Last week I received Wreck-It Ralph on DVD from Netflix. I thought it would be fun for my daughter and I to watch, but she begged off to play on her iPod (though she did sit with me for a while as I watched the movie). I think it may have been her loss as Wreck-It Ralph is a cute family friendly movie that pokes fun at video game tropes while entertaining kids and adults.
The main story is about Ralph, a typical bad guy from a circa-1980s video game machine. Ralph wrecks a building while the player controlled Fix-It Felix Jr. (who the video game is named for) tries to keep the building in tip-top shape. After the arcade closes each night, the characters in the video game go to their homes off-screen in the game or travel to other video games in the arcade to interact with other characters. Ralph is dissatisfied always being the bad guy, having no friends in his own game and having to live in a dump. He sets out to become a hero and get some respect.
The movie has cameos of characters from video games of the past (notably Q*bert) and the central hub where all of the games connect is clever. The plot has the usual hero's journey and Ralph finding out what matters most to him. Along the way Ralph gets to see other games, all of which feel like something you might find in a modern arcade (just as Fix-It Felix, Jr. feels like something you would have dropped a quarter for in 1985).
Rich Moore, who directed, and Phil Johnston and Jennifer Lee, who wrote the screenplay, have made a fun kids movie that drips with nostalgia for anyone who grew up in arcades. Wreck-It Ralph gets 4 Mick Happies. Now I need to go play a video game.
Great review Mick. It's a conventional story, but has plenty of heart and fun for it's characters that it's almost too hard to not have a good time with it all.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Dan. I always enjoy work by creative people who can take a well-worn story and give it a new twist or setting that makes it feel new again.
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