Spoiler I went to see it with a couple of friends at the Odeon in Tunbridge Wells last night, one of whom is a Sonic fan and the other who knows a lot about Sonic via me but only really played the originals - all three of us really enjoyed it! The screening I was at had a few obvious fans scattered about in Sonic shirts, and one guy was dressed as Sonic head-to-toe which was cool. No pops or cheers for anything though. People laughed at the jokes and hearing the kids react to things was nice, they seemed to enjoy it. I was expecting to walk out at best saying it was okay, but I'd honestly go as far as to say it was really good! I think it's important to go in with the mindset that Sonic does have young kid fans even today and this was made to please them primarily. When you consider that, it becomes really impressive that they somehow managed to craft a character that appealed to me as a long-time fan too. I've said it elsewhere but this is the first time in a long time I felt like I actually cared about Sonic as a character. He was charming, funny and I just couldn't help but like him. I don't think he ended up overshadowed by Carrey's Robotnik either, which is a relief. Robotnik was fantastic though, Carrey was absolutely brilliant. I was expecting more of a descent into madness but he was already pretty fucked up to begin with I guess. Seeing him on the mushroom planet at the end was what I was waiting for though, and did anyone else feel his voice went a bit towards game Eggman for a moment when he was talking to himself?
Saw it last night with my roommates and two other Smashers for a total of five, all but one of us liked it with the outlier not outright hating it, just being a bit critical from a cinema standpoint. I probably liked it the most, of course. Seems this movie is really hitting home with the oldbies among us that are still able to tap in to our kid selves. Every complaint listed is valid and from a cinema standpoint it's a 5/10 kid-flick but as a diehard Sonic nerd it's easily an 8. The jokes, references, and respect to Sonic's core appeal are spaced out just enough to keep us giggling. The audience/kid reactions were all very wholesome and helped appreciate certain jokes that would normally seem like low-hanging fruit to us cultured fans and it definitely is going to inspire a whole new generation of kids to see Sonic just like we did and become life-long fans. Spoiler: Theater Reaction Also, the best thing happened in my theater. One of the kids shouted loudly "YES, THE MUSHROOM PLANET!!!" when Eggman was pushed in and the entire sold-out crowd erupted in laughter. That kid is definitely going to be us one day. To Tyson: Thank you so much for helping save this very important film. From the FB20XL days of being a teen that liked your fan-comics as Ritz, to following the fantastic Boxer Hockey that I reference jokes from to this day, to supporting the first and second physical run of Diesel, to meeting you once at a Western MA comic convention and being super awkward about it, to seeing everything you've done for Sonic officially along the way...It's mindblowing. I truly hope you keep on being successful, happy, and (selfishly) hope you continue to be integral in Sonic's renaissance. You did something we all thought impossible and made it, man. I am so, so, SO happy to have seen the whole journey as your fan and have it culminate in this movie. It moves me to literal tears... To everyone else involved in any way as well such as RubyEclipse and the team of passionate fans he has helped bring together and push to represent, thank you so much as well for making this 29 year old feel like all those years of Sonic obsession weren't a waste.
I still think Griffith and Drummond got closer to Kanemaru's original performances, but yeah, I'd take Schwartz over Smith as Sonic in a heartbeat.
Spoiler Am I the only one who thought that the mushroom planet wasn't a reference to Mushroom Hill, but rather a mockery of Mario's Mushroom Kingdom? After all, Sonic did say that he didn't like that world at all.
I'd take anybody over Smith. Nothing against him personally (he seems like a really cool guy actually), but I've always felt his voice was miscast for Sonic. I'd certainly be up for Schwartz if he were to start doing the games. That said, my only, tiny problem with his performance in the movie is that I think he acted more like an 11 year old in some scenes, rather than a 15 year old. Considering he has mentioned the childlike direction he was going with in interviews, I'm sure making him more childish was intentional. I wouldn't actually call it a flaw in the film, but it's something I noticed, and I hope that in a sequel he progresses, and of course if he were hypothetically to do the games.
Man, I am so glad to see that I'm not the only one who can't stand RCS's Sonic. Most of Retro seemed to be head over heels for him when he first replaced Griffith, but to my ears he always sounds too ironic, insincere. Like he's winking at the player/audience half the time thinking "yeah, Sonic kinda sucks; I get the memes". I know that's reading too much into it, and you're right, he does seem like a really cool guy, but his approach to Sonic couldn't be more at odds with Kanemaru, Drummond, and Griffith's.
I don't hate Smith nearly as much as I hate Griffith. Just read a sentence in his Sonic voice and notice how he always overemphasizes the first and last word. It just bugged the living hell out of me.
THANK YOU! I loathed Griffith's Sonic voice with every fiber of my being. RCS has too much "surfer bro", but at least his delivery doesn't make me cringe. Griffith's Shadow was OK, though.
I think Griffith's performances were mostly really bad, but his voice was acceptable for the character at least. I'm sure the only reason I tolerate Griffith is that I grew up watching 4Kids Sonic X. Smith's voice is a poor fit for the character in my opinion, and his delivery (and dialogue) frequently makes it even worse. Ultimately, Drummond should never have been kicked from the series. Sonic has been voiced by one person for twenty years in Japan, why couldn't SOJ leave the English cast alone?
Saw it tonight out of curiosity. Really enjoyed it! Quite close to how I imagine a Sonic movie back in the 90s would have been like, had the CGI been there for it back then. Two things.... Spoiler Had a punch the air with a "YES" moment where Sonic looked at the map with all the worlds, and one of them was the Saturn logo. ...cue very wierd looks from folk around me. And also.... Spoiler I really want to see the original design for Tails....
Oh, definitely. But I think he was just starting to get over that in Black Knight. Granted, I never played much of it, but from the cutscenes I've watched on YouTube it sounds like he'd improved a lot since the previous game.
To whoever was asking a couple pages ago what was there before the echidna tribe, some pics have been floating around...
Oh damn, yea if we were supposed to get lizards ya I'm glad we got echidnas instead Looks like this movie is set to be a financial success. Well I'll be damned. Who'd have guessed this back when this was first revealed? I'm glad though, it's nice seeing people like Sonic again
Spoiler He existed in the script from the very beginning actually. But he didn’t have a finished design until later
The contrast between the first pages/before movie release, and after release is amazing, its great to see a lot of those who didn't have any hope for this actually liked it in the end, and to see it doing well
You wonderful, wonderful man, am I glad that Sega, despite their frequent shortcomings, somehow continue letting you run the asylum.
