Sweet Mother of Monkey Milk

So as some of you might know from a previous post that I am missing my inner Disney Child.

Following Blogger Mumma lead of Disney themed posts I am trying my hardest to embrace all things Disney. So I thought I would take the time to talk about the Boys favourite Disney film: ‘Wreck It Ralph’

Oh how a day with the Boys doesn’t go by without poor Daddy being asked “Can we watch Wreck it Ralph please?”

I don’t actually mind though because it is a great film, one that I will admit that I quite enjoy!

For those who don’t know Wreck it Ralph then here’s a quick rundown of the plot:

 

Ralph is a bad guy in the world of gaming like so many greats such as Bowser (Super Mario Bros.), M. Bison and Zangief (Street fighter) or Dr. Eggman (Sonic)

Ralph’s role in the game is to destroy the building whilst the Hero, Fix It Felix jnr, fixes it with his magic Hammer and to keep the inhabitants (The Nicelanders) safe.

He has been doing this role now for 30 years and the on-coming celebration has left Ralph feeling slightly heavy hearted at “Always being the Bad guy”. He hopes that he too might get the chance to be a hero and win a medal, like all the great heroes seem to.

This sets Ralph on a quest to win a medal and be a “Good guy” just once; sadly though, as you would expect, disaster strikes and he, plus a spider like creature (Cy-Bugs), ends up in a racing game (Sugar Rush).

This gives him a chance to then bump into Vanellope, a pesky, outcast, child within the game.

 

Vanellope wants to be a racer; her dream is to race her sugar designed car in the big race and have a chance to win. Yet, her biggest problem is that she ‘glitches’ which causes her pixels to jump. (This does give her a slight ability to teleport though) She is quick minded, funny and has some brilliant catchphrases (Hence the title to the post!)

On seeing how strong Ralph is Vanellope asks him to help her out, get a car and train her to enter the race; Ralph, feeling sorry for her being an outcast himself agrees.  All whilst the evil Cy-bug, who eats, breeds and harvests anything that is around it is hiding within the game.

 

Whilst this is happening, Felix realises that Ralph is missing and in fear of his game being seen as broken goes in search of him within the arcade. With his true nature kicking in “I fix whatever Ralph breaks”

I won’t spoil it and ruin the ending because it is worth seeing.

So why do I like it?

I love the fact that Ralph is a Guy and one with difficulty understanding who he is; he is on a quest not to win a medal but to find the value of himself. The film also presents Vanellope as a quirky odd girl and, quite frankly, unlike many of the stereotypical princess/women that you find in Disney films.

Through Ralph’s journey you see a lot of the developing characters learning a lesson about themselves; Vanellope also finds out who she is and what she enjoys, whilst Felix finds a way to empathise with Ralph and his portrayal.

We witness bullying, stereotypes and discrimination but through that we see personal growth that ultimately breaks down all those initial barriers. Showing us, the viewers, that each character can grow; something that I feel a lot of Disney films lack where it’s only one character that changes by the end of the film.

There is also something geared for both genders; we see the sugary, bright and slightly girly looking world of Sugar Rush where the main character is a girl. Yet, we see two male role models who also learn and teach throughout.

Then there is the added aspect of it appealing for me as a dad and as an adult.

Although Ralph and Co are brand new characters introduced for the purpose of the game we also see all of our all favourite good and bad game characters from our youth. Packman, Sonic, Zangief, Zombies and more; watching and looking at something that I enjoyed as a child meant that it could unleash my inner child.

Overall it is just a great film that is presented brilliantly by Disney and is unlike so many of what we might expect as typical Disney Format.

So the question then is: Does Wreck it Ralph, through unleashing my inner child, allow that child to be a Disney fan?

What do you think?