For a game without much story, Sonic the Hedgehog provides tons of laughs, thrills, and overall entertainment for everyone, no matter if you've played the game or not.
“The world needed a hero, we got a hedgehog. Powered with incredible speed, Sonic the Hedgehog, aka The Blue Blur, embraces his new home on Earth. That is, until he accidentally knocks out the power grid and sparks the attention of super-uncool evil genius Dr. Robotnik (Jim Carrey). Now it’s super-villain vs. super-sonic in an all-out race across the globe to stop Robotnik from using Sonic’s power for world domination. Sonic teams up with The Donut Lord, aka Sheriff Tom Wachowski (James Marsden), to save the planet in this action-packed adventure that’s fun for the whole family.”
The film opens as we’re introduced to a young Sonic growing up in his own world, racing through his island home at lightning speeds. A native tribe wants to capture him and harness his power for their own use, so his guardian, Longclaw the Owl, tries to escape with Sonic in tow. After being injured by the tribe, she gives him a bag of rings to be used as portals to other worlds Sonic can hide in, telling him to always be on the run, as others will always try to take his power. Ten years later, Sonic has made a home for himself in the small town of Green Hills, staying out of sight, all the while watching the residents, longing for a friend. His favorite of the humans is Sheriff Tom Wachowski who he calls The Donut Lord, as he sees him talking to Donuts all the time, and his wife Maddie (Tika Sumpter), who he calls The Pretzel Lady because of her yoga poses. One night, Sonic gets particularly upset, frustrated at being constantly alone, when a surge of energy is released from his body, something that’s never happened before, knocking out the power grid of the city and gets the attention of the Government. Dr. Robotnik, an insane but brilliant scientist is sent to investigate the cause and quickly discovers Sonic. The only place Sonic can think to go is to Tom’s for safety, but is shot with a tranquilizer gun as he surprises Tom while he tries to use a ring to create a portal. The portal opens in San Francisco, the bag of rings falls through, and Sonic loses consciousness. After the initial shock of meeting a creature from another world wears off, Tom agrees to help Sonic retrieve his rings and elude capture from Dr. Robotnik, who has declared Tom a fugitive and terrorist on the run.
I was a Nintendo kid growing up, never having a Sega system until Dreamcast when I played Sonic Adventures, but even then, I knew the draw of Sega’s chief mascot. Just like in any game where you hold down the run button and try to go as fast as you can, there is something oddly satisfying in the great speeds that Sonic achieves in the games, and the same can be said for the film, as this fast-paced adventure takes you on one of the most exciting video-game adaptations I’ve seen.
The story of Sonic in the video games always dealt with stopping Dr. Eggman in some way, later on with the help of added characters to the game. As far as I remember, that’s about it, so the film has a lot of potential for different directions it could take. The introduction to Sonic as a child was pretty interesting, as was the addition of his guardian, Longclaw, who protects him from harm, teaching him to stay hidden from whatever world he’s in. With the entire planet within reach, Sonic chooses to make his home in Green Hills, a small town where life goes by at a snail pace, something he finds to be appealing. The loneliness you can see in Sonic is heartbreaking, as he goes through life without anyone to talk to but himself. The humbling story of someone with a great power and all they want is friendship is heartwarming, and a great theme for everyone.
Ben Schwartz does a great job at voicing Sonic. He’s funny, sarcastic, providing the perfect amount of upbeat energy that Sonic needs. James Marsden is great as the human partner in the adventures of Sonic. His character has a great amount of depth to it, wanting to be more than he is, wanting to feel needed by the citizens of the town and to serve and protect to the best of his ability. He has some great moments with Sonic; comedic, action, emotional, you name it, and he does brilliantly acting across a CGI figment of his imagination while on set. Tika Sumpter has a good balance with Marsden, good chemistry, and has some great sequences herself. Adam Pally also has a lot of hilarious moments in the film, and I thought his character was utilized the perfect amount. As great as the entire cast is, no one can hold a candle to Jim Carrey. His Dr. Robotnik is over-the-top, wonderfully hilarious in his own Carrey-esque way. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen Jim Carrey look like he’s had so much fun with a role, and you can tell that on screen and off in the special features just how much he enjoyed the role.
Now, can we take a moment to remind ourselves just how great of a studio Paramount is? The initial trailer showing Sonic looking very different was met with a lot of backlash. What studio has ever actually listened to audiences and spent millions of dollars to redesign a character to appease them? The character in the film does look rather cartoonish, but, that’s what fans wanted, and that’s what they got.
Video
Sonic the Hedgehog is presented in 1080p High Definition Widescreen 2.39:1. This film looks great on Blu-Ray. As you can imagine, it is a very colorful world that Sonic comes from, and those colors are highlighted nicely on screen. Colors are very vibrant and rich, a perfect balance to accompany the perfectly detailed picture. Given the chance, I myself would love to check out the 4k with the HDR to see just how much better it can get.
Audio
The audio is presented Dolby Atmos. The audio track sounds phenomenal. With all the action sequences, you can imagine just how much the surrounds are utilized, but the whizzing speeds of Sonic with Dr. Robotnik flying overhead makes it even better, with the atmos speakers making it sound like he’s right over your head. Balance is good between these surrounds and center channel, with no defects noticed.
Special Features
There are loads of extras on this disc to keep you entertained long after you finish the film. As you might expect with a film involving Jim Carrey, there are some great Gags to watch as well!
These include:
- Commentary by Director Jeff Fowler and the Voice of Ben Schwartz
- Around the World in 80 Seconds
- Deleted Scenes
- Bloopers
- “Speed Me Up” Music Video
- For the Love of Sonic
- Building Robotnik with Jim Carrey
- The Blue Blur: Origins of Sonic
- Sonic on Set
Sonic the Hedgehog takes a video game with not much story and brings it to life in such a fantastic way. Hilarious, action-packed, full of heart, this film will bring joy to people of all ages, no matter if they’ve played the game or not. No official green light on a sequel yet, but the potential for one, given the mid-credits scene, would be great!
