Review of Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (2022) by Jumbomax792 — 11 Apr 2022

This movie is so good! It was way better than the first one and just about everything I ever hoped for in a Sonic movie! The movie is a love letter to Sonic fans of all generations, while still being fun for more casual viewers! While the first movie was good, it was missing most of the elements and lore from the game series, but the sequel completely corrects that. I'm definitely a little biased as I'm a life long huge Sonic the Hedgehog fan, but I'm not kidding around when I give this movie a 9! This is the most fun I've had at the theater in a long time!

The story was fairly well done and introduces a lot of characters and lore from the games such as Tails and Knuckles, and the chaos and master emeralds. I feel the introduction was done very well and gives the audience all the information they need to know to quickly understand what the movie is all about. It gets a little slow in the middle of the movie, but quickly picks back up towards the end and becomes amazing in the climax! Almost every minute of the movie had references and call backs to the video game series' long history of games, so eagle-eyed Sonic fans will have a blast finding all of the references! There was a nice blend of comedy and adventure throughout the film. Some jokes are a bit childish, but there are many jokes that adults will get a kick out of as well (My theater had both kids and adults laughing and cheering throughout the film). The action scenes are really well done and always have high enough stakes to keep you focused.

The main cast is amazing with Ben Schwartz as Sonic, Colleen O'Shaughnessey as Tails, Idris Elba as Knuckles, and especially Jim Carrey as Robotnik! (If this is Carrey's final film like he is considering, he'll really end with a bang!) The characterization is well done, and much more how they are in the best Sonic games than they were in the first film. There's some nice character development throughout the film and some sweet messages for kids to learn along the way about friendship and family, and what it means to be a hero.

The film's musical score was really nice and a step up from the first movie. There were many parts where the music really hit just right and complimented the emotional scenes perfectly. Though I would have loved to hear more music from the video games in the film, but it did it's job well, and I'm not complaining.

The only major problem I had with the film was some pacing problems in the middle of the movie. There was one part in particular which had to do with the humans at the wedding in Hawaii that dragged on a bit too long. I think it could have easily been fixed with a few more cuts to Sonic and his friends in the action, but it's not something that ruins the entire movie. As someone who didn't really enjoy the focus on the human characters in the first movie, I have to admit, even the human scenes had pretty funny moments in this one.

Overall this movie was a blast and I highly recommend it! Whether you're a kid or an adult, Sonic fan or not, there is something fun and exciting in this movie for everyone! Yes, it has it's flaws here and there, but I promise you'll find something to enjoy in this film! Absolute must see if you're a Sonic fan! (Oh, and stay for the after credits scene especially if you're a Sonic fan.