Wreak-It Ralph Review

Movies and video games haven’t had the best of relationships over the years; time after time poor adaptations have landed in theatres, failing to provide plotlines worthy to the series they are based on and often missing the mark completely in terms of characterisation and focus. Wreck-It Ralph finally breaks this tradition, giving gaming fans both old and new just the nostalgia trip they’ve been after all these years.

In an arcade populated with children day by day, a secret network of worlds exists where thousands of game characters live and roam; enter Ralph, the villain of Fix-It-Felix. Ralph is tired of being the villain, living on his dump heap while Felix takes all the glory. He resolves to be the hero for once and so begins a quest through many game worlds and cameos from numerous gaming characters. From the offset it’s clear that the arcade suffers from a serious lack of flexibility and understanding; the heroes refuse to let the villains invade their comfortable lives and the villains are satisfied with their own positions, refusing to journey outside their roles in gaming. Add to this Ralph’s inexperience in heroism and you’ve got a recipe for disaster. This sense of order and coding eventually leads to a gargantuan problem that could infest the entire arcade and it’s up to Ralph and his allies to save the day. The characters are simple for younger audiences to understand yet strongly portrayed that adults are able to sympathise with them. But it’s the ingenious and vivid world created by the crew at Disney that makes the biggest impression; each arcade machine is connected by plugs which the video game characters use as trains to reach a main terminal and get from game to game. When a child plays a game, the video game characters see them through a window and glitches in the games impact both the inside and outside of their respective arcade cabinets to brilliant effect. These little touches all spark your imagination just as many were in the early days of gaming in the arcades.

Characters are often at the heart of many Disney films and Wreck-it Ralph is no different; four well developed and generally likeable characters make up the main cast. John C Reilly fills in well for Ralph’s mild mannered ways while Felix (played by Jack McBrayer) is not the main villain of the film (a welcome change from hero-villain archetypes) but instead does what he can to keep order and help Ralph out a lot more later in the film. We’re also introduced to Venelope (Sarah Silverman) a bubbly cheerful glitch in Sugar Rush who just wants to let loose and feel part of the game whereas in Hero Duty we’re introduced to Jean Calhoun a tough as nails, no-nonsense space marine who gradually opens up a more emotional side as the plot progresses. All four characters are brought together in different ways; Ralph and Venelope through their feeling of being outcast from others around them and Felix and Jean through their need to restore order and control. Both pairs are given plenty of screen time to bond, while still leaving enough time for the main villain to be introduced, which won’t be spoiled here. In addition there’s so many cameo appearances from popular game characters that gaming fans will be hard pressed to find a movie more faithful to their hobby; the bad-Anon meeting is the highlight where villains from games far and wide come together to discuss where they stand in the gaming world. Bowser from Super Mario, Dr Robotnik from Sonic the Hedgehog and the orange Ghost Clyde from Pac-Man to name a few all make appearances.

The animation in Wreck-It-Ralph is often filled with charm and is visually spectacular, especially the gritty bug hunt in ‘’Hero’s Duty’’ and the gorgeous, sweet coated surroundings of ‘’Sugar Rush’’. But where the film excels more than any other game based movie before it is authenticity; on the inside of the game, characters move and jump in a jerky 8 bit style, and from the outside the arcade cabinets and their displays are rendered and presented in all their classic pixelated glory. There are also many references to gaming piled in from the exclamation mark from Metal Gear Solid and the fabled Konami code from the legendary side-scroller Contra sure to put a smile on any seasoned gamer’s face. The film is no slouch in terms of soundtrack either, being both pulse pounding when Skrillex dives into Hero’s Duty and upbeat and cheerful with Owl City’s ‘’When can I see you again?’’.

   

Of all the movies based on video games, ‘’Wreck-It Ralph’’ stands above them all as a love letter to all who were and still are fans of the gaming medium; with its charming animation and faithful depiction of video gaming this animation is a treat for all.

Rating: 4/5 Stars