Jim Carrey | Screenlife Reviews

The original Sonic the Hedgehog film was a refreshingly uncomplicated, fun road-trip movie that knew exactly what it was. It didn’t shoot to directly adapt the stories of the video game series, but rather adapted the characters to a real-world setting and let the blue blur run wild with jokes and heart, in a way that was accessible for adults and kids, fans and newbies alike. This latest instalment ramps things up in typical sequel fashion; with more characters, bigger action and some questionable dance battles all thrown into a wildly entertaining, if somewhat inconsistent time at the movies.

Following his defeat of the evil Dr. Robotnik (Jim Carrey), Sonic (Ben Schwartz) is enjoying the spoils of victory, splitting his time between his loving adopted parents Tom (James Marsden) and Maddie (Tika Sumpter) and moonlight as a heroic, if slightly dangerous, vigilante speeding through crime across the country. With Tom and Maddie away on a Hawaiian vacation, Sonic is left to fend for himself, an easy task that takes a turn with the return of Robotnik from his mushroom-filled prison, alongside newcomer Knuckles (Idris Elba), a prickly red echidna with some shared history and a pretty big bone to pick with Sonic. Forced to team up with yet another new arrival – the technologically gifted, two-tailed fox Tails (Colleen O’Shaughnessey) – Sonic races against time to ensure that Robotnik does not get his hands on the infinite power of the legendary Chaos Emerald.

In keeping with the first film, the plot here is not the most original, boiling down to a series of MacGuffin hunts that follow your tried and true hero’s journey arc. Thankfully it mostly moves at a pace befitting of Sonic, save for a few drawn-out, uninteresting sections that shift the focus from Sonic and Robotnik to Tom and his Hawaiian antics; and while these are necessary to set up an emotional finale, they do take their time, no doubt causing some restlessness in younger viewers.

Where the sequel truly shines, similar to the first, is in its combination of heart and humour. The emotional changes Sonic and his pals undergo are simple but wholly effective in endearing the audience to them as they figure out their place in the world while fighting evil. Writers Pat Casey, Josh Miller and John Whittington are able to harness some extra goodwill this time around by emphasising the found-family aspect of Sonic’s relationship to not only Tom and Maddie, but also to Tails and Knuckles; a device you could argue is cheap and cheesy, but which never fails to induce an “aw” from the audience.

Then there’s Jim Carrey, who continues his rejuvenated, high-energy performance as Dr. Robotnik on a level that makes you feel as if you are watching him perform in his 90’s prime. The joke delivery and improvisation is so fast and hits so much of the time that Jeff Fowler simply lets Carrey run wild with his scenes, ensuring he hits the story beats while leaving everything else up to the comedic genius. Robotnik almost rivals Sonic for screen time this time around and it’s a good thing too, with James Marsden and Tika Sumpter’s characters reduced to little more than filler as the series begins to flesh out its world with more complex elements from the game franchise.

The introductions of Elba’s rage-filled Knuckles (reminiscent of Dave Bautista’s Drax in Guardians of the Galaxy) and Colleen O’Shaughnessey’s timid but brilliant Tails are welcome counterpoints to the brash confidence of Schwartz’ Sonic, making for some excellent comedic banter as well as an interesting examination of Sonic’s place in the world and how he carries himself. It’s largely surface level, but a little extra depth in a film that also includes dance battles to Bruno Mars songs is always welcome for the adults.

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is yet another delightfully light, enjoyable video-game movie in a genre famous for self-serious adaptations. It doesn’t shoot for the moon its loose retelling of the Sonic lore (perhaps to some game fans’ chagrin) and it is all the better for it, thanks to its talented cast of comedic powerhouses – led by Carrey and Schwartz – and while the film’s pacing at times falls behind the kind of blistering speed Sonic is known for, this is by and large another fantastic family film for kids of all ages. Stick around for the post-credits scene, it’ll have you racing to the inevitable sequel faster than Sonic himself.

Sonic the Hedgehog 2 stars Ben Schwartz, Jim Carrey, Idris Elba, Colleen O’Shaughnessey, Tika Sumpter, Adam Pally, Natasha Rothwell, Shemar Moore, Lee Majdoub & James Marsden – In cinemas now.

8/10

Hollywood has a long history of building films from video games, and it’s certainly not a stellar one. Taking characters and stories with huge existing fanbases should equal an easy win when it comes to throwing them on the big screen, but it’s rarely ever a successful mix. More often than not, the end result is a film that doesn’t do enough justice to the source material for fans, while also being too niche for wider audiences to get into. The latest to try his hand at breaking the mould this week is Sonic the Hedgehog, the infamous blue blur that has been synonymous with gaming for almost 30 years. Looking to bank on the somewhat surprise success of Pokémon: Detective Pikachu last year, Sonic aims to hit that nostalgic goldmine with a new origin story, big personalities and some flashy CGI. When all is said and done, Sonic the Hedgehog doesn’t quite run rings around the competition, though there is just enough there for him to get you walking, if maybe not running, to the cinemas.

The live-action adaptation is set largely in Green Hills, a fictional small town in rural California. Living secretly in the woods of the town is the titular blue hedgehog, having been stranded for years following a speedy (and somewhat bizarre) opening scene. Sonic (Ben Schwartz) claims to be ‘living his best life’ as he zips around town unseen, however it’s quickly clear that his many years in hiding have taken a toll. To combat his loneliness, he keeps close tabs on the town’s sheriff Tom Wachowski (James Marsden) and wife Maddie (Tika Sumpter) who – unknown to them – are his closest friends on Earth. Before too long, Sonic accidentally attracts the attention of the power-crazed scientist Dr Robotnik (Jim Carrey), spurring an unlikely road trip as Sonic and the sheriff try to outrun the mad doctor. The story is even more cliché than it sounds, with the heroes running through bar fights, car chases and a whole lot of bro talk along the way. It’s a very safe and predictable plot, which makes sense overall as you quickly realise that the film has a pretty specific target audience. Where Detective Pikachu managed to walk the line between pleasing both long-time fans and younger moviegoers, Sonic instead chooses to lean heavily into (not so) current pop-culture trends and jokes with just hints of nostalgia scattered throughout. Sonic is fundamentally the same character that we all remember, it’s just that now he pokes fun at Vin Diesel and spends a little too much time doing the floss.

Spicing up the hedgehog’s attitude and style isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and it certainly helps given that he’s the centre of attention for just about the entire length of the adventure. Sonic blitzes through jokes and dialogue like a kid on a sugar rush, with his loud and scattered delivery the polar opposite of Ryan Reynold’s more restrained and subtle performance as Pikachu last year. It all fits with the general Sonic vibe however, and his big personality blends with the zany action and plot spilling out around him. James Marsden’s character does fine with what he’s given as Sonic’s partner, however it’s a role built solely to prop up and guide Sonic to his next punchline or destination. The same can be said for many of the remaining supporting cast, who again offer up good performances despite the titular hero continuing to steal the spotlight. The only character that truly manages to challenge the star is Jim Carrey’s Dr Robotnik, who quite frankly lifts the film far higher than it otherwise would have been. Robotnik has been Sonic’s arch nemesis for decades, and Carrey seems to revel in the role following a recent break from notable big-screen appearances. He brings his trademark manic style to the mad doctor, always teetering on the edge of insanity when on the hunt for Sonic, interacting with loyal right hand man Agent Stone (Lee Majdoub) or just turning in a bizarre two-minute dance sequence to the song “Where Evil Grows”. Robotnik is an old-fashioned, moustache-twirling villain that shouldn’t be nearly as interesting as the character Carrey manages to create, and his hits of madness are spread well throughout the film.

Also cropping up alongside the Doctor’s appearances are some of the film’s many action and CGI-heavy moments – each generally more explosive than the last. Everything from Sonic’s fur and quills through to Robotnik’s drones and gadgets have all been put seamlessly into the real world, allowing for some great and inventive scenes to come through. A solid example comes when we’re given Sonic’s point of view as he hits superspeed, watching as he moves through and plays with a world moving around him in slow motion. This is all in addition to the very successful ground-up redesign of the star hedgehog himself, following the now infamous initial preview of the film that tried to sell a human/hedgehog hybrid nightmare just last year. While the changes to Sonic ended up delaying the film quite a bit, they were definitely worth the wait given the result. In fact, the effects work is almost held back by its ties to real-world backgrounds, which add very little to the adventure as a whole. We’re given brief flashes at Sonic’s familiar, video game home which hopefully will be expanded on in the more-than-likely sequel down the line.

Sonic the Hedgehog is the latest challenger to attempt making the move from games to the big screen, and he manages to give it a solid swing. Sonic’s design and abilities have been handled with an amazing amount of care and detail, giving you enough to appreciate when his banter starts to dip. Pairing his large personality with Carrey’s diabolical villain really saves the film from growing stale, and Carrey gives his performance just the right amount of edge to be dark without turning off the younger audience. It’s this audience that will get the most from the movie, though long-time fans will appreciate the hero’s design and fleeting nostalgic nods scattered throughout the lackluster, paint-by-numbers story. It may not be the event that finally brings film and games together, but Sonic the Hedgehog is a good bit of fun with some decent action, setting quite a pace for those to come in the future.

Sonic the Hedgehog stars Ben Schwartz, Jim Carrey, James Marsden, Tika Sumpter, Lee Majdoub, Natasha Rothwell & Adam Pally – In cinemas now.