Have you ever imagined how the World Wide Web would be if it were a real world, like the one that we live in? What if eBay was an auctioneer and spam ads were little people queued up with signboards asking you to tap them? What if Google was a very knowledgeable philosopher, (suffering from over-aggressive auto-fill syndrome)? What if you were a driver in Grand Theft Auto? And … what will the dark side of the internet be like where virus making monsters lurk?

Wreck-It Ralph’s sequel, Ralph Breaks the Internet, makes the World Wide Web come alive as a realm parallel to the real world where gaming characters come to life after the video gaming café, Litwak’s Family Fun Centre & Arcade, closes down for the night.

Fix-It Felix Jr. bad guy Ralph (voiced by John C. Reilly) tries to include a new secret bonus game track in Sugar Rush for the game’s star racer Venellope von Schweetz (voiced by Sarah Silverman), his friend since their earlier debacles, to help her out of her boredom. The resulting conflict between her and the real world player breaks the steering wheel of the game. At this, Mr Litwak (voiced by Edward Leonard O’Neill) is left with no choice but to unplug the game, rendering the game’s characters homeless, since the steering wheel is for 200 dollars on eBay, which he finds too expensive to buy and the company that made Sugar Rush is now defunct.

To save the situation, Ralph travels into the internet, taking Venellope with him where they participate and win in a very high bid at eBay to obtain the wheel, but find out that it is real dollars they have to pay in, hence they also have to earn the money in 24 hours.

Another misadventure follows as the duo first tries to steal Shank’s (voiced by Gal Gadot) car from Slaughter Race and then meet the head algorithm character Yesss (voiced by Taraji P. Henson), who helps Ralph gain views on BuzzzTube, which in turn help him earn money to buy the steering wheel to restore Sugar Rush.

In all of this, Venellope finds a mentor in Shank who is a tough cool gal and an ace racer. She confides about how she has been longing for the excitement that she found in Slaughter Race and that she wants to stay in the game, which Ralph overhears and in fear of being deserted by Venellope, unleashes the Insecurity virus with the help of the underworld netizens of the darknet.

Produced in 3D computer-animated graphics by Walt Disney Animation Studios, Ralph Breaks the Internet is a stellar product of creative and colourful imagination, dotted with intelligent jokes with Disney princesses and a strong storyline full of life lessons that resonates with all of us who belong to the cyberspace generation.

The movie gives a good lesson in overcoming inner struggles — the arch nemesis depicted in the movie — and the importance of communication. It also focuses on the message of letting go versus forcing limitations, which can result in a disastrous relationship for both, and that the bittersweet in life can also lead to happy endings, helping each other realise their potential.

On a scale of 1 to 10, I would rate the movie an easy 9.5, where 10 is ‘Finally! A movie that kept me hooked throughout and was not at all preachy’ and one would be ‘You do not have to waste your time, money and popcorn on this one’.

Published in Dawn, Young World, December 22nd, 2018