Audience members of all ages rush to theaters for hedgehog havoc

Somehow, the number one movie in the world right now is the second installment in the surprisingly promising Sonic The Hedgehog series. Walking into a theater with a mix of bouncy little kids and a few 30-year-olds excited to see their favorite character, Sonic, on the big screen makes for quite the amusing experience. After the suspenseful ending of the prior film, Sonic fans were beyond excited for whatever this sequel had in store for them.

The film starts roughly where the first film left off with Dr. Robotnik (Jim Carrey, The Truman Show) in a strange mushroom world and the loveable Tails (Colleen O’Shaughnessey, The Blacklist) arriving on Earth through a ring portal. After getting a taste of being a hero the angsty teen Sonic (Ben Schwartz, DuckTales) wants more. Not being fully prepared for hero life, Sonic must learn through the highs and lows of his adolescence. Unlike most kids, Sonic’s adolescence contains a brilliant two-tailed fox, a warrior echidna, and a crazed scientist whose life goal is gaining ultimate power. The blue blur sees all this and more as Dr. Robotnik makes his grand return, crashing in on Sonic’s first weekend without his ‘parents’. But Dr. Robotnik isn’t alone. He brings his new toy and companion Knuckles the Echidna (Idris Elba, The Suicide Squad). Knuckles’ strength combined with Dr. Robotnik’s intelligence makes the pair nearly unstoppable in the race for the Master Emerald. The Emerald has the ability to give its beholder ultimate power and if it gets into the hands of the evil Dr. Robotnik, Sonic may have run his last race.

Long time Sonic fans were tingling with excitement when they discovered that Sonic’s companion, Tails, was being voiced by one of the original actors, O'Shaughnessey . Needless to say she killed it. Hearing the original voice brought older fans back to their childhoods as they experienced this film with the younger generations. Sonic’s voice actor, on the other hand, wasn’t necessarily the most favorable choice. Sonic was portrayed as a rebellious teen as his ‘dad’, Tom, gave him life advice and tried to keep him in line. While it’s a cute storyline, humans having an alien hedgehog as their adopted kid feels a bit silly. Adding onto that, this film included a human subplot that felt irrelevant and out of place.

In this sequel, Carrey’s Dr. Robotnik had a bit of an attire change. Rather than the pretty hair and tidy mustache, he throws it back to the classic Robotnik look with a bald head and a wild unkempt mustache. This new look and an increasing sense of madness restores a villain  the audience knows and loves (or loathes, rather). Although not confirmed, in both Sonic movies there have been hints of a romance between Dr. Robotnik and his sidekick, Stone. Upon discovery of Dr. Robotnik’s return to Earth, Stone prepares a latte with a foam drawing of the pair with hearts. Only time will tell if this romance is real or just a tease.

The movie shines in many different spots while falling short only in a few others. One of those spots would be the CGI. In the past, Sonic games and films haven’t been known for their amazing scenery, but that isn’t an excuse for the underwhelming nature of most of the CGI. In scenes that included both humans and the Sonic characters, the illusion of the film is broken by patchy graphics. The biggest spot that this occurred was when the characters were standing next to or being held by a human character. This wouldn’t be an issue normally, but it takes the viewer out of the illusion of being in the world of Sonic and makes them realize they’re in a Marcus Theater watching a children’s film on a Friday night. 

Overall, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 was a great film and its ending creates anticipation for what is to come. There truly is no greater joy than hearing all of the little kids' laughter and commentary during this action packed, heartwarming movie.

Grade: B+

By Brianna Young

Oshkosh West Index Volume 118 Issue 7

April 25th, 2022