12 Days of Christmas Activity – Watch Ralph Breaks the Internet
Our family loves to take in movies during the holidays. We have a lot of us, so we tend to go to matinees and pick our movies carefully. If you haven’t seen it yet, a fun family activity would be to watch Ralph Breaks the Internet.
What We Knew Going In
We knew from multiple trailers Sugar Rush gets broken, WiFi gets plugged in, and Ralph and Vanellope leave the surge station to go the internet. Some trailers show them buy something on eBay and needing to pay for it. They encounter a racing game and lots of new characters and go to the Oh My Disney website.
One of the trailers has Vanellope encountering all the Disney Princesses and she tells them she’s a princess too. They proceed to question her about what kind of princess is she. Rapunzel asks her if everyone assumes all her problems got solved because a “big, strong man showed up.” Vanellope replies yes and they all agree she is indeed a princess.
To be perfectly honest the exchange with the princesses had us both laughing and worried. It seems Disney was doing a bit of poking fun of themselves, but at the same time, we’ve seen an increased trend in male bashing in movies. We do not personally buy into the idea of making fun of someone else to make yourself seem better. Women can own their power without having to make men look like baboons or fools.
Who Went
We actually took our family and my brother-in-law’s family over the Thanksgiving break. There were 14 of us in total. (My two eldest are at college and were closer to family in another state). Our age ranges were from parent, to 17.5 year-old to four.
Our Thoughts
We really loved the movie. It was clever (the adults older kids had a great time looking for Easter eggs within the movie) the younger ones enjoyed the action and slapstick. The storyline evolves quickly and focuses on the deeper question of what does it mean to be a friend?
Our worries about the potential male bashing were mostly unfounded. Vanellope shows the princesses they can be relax and be comfortable and they all become friends. The princesses later see Vanellope and Ralph in trouble and use their unique talents together. It was more about helping others and growing.
Adults will see nods to other films like LaLaLand and enjoy the tongue-in-cheek humor.
There is a lot of visual stimuli. We we noticed our younger kids with autism and sensory processing disorder were very active the rest of the day. (Their dad’s also bought popcorn and sodas which I’m sure added to their energy levels).
From my 17 year-old ASD:
“It’s a good movie. I’d watch it again. Some people think it’s not a great sequel, but I thought there was some good characters and I’d even buy the movie.”
From my 11 year-old ASD:
“I really liked it except the end. I thought they would take a different approach to defeating the villian.”
From my 6.5 year-old SPD:
“I really liked it and I really want to get it. [buy it when it goes to DVD]”
Discussion Points
- The conflicts in the movie can provide good discussion starting points on friendship. What does it mean to be a friend?
- How should friend help each other?
- Do friends have to like the exact same thing?
- What are ways we can respond when a friend might move towards a new dream?
- Do you think Ralph was feeling jealous?
- What do you think about how he handled his jealousy?
- Have you gotten jealous before?
- How did you handle it?
Wrapping it Up
Overall we found “Ralph Breaks the Internet” a fun family movie with something that appeals to all ages. The plot line provides discussion points for parents and children.
And lastly I have to tell you the mid-credit and post-credit scenes had me laughing. A lot. I think they are some of the more clever add-on scenes I’ve ever seen. They are definitely worth staying for.
Hope this review helps you. Good luck and see you in the parks!
You Might Be Interested In:
Movie Review- “Ant-Man and the Wasp”
5 Days of Christmas- Day 1: Visiting the Holiday Light Display on Jeater Bend
5 Days of Christmas- Day 3 Disney Lover’s Gift Guide
5 Days of Christmas- Day 4: Peppermint Punch and Chocolate Bundt Cake
5 Days of Christmas- Day 5: Make Sugar Cookies for Santa
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