Even the most optimistic Sonic the Hedgehog fan couldn’t have seen what the Sonic film series would do. In just two films, it reached new critical and commercial heights for video game-based films and became one of the surest recent bets for family entertainment. Having that type of impact and momentum warrants another entry, and it’s here with Sonic the Hedgehog 3.
Sonic 3 picks up where Sonic 2’s mid-credit scene left off. It finds the newly formed Team Sonic, consisting of Sonic, Tails, and foe-turned-friend Knuckles, having to create an unlikely alliance with their nemesis, Dr. Ivo Robotnik, to defeat a new enemy, Shadow the Hedgehog. Despite suffering from some redundancy, our third meetup with Sonic and friends shows no signs of this franchise slowing down.
All things good about Sonic 3 start with Jim Carrey. His previous turns as Robotnik were reminders of why he’s by far one of the greatest comedic actors ever. This turn? He pulls double duty by adding Gerald Robotnik, Ivo’s grandfather, to his slate.
Carrey’s gift for cartoon-quality physical comedy steals the show with his seemingly effortless contorting of his voice and body while dually making the Robotniks more than secondary characters. There isn’t a specific scene that stands out from Carrey’s performance because it’s a non-stop showcase, but he more than proves there’s plenty left in the tank after 40 years of doing this.
As much as Carrey stands out, it’s far from the only performance that makes Sonic 3 go because of the perfect casting of Keanu Reeves as Shadow. The way he portrays Shadow (and the character’s backstory) is straight from his John Wick movies. Still, Reeves’s ability to nail the character’s grief and anger gives the film an edge it was time for the Sonic films to have.
The rest of the cast keeps everything status quo as Ben Schwartz, Idris Elba, and Colleen O'Shaughnessey do nothing to tarnish their previous turns as Sonic, Knuckles, and Tails, respectively. However, they don’t do anything we haven’t seen in the series before.
Things start to get shaky for Sonic 3 behind the camera. First, the story is a bit redundant. Some familiarity is expected because it is an adaptation and the powers that be follow the source material closely. It becomes a problem when the film becomes predictable, and Sonic 3 is that from scene one. Thankfully, the film’s emphasis on heart over the previous entries' focus on humor does enough to freshen things up.
The other issue is some of the film’s natural changes. Bringing on a few other characters aside from Shadow and Gerald Robotnik naturally reduced or cut out some things that worked well for the previous films. While Natasha Rothwell, James Marsden, and Tika Sumpter got a little screen time (and real little in Rothwell’s case), more of them would not have hurt Sonic 3 at all.
Overall, Sonic 3 still upholds the quality we’ve come to expect out of the series. It does feel familiar to a fault, but Carrey’s and Reeves’s performances give this entry enough to hold your attention. There isn’t a need to check this one out in a premium format, but you do need to stay around during the credits as there is a mid-credit and post-credit scene.
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