Sonic’s the name, speed’s my game! I recently watched Sonic the Hedgehog, based on the popular video game series of the same name and released on February 14, 2020. Directed by newcomer Jeff Fowler, and starring Ben Schwartz, James Marsden, and Jim Carrey, it takes place in Green Hills in the modern day and is rated PG.
For years, Sonic the Hedgehog has been hiding on Earth to keep his powers a secret. After an incident, he is discovered, which causes the mad scientist Dr. Robotnik to become obsessed with tracking him down. A man named sheriff Tom Wachowski helps keep Sonic safe, much to the enjoyment of the titular character. Will Sonic evade capture from the evil doctor?
Although the Sonic franchise has been popular since its’ debut in 1991, there had yet to be a live-action movie. Over the years, he has gotten some successful comic series, as well as an animated movie and 5 animated shows. I was rather doubtful about this movie, because I didn’t think the idea of Sonic would work in live-action. Furthermore, live-action movies based on video games have been known for their lack of quality over the years and the first trailer showed an awful design of Sonic. However, in 2019, there was a great live-action video game movie called Pokémon Detective Pikachu, which I had similar doubts about. This gave me hope for video game movies in the future, which can also be seen in my review of that movie (Click Here to read!). Then, this movie’s original release date in 2019 was pushed back to 2020 in order to give them time to fix Sonic’s appearance. The idea of fixing something bad about a movie to please the fans rather than just releasing it anyway to make money made me hopeful. As a big fan of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise as a whole, I wanted to get a worthy film of the games. This movie did not disappoint.
Ben Schwartz accurately voices Sonic, as he has an attitude problem, while still being likable enough for audiences to root for him. Jim Carrey’s portrayal of Dr. Robotnik, known to fans of the games as Dr. Eggman, plays the character rather well. I wasn’t sure if the actor was a good choice at first, but now I’m glad that the decision was made. After all, the character is supposed to be comedic and he comes across as very funny. Finally, James Marsden does a good job as the original character of Tom Wachowski. There isn’t much to Tom’s character, but audiences will like him and the friendship that eventually forms between him and Sonic.
The story may not have been as grand as the Sonic games can be, but it is definitely a good start to the planned Sonic live-action movie franchise. It starts out with Sonic and Robotnik, because they were the only characters in the original game, with more time to show off the other characters later. Sonic’s story is interesting and will keep your attention. The comedy is funny without being too distracting. There are several references to the Sonic games that will appeal to fans. There’s also a reference to a popular film franchise that if you know what it’s from, it will be cool to see what they do with it. Also, wait for a post-credits scene. It will leave fans excited for the sequel. If I did have to complain about one thing, it would be that while I appreciate taking the time to fix Sonic’s appearance and I agree his redesign looks much better than his original appearance, it is still bad CGI regardless. Despite this fact, there is so much to offer for viewers.
Overall, I liked this movie much more than I thought I would. A great adaptation of the Sonic games, it seems I was right that the new age of great video game movies is here. Watch it and see if you can keep up with the plot.
Comentarios