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.