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Wreck It Ralph – Review of Disney’s new movie

Disney’s new movie, Wreck It Ralph, comes to the UK on February 8th 2013, and we were fortunate enough to be invited along to the Empire Leicester Square for a sneak preview. We could go on and on about how much fun we had and about how brilliantly cast it was (Jane Lynch steals the show as Sergeant Calhoun), but we tend to be a little too effusive about our favourite Disney movies… so this time round we thought we’d ask creative geek, father-of-two and seasoned Disney connaisseur Dino his honest thoughts about the film. Here’s his review of Wreck It Ralph:

I don’t know who was most excited to see the new Disney movie, me or the kids. Actually, I do know, it was me but it was a close call. The plot is too beautifully woven to do it justice in a review, but I’ll give you the basics.

Wreck It Ralph on train from PacMan video game ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
Wreck It Ralph on train from PacMan video game ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

The entire movie is set inside the games you find in any ordinary suburban game arcade. When a child inserts a coin, deep inside the game a myriad of characters and extras jump into life to act out the gameplay, day in, day out. They live for it. It’s what they do.

The movie’s hero (or should that be anti-hero) is Wreck It Ralph who is the bad guy in an ageing 80’s arcade game Fix It Felix. Ralph’s job as ‘the bad guy’ is to wreck a building so that Felix can jump into action, rescue the day and win a much coveted gold medal.

Wreck It Ralph excluded from the celebrations in Fix It Felix video game. ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
Wreck It Ralph excluded from the celebrations. ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

Each night when all the kids have gone home, Felix and his adoring cast celebrate… but Ralph is never invited – he is the baddie after all! Ralph then embarks on a quest to gain his very own medal to prove to everyone is not bad after all.

Wreck It Ralph joins Bad-Anon with other video game villains. ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
Wreck It Ralph joins Bad-Anon with other video game villains. ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

The adventure that follows is nothing short of brilliant. Ralph leaves his own game (rendering it out of order) and travels through other game genres on his gold medal hunt. And that’s just the start! The script somehow manages to be intricate and yet simple. The comedy is both slapstick yet full of subtlety and clever game references for grown ups.

"WRECK-IT RALPH" (L-R) JUBILEENA BING-BING, SWIZZLE "THE SWIZZ" MALARKEY and TAFFYTA MUTTONFUDGE in the video game world of Sugar Rush. ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
Jubileena Bing-Bing, Swizzle “The Swizz” Malarkey and Taffyta Muttonfudge in Sugar Rush video game. Wreck It Ralph ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
Wreck It Ralph shooting Cybugs in Heros Duty ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
Wreck It Ralph shooting Cybugs in Heros Duty ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

The action and theatre is breathtaking with beautifully imagined worlds and endless wow moments. But it’s the characters that really steal the show.

Wreck It Ralph meets Vanellope von Schweetz in Sugar Rush. ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
Wreck It Ralph meets Vanellope von Schweetz in Sugar Rush. ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

From the super-cute yet feisty Vanellope von Schweetz, wannabe racer in the Sugar Rush arcade game to the no-nonsense, Halo-esque Sergeant Calhoun, to the slightly twisted King Candy, every character you meet is just so well rounded, funny and engaging. Even game classics like QBert, Bowser and Dr. Eggman make an appearance.

Jane Lynch as Sergeant Calhoun in Hero's Duty video game. ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
Jane Lynch as Sergeant Calhoun in Hero’s Duty video game. ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
Wreck It Ralph helps Qbert. ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.
Wreck It Ralph helps Qbert. ©2012 Disney. All Rights Reserved.

The story twists and turns wonderfully but ultimately culminates in a finale that somehow ties together every strand of the plot into one of the most satisfying movie endings I’ve enjoyed in a long time. Our 9 year old son and 11 year old daughter didn’t miss a thing either. None of the usual “but why did that happen daddy?” this time, a real testament to the enduring storytelling skills that Disney excel at.

Now we have a problem. We’re desperate for its official UK opening on the 8th of February 2013 to get to see it again. But we want to see it again now! So I’ve downloaded the retro Wreck It Ralph iPhone game which makes complete sense once you’ve seen the movie. But it’s not going to be enough.

Suffice to say Wreck It Ralph is one of the best movies of 2012 and will be in with a good shout of holding that title for 2013 too. So take your kids or just go on your own, just go see it, you won’t be disappointed.

Seen Wreck It Ralph? Add your own review below!

Wreck It Ralph is in UK cinemas from 8 February 2013Click here to visit our Wreck It Ralph corner, with the movie trailer, reviews, and free activities to download.

Written by Janis P.

5 Comments

    • Enjoyed your review, Rachel! It really was incredible how even the really young children enjoyed it (my 4 & 5 year old loved it too)… usually the Baddies are way too scary for them!

      The animated Disney short at the start is called Paperman, and is possibly the best I’ve ever seen. It’s just a beautiful, simple and strangely engrossing story – a remarkable example of good storytelling.

      Great article about it by Geek Dad on Wired: http://www.wired.com/geekdad/2012/11/paperman/

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