Sonic the Hedgehog 3 review - The Third of the Franchise is too reliant on gags

After so many efforts, it feels as if the video-game adaptation has finally been cracked with the Super Mario Bros Movie, but especially with the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise. A franchise based on existing IP but at its heart a tale of found family. This latest instalment introduces another famous character, Shadow, a black and red iteration of Sonic as the franchise slowly drip-feeds the audience characters with no intention of stopping.

In the third film, Shadow is awakened after 50 years. Threatened by GUN, Shadow, played by Keanu Reeves, wishes to be alone. However, when Sonic, with the help of Tails and Knuckles, are asked by GUN for aid, Shadow’s wish for isolation leads him to defend himself. Team Sonic must rely on the help of former enemy Dr Robotnik to stop Shadow’s plot for revenge which could cause havoc across the globe.

Unsurprisingly, the third instalment of the franchise has end-of-the-world stakes as it adds another puzzle piece with Shadow, a quiet, brooding type that counteracts the hyperactive Sonic, with the film echoing much of the tone and sentiment of the prior two films. It is bright, energetic and full of jokes, puns and quips. So fans of the films will be pleased to know that the franchise aesthetic has not been lost with this film.

However, for all the grander and louder sentiment, it takes the quippiness way too far. It feels as if you are being bashed over the head with jokes as if any improvised line made it into the edit. It goes through joke-intended lines at a rate of knots that outdoes any comedy this year in terms of sheer volume. For a film that isn’t an out-and-out comedy, this is a big problem as it makes any dramatic or emotional stakes less powerful as it always feels as if it is about to be undercut by a joke. Midway through the film, a major character is seriously injured and there is little in the way of fallout, grief and only a glimpse of anger.

There are still some fun moments where I did chuckle, particularly one moment that satirises product placement in films. However, there are other winks at the camera that feel as if they are just trying to be like Deadpool and fall flat – something of a direction I feel that comedic writing is heading towards. Through the number of jokes, it is hard to imagine a world in which you wouldn’t laugh at something, but for the most part, these are bottom-of-the-barrell jokes that got an odd chuckle from my audience.

Whilst, there is some fun to be had, and I did get swept up at times, the automatic fire of joke after joke is excessive and exhausting. A fudged backstory to create emotional resonance feels painfully forced in, cut into awkward and bizarre places. However, there is definitely an audience for these kinds of films, with the franchise going nowhere judging by the end credit scenes that had audible gasps from my audience who are clearly much bigger fans of both the source material and the films themselves.

It is much the same when it comes to Sonic the Hedgehog 3. Everything is ramped up to 11, and although I did have some fun, it feels like the joy of the first film has rubbed off on me by now and the third film just feels tired and unoriginal in its approach. That being said, if you like the first two I would definitely suggest checking out this instalment for more of the same.