Movies in Your Spare Time- Wreck it Ralph

I watched Wreck-it-Ralph with my siblings last weekend and have seen it before in theatres for my little brother’s birthday. I’ve always had a love for video games and when I saw the trailers I was pretty excited to see it. I normally don’t go to the movies to see a kid’s film but this was an exception. The movie cast has a lot of comedic characters such as John C. Reilly, who was in my favorite movie Step Brothers, Sarah Silverman, John Corrolla, and Jane Lynch who most know her from Glee or to me someone who was born in my hometown. There are tons of other famous celebrities that lend their voices to this movie but I’m going to hold back from typing them all out. This movie is for all ages and many of those who have enjoyed video games like myself. The story is about a video game character named Ralph who happens to be the villain in the game Fix-it-Felix which is like an alternate version of Mario and Donkey Kong. Ralph has been doing the same gig for years and at the end of the day the hero wins and the villain ends up alone while the rest celebrate. He can’t accept this kind of life and in order to be happy, and impress his fellow videogame characters, he tries to win a medal by game hopping into different worlds which does more harm than good in his journey.

Picking a key scene is not easy because of the amount of detail they put and respect they have for each videogame they cameo but it would have to be at the very first ten minutes of the movie. It starts with Ralph, played by John C. Reilly, leaving a villains meeting which is pretty much  like an AA meeting. Ralph is saddened because he is tired of being the villain. He travels through a hall where all the arcade video game characters meet after the arcade closes which serves as a HUB for them. However in reality it is just a power outlet connecting and keeping the arcade games on. This serves has the base between the different kinds of game worlds Ralph visits on his adventure and where many people will recognize old and new faces in video games I really enjoyed seeing how it was like outside the arcade machines and allowing us to see what it was like for Humans. It was just a normal arcade game for humans but something different for the actual video game characters. Basically what im trying to say is that it is just like Toy Story. In general the setting itself serves as a nice homage to adults who have played these old school games who no longer have the time now that they are adults or those who just plain old enjoyed playing them. I just wish that it would show more of it because there is a lot of cool stuff to be seen. The animators for the movie even left some easter eggs leaving references to other games which is cool to look out for throughout the movie.

There are no unusual features in the movie and is everything to expect from an animated movie. I did enjoy the amount of detail they put into in each of the game worlds. They make each new setting something unique but familiar to the viewers. They use a lot of fast paced action in its scene and bright colors to help make certain objects stand out among the rest. The overall style is hip and new to the audience with a couple scenes with cool nostalgia to show its roots. The music score is good and it’s everything to expect from an animated movie.  When comparing it to much bigger animated movies such as Monsters University or Toy Story 3 it doesn’t really compare, mainly due to the movies before, but with a sequel in the works it might just be an original to the younger generation.

Before I give my final score I want to make it clear that you don’t have to have a knowledge of videogames at all to enjoy this movie. Its just in my opinion that a greater love or liking will be added to those who do. The movie is cute and both boys and girls will enjoy this movie as well as adults. There are funny parts as well as some sad parts. Is it an amazing movie? Well as an adult I cant really say because my childhood wonder isn’t as strong as it was before but it is a great movie that all ages can enjoy. It has humor, it has action, and it has a great story with a nice tie in at the end, and it is for all ages.

 That’s why I give it a 4/5.  

Heres a quick trailer which shows the story and the different kinds of scenery within the movie.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btB8tb8fLYM

Review of Reviews

A positive review for the film, Pulp Fiction, is told by Michael Wilmington, of the Chicago Tribune. He first talks about the films blend between horror and comedy through a tongue and cheek fashion. The movie adds more violence, tough-guy acting, and also adds homages to Tarantino’s previous movie "Reservoir Dogs". He goes on commenting on the structure and states that, “three interconnected stories, bracketed by several preludes and a few codas, are told deliberately out of sequence, with the same cast-a bloody band of outsiders-popping up everywhere”. The story skips forward and doubles back to show how it all comes together in the end. What really sells this as a classic film is the memorable characters and situations they are faced with. The movie is shockingly violent, provocatively obscene and profane. Tarantino purposely riles people up but the film does not get its charge through its violence and strong language. It gets its charge through its wisecracks and dialogue and its cast of characters making it an original and classic movie.

The author gives great structure towards his summary on the film and starts off with the setting and overall premise of the film. He then talks about the characters and how the story breaks out which then leads to the overall summary of the film. He mainly focuses on Tarantino’s writing as a director and his ability to connect three stories into one. He references Tarantino’s previous film “Reservoir Dogs” due to its story and characters. He states the film “won't just offend some audiences; it will offend the living hell out of them. Tarantino intends to rile people up”. I agree due to the language and the amount of “N” words thrown in a five minute scene.  His films are very dark and not afraid of going too far with some graphic scenes.

For the negative reviews Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles disagrees and argues that Tarantino’s characters don’t touch on philosophical and theological questions. After all, it’s a about criminals and murder with a couple of miracles thrown in. He also states that the characters are heartless when it comes to killing and that the story lacked an engaging story to follow. He believes that moments in dialogue pleased Tarantino himself and not to anyone else. He recognizes the film as being good in a way but lacks realism.

His structure is based on Tarantino’s writing and his characters. He argues that the film is overly hyped and gives reasons for it. He believes and states that “in truth this is a noticeably uneven film, both too inward-looking and self-centered in its concerns and too outward-bound in the way it strains to outrage an audience, to be successful across the board”. I agree with him that since the film is almost all over the place it can spike interest to almost anyone with its different scenes. Some maybe too graphic for some or maybe something people are into.

I would have to choose the negative article due to the fact that he gives reasons why its likable and why it shouldn’t be overhyped. He doesn’t bash the movie like most reviews ive read. He doesn’t complain about its confusing story structure but praises it. His strong points are points that should be included when writing and directing a movie. Therefor I side with him.

If I were to write a review I would want to include a summary of the story as well as talk about some of the characters. I would want to include some comparisons of other movies that can relate or are similar to that film. I would include its theme and setting but leave out major plot points. I would also try to not be biased on the film and make sure I let the readers decide whether its good or not.