'Sonic the Hedgehog' was a long time coming and after 25 plus years, he's finally made it to the big screen and now will soon be coming to Blu-Ray and DVD this Tuesday. For those unaware of the story, the film only runs through the basics because the game series has..gone to some out there places and this is an origin story after all so a lot of fat needed to be trimmed. Sonic is a creature from another world with special abilities that led him to abandon his world for ours in order to keep it safe from those who would exploit said powers. After he lashes out in frustration due to being lonely, he accidentely brings himself to the attention of a mad scientist named Dr. Robotnik (or Eggman) who wants to harvest his powers for his robot army and take over the world. In the movie, Sonic has a human partner who tries to help the Blue Blur before it's too late.
I can't sit here and tell you that anyone was excited to see 'Sonic the Hedgehog' when it was first announced. Paramount? Producers of 'Fast & Furious'? That infamous poster? The more infamous trailer with 'Gangster's Paradise'? There seemed to be no hope for the little guy on the big screen. Then the unthinkable happened: the studio listened to it's audience and changed the design and cleaned up the special effects overall and while I won't say it's a masterpiece now, it does make you appreciate and enjoy the film a little more knowing that they cared enough to do such a big change in such a short time. So how is the movie? Well, I personally rank it up pretty high as far as video game movies go. I know that's not exactly a high bar to begin with, but as a stand alone movie it's pretty good.
A small gripe would probably be the story which is the typical kids flick fare. I sometimes feel like I'm being unfair saying that, but let me be clear. Not all family films are cliche and even when they are they can have different elements to them that make them stand out. Pixar and Dreamworks are masters of this and while 'Sonic' is hardly on that level it does what it does well. First, I didn't expect this movie to make me laugh so much. The script has a lot of good humor thrown in, especially Jim Carrey as Robotnik who provides his usual style but he was the standout performance for me. Ben Schwarz as Sonic too is really funny and he nails the character perfectly. He has the cocky attitude, but he's also caring and emotional. The character is a teenager and the script gets it right for the most part. You can expect the usual fart joke here but it's very minimal and I'm happier for it.
So what's the film's low points? Well, I'd have to say that I do enjoy James Marsden as an actor in a lot of movies, he just doesn't quite fit here. Rumor has it that Chris Pratt was originally going to play the character and I feel that made more sense. Marsden at times seems to have a hard time interacting with something that isn't truly there and he can be a bit of a stiff but he isn't horrible just a bit bland. The film is also a little light on the action which is probably to get the main plot out of the way. Origin stories have issues like this all the time, so I'd say it's maybe more of a nitpick. I am a rabid Sonic fan so of course you naturally feel a bit frustrated that we don't get to see much of his original world or anything out of the video games. I'd say this is the biggest flaw overall: we don't get to see any fantasy or future worlds of the games. These stories always being set in the real world just makes for a boring setting that hopefully the sequel will fix in future.
'Sonic the Hedgehog' is a great family film and a really good video game adaptation that captures most of what you love about the game series. Hopefully, they'll go a bit more fantastical with the upcoming sequel (which by the way, be sure to watch all the way through for some awesome post-credit setups) but for now, I was very satisfied with the flick. I recommend a purchase for fans or families alike.
4/5
Sonic the Hedgehog comes to Blu-Ray & DVD May 19th
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