2021
PG
director: Sarah Smith and Jean Phillipe Divine.
Starring: Jack Dylan Grazer, Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms, Olivia Colman, Rob Delaney, Justice Smith, Kylie Cantrall, Ricardo Hurtado etc
The story of Barney, an awkward middle-schooler and Ron, his new walking, talking, digitally connected device. Ron's malfunctions set against the backdrop of the social media age launch them on a journey to learn about true friendship. Ron's gone wrong was ok and fine for what it was.
My first few positives would be the strong animation and set up. As well as the great worldbuilding and interesting elements. Also, the likeable characters, humour, and interesting family dynamic. The film was visually stunning with a rich storyworld and aesthetically pleasing set locations, also with impressive animation for the characters that looked realistic but also unique to some other animations. I also thought the set-up of introducing the B bots and what their function were intrigued me and was a strong start to the film. The worldbuilding itself was also strong, with the film going into great amounts of details about the b bots and their function and building and expanding on the world with the character or Ron, it had layers to it and didn't feel one dimensional so was always invested in the world the characters were in. I also thought the characters were very likeable. Barney had this loveable charm to him as a character and he was easy to sympathise and connect with and I feel like his character can be relatable to a lot of people watching. Especially younger kids who perhaps feel the same as his character. I also loved the family dynamic. Him losing his mother and never building the relationship with his dad gave some interesting themes and depth, and the comedic chemistry with the grandmother was always fun to watch. The films humour especially with the grandmother and the weird and wonderful situations Barney got into with Ron got some good laughs.
My first few negatives are the generic plot elements. The repetitive humour and forced dialogue. As well as the pacing issues. The film recycled a lot of plot points and themes from other movies and this kind of movie has been done before and done better. A film like the Mitchell's vs the machines comes to mind. I also thought not all the humour landed. The film was inconsistent and went very repetitive with some of the jokes. They lost their impact after a certain number of times and it became slightly tedious and annoying hearing the same joke multiple times. I also thought a lot of the dialogue felt very corny and forced. Particularly with a lot of the characters and how they interact with Barney. It just felt very unrealistic and generic with why the kids were being mean to him and the dialogue shined a light on this. I also thought the pacing was very messy. The film was too chaotic and was moving at such a fast pace but with a surprising lack of plot. So, it missed opportunities for more depth as it constantly wanted to move onto new things and just threw everything at you, so it lacked focus.
My final few positives would be the strong themes and charming tone. As well as the chemistry between the characters and heart-warming moments. And the villain was strong with an entertaining and uplifting final act. I think the themes on friendship and family, as well as making relationships in the real world and not creating a fake version of yourself was strong and very important. This film also had a very charming tone, the chemistry and friendship between Ron and Barney was very sweet as they grew their friendship and they both learned from each other, and it was a heart-warming highlight of the film. They both had such a great chemistry with each other and as Ron learned more about Barney the more emotionally connected Barney felt to something as he grew to accept himself. I also thought the villain was strong, the themes that the villain helped highlight were strong. Highlighting the need for security and controlled screen time especially when they are kids, and how horrible the villain was with the invasion of the kid's privacy helped to highlight this. Finally, I thought the final act was uplifting and entertaining. The final act was the strongest part of the film for me. It was heart-warming with Barney finally feeling accepted and his arc with his family was very touching and well done. It was entertaining and visually stunning and offered a great message that ended the film on a high note.
My final few negatives would be the lack of development and stakes. As well as the odd character decisions. For me the film really lacked any plot or development for a good chunk of the run time. It felt like it was more of a series repetitive plot points that weren't going anywhere. And with a lack of a strong villain until the second half, for a while the film just wasn't going anywhere. This impacted the pacing and the quality of the writing. There was also just a complete lack of stakes, there was no real sense of danger for a large portion of the film, it felt like it wasn't challenging itself or the characters enough, therefore limiting the amount of development the plot and characters could have. I also thought that there were some odd creative decisions with the characters. I found it very strange that the film spent so long having characters like Savannah and Rich bully Barney for so long, only for them to suddenly be friends with him, it just felt very odd and I found it hard to believe the characters would change their point of view on each other so quickly.
Overall, Ron's gone wrong has strong animation, A loveable lead duo. And raises some good themes, its heart was in the right place. But the thinly written and recycled plot as well as a general feeling of playing it too safe impacted my enjoyment considerably. It was serviceable and families will enjoy it, but I don't think I will be watching it again.
Overall rating 62/100.
Starring: Jack Dylan Grazer, Zach Galifianakis, Ed Helms, Olivia Colman, Rob Delaney, Justice Smith, Kylie Cantrall, Ricardo Hurtado etc
The story of Barney, an awkward middle-schooler and Ron, his new walking, talking, digitally connected device. Ron's malfunctions set against the backdrop of the social media age launch them on a journey to learn about true friendship. Ron's gone wrong was ok and fine for what it was.
My first few positives would be the strong animation and set up. As well as the great worldbuilding and interesting elements. Also, the likeable characters, humour, and interesting family dynamic. The film was visually stunning with a rich storyworld and aesthetically pleasing set locations, also with impressive animation for the characters that looked realistic but also unique to some other animations. I also thought the set-up of introducing the B bots and what their function were intrigued me and was a strong start to the film. The worldbuilding itself was also strong, with the film going into great amounts of details about the b bots and their function and building and expanding on the world with the character or Ron, it had layers to it and didn't feel one dimensional so was always invested in the world the characters were in. I also thought the characters were very likeable. Barney had this loveable charm to him as a character and he was easy to sympathise and connect with and I feel like his character can be relatable to a lot of people watching. Especially younger kids who perhaps feel the same as his character. I also loved the family dynamic. Him losing his mother and never building the relationship with his dad gave some interesting themes and depth, and the comedic chemistry with the grandmother was always fun to watch. The films humour especially with the grandmother and the weird and wonderful situations Barney got into with Ron got some good laughs.
My first few negatives are the generic plot elements. The repetitive humour and forced dialogue. As well as the pacing issues. The film recycled a lot of plot points and themes from other movies and this kind of movie has been done before and done better. A film like the Mitchell's vs the machines comes to mind. I also thought not all the humour landed. The film was inconsistent and went very repetitive with some of the jokes. They lost their impact after a certain number of times and it became slightly tedious and annoying hearing the same joke multiple times. I also thought a lot of the dialogue felt very corny and forced. Particularly with a lot of the characters and how they interact with Barney. It just felt very unrealistic and generic with why the kids were being mean to him and the dialogue shined a light on this. I also thought the pacing was very messy. The film was too chaotic and was moving at such a fast pace but with a surprising lack of plot. So, it missed opportunities for more depth as it constantly wanted to move onto new things and just threw everything at you, so it lacked focus.
My final few positives would be the strong themes and charming tone. As well as the chemistry between the characters and heart-warming moments. And the villain was strong with an entertaining and uplifting final act. I think the themes on friendship and family, as well as making relationships in the real world and not creating a fake version of yourself was strong and very important. This film also had a very charming tone, the chemistry and friendship between Ron and Barney was very sweet as they grew their friendship and they both learned from each other, and it was a heart-warming highlight of the film. They both had such a great chemistry with each other and as Ron learned more about Barney the more emotionally connected Barney felt to something as he grew to accept himself. I also thought the villain was strong, the themes that the villain helped highlight were strong. Highlighting the need for security and controlled screen time especially when they are kids, and how horrible the villain was with the invasion of the kid's privacy helped to highlight this. Finally, I thought the final act was uplifting and entertaining. The final act was the strongest part of the film for me. It was heart-warming with Barney finally feeling accepted and his arc with his family was very touching and well done. It was entertaining and visually stunning and offered a great message that ended the film on a high note.
My final few negatives would be the lack of development and stakes. As well as the odd character decisions. For me the film really lacked any plot or development for a good chunk of the run time. It felt like it was more of a series repetitive plot points that weren't going anywhere. And with a lack of a strong villain until the second half, for a while the film just wasn't going anywhere. This impacted the pacing and the quality of the writing. There was also just a complete lack of stakes, there was no real sense of danger for a large portion of the film, it felt like it wasn't challenging itself or the characters enough, therefore limiting the amount of development the plot and characters could have. I also thought that there were some odd creative decisions with the characters. I found it very strange that the film spent so long having characters like Savannah and Rich bully Barney for so long, only for them to suddenly be friends with him, it just felt very odd and I found it hard to believe the characters would change their point of view on each other so quickly.
Overall, Ron's gone wrong has strong animation, A loveable lead duo. And raises some good themes, its heart was in the right place. But the thinly written and recycled plot as well as a general feeling of playing it too safe impacted my enjoyment considerably. It was serviceable and families will enjoy it, but I don't think I will be watching it again.
Overall rating 62/100.