How the hell did a
movie with the phrase “breaks the internet” in its title make me
cry? Curse you Disney, you did it again. The sixth consecutive CGI
animated feature from Walt Disney Animation Studios is yet another
homerun. And I’m sort of surprised it works as well as it does.
“Wreck-It Ralph” was so clever and fun it almost felt like Pixar
had made it. While that year Pixar gave us the more traditional
“Brave” which felt like a step back despite featuring a strong
female protagonist. This time the lovable “bad guy” Ralph (John
C. Reilly) and his colorful best friend Vanellope (Sarah Silverman)
enter the magical world of the literalized internet where they come
across one crazy situation or character after another (including some
familiar princesses). The film initially feels like it exists solely
for overt product placement and silly puns but before you know it, in
true Disney fashion, a truly moving story about friendship emerges in spite of the fast-paced chaos.
Can we just skip
ahead to the part when all the Disney princesses show up? I won’t
say anything specific other than it’s freaking awesome and
hilarious. Most of the original voice actresses return to put a fun
modern spin on their characters. In fact there is an entire
masturbatory sequence set at a Disney fansite that feels all at once
obvious and yet so truly humorous. They have a really fun time poking
fun at themselves and it made me smile. There may even be an original
song that I would love to hear sung at the next Oscar ceremony. Make
it happen, Academy.
“Ralph Breaks the
Internet” benefits from knowing very little about the places it
goes. And it goes to some pretty fun places. The film cleverly uses
product placement in fun and interesting ways. Ralph makes great use
out of a giant push pin from Pintrest. The writers have used clever
ways to make use of popular bidding site eBay which is used as a
major plot point. And I love how the search bar is just a guy who interrupts you as he tries to predict what you're going to say. The writers (Phil Johnston & Pamela Ribon)
actually have a lot to say about the world wide web and things like
social media and the state in which we live. All the filmmakers seem
to be having a great time bringing this colorful and thoughtful film
to vibrant life. And the voice actors
aren’t half bad either. There is some great work from the likes of
Taraji P. Henson, Gal Gadot, Bill Hader and more.
The first film was
an ode to video gaming of another time. The second film feels a bit
broader but still feels like it’s honing in on nostalgia, not
unlike another similar film this year set in a digitized world “Ready Player One.” The film opens up and could have taken so many
different routes but I think what they did present us with was
ultimately very touching and clever. The message about how
friendships and life changes was not lost on me and the parents being
dragged to the theater by their kids. This is definitely another
animated classic that you don’t need kids to appreciate. It’s
funny, charming, has fantastic voice work, a fun music score, gorgeous animation, and
like all the great modern animated films says something about the
crazy world we’re living in. GRADE: A-
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