He is fast, he is smart and he is out of this world — yes that’s Sonic the Hedgehog for you. The favourite video game character from the 1990s finally makes his live-action debut and doesn’t disappoint at all.

Here, the iconic Sonic (voiced by Ben Schwartz) befriends local cop Tom Wachowski (James Marsden), to escape from the clutches of Dr Robotnik (Jim Carrey), who wants to steal his supersonic speed for his ulterior motives.

The story revolves around Sonic the Hedgehog who carries a special bag of gold rings that can teleport him to any place in the universe. That’s not all, his quill contains special powers that might be used for the wrong reasons if he ever gets captured. Thus begins the Sonic and Robotnik chase that ends with one of them leaving the battlefield, but not before Sonic and Tom travel from Montana to San Francisco, meeting different kinds of people, and Tom’s dog, his best friend before Sonic’s entry.

Why San Francisco? Well for that you have to watch the movie and cheer for the cutest thing on the screen!

What makes Sonic the Hedgehog one of the best movies of the year so far? First, it introduces the lead character to a new generation of audience who might not have even played the game, but will fall in love with it. It is both for the young and the old, as parents of today fell for the character in their youth, whereas the youth of today will find him fascinating, nothing like they had encountered yet.

Second, it heralds the return of the one and only Jim Carrey who gets to play a character that not just suits him, but he also aces it. As the earlier version of Dr Eggman, the comic genius Carrey does everything that made him a star in the 1990s, and carries on the same form well into 2020.

And then there are the special effects that do justice to Sonic’s character, super speed and ability to escape from impossible situations. Be it the scene before they encounter the Biker Gang or the one where he dodges missiles sent to destroy him, Sonic’s confidence and lightning-fast thinking will make him popular, once again. Also, Jeff Fowler’s direction must be commended for he created a chemistry that was never there during the making of the film.

James Marsden’s acting and Ben Schwartz voice come out as a lethal combination; while the former had to perform as if he was acting with a CGI character (Sonic, which was added later), the latter gave expressions that complimented the policeman. If that’s not amazing, I don’t know what is!

Published in Dawn, Young World, March 28th, 2020