Translate

Sunday 18 November 2012

REVIEW/THOUGHTS [MOVIE] -- Wreck-It Ralph

Format Watched: In theatres (Sunday November 11, 2012; Tuesday November 13, 2012)
Approx. Runtime: 108 minutes (1 hours, 48 minutes)
Language Watched: English
Type of Movie: Adventure, Comedy, Video Game
Overall Impression: I absolutely love it. I've already seen it twice and I still want to see it again.


SPOILER ALERT WARNING!!
This review will contain some spoilers -- or rather, there will be a "Spoilers" section at the end of the review to go into further detail about certain things. There may still be slight spoilers throughout the review, but I've tried my best to keep them at a minimum.


PERSONAL STANDING (Pre-exposures, thoughts, etc.)
When I saw the trailer, I wasn't completely sold on it. At first, I thought it was going to be a movie knee-deep in video game crossovers and references -- that Wreck-It Ralph would be nothing but that, which would possibly result in thinly developed characters and a tacked on story.

When my sister told me that she and her fiance were planning to watch it, though, I tagged along.


STORY
Wreck-It Ralph follows Wreck-It Ralph (whom I will refer to as Ralph for the rest of this review), the villain character in the arcade game, Fix-It Felix, Jr. He's been playing the bad guy for 30 years and has grown sick of it, wanting inclusion and the same kind of admiration and appreciation that the hero character receives (Fix-It Felix, Jr. -- whom I will refer to as Felix for the rest of this review).

Determined to be recognized as a good guy, Ralph leaves his game world and visits another, in hopes of winning a hero's medal. Somewhere along the way, he befriends Vanellope, a character from the racing game, Sugar Rush.

The story itself is pretty standard. But it's a story that I think almost anybody can relate to -- trying to find acceptance, or a place where you feel you belong.

PACING
The pacing is great. Jokes aren't drawn out; tender moments are held for just long enough. Things are always happening to move the plot forward.

VIDEO GAME REFERENCES AND CROSSOVERS
For a movie that takes place in an arcade where game characters can visit each other's worlds, there aren't that many video game character crossovers. And you know what? That's fine.

Some may be disappointed that Wreck-It Ralph isn't littered with character crossovers. I think there's just enough. I'm really glad that Wreck-It Ralph didn't go in the direction that I was fearing -- having crossovers as the meat of the movie instead of the original main characters. If it went that way -- yes, it may still be a good movie... but at that point, the crossovers may be there just for the sake of being there. And then the movie may be watched just for the crossovers, which to me implies a lack of confidence in the integrity of the original characters and story (to keep us interested). The way it is now, the original characters and story shine. Very brightly.

The movie's explanation for some video game technicalities (like how a First-Person Shooter works or what happens when a game is unplugged) is amusing and neat.

My favourite video game crossover moments and references will be listed in the "Spoilers" section.


ANIMATION
The computer animation is awesome. Emotions are displayed on a character's face with subtle yet strong, telling expressions. The characters also move in very telling ways. Even though all the characters are in 3D, one could tell that some of them are from 8-bit era games because of their mannerisms and the way they move. Everything is very smooth and wonderful.

3D VS. NON-3D (THEATRE FORMAT)
So I watched Wreck-It Ralph in theatres two times -- one with 3D glasses; one without. Honestly, there wasn't much difference between them. The characters stand out a bit with 3D glasses, but it's pretty much it. So if you can and want to save a bit of money, watch the non-3D version.


VOICE-ACTING/CHARACTERS
The voice-acting was spectacular. John C. Reilly was great as Ralph. Sarah Silverman was absolutely PERFECT as Vanellope. Silverman's voice fit perfectly with Vanellope's mannerisms and character. Everything was great here.

CHARACTERS
The characters are everything in Wreck-It Ralph. If you don't care about the characters and their struggles, I don't think you would enjoy this movie very much. For having a fairly standard plot, it's the characters and world that would determine its... uniqueness.

Despite being video game characters (who exist to, you know, drive a video game forward), there are moments of character development. In terms of character backstories, they only have what they were programmed with. However, each character has their own "history" -- their memories of their surroundings since the existance of their game world.

My favourite character is Vanellope. She is just adorable. Ralph is a close second. I like that Ralph still has faults. He's not portrayed as a perfect good guy who just got saddled with playing a bad guy role. Ralph tends to break things when he's angry; he can be a little thoughtless, too. And he's a thief. But in the end, he's not such a bad guy.


MUSIC
To be honest, I didn't realize that there was so much music in this movie until I bought the soundtrack and listened to it. I think that says how well the music fit with the movie (very well). The game themes are memorable. The music for those tender or sad moments can move one to tears (at least, they did for me).

Listening to the soundtrack, there are a lot of orchestrated pieces. The theme for Fix-It Felix, Jr. is 8-bit like. The theme for Sugar Rush is bright and poppy... and in Japanese! When I first heard it during the credits, I thought, Wow. Disney's got balls to include a Japanese track as a major theme song. I mean, they didn't have to. They could have just went with a poppy song with English lyrics -- more people would understand the song if they did. But no, they didn't. Simply, I'm impressed.

And just to say, I LOVE the first song that plays in the credits ("When Can I See You Again?"). I think it is the perfect sendoff song when watching it in theatres.


CLOSING THOUGHTS
Wreck-It Ralph is awesome. Watch it. Bring some tissues just in case. ;) I'm going to list my favourite moments in the "Spoilers" section.

Thanks for reading! If you want some more input about something I didn't cover, feel free to ask. :)

Now I'll do the scrolly thing so you don't see the "Spoilers" section right away. Then I'll add some more scrolly things after the "Spoilers" section in case anybody wants to comment, but not see the spoilers.

..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................

SPOILERS

Favourite game crossover moments

- I love the Ryu and Ken moment right when the arcade closes, and Ryu's asking Ken if he wants to go to Tappers. Their gruff voices and their movements are just so hilarious.

- I like it when Ralph's going through the Lost & Found and finds the "!" from Metal Gear Solid. It really makes me wonder how it got there since Metal Gear was never an arcade game (or was it?). I also loved it when Ralph found Zangief's underwear.

---------------------------------------------

Favourite game references

- The advertising shown in Sugar Rush's world was funny. I didn't realize there was so much until just now. There were... oreos (can anybody tell me where that "O-re-o O-reeeeeeeee-o" came from? I don't remember)... twinkies... mentos.... Nesquik (haha, Nesquik-sand...). The funnier thing is that it makes a lot of sense. Racing games tend to have a lot of product advertisements.

- I liked it when Hero's Duty character said that Sergeant Tamara Jean Calhoun is so intense because she's been programmed with the most horrible backstory. A movie with video game characters poking fun at video games. It's amusing.

- I liked it when Vanellope says she can feel it "in her code" (her driving skills). It's a cute touch.

---------------------------------------------

Favourite moments

- When Vanellope hugs Ralph at the end and tells him that he could stay in the Sugar Rush world, I thought her expression was so touching. Her voice didn't quiver or anything, but you could see her eyes slightly water, telling us how she really feels. Wow. Just thinking about that scene made a tear fall. Hahaha, I'm such a dork.

- Sergeant Calhoun's flashback with "dynamite gal" is just hilarious.

- Ralph licking Sour Bill and then putting Sour Bill in his mouth was hilarious. Sticking Sour Bill to a lollipop and telling him to "stick around" was great as well.

- I loved the bit where Felix and the Nicelanders were going crazy in their game, looking for Ralph.

- If I remember more, I'll list more favourites crossover/references/moments. :)

If you read my spoilers, thank for reading! Now to finish with more scrolly things. If you disagree with anything or just want to say something, feel free to comment :D

..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................
..............................................................

1 comment:

  1. Oreo scene reference:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jtie6r27JeU

    ReplyDelete