Wreck-It Ralph (2012)

A video game villain wants to be a hero and sets out to fulfill his dream, but his quest brings havoc to the whole arcade where he lives.

Director:

Rich Moore

Writers:

Rich Moore (story), Phil Johnston (story),

Stars:

John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Jack McBrayer

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 15 wins & 19 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John C. Reilly	...	Ralph (voice)
Sarah Silverman	...	Vanellope (voice)
Jack McBrayer	...	Felix (voice)
Jane Lynch	...	Calhoun (voice)
Alan Tudyk	...	King Candy (voice)
Mindy Kaling	...	Taffyta Muttonfudge (voice)
Joe Lo Truglio	...	Markowski (voice)
Ed O'Neill	...	Mr. Litwak (voice)
Dennis Haysbert	...	General Hologram (voice)
Edie McClurg	...	Mary (voice)
Raymond S. Persi	...	Gene / Zombie (voice)
Jess Harnell	...	Don (voice)
Rachael Harris	...	Deanna (voice)
Skylar Astin	...	Roy (voice)
Adam Carolla	...	Wynnchel (voice)

Storyline

Wreck-It Ralph longs to be as beloved as his game's perfect Good Guy, Fix-It Felix. Problem is, nobody loves a Bad Guy. But they do love heroes... so when a modern, first-person shooter game arrives featuring tough-as-nails Sergeant Calhoun, Ralph sees it as his ticket to heroism and happiness. He sneaks into the game with a simple plan -- win a medal -- but soon wrecks everything, and accidentally unleashes a deadly enemy that threatens every game in the arcade. Ralph's only hope? Vanellope von Schweetz, a young troublemaking "glitch" from a candy-coated cart racing game who might just be the one to teach Ralph what it means to be a Good Guy. But will he realize he is good enough to become a hero before it's "Game Over" for the entire arcade?

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Plot Keywords:

arcade | racing game | medal | glitch | first person shooter | 

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Taglines:

This holiday season comes a story for everyone who ever needed a restart on life.

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Genres:

Animation | Adventure | Comedy | Family

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for some rude humor and mild action/violence

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 November 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

Ralph, el demoledor

Box Office

Budget:

$165,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$49,038,712 (USA) (2 November 2012)

Gross:

$189,412,677 (USA) (26 April 2013)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Walt Disney Animation Studios

Technical Specs

Runtime:

108 min

Sound Mix:

Datasat Dolby Digital SDDS

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A Nicelander that looked like John Lasseter was designed but didn't make the final movie.

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Goofs

When Wreck-It Ralph realizes he is in the Sugar Rush game he says, "This is the candy go-cart game over by the Wak-A-Mole." However, at the beginning of the movie, as the camera rolls away from the Fix-It Felix Jr. cabinet, the game next to Sugar Rush says Wak-A-Troll.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Wreck-It Ralph: My name's Ralph, and I'm a bad guy. Uh, let's see... I'm nine feet tall, I weigh six hundred and forty three pounds, got a bit of a temper on me. My passion level's very near the surface, I guess, not gonna lie. Anyhoo, what else, uh... I'm a wrecker. I wreck things, professionally. I mean, I'm very good at what I do. Probably the best I know. Thing is, fixing's the name of the game. Literally. Fix-It Felix Jr. So yeah, naturally, the guy with the name Fix-It Felix is the good guy....

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Crazy Credits

Henry Jackman, who composed the movie's score, appears in the credits at the top of a high-score table.

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Connections

References Mortal Kombat (1995)

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Soundtracks

"When Can I See You Again?"
Written by Adam Young, Matthew Thiessen, and Brian Lee
Performed by Owl City
Produced by Adam Young
Mixed by Robert Orton
Owl City appears courtesy of Republic Records
Matthew Thiessen appears courtesy of Mono vs Stereo Records

User Reviews

Familiar, But So Much Fun

While there are many that would argue differently, 2012 has been a relatively good year for animation. With Brave, Pirates! Band of Misfits and Frankenweenie (among others), there's been plenty of appealing films for all ages. And while Wreck-It Ralph looked somewhat less promising than the others in my eyes, it ended up being an absolute joy and one of the best of 2012.

Set in the video game world, Wreck-It Ralph is a typical arcade villain who's tired of being bad. In an attempt to start a new life, Ralph "game jumps" to a game called Hero's Duty, and through a chaotic series of events, ends up in a kart racing game called Sugar Rush. In this Candy Land of video games, Ralph meets a little girl named Vanellope whom is determined to be accepted among the residents of Sugar Rush by winning a kart race against them.

Wreck-It Ralph is a video game movie, and while video game oriented films have a reputation for being relatively awful, Wreck-It Ralph exceeds any pre-expectations that one may have as a result. Perhaps part of Wreck-It Ralph's success comes from the fact that it adapts the video game world, as opposed to adapting an individual video game.

Gamers will get the most out of Wreck-It Ralph. A minute rarely goes by without some reference to some video game, video game character or video game cliché. It effectively satires everything that's good and bad about video games in a way that won't insult gamers, but rather leaving them chuckling as they nod in acknowledgement.

Bowser, Sonic the Hedgehog, Q*Bert, Pac Man, Dig Dug and dozens of other make cameo appearances (some even have speaking roles). Mario didn't make it, though he is briefly mentioned once.

But fear not, Wreck-It Ralph won't only appeal to gamers. Even those who aren't familiar with the wonderful world of video games will find much humor. Wreck-It Ralph has plenty of humor in the less video game oriented field, though many of the best bits come from the various video game references and satire humor.

As is typical for a Disney film, Wreck-It Ralph is filled with memorable characters. The title character, Ralph, while still a bit on the generic side, is an easy to like protagonist. Vanellope is a sarcastic little girl, who is actually much less annoying than one might initially expect (she actually sort of grows on you). Other characters are more entertaining. Fix-It Felix Jr. is the goodie-two-shoes of this movie, while Sergeant Jean Calhoun is a no-nonsense space commander. The most memorable character, however, is King Candy, who's the ridiculously over the top and punn-y leader of Sugar Rush (though he may feel a bit too familiar to the Mad Hatter for some).

Perhaps what's most surprising about Wreck-It Ralph is how moving it is. It's initial attempts at poignancy may seem a bit clumsy and predictable at first, but it quickly develops into something much more satisfying, if far from the elegance of Pixar.

The animation is incredible. From the purposely stiff animation in Wreck-It Ralph's game, to the hyper realistic looking Hero's Duty, to the colorful Sugar Rush, Wreck-It Ralph is the most visually superb computer animated film of the year. A vast array of blink-and-then- you'll-miss-it sight gags that is practically begging for repeat viewings.

Cast members include John C. Reily, Sarah Silverman, Jack McBrayer, and Jane Lynch among others. Each voice actor blends beautifully with their character, though outside of Alan Tudyk (the voice of King Candy), there aren't any standouts.

The score by Henry Jackman captures the video game world perfectly. Mixing electronic instruments and orchestra intelligently, Jackman provides an energetic score for Wreck-It Ralph. The heavy use of electric guitar in the Hero's Duty world is purposely overdone to humorous effect, and the theme for the Sugar Rush races is joyfully nostalgic and sounds just like a tune you might listen to in a Mario Kart game. Still, during some of the more serious (and thankfully rare) moments, the score becomes rather generic, and less memorable than the other tracks.

In a film that does so much right, it feels almost overly hypocritical to point out some of things that Wreck-It Ralph does wrong, but they should be mentioned.

Wreck-It Ralph often suffers from being too familiar. Taking bits and pieces from Alice in Wonderland, Monsters Inc., Toy Story, Despicable Me, and various others, Wreck-It Ralph occasionally feels a bit recycled. Still, there's so much of Wreck-It Ralph that's clever and original, this can be overlooked.

What CAN'T be overlooked, however, is the potty humor. Wreck-It Ralph is not stuffed with crude humor, but the almost constant smile on my face changed into a frown during these instances. The potty humor is not necessary, and only makes the film feel more childish than it should. It surely won't score points with parents who will find this to be the only questionable content in an otherwise family-friendly film.

While familiar elements, occasional potty humor and sometimes overly sappy emotion fills the screen, Wreck-It Ralph is an absolutely outrageous film. Consistently clever, visually enchanting, and extremely memorable while even delivering a twist or two, Wreck-It Ralph is a must-see for gamers and adults that grew up with these games. Wreck-It Ralph is unlikely to be considered one of Disney's best films, but it's certainly one of their funniest.

Note: Wreck-It Ralph is preceded by a short called Paperman that is cute and charming, if not quite groundbreaking.