Wreck-It Ralph

Reviews from the Dark Side presents
Wreck-It Ralph
Released 11/2/12, now in theaters

Disney releases the non-Pixar created animated comedy, Wreck-It Ralph, this weekend.  Wreck-It features the voice talents of John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Jack McBrayer, and Jane Lynch.

Wreck-It Ralph (Reilly) is the villain of the popular video game, Fix-It Felix, Jr.   When Ralph’s arcade closes and the game is shut down for the evening Ralph goes back to his lonely dump to sleep while hero, Felix (McBrayer), lives comfortably in his video game penthouse with the other penthouse residents who Ralph terrorizes everyday when the game starts.  Lately, Ralph has grown disillusioned with his lonely existence going so far as to seek counseling from a video game villains support group.  Ralph longs to be a hero like his video game mate, Felix, and…well, liked.  At the “suggestion” of one of the penthouse residents in his game, Ralph goes on a quest for a medal like the one the game always awards Felix in the hope this will prove that he’s not a bad guy and that he will finally receive a hero’s accolades. 

But how does an oversized villain obtain a medal?  Why, he goes to Game Central Station (where all arcade characters can travel between games) and invades another game.  He gets the idea while visiting the favorite watering hole for all the arcade characters, the video game, Tappers.  Ralph meets one of the soldiers from the game, Hero’s Duty, who reveals that the game’s winner receives a medal.  Ralph goes on his quest for the medal by “borrowing” the soldier’s body armor and sneaking in to Hero’s Duty.  Let’s just say that Ralph is a bit out of his element in this first person shooter game and accidentally hatches a Cy-Bug (one of the games villains).  Ralph and bug stumble into an escape pod that launches both out of the game and into another game, Sugar Rush, (a kart-racing game),  where Ralph meets the obnoxious and annoying (to Ralph anyway) glitch,Vanellope von Schweetz (Silverman), who makes off with Ralph’s medal for her own ends.  Thus begins a sequence of events that will turn Ralph and Vanellope into allies to thwart a nefarious conspiracy in the Sugar Rush game.  Meanwhile, that Cy-bug that took the trip with Ralph is multiplying underground and will overrun not only this game, but all the other games in the arcade essentially shutting all of them down.  But Ralph and Vanellope have allies in Felix who has come to bring Ralph back to his own game and the no-nonsense Sergeant Calhoun (Lynch) from Hero’s Duty who is in hot pursuit of the Cy-bug. 

The fun of Wreck-It Ralph is the nostalgia it brings back of  those great arcade games many of us used to play.  There are several guest stars from Pac Man, Sonic the Hedgehog, Street Fighter, and Q-Bert (yes, I said Q-Bert).  Play a game with yourself.  See how many characters you can name. 

There’s fun for parent and child alike in Wreck-It Ralph.  It’s a sweet tale of heroism and friendship while also being a fast paced adventure film.  And, it is very funny at times.  The main characters are kind of what you would expect from the actors who are voicing them.  You have the lovably clodish Reilly as Ralph, the obnoxiously sarcastic Silverman as Vanellope, the caustic Lynch as Calhoun, and the overly upbeat McBrayer as Felix.  This mix plays off each other very well.  The visuals are outstanding, particularly in the Sugar Rush sequences.  This land of candy and sweets is colorful and may give you a slight craving for a candy bar when you leave the theater.  I don’t think the 3D in this movie is particularly worth the price.  It’s not that it’s bad, but it’s not particularly eye-popping either.  The animation itself should be attractive enough for most.

Wreck-It Ralph is one of the better animated features I’ve seen in awhile and I believe it’s every bit as good as anything Pixar has produced as of late.  Give it a look.  I don’t think parents, children, or old school gamers will be disappointed. 

The Dark Lord of Sith says:

****stars

Ratings Legend
Zero *= Don't waste your time. Pure dreck! Dreck is too good for this! Blind me please!
1 *= Fuggedaboutit!
2 *= Average, Mediocre, Nothing Special
3 *= Good viewing. Much better than a poke in the eye.
4 *= Great. Could possibly foot the price of a non-Matinee.
5 *= Pure eye candy. Hall of Fame material here.