I had no idea what to expect for this film. My initial judgements were completely wrong. I expected it to be a childish movie about video games, however it surprised me instead. Here are some main things that I picked up on throughout the movie.
The first line of the movie is "My name's Ralph, and I'm a bad guy." What does it say about villainy if the first person introduced is the bad guy, and the first thing he says identifies himself as this. Obviously, he is very self aware, but this makes sense because video games run on the thought that there is a bad and a good guy. He also acknowledges that bad guys never get the medal. By this, I think it's saying that Ralph never gets the recognition he deserves for being such a crucial part of the game. In fact, Ralph really does want to be a good guy, but he just cannot escape his fate. As someone in the bad guys anonymous group says, "We can't change who we are."
In contrast, the "good guys" in the movie are partying and living the life in a penthouse. They show wealth and laughter while Ralph is sad and living in a dump. This is a actually very different from what we observe in other movies. It seems that in other movies the villains are bad because it helps them live a more lavish life, however this is not the case for Ralph. Also, the good guys do not think that Ralph can fit in with their good guy group. In fact, they do not even give him a chance. By excluding him, aren't the "good guys" actually the villains?
Once Ralph leaves to go win a medal somehow, the game is shut down and the good guys realize that they actually do need him. He was undervalued. The same is for the girl with the glitch in the Sugarland game. The people in the game will not allow her to be like them, although that is all she wants (similar to Ralph). However, at the end of the movie, her peers realize how valuable she actually is to the game and to the program. Eventually, this is the fate for Ralph as well.
To me, it is interesting that the bad guys are the ones who are accepting. They are the ones who are forming groups to help each other accept who they are, whereas the good guys are exclusive and boast about themselves.
When the glitch girl gave Ralph her homemade medal declaring him a hero, I cried. I also cried when he sacrifices himself for her. I'm clearly a crier, but there is something about him finally getting recognition for the person that he wants to be that was so redemptive. He learns to live his life with the same job as before, but with a different outlook. Also, he is now accepted. This movie sheds light on the importance of acceptance in this world.
On a last side note, this movie is almost funnier for older kids than younger kids. There are so many play on words included in the movie that I even found myself laughing out loud during it. This is similar to Pixar movies, so I wonder what that says about Disney's new section.
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