Based on the popular video game character Sonic the Hedgehog, the film of the same name is directed by Jeff Fowler and shows the speedster teaming up with small-town-cop turned nice-guy Tom Wachowski (James Marsden) to recover his sack of gold rings that allow him to create portals to whatever world one thinks of. They are being tracked or rather hunted by the villainous Dr. Robotnik (Jim Carrey), who wants to use Sonic for scientific experiments, and basically wants to dissect him. So Sonic and Tom set out on their road trip from Green Hills to San Francisco, the very place whose name Tom had on his T-shirt and one that has the building on whose rooftop Sonic accidentally dropped his gold-coin sack after being tranquilized by Tom, who shot Sonic since he was scared of him (this was their first meeting). Interestingly, San Francisco is also where Tom gets a new job just before Sonic enters into his life. The film shows Robotnik leaving no stone unturned to capture Sonic and how Sonic, with help from his new “friend” Tom, defeats him.
A Caregiver of a Cop
San Francisco, the place where Sonic drops his sack of gold coins, is also the place where Tom wants to shift to and has already got a job at the San Francisco Police Department. As he tells his wife, he is positive about what’s coming his way. While he has been at the service of Green Hillfolk, he wants to help people who are in real trouble, as in a “life and death situation,” and he wants to be there for help. Although this may sound nice, it is surreal to hear someone who wants to be involved in a life-or-death situation and wants such a situation to occur in order to help those in need. But then again, such situations will occur no matter how much we call him a pessimist. Either way, Tom doesn’t require leaving Green Hill to save a life as he has a tough time saving Sonic’s life. And this fulfills his purpose too. This is what also makes him change his decision about leaving his hometown. Care for those who care for you is better than anything else. This lesson is something that Sonic gave him. It took a lonely fellow to make Tom realize the importance of togetherness that comes from having people who care. And as the movie progresses, Tom becomes almost like a brother to Sonic, giving back to Sonic what Sonic taught him.
A Touch of Friendship
Sonic the Hedgehog was made for children as well as the fans of the character from the game (the first Sonic game came out in 1991), many of whom are now grown-ups. While for the children, their parents might as well explain to them the importance of friendship and care after they come out of the theater or after the movie is over, the millennials will feel that the movie is indeed a childish attempt at exploring friendship and ends up being a movie of boilerplate quality made exclusively for children. But we can’t really question that, can we?
But then again, we all have friends and understand how important they are. Sonic never interacted with any person, and having a friend (Tom) certainly qualifies as a superpower, something that Sonic manifests right before sending Robotnik to a different world at the end of the movie.
Sonic – A Metaphor?
Sonic keeps on trying to convince himself that he knows the people of Greenland, especially Tom and his girlfriend, almost to the point of believing it. But every now and then, his inner self reminds him how lonely he is in a world where no one knows he exists, and he has to keep it that way because he is different and believes that others won’t like him or accept him.
Is Sonic a metaphor for the specially-abled people? Clearly, no matter how much we try to make them feel special, it is no secret that the journey of such people is filled with loneliness that stems from their special nature. Nobody is responsible for it. It is only that being specially-abled, in all probability, makes one look at himself or herself in a different light, being different from the rest of the crowd. And it is up to us to make them understand that they are no different, no matter what. We are all Sonics in our own ways, and only by accepting that can we be better towards each other. And in that endeavor, we become a better version of ourselves as well.
Again, at the beginning of the film, Sonic’s guardian, Longclaw, an owl, tells him to “never stop running” as he escapes to Earth. If we think about it, isn’t this what we are all doing? Everyone, today, is running for something, be it for love, for a job, or something or the other. And even after we find it, we are running behind something else. This running never stops. It is something that we as humans feel the need to do or feel that we are supposed to do. Oftentimes, it also feels like running is all we are doing. So, in a way, Sonic is a metaphor for the humans of modern society, always running and not taking time to enjoy the things in life. Sonic, too, never really knew what all Earth had to offer him until he met Tom. All he did was run and live in his cave until he came across Tom, who made him slow down and make his own “bucket list” of life. Maybe we too should slow down, don’t you think?
‘Sonic the Hedgehog’ Ending Explained- Who Is the New Fox Character? Where is Robotnik?
we see Dr. Robotnik roaming in the Mushroom world at the end of “Sonic the Hedgehog 2.” He is alive and quite angry at being defeated. With a brain like his, it seems to be only a matter of time for him to plot revenge on Sonic, but this time, it will be more severe. And we do know that he returns in Sonic the Hedgehog 2, so that’s that.
The post-credits scene shows Miles Prower, AKA Tails, a fox, another popular Sonic character, arriving on Earth. While in the game, Miles is a male character, here, Tails is female. From the looks of it, she is looking for Sonic, maybe because she needs his help. These questions are mostly liked to be answered in the sequel film.
