Entertainment

Sonic The Hedgehog: Speeding Through All Expectations

Managing Editor Ethan Miller

Going into Sonic the Hedgehog, I had extremely low expectations. First impressions mean everything, and the initial trailer sported an absolutely horrendous design and overall seemed very shoddily put together. Even after Paramount decided to delay the movie to fix the design, I wasn’t very hopeful. I had thought that only fixing the design wouldn’t fix the seemingly poor writing that the trailer showed off, so I didn’t have my fingers crossed. Fast forward to the day of release, and I was blown away.

The premise is simple: After having to flee his planet, Sonic the Hedgehog (Ben Schwartz) arrives on Earth via his rings, which now have teleportation powers, where he watches the inhabitants of Green Hills. He eventually causes a power outage due to his stress and anger over being lonely, where he catches the attention of one Doctor Robotnik (Jim Carrey), and meets Tom Wachowski (James Mardsen).

The plot isn’t anything to write home about, as we’ve certainly seen works like this before. Hero from another planet somehow enters our world. Road trip and wacky shenanigans ensue as the leads run from the government. Yeah, it’s fairly straightforward from there, a road trip to San Francisco being the main focus, but the little adventures along the way are a treat. What sets this movie apart from Howard the Duck, for example, and what makes it enjoyable from the beginning, is how the characters bounce off of each other.

The interactions between the leads are enjoyable and fun to watch, but the real star of the show is Jim Carrey, who is so over-the-top and dramatic it’s hard not to pay attention to what he’s doing. He gives his own flair to the iconic character, not trying to recreate Mike Pollack, who’s voiced Eggman for years. He is genuinely funny and a blast to watch.

The most surprising part of the movie was Sonic as a whole. Ben Schwartz kills it in this role, adding his own touch of wit and chitteriness that makes this character enjoyable. He’s properly quippy, sarcastic, and oozing with attitude to boot. Even the human lead, Tom, is hilarious.

I was also happy to see the little references to classic Sonic affair sprinkled across the movie. From sound effects, music cues (like the "Green Hill Zone" theme being referenced multiple times, and it filled me with childlike joy every time), and even poses (like Sonic striking the same pose as he does in his Super Smash Bros. Ultimate render), there are no shortages of bones being thrown to Sonic Fans. Even the credits sequence was in the that endearing Genesis Sonic style.

Overall, Sonic the Hedgehog was a joy in every sense of the word. It has a little bit of something for everyone. It never failed to genuinely make me laugh. Almost all of the jokes landed, and even the ones that didn’t were more than made up for by the movie’s fast pace. It didn’t feel too long and never dragged on. It was fast and nonstop, just like the Blue Blur himself.