RALPH BREAKS THE INTERNET

It might not have occurred to you before, but the internet was actually the perfect next step for Ralph to break... I mean, take. The first instalment had the nostalgia factor - so for a sequel, what better is there than introducing the old school to the new school? However, this flick has arrived years too late (a disadvantage common to animation) and it’s already been done before with everyone’s favourite 2017 flick ‘The Emoji Movie’. Damn it, facetiousness is so had to convey in writing. So Ralph and Vanellope venture through the interweb and once they get there, everything you think is going to happen happens. This movie practically writes itself. Again, not really. This cliché-fest in courtesy of director Phil Johnston (‘Zootopia’) and co-writer Pamela Ribon (‘Smurfs: The Lost Village’). Yes, viral videos are a thing and often banal. The comment section is nasty and for pervs, trolls and assholes. Viruses are still a thing. Pop-up ads are irritating but mostly ignored, and the Google search predictive text can be both amusing and annoying. If you’re going to hold a mirror up to humanity’s online social habits that’s one thing, but to instead just walk along side them pointing, there’s a word for that, it’s duh! There’s also an emoji - it’s the one of the person smacking their own forehead.

Look, praise be to the strong female characters, but not so much to the recycled “finding yourself” theme of the first ‘Wreck-It Ralph’. I appreciated the comment on friendships too and I hope kids watching will absorb it for later internal reference, but as a humble adult viewer, honestly, I just wanted to see more Felix (Jack McBrayer) and his dynamite gal Calhoun (Jane Lynch). It was all just too similar to the first film when you boil it all down, but this time in a redundant setting. There are some laughs and the animation is just as great as the first film, but no new ground is covered and it comes off as painfully average... and about 20 minutes too long. Lift your game Disney, you’re better than this.