At the Movies - Wreck It Ralph
Wreck it Ralph
The pre-screening of ‘Wreck It Ralph’ achieved exactly what it set out to - to make children and adults laugh.
I was invited along to the Brunswick Moviebowl to have a sneak peak at the latest offering from Disney and all I can say is that despite being 30 years-old I enjoyed ‘Wreck It Ralph’ just as much as the five year-old boy in front of me did.
‘Wreck It Ralph’ is about a computer game bad guy who wants to be the hero. Ralph sets out to achieve his dream but his actions have disastrous consequences for the arcade where he lives.
The premise of ‘Wreck It Ralph’ is very similar to ‘Toy Story’ in the sense that the computer games characters, like Woody and Buzz Lightyear, come to life when human beings are not around.
Replacing Andy’s bedroom in ‘Toy Story’ is Litwak’s Arcade in ‘Wreck It Ralph’. As the arcade closes every night, all of the computer games come to life and the characters are free to travel to where they want.
Ralph is a character in the ‘Fix It Felix Jnr’ game. Ralph destroys buildings and Felix has to, yes, you’ve guessed it, fix it.
Ralph, who is voiced by John C. Reilly (‘We Need To Talk About Kevin’ and ‘Carnage), is unable to accept himself as a computer game bad guy and resorts to attending ‘Bad Anon’ (a support group for computer game baddies).
In one of the film’s first scenes, Ralph is sat in a room with other video baddies such as Dr. Robotnik from Sonic the Hedgehog and Kano from Mortal Combat. Ralph confides in his fellow villains that he’s feeling down and wants to experience what it’s like to be liked as opposed to revered. It’s a fabulous scene and it’s testament to many of the creative minds behind the film’s script.
‘Wreck It Ralph’ is a clever children’s film. It’s visually stunning (especially in 3D) but the film’s real triumph is that the plot and script succeed in making the audience care about Ralph as if he’s a real life character.
I noticed myself laughing out loud a number of times and although the film is aimed at a much younger audience, I enjoyed the world that the computer game characters, some real and some fictional, live in.
Rich Moore (‘The Simpsons’ and ‘Futurama’) directs and his experience with animation shines through. The world of Ralph and his video game counterparts is utterly breathtaking at times and when Ralph’s quest takes him inside another video game called ‘Sugar Rush’ I found myself craving some sugary sweets - (‘Sugar Rush’ is a racing game where the entire landscape is made from sweets and chocolate).
Like all animated family movies, ‘Wreck It Ralph’ tries to teach young children to be proud of who they are and to be accepting of others. The integrity lesson is at times, as subtle as the Peace Bridge but it’s inevitably unavoidable and it’s a box that needs ticking.
Children will adore this film. There are some amazing characters along the way. Felix (Jack McBrayer), Vanellope (Sarah Silverman) and Calhoun (Jane Lynch) are well created and no doubt they might make a return soon.
The weather is pretty grim at the moment and pretty soon the children will be enjoying their mid-term break.
A good way of keeping them occupied is to take them to see ‘Wreck It Ralph’ in 3D - you won’t be disappointed.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Derry
Tuesday 21 May 2013
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 8 C to 14 C
Wind Speed: 16 mph
Wind direction: North west
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 5 C to 12 C
Wind Speed: 25 mph
Wind direction: North west
