Wreck-It Ralph has taken responsibility for the crash of Instagram and YouTube early last month. In light of the already aggressive online promotions for the movie’s second installment, Disney Philippines was keen on taking advantage of these unexpected events as they released online posters announcing Ralph “breaking” Instagram and YouTube. Fortunately for them, it received a ton of praise from various online users.
Five years after the first movie, Ralphs Breaks the Internet welcomes us back to the familiar surroundings of the arcade we were all interested to discover and leads us to an immense world: the Internet, which is more familiar to today’s generation.
The Ralph-Vanellope duo has been cemented since their last misadventure. However, in this new quest, Ralph’s hard-earned “You’re my hero” medal is in danger. As they travel through WiFi, the pair enters a world distinct from any arcade game they have hopped into so far. They aren’t the only ones in it, though.
Similar to Disney-Pixar movie Inside Out that visualized a thorough world in our heads, Ralph Breaks the Internet showcases the digital world we succumb to daily. Much of the movie walks us through common occurrences we encounter as Internet users except that here, Ralph and Vanellope take our place.
Ralph Breaks the Internet is told with wit and humor. If in the real world, speed is measured via kilometers per hour (kph); cars on the Internet accelerate via megabits per second (mbps). Information counters are replaced by search counters (in the movie, searches are powered by Knowsmore) where Internet avatars declare their queries. Pop-up advertisements are embodied by characters that nag you while in line for ebay checkout. Viruses that feed on insecurities and spreads it can be bought in an underground black market.
Introducing an entirely new world outside the arcade also means having a new set of characters. The most awaited scene perhaps is that of Vanellope’s encounter with the Disney princesses. In the dressing room, the royals await the next user who will take the “Which Disney Princess are you?” quiz when she stumbles into their room trying to escape the Stormtroopers.
Aside from the princesses, the character of Gal Gadot is also anticipated by many. She plays a street racer named “Shank” in a video game called Slaughter Race and whom Vanellopee, a racer herself, grows fond of.
Ralph Breaks the Internet takes us on an adventure in a place we thought we are already too familiar with. Here, the Internet is re-imagined to a fun, exciting, and realistic realm on which an entire community is built on.
Ralph Breaks the Internet opens in cinemas on November 21 nationwide.
