Six years after Wreck-it Ralph introduced us to the world of Litwak's Arcade, Ralph Breaks The Internet brings our friends Ralph and Vanellope into the world of, where else, the internet! Much like its predecessor, this new adventure looks visually lush, with action and sight gags to spare. It also looks like it could be a 3D treasure, which prompts us to ask the question on everyone's mind: to 3D, or not to 3D?
If you're looking for our official review of the film, that's in the article next door. But if you're looking for our 3D evaluation on whether you should spend some extra movie money on a potential three dimensional thrill ride, or if you'd be better off sinking those quarters in a game of Q*Bert, you've come to the right place. With that in mind, let's see if Ralph Breaks The Internet keeps its thrills in tact in the realm of 3D!
How do you not contemplate bringing a computer animated film like Ralph Breaks The Internet into the 3D space? With the ability to manipulate an image in such a way that it can be bent into a perfect visual feast, the decision is easy. Not to mention, with Wreck-it Ralph being presented as a 3D converted film itself, the franchise has a history in the world of the third dimension.
Considering the result of Ralph Breaks The Internet's 3D conversion, it's clear there's a fair amount of love given to the process that made it happen. A couple of factors find themselves ranking in just below perfect, as the common problem of brightness levels rears its head yet again. As such, the planning and effort factor for this film is just shy of being tip top, but definitely far from mediocre.
Ever wanted to see parts from an exploding street racer fly at your face? Maybe some pop up ads that look like they're popping up from the screen? Well, you get both and then some in Ralph Breaks The Internet. The before the window factor is used to great effect, as there's a consistent level of impressive 3D magic coming off the screen. While this effect isn't used constantly in the film's presentation, there's still a lot of hands to shake and objects to flinch from in your 3D experience.
An equally hard aspect to crack when it comes to the proper 3D conversion is, of course, the sense of depth to the picture you're watching. You can see how good a film's 3D depth perception is, not only in how deep the background feels, but also how well the characters are spaced out from those backgrounds, as well as each other. Ralph Breaks The Internet exceeds on both fronts, as characters are separated from objects and the environments they inhabit with a healthy degree of spatial reasoning. But more impressively, the film's depth of picture is worthy of the internet, as there's a lot of space in the background for action to take place.
If you've been on the 3D hype train for Ralph Breaks The Internet, it's unfortunately time to pump those brakes. As per usual with the world of grey and black glasses, there's a bit of a dimming factor that's added to the picture you're watching in the theater. As such, depending on how your theater maintains their projector and equipment between 2D and 3D showings, your mileage may vary on how bright the picture comes out. In the case of the Ralph Breaks The Internet showing used for this evaluation, the picture was rather dimmed, which wreaks havoc on even the brightest of images.
If you were to lift up your glasses during a 3D showing of Ralph Breaks The Internet, you would notice that the image is blurred to a certain degree. That's because the blur of the image is supposed to indicate how much the image has been manipulated into a 3D image. With Disney's latest 3D spectacular, the blurring is fairly present in all aspects of the film. Only a couple of scenes here and there have aspects that look fully 2D, though that's more than likely to anchor the picture down. But overall, it's a pretty blurred picture from start to finish.
Watching Ralph Breaks The Internet isn't a taxing affair on the eyes, which is always a blessing when it comes to 3D theatrical experiences. The action is shown in such a way that it doesn't scramble your eyes, and for the most part, it's pretty easy for the audience to enjoy the film in a long form 3D presentation. With the only problem being potential eye strain due to the darker quality of the 3D image, everything else seems to fall into line.
Ralph Breaks The Internet doesn't break its 3D presentation, outside of some problems involving the brightness factor of the picture. Besides that one particular field, the rest of the visuals are linked with a third dimensional cohesion that makes for a beautiful journey into the digital world of our favorite game characters. Even in a dimmed presentation, the impressive nature of the film's conversion can still be felt as strong as ever. Though if you know of a particular theater that maintains its equipment to the highest order, then it's highly recommended that you see this film in 3D.
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