And here we are for yet another installment of DADDY’S FUN TIME SUPER TIME DISNEY HAPPY NIGHT. And for this one, we have a movie that I actually toyed with leaving off the list. And how wrong I was. But we will get to that later.
For this night, we did Wreck-It Ralph. On account of I’M GUNNA WRECK IT!
Sorry, I really don’t know what that “on account of” actually means. But let’s all pretend it makes sense so we can move on.
For this night, we had some company. Steph and Mikey joined us. As per usual, it was Saturday and well…I mean. Steph. Right?
On with the night….
The food
So in the movie, they are always giving Fix-It Felix pies, right? So for this meal, it was all about the pie. We had chicken pot pie for the main course followed by apple pie for dessert.
We also had a bit of a nod to Vanellope as well with our Sugar Rush tower of amazepantzness. Candy candy candy.
The activity
We actually participated in a couple activities for this one. I mean, obviously we had to play some video games. Santa hooked the kids up with a PS4 this year so it was pretty much all Battlefront. On account of Star Wars is one of my favorite things ever. I mean, the kids. One of the kids’ favorite things ever. It’s all about the kids.
But the other activity? We played Pie Face. Or as Nickie likes to call it, “The game called the Pie in the Face Game.” Remember? The pies? And we have some pretty super pictures to prove it.
The movie
I feel like Wreck-It-Ralph doesn’t show up on many “favorite Disney” lists. In fact, I even wrestled with putting it on mine. It basically came down to Ralph vs. Rapunzel as this was almost taken off the list to let Tangled in. But after watching it again for this Disney Night, I am definitely glad I left it on. What a great movie this is. From concept to execution, it’s pretty awesome in every way.
The story is so original and fresh first of all. It’s one reason I am glad I left this one on the list. While I do love Tangled, it’s nice to have something so not another princess movie (even though, of course, I love me some princess movies.) Set within the world of video games and amidst the characters that inhabit them, it’s a pretty different movie for Disney. And the interaction between the characters alone is worth the price of admission. Seeing a Pac-Man ghost sitting alongside Dr. Eggman, Master Bison and Bowser at a Bad-Anon meeting just sort of reminds me of the childhood joy I would get from making Skeletor and Darth Vader team up to defeat Batman and GI Joe in my Jabba’s Palace playset. You see, what happened is Batman was actually heading to the palace to see if they had any sugar as he was baking a…wait, I’ve said too much.
Annnnnyways….
And that’s not even touching on the main characters. Both Jack McBrayer and Jane Lynch definitely add to the cast as Fix-It Felix and Sergeant Calhoun. But it’s really Ralph and Vanellope that MAKE this movie. They seamlessly combine the comedic and sweet and teeter between the two the entire movie. They are pretty hilarious. I mean, John C. Reilly and Sarah Silverman. So. Ya know. When Ralph yells, “I love my mama!” I lol every time. Also, when he calls Sugar Rush a “candy-coated heart of darkness?” Poetry.
And Vanellope? Forget it. She is like awesome line after awesome line. Major Body Odor? Heh…come on chumbo!
But beyond the humor, there is so much more here. So yeah, I cry. At least twice at this movie. When Ralph breaks Vanellope’s car and Vanellope is just hanging there crying and she tells Ralph he really is a bad guy?
And when Ralph then comes and apologizes and Vanellope forgives him?
Oy and when Vanellope is trying to convince Ralph to stay in Sugar Rush by telling how he can stay and no one will make fun of him and…
OK, maybe three times. There might be more.
And I mean the personal journeys of both Ralph and Vanellope as they go from being unfulfilled with their station in life to being the best thems they can be is really what drives the awesomeness of this movie. I think we can all relate to at one point in our lives wanting to be someone else. Something we see as more. As better. Wanting to be skinnier. Smarter. Richer. We have all been there. The problem is there will always be an “er.” Part of being truly happy is accepting the person you are and being the best “you” you can be. We all have things that make us unique. And just as Ralph understands being a bad guy is actually a pretty important piece of his game and Vanellope comes to realize that glitching can make her the racer she wants to be, figuring out how to make the most of these unique pieces of us may be the things that help us excel. We all need to embrace our inner Ralph.
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