Full-Blown Video Game Nostalgia!

Rating: 10/10 (8 December 2012)

When I first heard of this movie at a few film conventions/expos, it piqued my interest. When I did, I was dazzled and drooling in 80s/90s video game nostalgia when I saw several familiar video game characters of different companies cameo in of all places a Disney animated feature! Sonic, Paperboy, and even a few Street Fighter characters (I could go on forever about those...)
The plot happened to be both intriguing and worth pondering over a few times. Why? Because the idea of an 80s video game "bad guy" called Ralph trying to redeem himself as a "good" guy sounds familiar from previous animated films. I mean, he can cross into any game he wants within a local arcade, trying to find a new perspective in life. Feels like "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" (the theme of different franchises crossing together and a somewhat similar subplot) meets "Toy Story" (characters that have a 'job' to amuse kids and are independent when no one is around).
Upon Ralph's meeting of a young girl called Vanellope Von Schweetz in a kart-racing game titled 'Sugar Rush,' it brought out the true emotional tone of the entire film, in my opinion. The pint-sized, 9-year-old sure has a lot of spunk on being a great racer, but the 'brother-sister' relationship between her and Ralph seems to have developed into the big focus.
As a small boy back in those glory days of gaming, 8-bit/16-bit games were my favorite past time. Now as an adult, it felt like reliving childhood all over again. These days, video games seems to be more of a guy's thing since there aren't many female gamers (which is why the creation of 'Sugar Rush' was included in the film's premise to balance that). The handful of video game character cameos don't intervene or overshadow the movie's premise. Ralph may not tread millions of miles away from Shrek (as they are characters that are usually feared or resented by others, but deep down they are misunderstood figures that only want to be accepted well in society), but Ralph is a likable big guy that has empathy underneath his destructive nature.