Grade: B
Despite owning Pixar, Disney just can't seem to replicate their genius. Wreck-It Ralph is as close as they've come, and it is arguably better than Pixar's Brave (which may be no coincidence that it is their first film Post Disney (re)take over). Ralph is enjoyable, but never manages to establish the undercurrent of real emotion and pathos that a Pixar film has going. Not to mention they squander a golden opportunity to really have fun with the video game setting, by only allowing Ralph into two games. I needed a montage of in jokes and pop culture video game references. Seriously.
Ralph is an unappreciated villain of his video game that has been operated in the arcade for some thirty years. The setup is very similar to Toy Story, in that once the kids leave, the games come alive and have lives of their own. However, no kid laid in bed thinking that the games played without him like they do about toys. Ralph sets out to prove he's more than just a bad guy, after the highlight of the film that is the opening scene, which is Ralph at a bad guy support group. All the characters and their interaction, as well as the inside jokes about their behavior was a gift to a geek. Then they mostly dropped it.
The film is funny, in a weird way that it blends the over joking of the Will Ferrell brand of comedy (Ralph is voiced by Ferrell vet Reilly) and the traditional kids Disney humor. It can sometimes be a little awkward when it doesn't gel. Needless to say, things get complicated and Ralph's journey from just pretending to do a good thing, to actually doing one is solidified. And Ralph is a great character, if a little ape-ish.
But it's just not up to snuff with what my expectations are from being spoiled by Pixar. If I hadn't known who made it, I would've been able to tell you that it was a Disney or Dreamworks project. It is definitely a step in the right direction, and considering Ralph 2 is supposedly featuring a team up with Super Mario, all my dreams may come true.
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