Ron’s Gone Wrong; Grade: B-
Ron’s Gone Wrong tells a story of a middle school boy named Barney (Jack Dylan Glazer) whom doesn’t have any friends. The reason being is the old fashion way of making friends is dead and gone, as the new way is to have a Bubble Bot in order to achieve the desire of having friends. With the Bubble Bot not only do you make a friend with your Robot, but the Robot gathers all your personal information to where you can connect and match with people that have the same interests as you. Barney fortunately got a Bubble Bot for his birthday… Unfortunately the Bubble Bot he received is not like the others. The Bubble Bot’s name is Ron (Zach Galifianakis), as Ron actually has a mind of it’s own. Barney must learn how to teach Ron the ways of life, so that way him and Barney can get along and be friends. Witness a story that teaches the ole fashion way of friendship.
Ron’s Gone Wrong is a film that mimics the likes of many films. Including Jexi, Big Hero 6, The Mitchells vs The Machines, and a little bit of Child’s Play as well. Ron’s Gone Wrong basically felt like a film that took jabs at not only today’s society of being overly obsessive with their smart phones, to the point where human interaction is becoming a lost art form… But also a jab at Apple and even Tim Cook the CEO of Apple. The film doesn’t shy away in telling how they really feel, as they address the problems of today’s society in a friendly kids animation fashion.
Ron’s Gone Wrong felt in a way a story about one and man’s best friend. Unlike machines: Dogs have a mind of it’s own and aren’t exactly perfect. But what makes Dogs amazing is the more time you put in to teach them new tricks and stuff, the more likely in return they will become a friend of yours like no other. Sure Ron may not be as cool and techy like the other Bubble Bots, however Ron was exactly what Barney actually needed. He didn’t need a mindless robot that is just gonna be another worthless gadget, to where it’ll only boost up his ego, and not develop as a human being. What Barney needed was one that acted similar to a being like figure, that will accept Barney for who is he, to learn communication skills from a two way street so he can handle complications like everyday human beings.. As Ron was exactly that. So in a way the relationship felt similar to a dog, as I can heavily relate to Barney’s relationship with Ron the way I do for my other dogs.
I enjoyed the animation style of this film, it was pretty cool and neat. May not be on the level of Mitchells vs The Machines, however I enjoyed the simplicity of the world building, the human character designs, and the simplicity of the robot design as well. The storyline not only felt genuine, but can be entertaining as well. There’s some fairly solid humor in this film, as at times I was laughing my ass off while experiencing Ron and how the kids interact with one another.
Sometimes Ron’s Gone Wrong could get a bit too out of hand with the social media references, as one can experience a headache at times. I also felt the conflict to where the Bubble Bot’s safety controls turning off to be a very weird sequence. The ending felt very conflicted to me. I thought it was heading towards a more powerful conclusion, but turns out it headed in a direction that left me confused.
Ron’s Gone Wrong is an animation film that delivers a fun time, while having a fair amount to say as well.
Overall, Ron’s Gone Wrong was decent. I recommend checking this one out, this was a fun experience having a theater all to myself. Please pray for me and my mother… Ain’t nothing wrong, we just traveling across the country to deliver some hand me down furniture… God help me. -Mitch Smietana