The third film in the series ushers in a new member of Team Sonic, the wildcard Shadow the Hedgehog (voiced here by Keanu Reeves) it also features a double performance by Jim Carrey as the hilariously deranged and wild Doctor Robotnik, while also playing his grandfather Gerald Robotnik. It’s a hilariously classic performance from Carey that harkens back to his Dumb & Dumber slapstick years. The movie is miles better than it has any right to be for a video game franchise in its third instalment squarely aimed at families.
Ben Schwartz returns to the franchise as Sonic, the fast-talking, pop-culture referencing interdimensional hedgehog who now has a slew of co-stars that constantly threaten to upstage him. Idris Elba returns as Knuckles, the deep-voiced buckling Echidna who has a very dry sense of humour, similar to Drax in the MCU films. Colleen O’Shaugnessy sticks to Tails and her never-ending optimism. There is still room for Reeves to bring his dulcet tones to Shadow, the dark and mysterious space hedgehog who is the most serious out of all the characters.
The first 20 minutes of the film does go at a slow speed for a Sonic film, when it does get going, it does kick into full gear. The script from returning writers Josh Miller & Pat Casey is full of pop-culture references (even another Speed reference as a wink to Reeves) If you are a fan of the franchise and the games, there is a lot thrown in here that you delivers some solid fan service. That being said, if you are completely separate from this apart from the previous two films, you can still follow what’s going on and be entertained.
A lot of questions were put up around Carrey returning to the franchise after announcing his retirement before filming started on Sonic 3. It is fortunate for us, that he needed the money and his incredibly kinetic performance as both versions of Robotnik somehow managed to service both the kids and the adult viewers. A lot of the slapstick, goofy faces and one-liners herald back to the Dumb & Dumber / The Mask era of Carrey’s career. While Carrey is a lot of fun on his own, his chemistry with his accomplice Agent Stone played by the charismatic Lee Majdoub is more glue for this franchise.
The story opens with Shadow escaping from a max prison after 50 years and seeking revenge on the world for imprisoning him there. Cut to Sonic, Tails and Knuckles living a quiet life in Green Hills with Tom (James Marsden) and Maddie (Tika Sumpter). Just like the previous instalments, the first movie was about the relationship between Tom and Sonic, the second film really sidelined Tom and Maddie and this third instalment segregates them even more, making them superfluous, with the three Sonic characters able to hold their own.
The trio must stop Robotnik from getting access to a weapon and taking over the world. When Robotnik and Sonic realise they must team up to stop Shadow, this is when the film really pivots and elevates it to something truly special. We have seen the two at blows sporadically, but teaming up a wise-cracking creature with Carrey’s twin Robotniks, this provides the most laughs and entertainment for the film.
Visually the film is above and beyond the previous two films. Mixing the live-action and animation hybrid is easy for things to look not right, thanks to the stunning cinematography of Brandon Tost (Nitchbitch, Knuckles, The Righteous Gemstones) we are in good hands here. There are both indoor and outdoor scenes that spark visual flair, a scene inside a family restaurant with characters coming to life are a great interpretation of a video game character that would be difficult to bring to the big screen without looking too ridiculous. Junkie XL returns to do the score and continues to integrate the score from various Sonic the Hedgehog games and a traditional sweeping cinema score beautifully.
It’s hard to describe just why the Sonic film franchise connects with fans both young and old. The internet campaign to have the original “ugly Sonic” changed no doubt garnered a lot of the goodwill and enthusiasm towards the film, or the actual decent story with unforgettable characters that translated from CRT to the big screen. Each film (and TV project) has built upon this universe with memorable characters and talented actors behind them that make these films so special. Sonic the Hedgehog 3 continues that tradition with an epic adventure for both young and old.
**There are two post-credits sequences, make sure you stay for both!**
