Wreck-It Ralph (***)

Directed by: Rich Moore

Starring (voices): John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Jack McBrayer, Jane Lynch, Alan Tudyk, Mindy Kaling, Dennis Haysbert

Seen: February 21^st 2013

*** Out of ****

In recent years the animated movie landscape has changed substantially. This is evident in the fact that many people, including me, now include movies from studios other than Pixar in lists of favourite animated features. Wreck-It Ralph is yet another non-Pixar movie – this time from Disney – that manages to find a balance between many elements of movie making that makes it accessible to everyone. The visuals are extremely colourful and involving enough to delight young and old, with a depth going beyond the 3D; repeated viewings will reveal hidden treasures on the fringes of the main story. The story is just as accessible as the animation, with a narrative inclusive of all viewers, the material is for anyone, regardless your station in life.

Litwak’s Arcade has a bunch of games that, after hours, get a Toy Story-like life of their own. The characters from the games effectively get around to their personal lives when the arcade is closed, crossing over between games and visiting with friends all over. The focus of the movie is on Wreck-It Ralph (Reilly) – the villain of the game Fix-It Felix – and his crisis of conscience, he’s the bad guy, but he is not a bad guy. The characters in the game see him as an outsider though, and even after hours they idolize Felix (McBrayer) while Ralph is at best ignored, and at worst actively ostracised. Ralph even attends a support group for video game villains, were Ralph voices his desire to be seen as a good guy, to for once win a medal for doing something good.

Ralph learns that he can get a medal in another game, and leaving his own game behind, he embarks on a rollercoaster ride through a few games. There’s the action shooter Hero’s Duty where he believes he can get his medal, and where he unwittingly sows the seeds of the potential destruction of the entire arcade. This chaos overflows to Sugar Rush, an arcade racer and location for the largest part of the movie, where he ends up after fleeing from Hero’s Duty with his medal. Here Ralph meets Vanellope (Silverman), a so-called glitch in that game, who has Ralph on edge from the start, but who turns out to be Ralph’s eventual highway to accepting his purpose and living it.

Wreck-It Ralph is extremely fun and funny, with an added emotional punch to boot. Reilly as Ralph and Silverman as Vanellope have an incredible vocal chemistry and the movie’s weight and punch lay in their interaction as enemies, unwilling allies, and eventually true friends. The story is delivered with more than just punctual functionality, and is littered with great humour, sharp plot advancement, and a multitude of references to other games. While the life lesson of accepting yourself and others is relatively obvious, it is not delivered preachy in any way, and leaves you with a warm heart and a smile as the credits start rolling. Wreck-It Ralph is great, great fun.