Sonic the Hedgehog 2 review  – For the quill of it

The intersection of film and video games is a crossroads through which many a vehicle, both luxury and jalopy, pass. You have the big screen game adaptations that boast fuel injection and a sweet interior, dedicated as they are to storytelling and gameplay accuracy; and then you have those that sold the wheels, the engine, and the windscreen wipers to cash in on a popular property.

Through this intersection speeds Sega’s golden boy and our good friend, Sonic the Hedgehog. Riding very high off the critical and commercial success of his first live-action outing in 2020, the blue blur returns for a sequel that dives all in on the game’s lore, and revels in it, despite continuing and exacerbating some frustrating choices from its predecessor.

In Sonic the Hedgehog 2, Sonic (voiced once again by Ben Schwartz) finds himself living the good life under the caring watch of caretakers Tom (James Marsden) and Maddie (Tika Sumpter) in hometown Green Hills. Though making an effort to be a hero, Sonic remains reckless. Tom, however, still trusts him to look after the house while he and Maddie attend the wedding of Maddie’s sister Rachel (Natasha Rothwell) and future hubby Randall (Shemar Moore). But Sonic is quickly forced to embark on an epic quest as Dr Robotnik (Jim Carrey) returns for vengeance, aided by a red mound of muscle, Knuckles the Echidna (Idris Elba). Sonic at least has help in the form of newfound sidekick and two-tailed fox Tails (Colleen O’Shaughnessey), and together they set out to find the legendary master emerald before Robotnik and Knuckles can.

The key takeaway from Sonic 2 is that writers Pat Casey and Josh Miller were given copies of every Sonic video game and told to let loose. The movie is stuffed with references and easter eggs, and is completely unapologetic in its execution. While this movie, like the first one, could be criticised for adhering to Hollywood’s annoying practise of taking popular characters out of their world to mingle with human ones, this sequel makes up for that with strong first and final acts, delivering the adaptation we came to see.

The second act, and indeed those humans, are Sonic 2’s biggest problem, though. While Marsden and Sumpter remain excellent and very likable in their roles, and Rothwell’s Rachel delivers some seismic comedic moments, the human-oriented subplot slows the movie down considerably. Sonic and Tails go on an epic adventure, and we’re stuck cutting back to a wedding, as well as being served some blatant product placement (which is proving to be a trademark of this franchise). These scenes, which make up around twenty minutes of this over-two-hour-long movie, could have been cut, making for a smoother, non-stop and more exhilarating ride.

And that’s annoying ‘cause the ride gets really good. Characterisation work is executed excellently thanks to the voice cast. Ben Schwartz continues to deliver a pitch-perfect Sonic with a teenage attitude straight out of the 90s. O’Shaughnessey gives us the Tails we know and love, straight out of other franchise material like Sonic Boom, and the character develops a heartwarming relationship with the blue blur. Sonic’s relationship with Tom is forced into the backseat because of this, but their father-son dynamic was a tad weird from the start, so no love is lost in favour of the fox.

And, yes, as we knew from the moment the first trailer dropped, Idris Elba as Knuckles is genius, amounting to being the best part of the movie. There was concern voiced that Elba’s serious approach and demeanour would not work well in this movie franchise, but Elba’s Knuckles delivers a hilarious and apt contrast to Sonic’s playful attitude. His motivations are clear, he looks cool, and he participates in very fun action sequences alongside Sonic. Great stuff. And also, as always, while all of this is going down, Jim Carrey is having the time of his life. He’s doubled down on Robotinik’s “eccentricities,” and even though the performance walks perilously close to the edge of untenable absurdity, he’s still fun to watch. With reports that this may be Carrey’s last movie before retiring from acting, his portrayal of Robotnik would be a very honourable sendoff.

Production-wise, the movie is a bit of mixed bag. While we are treated to a wide variety of locations, of which the internet will spend the next few weeks identifying each of them as various game levels, the CGI is a bit rough on the backdrops. The music is great – Junkie XL’s score establishes an epic mood (and even Kid Cudi’s single for the movie has a nice, chilled rhythm). But, the film editing is choppy, especially when it comes to the humans’ escapades in that second act.

Overall, though, the film pays out its dividends in the final showdown. It’s weird, it’s busy, and it actually delivers the source material’s more whacky and action-packed points. And, as with the appearance of Tails in the first movie’s mid-credits scene, the sequel’s bonus reveal does not disappoint. It lights the anticipation fuse for Sonic 3.

In summary, if we’re forced to pull a comparison, Sonic 1 is more cohesive as a film, while Sonic 2 feels bigger and more ambitious. Most importantly, 2 is a fun time. Kids will definitely love it and it’s awesome that we are living in a timeline that has a thriving Sonic movie franchise (whatever we may think of his games over the years). The finish line is not in sight yet, and the journey so far has been very entertaining and worthwhile.