WEB EXCLUSIVE

Throughout the past two decades, the famous video game icon of “Sonic the Hedgehog’” has seen both praise and ridicule from the gaming atmosphere. After many failures and few true successes, even those victories met with criticisms, Sonic and his creator, Sega, eventually settled with the mediocre level the blue furball always seemed to race right back to. So when word that a film centered around the sonic speedster made way on the internet, many were left excited for seeing him on screen, but nervous for another crash in the hedgehog’s track record. But after it’s release, “Sonic The Hedgehog” not only entertained audiences, but genuinely surprised them as well. Along with a new wave of films like “Venom”, “Sonic The Hedgehog” wasn’t met kindly with critic’s reviews but was enjoyed by viewers, even beloved by some.

After teaming up with the Sheriff of the small town of Green Hills, Montana, Sonic (Ben Schwartz) and Tom (James Marsden), a.k.a. the ‘Donut Lord’, go on a road trip down the pacific coast to San Francisco in order to retrieve a special bag of interplanetary rings entrusted to the blue blur by his caretaker, Longclaw. Due to a continent spanning sonic boom that the blue wind leaves behind one night, the pair is chased by Dr. Ivo Robotnik (Jim Carrey) and his legion of egg-shaped drones in hopes to capture and experiment on the speed demon in order to unlock his rare and remarkable powers. On the road trip, the two grow together as friends, accomplishing a bucket list of activities Sonic makes, including ‘making a real friend’. 

Compared to many movies, especially many movies that have come out recently, “Sonic The Hedgehog” isn’t that wonderful or groundbreaking of a film, but it is a excellent video game movie, cracking, mostly, clever jokes and showcasing entertaining action sequences along the ride, giving plenty to the audience visual and comedy-wise. “Sonic The Hedgehog” also succeeds in giving fans of the blue blur callbacks and little easter eggs from the games, from old Sega tunes to music references from the more recent games. All of that along with good old Sonic quotes, meme-related content, recognizable characters, chili dogs, nicknames, famous attacks from the games and a credit sequence that will bring back memories and ignite goosebumps on the skin of anyone who grew up playing Sonic on the Sega Genesis. 

It may not be anything incredible, but “Sonic The Hedgehog” definitely is an enjoyable, exciting and well-crafted film, pushing the video game movie industry a step forward. There’s plenty for anyone who at least heard the name of ‘the fastest thing alive’.