Ralph Breaks the Internet - Blu-ray Review

[Michael Scott]

Ralph Breaks the Internet

Movie:
Video:
Audio:
Extras:
Final Score: ​

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Movie
2013’s Wreck-It Ralph was that years Lego Movie for this reviewer. It had the bright and shiny animation for the kid, an awesomely fun storyline, and a theme song that...just...won’t….get...out….of...your...head! (“Sugar Rush” and “Everything is Awesome” are literally two of the most insanely unforgettable movie theme songs of the last decade). With John Lasseter pushing hard for sequels these days (I mean, we FINALLY got an Incredibles 2) it was inevitable for Wreck-it Ralph to get one as well, although with a much shorter lag time between films than, say, Incredibles 2. This time the result is a bit weaker in some ways, but also a more deep and introspective film than the original. Instead of being poppy and upbeat, it has some serious themes at play in regards to letting go of the past and moving on with the future that have you look into the film a bit more seriously. But with Gal Gadot stealing every scene she’s in and a whole bevy of winks and nods at the hilarity that “the internet”, Ralph Steals the Internet makes for a fun family ride nonetheless.

Ralph (John C. Reilly) and Venellope (Sarah Silverman) have been living in peace ever since the craziness of defeating King Candy in her game “Sugar Rush”. Ralph is at peace with his bad guy role in life, and has been generally accepted by the rest of the games as well. Venellope is princess of Sugar Rush and one THE most popular characters ever played, that is until she gets a bit bored with her tracks and Ralph decides to go into Sugar Rush and give her a “new” addition to her track. A move when ends up causing one of the kids to break the steering console on the physical game. While it may seem like a simple thing to fix, “Sugar Rush” has been out of production for years now, and old Mr. Litwak (Ed O’Neill) is forced to unplug the game for impending retirement since the only way to get a new controller is on Ebay.

Desperate to save his friend’s game, Ralph and Venellope set out through the wonderful world of WiFi (a newly installed device) to search the internet for this fabled “Ebay”. Outside of their little world of Mr. Litwak’s arcade, Ralph and Venelope open up a WHOLE new world. They find their wish at Ebay, but due to Ralph and Venellope’s lack of knowledge on how bidding works, they bid up to a whopping $27,001 for the steering wheel. With nothing left to lose, Ralph sets out on a quest to become as obnoxious and annoying as possible on the infamous “Buzztube” (yeah, we see you YouTube) in order to harvest likes and turn them into advertising cash to pay for their auction, leaving Venellope alone to rethink her life in the arcade.

After running into the flamboyant “Shank” (Gal Gadot) in the popular online racing game “Slaughter Race”, the princess sees a whole new world in front of her. A world of races, danger, and something MORE than what she has back at the arcade. Finding a home there, Venellope figures out a way to tell Ralph that she wants to stay, only to have Ralph stumble upon her plans, unleashing his insecurities in a complete destructive manner that LITERALLY is prepped to break the internet with a custom virus.

Ralph Breaks the Internet is a solid film, and one that is actually a good bit deeper and more serious than it’s predecessor, but also one that loses just a little bit of that spark of fun that the first one had. I LOOOOVED Wreck-it Ralph when it came out, and have watched it countless times as a great uplifting story. Ralph busting up the internet continues on with Ralph and Venellope’s saga in a way that is completely natural, but has some trouble in the 2nd act. I absolutely loved the idea of making this a more serious drama about moving on, and the concept of lampooning all of the stupidity and moronic online behavior is actually pretty hilarious (light years ahead of that abomination The Emoji Movie from a few years back), but it has a few flaws. The biggest being the ending of the film being a lackluster climax. It’s your typical “talk some giant monster down” situation that just falls flat considering how fun the rest of the movie generally was. The other is that the second act drags a bit with the introduction of the virus and Venellope’s big life crisis. It just feels like they handled it too quickly and the typical happy ending didn’t deserve it’s resolution.

However, the parts that are really fun, are REALLY funny and good. Gal Gadot literally steals every scene she’s in as Shank from “Slaughter Race”. She’s funny, charming and completely endearing with her conversation with Venellope. Ralph is spot on goofy as always, but the scenes with the Disney Princesses (whose claim to fame was literally having about ALL of the original voice actresses going back almost 50 years playing their characters again) were just above and beyond anything else in the movie. I was laughing so hard I almost cried (and there were some pretty wicked jabs at Disney in there as well).




Rating:

Rated PG for some action and rude humor




Video:

One thing that Disney doesn’t skimp on in their Blu-ray and 4K UHD releases is the video quality. Shot on 35mm film and then transferred to an unknown (at least from what I could find out) master, Ralph Breaks the Internet is gorgeous animated eye candy. Bright shiny colors, vibrant scenarios ranging from the bright yellows and oranges of “Slaughter Race”, to the bubbly bright blues and pinks of the Disney Princess lounge, all are just picture perfect. Blacks are deep and inky, and the fine detailing of the CGI is perfect. I did notice some mild artifacting in some low light level scenes as well as some soft shots in the WiFi internet world, but this is generally a stunning looking encode.




Audio:

Once again Disney’s audio mixers are back to delivering us a slightly muted presentation of the film’s audio track. The 7.1 DTS-HD MA mix is recorded about 5 DB’s below normal levels (the Atmos track for the 4K UHD disc is supposedly a bit better in this regards), and feels a bit flat at times. However, it’s still a more than acceptable sound mixing and comes with some great use of the LFE channel during the chase sequences (sometimes cooked REALLY hot, which is surprising as most Disney titles that have the lower ambient volume have neutered LFE levels as well). Dialog is really clean and clear, and the surrounds are used quite actively throughout the flick (especially during the “Slaughter Race” races and the end battle with the giant Ralph). It’s a good track, but has been “Disneyfied” as have most tracks coming from the Mouse House and Marvel in recent years.








Extras:

• How We Broke the Internet –Go behind the scenes at Walt Disney Animation Studios to get an in-depth look at how the filmmakers brought a world to life that billions of people visit every day but never actually see – the internet. Take a front-row seat as the team reveals the inspirations for the story and what it took to bring it to the screen. Discover all that went into developing the characters of the film including netizens like KnowsMore as well as characters like Double Dan. See the lengths the team took to create the car chase scenes in Slaughter Race and much, much more.
• Surfing for Easter Eggs – Surf the web for the near-countless Easter Eggs, inside jokes and references hidden throughout the movie.
• The Music of Ralph Breaks the Internet – Take a look at the music of Ralph Breaks the Internet with appearances by Imagine Dragons, Julia Michaels, Alan Menken, Sarah Silverman and more.
• Deleted Scenes – Five deleted scenes with intros from directors Rich Moore and Phil Johnston. Scenes include Into the Internet, Opposites, Domestic Hell, Bubble of One & Recruiting "Grandma."
• BuzzzTube Cats – Many videos were created by the animators to fill the screens of the Internet world…and lots of them are of cats! Check out the BuzzzTube to watch this hilarious cat compilation.
• Music Videos – "Zero" by Imagine Dragons and "In This Place" by Julia Michaels.
• Baby Drivers – Slaughter Racing School – Take a spin behind the wheel with the artists behind Ralph Breaks the Internet as they go to race car driving school. (Digital Exclusive)

Final Score: ​

It’s not a perfect movie, but Ralph Breaks the Internet is a very solid sequel to 2013’s Wreck-it Ralph, and explores some more modern tropes (instead of the 80s and 90s tropes from the first movie), including the stupidity of social media, as well as friends having to learn to move on with life while still being friends. The climax is a bit weak, but this is still a fun watch by any stretch of the imagination and works well in tandem with the 2013 film. The video is fantastic and the audio solid, making this is a very pleasing pickup for Disney fans everywhere.



Technical Specifications:

Starring: John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Bill Hader, Gal Gadot, Taraji P. Henson, Ed O'Neill, Jack McBrayer, Jane Lynch, Alan Tudyk, Alfred Molina
Directed by: Phil Johnston, Rich Moore
Written by: Phil Johnston, Pamela Ribon
Aspect Ratio: 2.39:1 AVC
Audio: English: DTS-HD MA 7.1, Spanish , French DD 5.1
Subtitles: English, English SDH, French, Spanish
Studio: Disney/Buena Vista
Rated: PG
Runtime: 112 Minutes
Blu-ray Release Date: February 26th, 2019

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• Michael Scott
• May 11, 2017

Recommendation: Fun Watch

 

[tripplej]

Thanks for the review. I saw the first one in the theater. Great movie. Will check this one out as well.

 

[Asere]

Thanks for the review I will definitely see this one.

 

[Tonto]

Great review Michael, just won this in the giveaway, can’t wait to see it!

 

[Todd Anderson]

Another muted audio presentation. I don't get it... this one should be as electric as purity and cleanliness of the video.

 

[Michael Scott]

It's been a frustration for Disney/Marvel fans for the last 3-5 years at least for some reason. Ant Man & The Wasp is one of the FEW recent films that this pattern hasn't followed (it was a really really good mix for once)

 

[jdubs75]

Thanks you Michael Why??? Why??? Why???......... when this could be so much fun!!!!!!

 

[Todd Anderson]

I guess we're living in the earbud era. Perhaps the end mix only of concern to a sliver of consumers... and Disney knows it???

 

[NBPK402]

Thanks for another great review... I will be picking this one up too.

 

[Asere]

Saw this one with the family this weekend. It was just as fun as the first one. (although I haven't seen all of the first one haha)