Wreck-It Ralph (2012)

Directed by: Rich Moore

Written by:  (Story) Rich Moore, Phil Johnston, Jim Reardon. (Screenplay) Jennifer Lee, Phil Johnston

Players:  John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Jack McBrayer, Jane Lynch

Setup- A materialistic Video Game Villian is unintentionally close to causing mass genocide when he sets out to obtain his own "Winner's Medal." 

The universe constructed by Wreck-It, Ralph is very well… constructed. They say Rome wasn’t built in a day, and I would suppose neither was Wreck-It, Ralph. Why, it must have taken the writers several days, if not months to come up with the logical fantasy land of our videogame icons. To live in this universe created by the writers is simple enough for the video game characters: stay in your game, do your assigned (or should I say.. programmed) work whenever a quarter is played, and…  don’t die in another game or you’ll die for real-sies. VIDEO GAMES! They have real lives, and they have problems just like us!

In Wreck it, Ralph, you have this guy, eponymously named Ralph voiced by John C. Reilly, and he wrecks a building as much as he can, as fast as he can. Now… no decent conventional town made of one building could stand that sort of treatment for very long. That’s when Felix, of “Fix it, Felix Jr.” fame comes in with his magical Golden Hammer and repairs the building instantaneously. Terribly, no matter how much Ralph can wreck, Felix has the capacity to overcome him. There thee by, poor Ralph is the bad guy. And because he is the bad guy, he is an outcast with his game.

With being an Outcast, comes great loneliness. On the game’s 30^th Anniversary, the entire game’s case throws a huge party, and Ralph never received his invitation. That’s because his invitation was never sent! That’s right, he was ignored. I believe this was a very traumatic episode that drove him into a period of hypersensitivity that could be diagnosed as Narcissistic Personality Disorder. This mental disease drove him to prove himself by obtaining a Hero’s Medal of his own. Unfortunately, as a result of his adventure, he nearly destroys every living video game character in the whole arcade!

So on his quest Ralph finds some games he thinks he can win a precious medal at; mostly through following a chain of reactions that leads him to said game. However, when the next real world day at the arcade commences, Ralph is nowhere in sight and the arcade manager puts an “out of order” sign on his game, spelling doom for everyone’s future. As a natural hero, Felix sets out to mend ties with Ralph and save his game.

The movie is fun to watch, everything is pretty logical for a made-up video game universe. He befriends Vanellope (Sarah Silverman) who just wants to be accepted like him. Even Felix gets some action with Calhoun, who is this suuuuuuper hot army chick that sounds an awfully lot like the actor Jane Lynch. There are problems and a happy ending, so don’t worry. No “Empire Strikes Back” here, ladies and gents.

I have one bit of sad news. There was one, intsy-weentsy problem. Any video game player can tell you how most games are difficult—especially in the later stages of the game. Even if they’re “easy” or are children’s games, you still probably aren’t beating the game in one lifetime. That’s hard enough to do at home where you can practice, nay, hone your skills for that one true run where you are never defeated! An arcade, those were just there for socialization. Nobody ever beats an arcade game. They play a few levels and die, move on to where their quarter takes them next. Why isn’t that aspect of gameplay talked about in this movie? When the player controlling Felix messes up and it results in a “Gameover”? Surely Ralph should have felt joy at those numerous times the incompetent real life player doesn’t finish the entire game.

I still had a blast, though. There were genuine moments when I kind of felt rumblings of what a normal person would call feelings. Except these were gigantic movements of emotion, probably similar to a meteor striking the earth and killing almost all life, but it was in my chest. Such agony and torment to the point of wanting to weep for the tragedy. Those moments, and similar, but opposite moments where I wanted to show my teeth and hug a stuffed animal, are why I am happy to recommend this to all family, friends, and strangers. 

Tidbit:  This, or other closely related projects had been in the works since the 80s. By the time it was actually being considered to be made, "Fix it, Felix!" was actually in line to be the lead character. 

Drink of Choice: A new drink called, "The Turbo." 1 part Pink Lemonade Vodka, Burnett's makes a fine fifth of the stuff. And 2 parts Mountain Dew Voltage. It is so delicious, and practically impossible to pour in too much alcohol. This stuff will fuel you all night long!