Film Review: Sonic The Hedgehog 3

Sonic The Hedgehog 3
Director: Jeff Fowler
Original Film
In Theaters: 12.20

When it comes to video game movies, there are a lot of factors that you have to consider, including balancing storytelling and reaching a wider audience—in this case, a young audience—with pleasing the fans. It’s with this in mind that I decided to bring in two guest critics to help me review Sonic The Hedgehog 3. I’ve enlisted the aid of my nephews. Professional children Timmy Gibbs, age 8, and Peter Gibbs, age 5, both hardcore franchise fans, to help me evaluate the films.

The story begins with Shadow (voiced by Keanu Reeves, The Matrix, John Wick), a powerful and mysterious super hedgehog, escaping from a top secret military facility after being held in stasis for 50 years, and he’s got big plans in store. Meanwhile, Sonic (Ben Schwartz, Parks and Recreation, The After Party) and his adopted family, lead by Tom (James Marsden, X-Men) and Maddie (Tika Sumpter, Ride Along) are celebrating Sonic’s “bearthday” — the anniversary of the day he arrived on earth — when they are interrupted by agents of G.U.N., (Guardian Units of Nations), the military organization who has monitored Sonic and his pals, Tails the Fox (Colleen O’Shaughnessey, Ladybug and Cat Noir: The Movie) and Knuckles the Echidna (Idris Elba, Pacific Rim, The Suicide Squad), to track down Shadow, who is wreaking havoc and bent on mass destruction. The trio finds the mysterious hedgehog in Tokyo, where he easily bests them, and after seemingly being doubled crossed by G.U.N., the hairy heroes learn that their old nemesis, Dr. Ivo Robotnik (Jim Carrey, How The Grinch Stole Christmas, The Truman Show) is still alive, and they form a reluctant alliance to take down Shadow. Another big surprise is thrown at them when Robotnik learns that his long lost grandfather, Gerald Robotnik (also portrayed by Carrey) is still alive and has a past with Shadow, joining them in the hunt. The ragtag band of misfits, along with Tom and Maddie, must stop Shadow from using a superweapon to destroy the world — and get to the bottom of the tragic backstory that has driven him to this desperate act of vengeance. 

Sonic The Hedgehog 3 gets off to a strong start by focusing far less on the bland human characters and putting Sonic, Tails and Knuckles front and center, a move that should please nearly everyone. I defer here to my co-critic Timmy, an avid gaming enthusiast. “There was one specific game that came to mind when I was watching this movie,” Timmy says. “Sonic Adventure 2.” The 2001 game brought Sonic, Tails and Knuckles, together with Robotnik, and introduced the character of Shadow, and Timmy saw this as a big screen version of that game. “Sonic fans will like this movie, especially the people who played the Sonic Adventure games growing up,” Timmy says. Peter was quite pleased with the comedic aspects, finding Carrey’s antics to be “Very very, very funny.” One particular moment stands out: when the two Robotniks do a mirroring routine and Ivo remarks that they are so much alike that it’s almost as if they are characters in a movie, both played by the same actor (Peter enjoys both slapstick and meta humor). They both found it to be quite exciting and suspenseful, even a bit scary at times, and cautioned against bringing younger, less sophisticated children than themselves to the theater.  

We all agreed that Schwartz, Elba and O’Shaugnessy are the best parts of the film, with their spot-on characterizations making them a triumphant heroic trio. We were more split on Carrey and Reeves — I was delighted by the depth that Reeves brought to Shadow, though I did wish he’d been given a few lighter moments, while they felt that they needed a second viewing to warm up to the character. A little bit of Carrey unchained goes a long way for me, and some of his riffing sequences went on interminably, while others had just enough manic energy to be amusing. I couldn’t help but imagine what might have been achieved with more direction, and with Dick Van Dyke in the role of Gerald, teaming two comic legends and focusing more on character over craziness. Still, while I often tend to side with Tommy Lee Jones’ take on Carrey at his most unbridled (Jones famously pulled Carrey aside on the set of Batman Forever to say “I cannot sanction your buffoonery”), kids undeniably respond to the beloved entertainer’s outrageous antics. 

Sonic The Hedgehog 3 is a very solid entry in the series that will indeed please fans — as stated by the experts — and may be a stronger choice than Mufasa: The Lion King if you’re looking to have some rambunctious fun with the kids this weekend. It’s a movie that knows not to even try to reach further than its grasp and is comfortable with what it is, while still working to give us more action, fun and focusing on the characters that the devotees are there to see. Simply put, this is movie that knows that it’s gotta go fast. —Patrick Gibbs (with assistance from Timmy Gibbs & Peter Gibbs)

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