I was going to do this as a V-Log like I did with The Avengers, but with all the other video projects I have to do, even this seemed like it would take too long to get done. So we get an article instead.
How do you know when you’ve seen a really good story? When a tale about video game characters make you cry.
No, I didn’t bawl my eyes out or anything, but Wreck-It Ralph did make tears actually fall. That’s the short, spoiler-free review. Good characters, a twist I didn’t see coming even though I probably should have recognized the Checkov’s Gun for what it was, and a lot of fun. One semi-spoiler, though. If you’ve seen the trailers and clips Disney Animation put out, you’ve pretty much seen all the classic gaming cameos. And now the potential spoiler-y review.
The Plot: Wreck-It Ralph is the villain in the game Fix It Felix, Jr. The game’s backstory is that Ralph was happily living in his stump when it was shoved to the junkyard to make room for a new building and so he decides to wreck it. Felix is the super and uses his magic hammer (a gift from his father) to repair the building. At the end of the level Ralph is tossed of the top of the apartments by the tenants into the mud.
Once the arcade closes, however, Ralph is still treated like a villain rather than a game character playing a part (especially by one jerk, Gene), and he’s growing tired of living alone in the junkyard while everyone fawns over Felix. Even going to the villain support group doesn’t help, and when the tenants celebrate the games 30th Anniversary and make him feel as unwanted as possible, Ralph has had enough. He learns about a new combat game called Hero’s Duty, where the player wins a medal and attempts to get the medal for himself to prove he CAN be a hero.
However, that game is a first-person shooter where you have to kill Cy-Bugs, virus-like creatures that can can gain the abilities of whatever he eats, kind of like Kirby but evil bugs. Ralph isn’t ready for that kind of game, and ends up getting himself and one of the Cy-Bugs into the cutesy racing game Sugar Rush and meets Vanelope, a racer who is rejected because the other racers and the Candy King think she’s a glitch and dangerous. Ralph ends up bonding with her because they’re in the same situation.
What he doesn’t realize is that his “friends” think he’s game jumping, or worse, “going Turbo” (which is explained in the movie) and this may result in the Fix-It Felix game being unplugged. It just gets more spoiler-y from here, folks, so read the analysis at your own risk.
Analysis: First I want to get the short that preceded the movie, Paperman, out of the way. It isn’t a superhero story as I thought from the name, but this has been getting some raves in my Twitter feed and it is a nice romantic story about a guy trying to get the attention of the woman who works across from his office building. It was a nice lead in.
As for the main feature, it starts out with the “Bad Anon” support group you see in the trailers. Right from the start you kind of feel sorry for Ralph both in the game’s story (there was a similar tale with Bugs Bunny in the old Looney Tunes days–or it might have been Merry Melodies–and you rooted for Bugs in that one) and in the movie’s. After all, Ralph isn’t evil exactly. When the game is over he’s a rather nice guy; a bit clumsy but all he wants to do is get a little respect. This makes sense in the movie’s world, since he’s really just playing a part in the game and isn’t really mean. As for the rest of the cast:
- Felix doesn’t realize that Ralph just wants to be treated as an equal and everyone jumps to conclusions, thinking he’s left the game and went to a new one, which has happened before leading to both games being shut down. When this happens, the characters have to leave the game or die. This leaves them homeless, the fate of the Q-Bert game characters, and Q-Bert himself is really a supporting cast member.
- Felix himself doesn’t have a lot of character. He’s old-fashioned to a point (not surprising since his game was created at least around the time of Donkey Kong) and has a good heart but he’s oblivious to Ralph’s plight after the game is over. There’s not really much to say about him, but he holds his own in the story.
- Sgt. Calhoun was programmed with a backstory where her fiance was killed by Cy-Bugs on their wedding day. That only comes into play with a somewhat forced romance between her and Felix. She was necessary for elements of the story but she’s probably the least developed of the characters.
- This is Ralph and Vanellope Von Schweets’s story so she better not be as annoying as she appears in the trailer. Thankfully she isn’t. She has another side because of her status as a “glitch”, making her an outcast in the Sugar Rush game. Once you get to know her she’s cute and spunky in a way that won’t make you beat your head against a candy cane tree. You’ll really cheer her on once her actual secret is exposed.
- Speaking of secrets, King Candy has one of his own, and it makes him a surprisingly decent villain once you get to the finale. If I explained it, it would feel like it was pulled out of the writer’s backside, but it somehow worked for me. Let’s just say it involves that Checkov’s Gun I thought was just an explanation of why everyone is so scared of the plug being pulled.
But with a concept like this, where video game characters around the arcade can interact and visit each other’s games, you had better put a lot of thought about how your world works and get your rules straight. If we don’t believe in your world it will be hard to follow the game. Well, I’m also glad to report they thought about that, about how you can respawn in your game but in another game death is permanent or what happens when your game is unplugged, setting up part of the drama of the story. It feels like effort was put in to explain how this world functions and keep things consistent from game to game while still keeping the games themselves unique.
I should also note there’s a moral in this story that at first glance seems to contradict as Ralph learns to be happy with who he is, while Vanellope follows her dream and becomes something more. Under analysis, though, some people really ARE better off enjoying what they have while others are better off being something more. Both characters want respect and find it in themselves and each other. So that worked for me as well.
In the end, Wreck-It Ralph was well worth my $10. I can’t wait to get the DVD and if I had someone to go with, I would gladly see it again. If you have a chance, whether your a die-hard gamer, a casual video game player, or just like a good story, check this movie out. Again, the ending made tears come out of my eyes. Not bad for a video game movie. See what happens when you respect the video games in your movie as well as the moviegoing and video game playing public? Take note, Uwe Bowl.
For another perspective, check out fellow Reviewers Unknown contributor Joey Tedesco’s review.
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