"an incredible triumph from start to finish"

Over the course of Cinema history, films based on video games have been fraught with bad adaptations, for whatever reason, Hollywood seems to sink so much money into them but seemingly forgets to tell a good story and incorporate elements from the game being adapted, that cycle was changed in 2020 with Sonic The Hedgehog, however it could have been a completely different story if the filmmakers dug their heels in and kept their design for Sonic, dubbed ‘Ugly Sonic’ in Pop Culture, but if they did that we certainly wouldn’t be talking about the third entry in this fantastic expansive franchise.

Flash forward to 2022 and another successful instalment came to Cinemas in the form of Sonic The Hedgehog 2, it successfully introduced beloved characters Tails and Knuckles to the Sonic Cinematic Universe as well as spawning a TV series based around Knuckles which came out earlier this year and now we have Sonic The Hedgehog 3 with a fourth entry in development. This brief walk down memory lane is to hammer home that video game movies aren’t all terrible and Sonic The Hedgehog 3 is an incredible triumph from start to finish and introduces Cinemagoers to fan favourite anti hero - Shadow The Hedgehog, voiced superbly by Keanu Reeves.

Sonic The Hedgehog 3 begins with the ultimate lifeform - Shadow waking up in a secret military cell operated by the Guardian Units of Nations (GUN) with a fantastic opening scene that showcases Shadow’s abilities; transporting from here to there in the blink of an eye akin to the opening of X2 with Nightcrawler bamphing around the Oval Office!

Following that, we are taken to the familiar setting of Green Hills where Sonic (Ben Schwartz), Tails (Colleen O'Shaughnessey), Knuckles (Idris Elba) and the Wachowski’s (James Marsden and Tika Sumpter) as well as Ozzie the family Dog, are setting up a party to celebrate Sonic arriving on Earth. The celebrations are interrupted when they are conscripted by GUN to help with their escaped Shadow problem.

What follows is a colourful, action packed, fun filed, emotional thrill ride that you will love every second of. It was shown in the trailer, so I don’t consider it a spoiler that Jim Carrey plays both versions of Robotnik in the film; Ivo and his grandfather Gerald and Shadow’s backstory is beautifully and tragically brought to life with Alyla Browne portraying Maria Robotnik; Gerald’s granddaughter and Ivo’s cousin.

With Team Sonic out matched, they have to seek an uneasy alliance with Dr. Ivo Robotnik and Agent Stone and it doesn't take long for he alliance to be tested by the re emergence of Gerald Robotnik.

Carrey is having an absolute blast as the Robotnik’s, it clearly shows since to date this is the first time he has been the same character in three consecutive films. In fact everyone is having a blast in their roles and it shows on screen, even those that only show up for one scene, I won’t say who since that would be a spoiler. Krysten Ritter deserves a mention, she isn't given enough to do as the new face of GUN; Director Rockwell, she's strong and a great addition so I hope there's more of her in Sonic The Hedgehog 4 and beyond. Lee Majdoub is wonderful yet again as the long suffering Agent Stone, he’s great in the role, being the straight-man to Carrey’s Comedic flare.

Sonic The Hedgehog 3 is filled with easter eggs, not only from Sonic lore but from another well known game franchise as well as some hints at Manga and follows the storyline of Sonic Adventure 2, whilst making it more Cinematic, the Space Colony Ark and Eclipse Cannon are beautifully realised for the film. Music wise, it was awesome to have Live & Learn from Sonic Adventure 2 included and having the familiar sound of Crush 40 was just perfect.

Casting Keanu Reeves as Shadow is a touch of genius, the guy was born to play Shadow, he fits the role perfectly and whilst Sonic has been voiced by others in the past; most notable Jaleel White, Ben Schwartz makes the blue blur his own.

Jeff Fowler and his creative team have done it yet again, there is a post credits scene, so stay seated for that, you'll thank me later and I can’t wait for Sonic The Hedgehog 4, it is going to be something special. This franchise shows no signs of slowing down, and I for one am here for it.