DISNEY
(From left to right) Dr.
Eggman, M. Bison, Zangief, Sergeant Calhoun, Giff, Q-Bert, Sonic the Hedgehog,
Wreck-It Ralph, Vanellope Von Schweetz, Fix-It Felix Jr., and Clyde the Ghost in Wreck-It Ralph
I’M GONNA WRECK IT!
Disney’s new animated comedy Wreck-It Ralph is a stunning, unforgettable, and hilarious tribute to some of our favorite video games we grew up with. It has a similar premise to Disney’s 1988 classic, Who Framed Roger Rabbit with several cameos in it but Wreck-It Ralph has their guest characters together in a way which has never been done before.
Ralph is the “bad guy” in the popular arcade game, Fix-It Felix Jr. and he’s been doing the same job for thirty years now. He’s sick and tired of the same old thing, Ralph gets pushed off the building and Felix gets gold medals and everyone loves him.
So at the Bad-Anon meeting in the Pac-Man arcade machine he tells all the other “bad guys” (Dr. Eggman, Bowser, Zangief, Giff, Clyde, Zombie, etc.) that he doesn’t want to be the “bad guy” anymore and sets off on a “Game Changing” adventure through all the games in the arcade to prove he can be a hero.
Ralph adventures through various game worlds, from the edgy first person shooter game,Hero’s Duty to the sweet and savory racing game, Sugar Rush Speedway where he meets the Hero’s Duty sergeant, Sgt. Calhoun and the cute but annoying Vanellope Von Schweetz from Sugar Rush.
Meanwhile Felix and the rest of the characters from Fix-It Felix Jr. realize Ralph is missing and they go off to find him, otherwise their game will be “Out of Order” and the arcade owner will pull the plug on them and it’s “Game Over”.
The film has a very hilarious voice cast including John C. Reilly (Talladega Nights, Step Brothers) as Wreck-It Ralph, Sarah Silverman (The Sarah Silverman Program) as Vanellope Von Schweetz, Jack McBrayer (30 Rock) as Fix-It Felix Jr., and Jane Lynch (Glee) as Sgt. Calhoun. Roger Craig Smith (Resident Evil, Sonic the Hedgehog) also reprises his voice role as Sonic the Hedgehog in the movie.
Wreck-It Ralph is fun for adults as it is for kids, especially to the ones who play video games. Unlike most video game based movies (Super Mario Bros., Mortal Kombat: Annihilation, Silent Hill) Wreck-It Ralph takes the characters we know and love and blend them together into a completely original masterpiece.
This is the movie gamers have been waiting for, a movie about video games that Hollywood doesn’t screw up. Unlike most of them where they have little or no accuracy to the video games they were based on, Wreck-It Ralph laughs at them with its charm, wit, and thrills but still keep some accuracy to the video games.
Disney really outdid themselves with this one; I loved it just as much as a Pixar movie.
Kids will enjoy the slapstick humor and parents will love the positive messages and charming characters, and kids and parents who are gamers will love the video game references rolled into it. it’s something the whole family could enjoy that’s worth your “quarters”.
