Distributor: Walt
Disney Pictures
Opening Weekend Box Office:
#1 with $49,100,000
Domestic Box Office
Gross to-date: $49,100,000
Gross Revenue: $61,100,000
Production Budget:
$165 million
Director: Rich Moore
Once the initial geek-fit that
followed from the thought of a film based on beloved childhood video games
began to subside, I had to stop and appreciate the sheer magnitude of the
investment involved in executing such an ambitious project. Based on my own work in licensing and
consumer products, I could not even begin to fathom the type of legal work that
had to be required to clear the copyrights of the nearly two hundred individual
character models that were purported to appear in Wreck-It-Ralph as cameo inclusions.
That kind of effort alone was more than enough to promise the kind of
nostalgia that would pique the interest of the gamer subculture, thereby ensuring
that audiences would be split into two defined and immensely profitable
demographics: young children who are always charmed by animation and males aged
18-35 who grew-up alongside these classic 8-bit characters. Another interesting variable in Disney’s
newest release involved the fact that this computer-animated entry was not a
Pixar property; the Disney-Pixar team-up has been legendary over the past
decade, but Disney Animation as a standalone entity has not made much of an
impression on audiences since 2010’s Tangled…still,
the creative premise and the added star-power of the well-received cast
certainly helped reduce the risk of such a potential gamble. Leading up to its release, Walt Disney
Pictures promoted the hell out of Wreck-It
Ralph, with the characters appearing absolutely everywhere…add all these
components to the strong critical reception, and the November box office was
about to be hit by a bolt of lightning.
In a world where video game
characters freely move between each other’s games after the arcades close,
audiences are introduced to the classic game “Fix-It Felix, Jr.,” wherein the titular
character, Felix (Jack McBrayer), is celebrated for his constant defeat of the
game’s villain, Wreck-It Ralph (John C. Reilly). Severely disillusioned with his role as a
villain, Ralph resolves to prove himself a hero by earning an achievement medal…since
this accolade is virtually impossible to earn within his own world, Ralph
decides to abandon his game and game-jump to another genre. Ralph first finds himself within a
first-person shooter titled “Hero’s Duty,” first encountering the
battle-hardened Sergeant Tamora Calhoun (Jane Lynch), and then unintentionally
releasing plague-like enemies known as Cy-Bugs before bumbling across an actual
medal. In all the chaos, Ralph
accidently loses the medal after transporting himself to “Sugar Rush,” a Candy
Land-inspired kart-racing game that is home to Vanellope von Schweetz (Sarah
Silverman), a glitch-riddled outcast shunned by the in-game characters and
their leader, King Candy (Alan Tudyk).
However, Ralph’s absence from “Fix-It Felix Jr.” has been noticed by the
arcade patrons, and because broken games are unplugged, Felix resolves to
game-jump and to locate Ralph, thereby returning him before all the characters
of his game are left homeless. While
searching for his medal alongside Vanellope, Ralph realizes that he has also
accidently transported a Cy-Bug to “Sugar Rush,” thereby endangering that world
while also uncovering a long-forgotten conspiracy…in the face of all this
danger, Ralph finally has the chance to shed his label as a villain and truly
discover what it means to be a hero.
As I said in the “Short and Sweet”
review, given the nostalgic subject matter, Wreck-It
Ralph will appeal first and foremost to video game fans, but even beyond
that core group, casual moviegoers will have to appreciate the sharp humor,
gorgeous animation, and reverent attention to detail that helped build this
ambitious world. The narrative could
have easily defaulted to one-shot cameos in its usage of so many recognizable
characters, but the level of imagination and respect used to add depth to all
aspects of the video game subculture is awe-inspiring (my jaw hit the floor
when I realized that the citizens within “Fix-It Felix, Jr.” actually moved
like the 8-bit characters of an era long past)…even hardcore gamers would need
multiple viewings to catch all the clever hints and homages. In terms of the richly-detailed environments
inhabited by the central characters, each world brings a distinct tone to life
that is sure to appeal to different audience members; “Hero’s Duty” will charm
older games with its obvious borrowings from the Halo universe, while small children and Mario-Kart fanatics will undoubtedly love the colorful and creative
“Sugar Rush”…I can think of no other film that has ever successfully executed
such a complicated and well-balanced diegetic universe. And when it comes to the humor, believe me
when I say that the subtle word-play and references to so many brands and
established properties will have parents rolling in the aisles, while there is
more than enough slapstick and silliness to keep children happy. So, needless to say, Wreck-It Ralph made effective use of the video game focus, but even
when you strip all that novelty away, Disney still delivers with enjoyable
characters and a surprisingly deep and heartfelt story.
Disney has built more than its fair
share of memorable characters and stories over the years, and Wreck-It Ralph helps take that tradition
to the next level with the help of terrific voice acting and a truly uplifting
message. John C. Reilly, Jack McBrayer,
and Jane Lynch match the intended personalities of their computer-animated counterparts,
but even though they represent some of the best casting in years, their performances
are still overshadowed by that of Sarah Silverman. I, more than anyone, was skeptical concerning
the casting of Silverman, but as Vanellope von Schweetz, the edgy comedienne is
both charming and utterly hysterical; absolutely no one else could have dared
bring such a precocious young character to life so vividly and successfully,
and I guarantee that you will love her.
When it comes to the story, I probably would have been happy with a
simplistic and predictable video game-esque plot, but the narrative covers
everything from identity crisis to personal sacrifice, not to mention making
use of a brilliant plot-twist, thereby providing for a deep cinematic
experience that tugs at the heart strings and leaves a smile on your face. In the end, though there is a chance that
some might find the overall world built by Wreck-It
Ralph a little too complicated, the reality remains that the film in its
entirety is executed beautifully and fully enjoyable…an utterly unique
adventure that should not be missed by anyone.
Opening in first place with a beefy
$49 million, Wreck-It Ralph lived up
to its name and smashed the weekend box office, earning the accolade of being
the single largest debut for Walt Disney Animation Studios, and proving that
there is life beyond the Pixar brand.
Admittedly, the film still has quite a ways to go when it comes to
recovering the substantial production budget of $165 million, especially in the
face of the massive future competition that will come in the form of Skyfall and Breaking Dawn - Part 2, but positive word of mouth should certainly
help. At the very least, Wreck-It Ralph needs to draws as much as
it can out of younger audiences before direct-competitor Rise of the Guardians hits during the Thanksgiving Holiday Weekend
and uses its holiday themes to generate ticket sales during the next few
lucrative months…yes, that was a shameless plug, but get over it. Personally, I am eager to see what Wreck-It Ralph can do in the future as
part of a larger franchise, because this introduction only scratched the
surface of the property’s potential for sequels that will explore the many
possible worlds of the larger narrative; trust me, I will be first in line to
but those tickets. I cannot emphasize it
enough: absolutely everyone needs to take the time and see this movie…but be
careful, because you may be tempted to dust-off the old Super Nintendo and N64 afterwards.
