Photo: Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
After the success of the original Wreck-It Ralph film nobody was too surprised to learn that a sequel was on its way. The teaser trailer for that sequel is here now, but what is surprising is the direction it seems to be taking its lovable bad-guy-turned-hero:
That’s right, in Wreck-It Ralph Breaks The Internet: Wreck-It Ralph 2, Ralph and Vanellope won’t be constrained to arcade machines anymore. Most people probably expected a sequel to tackle the issue of console games and this change of direction may catch fans of the first film off-guard. Instead, they’re headed to the world wide web to muck about across the entire online sphere, which opens up a plethora of possibilities for the duo.
Right off the bat, memes. Once the concept of Ralph and Vanellope going online to find something to fix Sugar Rush with was revealed, people immediately jumped on the idea that they would both come into contact with memes since they’re such a big part of Internet culture. This may make some viewers wary. After all, memes have a tendency to be repeated to the point of not being funny anymore, and as such they become outdated quickly. Luckily, the trailer sheds some light on the fact that Ralph Breaks The Internet will not simply be regurgitating memes, but using them for clever commentary. Ralph and Vanellope do come across a painting of a cute kitten for example, but rather than the joke ending there, the usual reaction is turned on its head when the two heroes become confused and mildly frightened by this obsession with cats. This speaks to good writing and greater themes, both of which the original film strived for.
What’s more, the creators have commented on their intentions as a supplement to the trailer, and they sound reasonable. Not only have they been revising the script to stay up to date so that they don’t refer to dead memes, they also appear to be telling a story about more than just random Internet fads. As co-director Phil Johnston said, “It was a huge challenge and something we talked about from the very beginning — what on the Internet is going to be relevant when this movie comes out in 2018?” Speaking to questions of self-worth seems to be a major goal of the film. “…there are themes about self-esteem and insecurity that I think maybe aren’t common in kids’ movies.” This is great because the best animated features tend to be about something important rather than simply using a concept superficially.
Lastly, we can see from this teaser that video games have not been entirely abandoned. The root subculture of the original Wreck-It Ralph movie is still present, but this time with a leaning towards online mobile games. This is demonstrated with a hilarious bit about a children’s sorting game that also shows off the presence of a dark sense of humor that will likely be a hit with adults as well as the target kid demographic.
So overall, Ralph Breaks The Internet is surprising in some ways but it also appears promising. All of the elements of a hit are there, and now all that remains is a waiting game to see how they come together in the finished product. Our prediction? A high score.
