REVIEWED - Sonic the Hedgehog 2

The school holidays are here, and there’s no better place to spend them than the cinema (other than outside of course). Unfortunately, these holidays aren’t being accompanied by much choice if you’re after a fun family film, but what is available is certainly worth the price of admission.

Directed by Jeff Fowler, Sonic the Hedgehog 2 continues the adventures of everyone’s favourite quilled hero.

A year after he saved the town of Green Hills, Sonic (voiced by Ben Schwartz) has been spending his nights attempting to fight crime as "Blue Justice", but things aren’t quite going to plan.

However, when Dr Robotnik (Jim Carrey) returns with Knuckles the Echidna (voiced by Idris Elba), Sonic must join Tails the Fox (voiced by Colleen Ann O'Shaughnessey), in a race that takes them from the slopes of Siberia to the beaches of Hawaii, to reach the source of ultimate power, the Master Emerald.

Sonic is fun. I don’t really know what else you could call it. The plot often feels a though it was simply written around the fun things the filmmakers wanted to put on screen. I would’ve enjoyed myself just as much if the movie had been two hours of its character’s trying to renovate a house.

Ben Schwartz brings so much energy to every line that’s it almost impossible not to enjoy yourself as much as he seems to be. And from a movie about a magic hedgehog trying to save reality, what more could you ask for?

Newcomers Knuckles and Tails are welcome additions to the story, while I do find it hard to disconnect Idris Elba’s voice from the image of his face (if you need reminding, he was the titular character of crime drama Luther), he certainly brings the character to life. And the decision to use O'Shaughnessey for tails just results in a fully formed character immediately, given as she has been providing the fox’s voice for various media since 2010.

These new characters help Sonic to stand out less as a lone computer-generated character, and if more films are to follow, I feel like the trio’s dynamic will become a main selling point.

Instead of feeling like a live-action film with cartoon characters, Sonic feels more like a cartoon with a few live-action characters scattered around for good measure.

In fact, the biggest thing holding this movie back is its live-action cast, who end up making the film feel duller most of the time. Whenever you reach a scene where it’s just real people on screen, you find yourself itching for the return of Sonic and his pals.

The only exception to this rule is Jim Carrey who, let’s face it, is a cartoon in his own right. Fortunately, the scenes sans-sonic and co are few and far between.

The only other real issue I took with the film was that it could’ve been a bit shorter. At just over 2 hours long, it isn’t quite a breeze.

If you’re looking for a good holiday viewing, Sonic is certainly worth a chance. It may not be perfect, but you’ll find it incredibly difficult to watch without having fun.

Rating 3.5/5 stars

Nat Dolan is an Auckland actor and movie enthusiast