Sonic: la película

Recently, "Pokemon Detective Pikachu" came out...and "Sonic the Hedgehog" a few months later. Of the two, "Sonic" is definitely my favorite...simply because it was more fun and the plot was simpler and more enjoyable.

The story isn't all that important...so instead, I'll just say that it's a buddy picture, of sorts. The crazed Dr. Robotnik (Jim Carrey) is seeking to capture or destroy Sonic....so it's up to Sonic's new friend (James Marsden) to help him avoid this nutty guy.

The choice to hold off release to make Sonic look less creepy was a very good one. Additionally, the story is fun...and not especially complicated. Good for kids...as well as parents forced to watch it with them!

Sonic The Hedgehog is an action comedy movie based on the SEGA video game series of the same name. Starring James Marsden and Jim Carrey, it is a fast-moving adventure (obviously) that should entertain newcomers and keep fans of the original series satisfied.

In the small town of Green Hills, Montana, a blue anthropomorphic hedgehog named Sonic (voiced by Ben Schwartz) lives in hiding after being forced out of his original dimension due to his powers of super speed. After accidentally causing a blackout throughout the whole area, Sonic attracts the attention of Dr. Ivo Robotnik (Jim Carrey), an eccentric evil genius whom the government has hired to track Sonic down for experimental purposes. Now on the run once again, Sonic enlists the help of local police officer Tom Wachowski (James Marsden) to aid him in avoiding capture and hopefully make a new friend in the process.

Even if you aren't a hardcore fan of the series, Sonic The Hedgehog provides a nice amount of fun action and quirky humour to draw in even the most casual of moviegoer. I myself was a Nintendo kid growing up, preferring to play as the Italian plumber instead of the blue hedgehog, but SEGA and their mascot character always had my respect for being worthy rivals during the video game wars of the 90s, and the same can be said for this. In fact, this film seems to strongly acknowledge Sonic's 1990s roots, from his love of chili dogs to listening to music on a boombox. Of course, there are some references to modern trends but they are kept to a minimum likely so that the film will age better.

Jeff Fowler, who makes his directorial debut for a feature film, does a fine job juggling his storytelling duties with showing off some solid special effects along the way, especially on Sonic himself. It is well known by now that Sonic's original design for this film was poorly received by the public so it was decided that his overall look would be changed. This worked well in the film's favour as not only does he better resemble his video game self, but he even feels more naturally integrated into the real world. We watch as Sonic dashes around causing mischief and escaping danger through different environments like the big city or the quiet countryside, deriving enjoyment along the way. This led to some amusing Quicksilver/Deadpool-esque moments which provided great comic relief during several action scenes.

Comedian Ben Schwartz was a great pick to provide the voice and motion-capture of Sonic himself, both emanating the character's trademark cocky attitude while also showcasing his loneliness and longing for true friendship. This, in turn, makes him more relatable to the audience and causes him to have more human traits than some of the actual people in the film. James Marsden also gave a likeable performance as Tom Wachowski, not merely being relegated to the straight man role but also having his fair share of funny moments as well. However, it is Jim Carrey who steals the show as Dr. Robotnik. I'm not sure whether it was seeing how perfectly tailored the character was to his comedic talents or if it was just how nostalgic it felt to see him acting like his over-the-top 90s self again, but virtually everything he said and did had me laughing out loud. I hope we will see more of Carrey's portrayal of the character in the near future, which reportedly he has expressed interest in doing.

In the end, even though the film isn't groundbreaking by any means, it still provides much needed entertainment thanks to its respectful take on the source material that, like POKÉMON Detective Pikachu before it, definitely feels more like how video games should be handled for the big screen treatment. There is certainly potential for other game franchises to be adapted into movies with a similar style and it is starting to feel as though the "video game curse" may be fading away altogether. There are two bonus mid-credit scenes worth staying back for, and while they aren't of Masahiro Sakurai approaching Sonic about the Smash initiative, they should excite fans of the series just as much.

I rate it 7/10

It's not the next masterpiece of cinema, but I genuinely think it's an enjoyable watch if you don't go in expecting the stars.

I enjoyed it a lot more than I have a lot of other "Video-Game cash in movies" anyway. Yes, It's a genre that's been done a lot, but that doesn't make this film inherently bad.

It had some enjoyable moments in it.

I have immense amounts of respect for the crew who worked on this movie, due to how much the internet kicked up a storm and how they worked tirelessly to try re-jig the movie to make it work. That doesn't mean the movie is perfect, but the respect for the craft is there.

Long story short; It's not a perfect movie, but you can tell that effort was made in it's creation. Had some enjoyable moments and would definitely encourage people to watch.

I wasn't expecting to enjoy this, but I did, it literally was a burst of fun and energy, just like the game itself.

I would imagine there were many that would have wanted to make a movie when Sonic really was big news, but perhaps the technology at the time wasn't sufficient, now though such resources are available, it looks great.

Standout for me was Dr Robotnik, Jim Carrey looks awesome, and as always delivers with such charisma.

It won't win awards, but enjoyed it, it was genuine good fun. 7/10

*Wishes for those days of Sonic on Megadrive.

I think they did a good job with this. The design of Sonic so so much better than the one featured in the trailer. It baffles me how they thought the original design was ok. It looked like a child's drawing of something they had seen in a nightmare.

The relationship between Sonic and James Marsden is super cute too and you'd do become invested in it.

It is very much a kids movie but it's nice for older people to see as it's filled with nostalgia from the Sonic games. There are plenty of little Easter eggs that people who have played the game will notice.

This movie is also really charming. It has lines that are funny too.

So I would watch it especially if you have any interest in Sonic I don't think you will be disappointed or frustrated at what they have done with the property.