Oh boy, it is now once again time for my favorite segment on this channel: Adult Man Overanalyzes a Kids Movie. I’ll admit, there are a lot of kids movies that are purposefully not marketed towards me, and so I feel as though those can be a bit hard to judge. However, I was a huge Sonic the Hedgehog fan growing up, so I feel like this is one of those instances where it makes sense for me. Especially considering I already reviewed the first and second Sonic films on this channel, but this is the one I was anticipating the most. My favorite Sonic game growing up was Sonic Adventure 2: Battle for the Gamecube, which introduced me to everyone’s favorite beacon of edge, Shadow the Hedgehog. The emo icon is finally making his big screen debut, which has only been overshadowed by the anticipation of seeing Maria bite the bullet onscreen as well.

Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is perhaps the biggest piece of fanservice the trilogy has offered up, loosely adapting the story of Shadow’s debut game to create a story with some thrilling moments for fans and possibly even the uninitiated. From music pieces to little references, the games feel properly honored this go around, even if they’re still stuck in a by-the-numbers kids film. The writing is often grating at times and the plot sometimes slips out of focus, but I do feel as though this is the best outing in the trilogy, even if it’s only by a narrow margin.

So Sonic and his friends Tails and Knuckles must take on Shadow, an alien that has escaped containment with a vendetta against humanity for the tragedies of his past. The trio must also contend with their old nemesis Doctor Robotnik, along with the doctor’s long-lost grandfather Gerald Robotnik, who has a devious plan up his sleeve more evil than anything they’ve faced before. 

So this film is the first real proper take on Team Sonic, which has its successes as well as its fumbles. While I conceptually like their characterizations, Sonic the headstrong leader, Tails the genius, and Knuckles the honorable muscle, I do wish we would have gotten more character development out of them. The film tries to give them conflict in the form of Sonic being unable to work within a team, but that issue is hardly ever felt outside of like one scene where it’s absolutely needed. It’s a good scene for what it’s worth, I just wish it remained consistent throughout the story. Other than that, I still have my issues with some of the characters. Ben Schwartz’s Sonic remains particularly grating, not really as a fault to Ben, but more the writing around him. I get he’s young, hyperactive and annoying, but he’s supposed to annoy people in the movie, not the ones watching it. Tails, much like the prior film, is kind of just there and doesn’t really have much of a character to speak of. He’s supposedly Sonic’s best friend and the voice of reason, but I never really felt much of that at all. But Knuckles is consistently still the best of the three, so good on ya, Idris.

Jim “I Don’t Do Sequels” Carrey once again returns as the devious Doctor Robotnik, but this time he’s pulling double duty by also playing his deranged grandfather, Gerald. Like the past two films, Carrey is the absolute highlight here, and now we’ve got double the dosage. Both doctors are one-liner machines, but Carrey manages to make both feel different and distinct. Gerald has a bit more of an edge to him, but also plays into Robotnik’s goofy side as well. But what everyone was coming to see was Shadow, played by Keanu Reeves, who I have mixed feelings on actually. This is kind of how I feel for a lot of Reeves‘ roles: love the voice, not so much the delivery. Reeves does capture the angst of the character fairly well, though some lines are delivered so oddly that it kind of gave me whiplash. The film at least does a decent job at drawing parallels between him and Sonic, as both are examples of outsiders formed by their tragedies, though each has taken a different path because of it. Even though that’s great, Shadow still felt a tad underutilized here, sometimes getting lost in the shuffle with all the other characters and questionable moments. Somehow I don’t think the Robotnik dance number should have been that long.

It’s kind of wild, but this film has some of the best computer-generated action sequences out of the bulk of Hollywood movies today. From a chase through the city to a globetrotting fist fight, these scenes are always colorful, well structured, and a lot of fun. I do think the film does a bit of a better job with prioritizing these moments, though the film can still be rife with agonizing injections of comedy that either go on for too long or completely miss the mark. Sonic didn’t floss in this one, so I guess that’s something. That being said, this film is noticeably darker in tone compared to the other two, but not really in a goofy, undeserved kind of way. There’s some halfway decent emotional moments, like Shadow’s backstory with Maria, and then some unneeded ones like the film trying to convince you a main character just got killed. I won’t say the film is “mature”, but it does handle heavier tones decently well.

And look, I’m not really one for key jangling in films like these, but this film actually felt like it was paying tribute to its source, which I didn’t always feel in the previous films. Those films seemed so shy about including any music from the games or getting wilder with its world building, but that isn’t so much the case here. It’s a loose adaptation of Sonic Adventure 2, which helps to make it feel more like a tribute guided by the source material. We get a few song drops, including one big, obvious one near the end, and some cute little references that don’t feel to eye-rolley. But maybe I’m just biased. I do love that little, buggy game.

I feel pretty confident that Sonic 3 is the best Sonic movie, though its shortcomings do hold it back from being a stellar “movie” in my eyes. A lot of the comedy and characterizations outside of Eggman don’t super work for me, and the film’s emotional moments are often stale and generic. Yet, as a fan, I still find a lot of fun with these, particularly with the introduction of Shadow and the film’s growing willingness to go buck wild with source material. It still has its weaknesses, but it’s certainly the best video game to movie adaptations we’ve gotten thus far. And I’m a bigger Mario fan than I am Sonic, so you know that’s gotta mean something.

RATING

THE ULTIMATE LIFEFORM

Shadow the Hedgehog was created to be the ultimate lifeform, which I guess is supposed to be a anthropomorphic hedgehog that comes up to your knee. But in honor of coolest Sonic character, I have decided to immortalize him with a black and red cocktail. This is quite sweet, partially leaning into dessert thanks to the combination of the blackberry and chocolate, along with the richness of the creme de cassis. The bourbon itself plays a supporting role, though you never doubt it’s there. The grenadine at the bottom is more for visual flair than anything, but if you finish the cocktail and want to drink straight syrup like a maniac, then who am I to stop you?

INGREDIENTS

• 2oz bourbon
• 1/2oz blackberry liqueur
• 1/2oz lemon juice
• 1/4oz creme de cassis
• Pinch of black sugar
• 2 dashes chocolate bitters
• 1oz grenadine

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Add all ingredients (except grenadine) to a shaker and shake with ice.
2. Pour grenadine into a chilled coup glass.
3. Slowly strain cocktail on top to create a layered effect.