Sonic the Finally Makes It To The Big Screen

By Ryan Grow | March 17, 2020

Sonic makes his long-awaited big-screen debut in Paramount’s Sonic the Hedgehog, now playing in theaters. 

Sonic (Ben Schwartz) tries to navigate the complexities of life on Earth with his newfound best friend — a human named Tom Wachowski (James Marsden). They must soon join forces to prevent the evil Dr. Robotnik (Jim Carrey) from capturing Sonic and using his powers for world domination.

Film adaptations of popular video games haven’t had the best of luck at the box office. Gaming is a billion-dollar industry and the fans are hardcore. When it comes to transitioning those cartoonish gaming characters from their world to a human-filled, real-life Earth, filmmakers face high expectations from fans.

And pleasing those diehard fans is no easy task. When the trailer was first released last year, people were not happy with Sonic’s design. Fans called it a nightmare and frightfully unrealistic and I have to agree. Luckily, the director listened and issued an apology and recalled it to give it an update. This pushed back the film for three months but it was worth it as the new and improved Sonic better resembled the video game character. 

The movie does a great job of crafting a unique origin story that reimagines Sonic for new audiences while staying true to his history. The film turns the character (voiced by the always charming Ben Schwartz) as an excitable teen whose enthusiasm belies his loneliness. 

It’s so great to see Jim Carrey back on the big screen and his performance as Dr. Robotnik was just perfect. Carrey’s dialogue is so hilarious that it feels like he just created this character on his own. It reminds you that Carrey’s charm and personality have always been built around new ways to entertain moviegoers and that’s what makes him such a brilliant performer. 

Overall, Sonic the Hedgehog may have been made for new audiences, but longtime fans will be able to appreciate and enjoy the film just as much. I’m so glad the director listened to the fans and redid Sonic’s design because if he hadn’t, the movie wouldn’t have been as good.

Critic Rating: 5/5 stars

What did you think of the film? Sound off in the comments.