Sonic The
Hedgehog
Live-action level up
Release Out now
Director J eff Fowler
Cast ames Marsden, Jim Carrey, J
Ben Schwartz, Tika Sumpter
Distributor aramount PicturesP
Certifi cate PG
Narrated, in part, by the super-
fast hero himself, Sonic The Hedgehog
sees the spiky speedster fl ee to Earth
after evil forces injure his mentor
and threaten to steal his power on his home
planet. Ten years on, he’s grown to love living
in Green Hills, Montana – watching baseball
from under the bleachers, running in the woods
and catching Keanu Reeves movies through a
neighbour’s window – but the thought of living
in solitude forever is starting to wear thin.
Loneliness proves the least of his worries
though, when he accidentally causes a power
outage across the Northwest and the government
hire machine-mad genius Dr Robotnik (Carrey)
to fi nd out what – or who – is responsible.
Unfortunately for Sonic, he’s not above animal
testing in the name of scientifi c discovery.
Sonic’s success is largely due to its cast. Ben
Schwartz infuses Sonic with excitable energy,
showcasing how annoying he’d be without
taking it too far. Opposite him, Carrey goes
full Mask-meets-Grinch zany with Robotnik,
dancing around his evil lair and screeching at
any idiot who dares tell him how to do his job.
Elsewhere, James Marsden is the perfect fi t
for Sonic’s unlikely ally, sheriff Tom, who wants
to make a difference beyond helping people
change a tyre or birth a cow. He wants to be the
person someone depends on in a life-and-death
situation, and it’s happily refreshing to watch
good guys and bad guys stay in their lanes.
Its black-and-white depiction of morality is
likely due to it catering to youngsters but that
doesn’t mean it can’t appeal to older audiences.
There are fart gags, fl ossing and cheesy music,
but it’s packed with cool action sequences too,
like Sonic getting out of a bar fi ght slow-mo style
and a high-speed chase from San Francisco to
the Great Wall of China and back again.
It’s visually vibrant – Sonic looks great – and
it’s got heart, touching on themes about being
satisfi ed with what you’ve got and looking out
for the little guy. It doesn’t offer up anything
new, but it’s fun. Gold rings all-round.
Amy West
REVIEWS CINEMA // HOME FILM
Deadly Manor
House party
Release Out now
Director J osé Ramón Larraz
Cast lark Tufts, Greg Rhodes, Claudia FranjulC
Distributor rrow VideoA
Certifi cate 18
Format
Caught short a long way from
their destination and with a storm
approaching, six teens and their
hitchhiker decide to drive off the
beaten track and hold up in a spooky, seemingly
derelict, mansion for the night. Yep, we would
have found a hotel as well. This is just the fi rst
in a bunch of bizarre decisions the characters
of Deadly Manor make during the fi lm (‘let’s go
down into the basement of the creepy barn!’,
‘I’m going off on my own in the scary woods!’).
Marvel’s Tom Holland and Paul
Rudd, Brooklyn Nine-Nine star
Andy Samberg, It Chapter Two actor
Bill Hader, and Frozen’s Josh Gad
were all considered to voice Sonic.Once in the mansion, the teens fi nd all sorts
of weird things such as walls plastered with
the pictures of the same woman, scalps in the
closet, and a basement with two coffi ns inside.
Still, the teenagers decide to stay the night
rather than go out in the storm (it’s just rain!)
but the house is hiding more horror still...
Spanish director José Ramón Larraz creates
atmosphere a-plenty in his last American fi lm
but the plot is too predictable for any kind of
tension and even if it did manage to create
some, the characters are so unfortunately
one-dimensional that we don’t really care what
happens to them anyway.
The Arrow Video restoration looks great on
this Nineties horror, and the extras does include
a delightful interview with actress Jennifer
Delora, but there’s nothing overly exciting about
this house party.
Rachael Harper
Superman:
Red Son
Comrade Clark
Release Out now
Director am LiuS
Cast ason Isaacs, Amy Acker, J
Diedrich Bader
Distributor Warner Bros. Home
Entertainment
Certifi cate 15
Format •What if all-American
hero Superman wasn’t actually
American but born in Soviet Russia
instead? That’s the question being
muted in Superman: Red Son.
The theme of nature versus nurture is an
underlying thread throughout the movie
because, as a character who’s always been
a symbol of truth and justice, just how will
his morals fare after being raised under the
ideals of the Communist Party? Well... let’s
just say they’re pretty murky.
Once Superman fi nds out his country’s
dark secrets he goes on a journey that will
test those virtues and put a whole new and
interesting spin on the character.
The fi lm also brings in fellow DC heroes
Wonder Woman and Batman, though neither
are given nearly enough screen time and we
can’t help but wonder if the fi lm would have
been more exciting if they had. Because, as
interesting as the concept is, there is just too
much pondering and not quite enough action
to keep things enticing.
However, the disc does come with some
lovely extras including a trippy animated
short, and a trip down memory lane with
episodes of the brilliant early-Noughties
Justice League animated TV show.
Rachael Harper
W W W.SCI FI N OW.CO.U K | 065