Tag Archives: Colleen O'Shaughnessey

Third Time Charm

Sonic the Hedgehog 3

by Rachel Willis

There seems to be a trend in kids’ movies lately where sequels outshine their originals. That’s not always the case, of course, but it’s certainly true with director Jeff Fowler’s Sonic the Hedgehog 3.

The stakes continue to rise for Team Sonic – which includes the titular hedgehog (Ben Schwartz), Tails (Colleen O’Shaughnessey) and Knuckles (Idris Elba) – as another hedgehog, Shadow (Keanu Reeves), is awakened from a 50-year-long hibernation. Shadow has a mission to avenge his mistreatment at the hands of humans by teaming up with Ivo Robotnik’s grandfather, Professor Robotnik. Both Robotniks are played with panache by Jim Carrey.

As with the previous entries, a lot of the film’s focus rests on Carrey. His villainous turn is amusing, but it often feels like too many others are underutilized, such as James Marsden and Tika Sumpter who reprise their roles as Tom and Maddie. Several additional actors return from the previous two films but, aside from Agent Stone (Lee Majdoub), they’re not given much to do.

However, the animated characters are the real stars of the show.  Our new villain, Shadow, is given a certain amount of depth we haven’t seen in the previous two films. Though it’s not a very original backstory, Reeves brings a certain quality to his character that helps elicit audience sympathy.

Sonic, himself, continues to learn what it means to make good choices in life and continues to impart a strong moral message to kids without losing the good-natured humor with which Schwartz imbues in the character.

The story isn’t without flaws, but the fast-paced, entertaining moments make up for the weaker moments. The overall feeling you get from the film is fairly satisfying, and without giving anything away, there is a sense of closure with the conclusion.

But make sure to stick around through the end credits for a hint of what may be in store for Team Sonic in the future.

Livin’ on the Hedge

Sonic the Hedgehog 2

by George Wolf

I apologize in advance if I slip and call him Crash Bandicoot. I know it’s Sonic – Sonic the Hedgehog, but I’ve got limited first hand experience with any game after Frogger and sometimes get careless.

I do have experience with the first Sonic the Hedgehog movie from two years ago, so more of that same broadly-drawn, kid-friendly eye candy was not a surprise. What I wasn’t expecting was so much more of it, and those 30 extra minutes turn a harmlessly forgettable romp into a real test of patience.

Most of the gang returns from part one, including Ben Schwartz as the voice of Sonic, that speedy little alien who runs around Seattle looking for opportunities to earn the heroic moniker of “Blue Justice!”

But his human “dad” Tom (James Marsden) cautions Sonic of the need to grow up and remember that the moments that make a hero are not for him to choose.

Sonic will get those chances to prove himself, thanks to the return Dr. Robotnik aka “Eggman” (Jim Carrey) and a new, not blue meanie from space.

The ginger-maned Knuckles (voiced by Idris Elba) is a skilled Echidna warrior with an old score to settle against the hedgehog. That means Sonic and his buttcopter-powered pal Tails (voiced by Colleen O’Shaughnessey) will have to fight harder than ever to make sure the all-powerful Master Emerald does not fall into evil hands.

Director Jeff Fowler again shows a good feel for letting the effects department do some flexing, and the mixing of live action with animation is admittedly impressive.

But like the first film, the storytelling here is so exaggerated that even Carrey’s cartoonish mugging doesn’t seem that much over the top. Screenwriters Pat Casey and Josh Miller get an assist this time from John Whittington (The Lego Batman Movie), but are still committed to putting big, obvious eyebrows on nearly everything.

The welcome exception is Knuckles, and Elba’s perfectly authoritative delivery makes his character’s humorless interactions that much more humorous. It’s the one aspect of the film that doesn’t seem geared to keep the attention of easily distracted children.

But hey, kids, how do you like dance offs? Sonic 2 sets the needle drop and move busting level to unnecessary, pushing the run time to nearly two hours, even before the obligatory mid-credits peek at part three.

And all this time I thought speed was Sonic’s superpower.

Or maybe that’s Crash.