“Sonic the Hedgehog 3” speeds into success (2025)

Warning: This review contains spoilers!

Video game adaptations are taking over mainstream Hollywood. Titles such as “The Last of Us” (2023), “The Super Mario Bros. Movie” (2023) and “Pokémon: Detective Pikachu” (2019) are just a few that have made a huge splash in Hollywood. One of the most popular titles taking over screens this winter was the third installment in SEGA’s Sonic the Hedgehog franchise, “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” (2024). The film focuses on the backstory of the franchise’s most beloved characters, Shadow the Hedgehog. The film grossed over $400 million worldwide making it the highest-grossing film in the franchise.

But what exactly makes this film soar over its predecessors? For starters, the film takes a more in-depth look at the source material it’s based on; this gives the film a darker and more engaging tone. This is especially amplified when the backstory of the antagonist, Shadow, is explored.

Unlike Sonic and the rest of his gang, Shadow’s past is full of tragedy. Upon his arrival to Earth 50 years before the film’s events take place, scientists — including Dr. Robotnik — were experimenting on him. In an attempt to escape with Dr. Gerald Robotnik (the newly introduced grandfather of the Dr. Robotnik from previous installments), Shadow is sealed away and imprisoned for decades while Maria, Dr. Robotnik’s niece and Shadow’s friend on Earth, is killed. Many fans were worried about translating Shadow’s backstory from the games to the film since his backstory is so violent. The film respectfully conveys the brutal aspects of the origin story softly, making Shadow’s darker origin story easier to understand for younger audiences.

Another key aspect of the film’s success is Jim Carrey’s phenomenal performance as the titular sonic villain Dr. Robotnik — the movie’s translation of the original Dr. Eggman from the first two movies — and his character’s grandfather, Dr. Gerald Robotnik. Carrey pulls out all the comedic stops in this performance, especially during an iconic heist dance sequence that took social media by storm. While his acting in the two roles is a bit jarring (especially when both are on screen), the sheer hilarity of the scenes is undeniable. Additionally, Dr. Robotnik’s character is explored more thoroughly here. Though he eventually returns to his usual villainous shenanigans, a section of the film requires him and Team Sonic to work together, allowing for some rare but fun character interactions between Sonic and his usual nemesis. Dr. Robotnik’s favorite henchman, Agent Stone, (played by Lee Majdoub) returns as well.

Though Agent Stone doesn’t exist in any of the Sonic games, many fans have welcomed his addition to the movie as his character has presented a nuanced relationship with Dr. Eggman and funny interactions with Team Sonic, such as him and Knuckles being attacked by Shadow, “revenge guac” and his emotional goodbye to Dr. Robotnik. The franchise doesn’t exactly address the nature of their relationship but presents romantic aspects in the previous two films that are developed even further in this film, much to the audience’s delight.

Beyond its characters, the film’s animation has improved substantially. It’s no secret that when the trailer for the first film dropped, it instantly became a massive internet meme , with social media users making fun of the design. Since then, it’s clear SEGA has taken those critiques to heart, and this film is certainly the most technically impressive in the series. In the first act of the film, Shadow and Sonic engage in a beautiful computer-generated imagery race across Tokyo. Every piece is incredibly detailed, from the intense rain that falls over Shadow as he finds himself in Tokyo, the motorcycle chase scene between Sonic and Shadow and the bright colors of the city contrasting Tokyo’s night sky. All of the chase and fight scenes were incredibly detailed and had well-animated light trails following the characters, making the movie feel all the more immersive. Furthermore, due to the added tension in this film — with the world being at stake and the characters’ loved ones caught in the crossfire — the characters’ tense facial expressions feel like they’re animated with a lot more care than they were previously, which artfully conveys the higher stakes of this film for avid franchise enthusiasts.

The plot combines all these characters’ best attributes — Sonic’s hearty do-the-right-thing attitude, Knuckles’ protection over his newfound family, Tails’ tech knowledge and Shadow’s grief skills — to tell the best story in the trilogy. Sonic, Tails and Knuckles, with the help of Tom (James Marsden) and Maddie (Tika Sumpter), have to fight against Shadow and the Robotoniks as he confronts his past and tries to annihilate everything on Earth to avenge Maria. Though it’s not the most complicated story, it still felt like an adaptation derived from a genuine love for the games.

Furthermore, by utilizing the story and character dynamics, the movie’s third act feels like a true love letter to the previous movies. A particular highlight was the strengthened bond between Knuckles, Tails and Sonic. Each of them grew to care about each other in the last film, but their relationship feels far more concentrated in this film. The finale especially cemented this with Tails coming to save Sonic and Knuckles, risking his own life to save the two of them. The epilogue with their found (human) family and the development of their bond with their new alien kinds was subtle but incredibly sweet.

Not only did the finale get a massive improvement, the voice acting in this film is a massive upgrade from the previous films. Sonic and Knuckles’ argument about using the Master Emerald was able to have the emotional tension it did due to the superb vocal performances of Ben Schwartz and Idris Elba. Tails’ voice actor, Colleen O’Shaughnessey, also brings her A game vocally, making Tails’ attempted intervention in the argument all the more heartbreaking.

Throughout the movie, it was easy to tell all three were having an absolute blast in the recording booth. Notably, Keanu Reeves’ performance as Shadow gives the character a lot of emotional weight, allowing the viewer to resonate with his emotional distress and turmoil.

Overall, the film was an absolute knockout. Whether it was the effort to connect the film franchise to the games, the stellar voice acting or just the hysterically comedic moments, everything connected well together, making for a fantastic movie-watching experience. And with a fourth film already greenlit, it doesn’t seem like the momentum for the franchise is going to slow down anytime soon.

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