Sonic The Hedgehog 3 Movie Review

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 delivers the best blend of action and fun, improving on past films with engaging characters, exciting sequences, and an epic storyline.

Star Cast: Ben Schwartz, Idris Elba, Jim Carrey, Keanu Reeves, Colleen O’Shaughnessey, and Lee Majdoub

Director: Jeff Fowler

What’s Good: Sonic 3 leans on the more superhero aspects of the Sonic franchise and leaves behind most of the human roles in the background, as it should be.

What’s Bad: The humor can be hit or miss, and while Carrey is outstanding, his brand of humor feels quite dated.

Loo Break: There is very little room for rest, maybe the start of the second act, but the film moves at a great pace.

Watch or Not?: This is a great family film, and for Sonic fans, it is a must-see.

Language: English (with subtitles)

Available On: Theatrical release

Runtime: 110 Minutes

The Sonic franchise is one of the most important ones in the video game medium, and it has, since its beginnings, been at the forefront of it, thanks to the creation of one of the most endearing mascots for any brand. Since its creation, Sonic has gathered quite a following, and it feels surreal to be the third entry in what is now a very successful film franchise for the Sega mascot. This third outing is the best yet, with director Jeff Fowler confident enough to go all out.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 Movie Review: Script Analysis

Past Sonic films have suffered from being too much like other family films that combine live-action actors with digital creatures. Some of these films are genuinely awful, like the Smurf films. The first two installments of Sonic on the Big Screen also had a bit of that flavor, as the script forced the story to give importance to the human characters, which was a mistake because no one was paying a ticket to see them.

However, in the last third of the second film, Fowler realized the franchise’s potential by delivering powerful action sequences that felt like something from the games. So, this third film leans on that sensation given by the third act of the second film, and it is much better for it. Sonic, Tails, and Knuckles and their relationship as a team is the core of the story, and while some human characters appear here and there, they are pushed to the back as they always should have been.

Shadows, the new boy in town, also gets a ton of screen time, solid backstory, and character development. Most importantly, it keeps him in the cool zone by giving him many powerful moments. Overall, the plot is quite cliché, and you can see each of the story beats coming from a mile away. Yet, it feels like an improvement over the other films because the protagonists are precisely who we want to see in that position, and everything else has been filtered out.

The dialogue can sometimes fall into cringe territory thanks to a constant flow of pop-culture references that will date the film too much as time passes. There are also a couple of comedic sequences by Jim Carrey that feel too dated.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 Movie Review: Star Performance

Jim Carrey is the film star; of course, he is the biggest name tied to a live-action character, in this case, Dr. Robotnik, and he does well at giving one of his signature performances. Carrey plays to characters this time, and the gimmick works because, while similar, the characters are also quite different. It feels right to see such a comedy legend back in action, even if it is for a paycheck gig.

However, the voice actors playing the actual main characters, Schwartz, Elba, O’Shaughnessy, and Reeves, shine in this film. Their performances are great, and while Reeves’ voice is too similar in tone to the one he uses in the video game Cyberpunk 2077, you get used to it pretty fast, and Shadow becomes a perfect addition to the character roster. Everyone does an excellent job, including Elba, who also shines with some great speeches, even when his character, Knuckles, is definitely more in the background than the others.