Sonic the Hedgehog 3 Review: The Fastest Film of the Blue Blur's Movie Trilogy
Title: Sonic the Hedgehog 3
Director: Jeff Fowler
Release Date: December 20, 2024
2024 is wrapping up, so here comes the final review of the year. This month will be a big moment for animated movies, like Mufasa: The Lion King, but there is another one of the colorful holiday-release bunch. Our final movie to be reviewed this year is Sonic the Hedgehog 3, the hyped up installment of the Sonic movie franchise! Its current gross is $27.1 million against a $122 million budget. However, starting from its release, it has the crown at the December release box office. Alongside, the movie gained positive reception from both critics and audiences, mainly for its acting performances from Keanu Reeves and Jim Carrey. From Rotten Tomatoes, critics gave it an 86% Tomatometer, but audiences loved it more by giving it an astoundingly high 98% Popcornmeter. Thanks to the genius acting and heart put into adapting the game, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 lives and learns to run extremely fast.
Summary
"Sonic, Knuckles and Tails reunite to battle Shadow, a mysterious new enemy with powers unlike anything they've faced before. With their abilities outmatched in every way, they seek out an unlikely alliance to stop Shadow and protect the planet." - The official Sonic the Hedgehog 3 movie website
Reasons
From this extraordinary video game sequel, the fastest qualities of Sonic the Hedgehog 3 are the performances, faithfulness to the source material, and messages. When you choose a talented star like Keanu Reeves, their results come out as what you wanted. Reeves did such a spectacular job as Shadow because he did John Wick before, so it prompted him to pull of the role way too easily. Also, Jim Carrey nailed it again as Dr. Robotnik as well as Gerald Robotnik at the same time, and Ben Schwartz did a better job at voicing Sonic in this installment. Putting the performances aside, the movie managed to make its own faithful version of the Sonic game it is based on. This movie is mainly based on Sonic Adventure 2, where Shadow the Hedgehog first appears in, and it is Paramount's way of the game. Even though this is just Paramount's version of Sonic, it still has the heart to turn the story from Adventure 2 into a movie. Additionally, there are references from the source material that fans will be able to recognize. Before going to the next paragraph, this movie also has its messages like the second installment did. Its main message is to not let pain make you a destructive person which was a really strong message for a video game-based movie. The message especially goes into play when you lose a loved one, like Shadow losing Maria, and revenge is not going to be the answer to that pain. There are also some other messages like teamwork and sacrifice that worked in a dark part 3.
Other fast qualities to come from Sonic the Hedgehog 3 are the humor, CGI, and characters. Albeit this is the darkest movie in the trilogy, it still has its funny moments, since it has a family audience watching it. Most of them are general gags and conversations but there are also some pop culture references put in the bag of jokes. Luckily, they are just for fun instead of trying to pander to the 2010's kids out there. Moving on, the CGI is still as amazing as the previous two movies' results. Of course, we have Team Sonic and Shadow being animated really well to fit in the live-action settings. What is to talk about are the lightning and mechanic visuals. The third act was a blast to watch because of all the visuals that were put in to visualize the final boss from Sonic Adventure 2 in the big screen. Finally, the characters were likable, entertaining, and a whole lot of fun. Sonic, as well as Tails and Knuckles, have more fun interaction and friendship chemistry between each other to complete the mission. Jim Carrey's villains, Dr. Ivo and Gerald Robotnik, are both funny and intimidating at the same time. Obviously, the best character from the movie had to be Shadow because Reeves made his character interesting and super fun.
Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is yet another perfect movie of the year but there are some nitpicks that people may not like. This film may focus on two stories, Sonic's plot and Dr. Eggman's subplot, at the same time. Yes, no problem but it can get jumbled up after a while. Also, the movie can get a little too much with Dr. Eggman's fate from the ending. If the writers wanted to hide it as much as possible, they could leave an implication.
Conclusion
At the end of the day, Sonic the Hedgehog 3 can run so fast to be one of the best movies of the year. Paramount excelled again with the Sonic franchise, especially with Shadow's introduction, drawing video game fans into theaters this time. Because of the hype and marketing this movie is getting, it has a big chance to come out on top of the box office this month. Sure, there is Mufasa: The Lion King and Kraven the Hunter (which is an adult movie but it is Marvel, so kids would be getting a golden ticket to see that somehow), but Sonic the Hedgehog 3 is the one that families should see instead. Definitely see it whether you're a Sonic fan or not. You will not regret the fun.
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