Disney's 52nd animated film, Wreck-it Ralph is finally here! As a huge fan of videogames, animation and film, I could not have been more excited for this film. And I am happy to say, I adored this movie!
Wreck-it Ralph is a huge step for Disney. The studio is mainly known for making fairy tales and it's amazing to see Disney going a different route for a change. This film shows the more ambitious and risky side of Disney.
Wreck-it Ralph is about a videogame bad guy named Ralph who lives in an arcade game called Fix-it Felix Jr. Ralph gets sick and tired of being mistreated by the other characters in that game and decides that he does not want to be the bad guy anymore. Ralph sets out to prove that he can be more than what he is programed to be. Along the way, he meets a little girl name Vanellope Von Schweetz and accidentally lets loose a threat to the world of videogames.
The story in Wreck-it Ralph might have been done before, but was never presented like this before. the fact that it takes place inside the world of videogames was used so well to the point that the story simply would not work, had it not been in a videogame setting. They didn't just use the fact that it's in a videogame for the sake of showing as many cameos as possible for the sake of marketing, but is used as a storytelling tool. Without spoiling anything, there is also a huge plot twist that literally made my mouth drop. It was definitely one of the most surprising plot twists that I have ever seen on film, and it ties in with the story so brilliantly.
Wreck-it Ralph is also a beautiful story about Ralph and a little girl named Vanellope Von Schweetz, who may have their conflicts, but both want the same thing, to be liked by the other characters in their videogames. This is the central story in this film. There are also a few subplots, one of which involves a relationship between kind-hearted Felix and tough as nails Sgt. Calhoun from Hero's Duty. This subplot serves as the romantic aspect of the film but is also used to drive the story forward.
The characters in Wreck-it Ralph are instantly likable and very well developed. They are all multi-dimensional and are easy to become attached to. One of my favorite characters, however, is King Candy, the villain in this film. He is such an excellent villain and provided some of the darkest scenes in the film.
Felix plays as an excellent foil to Ralph and some of the scenes involving the two of them are hysterical and really show how awkward it is for both a good guy and a bad guy to come in contact. That aspect was very well done and really show people how different these two characters are from each other.
There are also a lot of cameos in Wreck-it Ralph. However, the cameos did not seem like a marketing gimmick. Instead, they fit perfectly to make this film a love letter for all gamers. They might not be in the whole movie, but they have the perfect amount of screen time.
As I mentioned before, I love videogames, and I noticed that the filmmakers and animators. put a lot of effort into making the videogame settings perfect. The character designs match the type of videogame they originate from. Ralph is very cubicle, which makes sense since he's from an 8-bit videogame from the NES era, Vanellope looks slightly more smoothed out but still a bit cubicle, which makes sense since she's from a 16-bit videogame from the Nintendo 64 era called Sugar Rush, and Sgt. Calhoun is perfectly rendered since she is from a modern day videogame called Hero's Duty. Another major thing I noticed is that all of the characters in each videogame move just how they should. The Nicelanders in Fix it Felix Jr., for example, move in a very 8-bit style making them move from one position to another very quickly. It's very difficult to actually describe how they move and you should see it to believe it.
The animation in all of the videogame worlds is stunning and match what era of gaming they're from through many different art styles. from Fix-it Felix Jr.'s cubicle background to Hero's Duty's perfectly rendered background. The different art directions Disney took were amazing to look at.
Disney was also very accurate in making this world of videogames feel real. I loved trying to spot all of the different videogame cameos. Also, at points that might have developed pacing issues, they showed the characters doing whatever it is they had to do on one of the videogame console screens at Litwak's arcade, the arcade where these videogames live. I found that to be a hysterical and creative way of keeping away from pacing issues.
Overall, with its brilliant story and lovable characters, Wreck-it Ralph can be enjoyed by everyone, whether they like videogames or not. Gamers will just get more out of it. I'd also like to point out that this film is an instant classic and one of Disney's best films. This film is also the best animated film I've seen this year alongside Brave.
Film Grade: A+
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