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Ralph Breaks The Internet (2018), PG, ★★★


I think Wreck-It Ralph is an underrated Disney flick that does not get talked about as one of the superior Disney films of this decade. I think it is a better movie than Frozen. (Yeah, I'll stand by it.) But, despite being a film that is set in the world of arcade games, it had a surprisingly emotional deft storyline revolving around Ralph that made us empathize with him. He did not want to be a villain in his own game, he wanted to be a likable guy that people wanted to hang out with. He was basically a labeled villain that people avoid. But, now after its success, Disney wants to build on that brand and it does very well as the narrative lacks a little drive and organization but it is a well-done film with a highly energetic spirit behind its story and characters. 

 Wreck-It Ralph and Vanellope Von Schweetz (John C. Reilly and Sarah Silverman) have been best friends for the last six years. Ralph has enjoyed predictability whereas Vanellope is bored of her life in Sugar Rush. As they hang out with both Fix-It Felix (Jack McBrayer) and Sergeant Calhoun (Jane Lynch), Mr. Litwak (Ed O'Neill) introduces a Wi-Fi router to the system. A player of Sugar Rush breaks the steering wheel of Sugar Rush causing Litwak to unplug it. While the Sugar Rush residents are now homeless, Felix and Calhoun decide to shelter the residents. 

However, Ralph gets an idea to head to the internet to find the wheel for Sugar Rush so Vanellope can go home. Ralph and Vanellope enter the internet and sees that it is a never-ending city, full of social media, shopping and games. They go to a search engine named KnowsMore (Alan Tudyk) to find eBay. They buy it auction-style at $27,001 but they do not have the money so they are told that they have 24 hours to come up with the money, otherwise, they have to forfeit the wheel.


I had about 2/3s of a great time with this movie and I do recommend this film as it a breezy ride but I felt in the last third of the movie, except for one awesome moment, that I was lost in the shuffle in trying to interpret what the movie wants to be. It adds on another idea on an action-packed climax that felt vulnerable to the character as it is more personal as it focuses on Ralph's insecurities about life and their friendship. Sometimes, it is the struggle to separate and worry about whether their friendship would be over.

John C. Reilly and Sarah Silverman provide some gravitas to their voice performances, but a welcome addition is Gal Gadot as Shank, a bad-ass car racer who wants Vanellope to decide on her own to go in another direction. And, Taraji P. Henson is fine as Yesss, that promotes viral content in the social media platforms.

The best scenes in the movie revolve around the Disney platform as it promotes content within the Marvel and Star Wars realm and also in its best moment, Vanellope accidentally glitching onto the Disney Princesses castle, where you see all of those princesses giving her advice. The movie is light on narrative but packs a few heavy emotional beats that audiences will either be disappointed and/or connect. It is more of a appealing, light commercial for its Disney brand than a complete package for its sequel. But, it is an entertaining film for the whole family if you want to experience the internet, however, it would not be one of those repeated viewings like the first movie.

***


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