Sonic Live Action Movie Thread (Read OP for topic rules) "Trailer 2 on Page 482)

[Diogenes]

I see Sonic characters plenty enough as it is; I wouldn't get any special thrill out of seeing one show up on a movie screen for a couple seconds or whatever. If any character is actually important to the story they've already been written in, and if they're not, I see no need for them to show up.

[a knothole resident]

6 minutes ago, Diogenes said:

I see Sonic characters plenty enough as it is; I wouldn't get any special thrill out of seeing one show up on a movie screen for a couple seconds or whatever. If any character is actually important to the story they've already been written in, and if they're not, I see no need for them to show up.

Again, this relates to CAMEOS.  Just characters wondering in the background, as Detective Pikachu perfectly showcases.  And it would be the first time youd see these characters on the big screen.  Nothing compares to an experience like that.

[Diogenes]

3 minutes ago, a knothole resident said:

Again, this relates to CAMEOS.  Just characters wondering in the background, as Detective Pikachu perfectly showcases.  And it would be the first time youd see these characters on the big screen.  Nothing compares to an experience like that.

Yeah, again: I don't care.

I'm neither a naive 8 year old nor has the series established (or perhaps, maintained) the kind of presence that warrants that sort of childlike wonder. Seeing Mighty the Armadillo or Marine the Raccoon or Sally Acorn or whoever on "the big screen" holds exactly as much appeal to me as seeing them in a Google Image Search. If they actually want me to care about something as simple as just seeing a character, they have a long, long road ahead of them to repair the series and restore people's respect for it. And even if the movie is good (it's almost certainly not), it can't possibly be enough to reverse the last two decades of the series.

[Shadowlax]

3 minutes ago, Diogenes said:

Yeah, again: I don't care.

I'm neither a naive 8 year old nor has the series established (or perhaps, maintained) the kind of presence that warrants that sort of childlike wonder. Seeing Mighty the Armadillo or Marine the Raccoon or Sally Acorn or whoever on "the big screen" holds exactly as much appeal to me as seeing them in a Google Image Search. If they actually want me to care about something as simple as just seeing a character, they have a long, long road ahead of them to repair the series and restore people's respect for it. And even if the movie is good (it's almost certainly not), it can't possibly be enough to reverse the last two decades of the series.

You have, somehow encapsulated my feelings regarding a lot of sonic content in general for the past... since like 2008

[a knothole resident]

15 minutes ago, Shadowlax said:

You have, somehow encapsulated my feelings regarding a lot of sonic content in general for the past... since like 2008

Alright let me ask a neutral question.  Do you guys think the movie will be at least entertaining? 

[Diogenes]

6 minutes ago, a knothole resident said:

Alright let me ask a neutral question.  Do you guys think the movie will be at least entertaining? 

Maybe. Probably not in the way they intend though.

[Shaddy Zaphod]

1 hour ago, a knothole resident said:

Im just as concerned about the film's integrity as everyone else, but it doesnt mean that we can't steer it in the right direction.  Fan contribution is a known thing these days for media, and if enough voices are heard, someone on the inside will listen.

Except A. "enough voices" are hardly ever heard and B. there's absolutely no guarantee they will listen. This fandom has been screeching at Sonic Team to give them what they want for a decade and a half now, you really think film execs who're only concerned with this crap making money are gonna care?

Moreover, the "right direction" was lost the moment they decided to make this a live-action buddy cop film instead of a Sonic movie. Adding cameos of characters from offshoot continuities and obscure classic titles aren't going to save it in the slightest. It'll more likely look like cynical "come see our shitty movie! It has your forgotten 90s characters!" marketing.

1 hour ago, a knothole resident said:

I realize its too late for reshoots, but our best bet right now, after waiting nearly 3 decades, is to at least see other characters besides Sonic and Robotnik appear somewhere.

Our best bet is to ignore this movie and not give a bad product our money. That's what will get them listening, not crying at them over social media. Hell, if you've really been "waiting all this time" for this thing then you deserve better than what this movie is putting out from the very premise.

1 hour ago, a knothole resident said:

It would be SEGA throwing us a bone, which yeah, we have to beg for, but I think is worth the effort.  Just imagine being in a packed theater and spotting all these characters from the franchise.  You know youd be jumping outta your seat screaming "OMG its Ray the Squirrel" or something, even if the movie sucks.  All Im saying is we can at least do something to soften the blow if the overall film itself doesnt please.    

Okay first off, I most certainly would not be screaming that. Second, I would much rather they don't appear and have their images made worse by this film. Let me ask you: is anything terrible really "better than nothing"? Is a bad movie really better than the potential for a good one? Anyone can imagine their perfect Sonic movie, this is taking that away because now "the Sonic movie" is going to refer to a cynical, low-effort production with nothing to do with the franchise. This school of thought is what gets you more seasons of Berserk 2016.

[Ryannumber1gamer]

41 minutes ago, a knothole resident said:

Alright let me ask a neutral question.  Do you guys think the movie will be at least entertaining? 

In a "so bad, it's good" fashion, at least that's what my hopes currently are at this point because I doubt it will be good on it's own merits. Everything we know about the movie just downright screams generic CGI/Live Action movie that has no relevance to what made the games popular in the first place, nor representative of a unique world or style. It all screams generic and nothing I've seen or heard makes me care about it. The more I hear about Tom, his girlfriend, or the residents of this town or whatever else, I simply don't give half a shit because I want to see the Sonic cast, not random humans thrown in for the hell of it. The only two pieces of information that have come out that I can legitimately say I have hopes for is Jim Carrey, because I can see Jim being perfect as an over the top Eggman, and Ben Schwartz as Sonic because he's a good voice talent. 

At the very least, I'm hoping the movie ends up being so blind and/or weird that it's interesting to analyse, and just to take in some of the bone-headed decisions. The Mario live-action movie is by no means a good movie, but it's also got such a long developmental history, so many different ideas and scripts floating around, and coming from an era where video game movies weren't very relevant, and from an era where Nintendo were care-free enough to let them do anything to the Mario franchise because in their eyes, they could do no wrong and they'd just immediately bounce back if it went horribly wrong. The Mario movie isn't a good movie, it isn't a good representation of the series at all, but it is so absolutely fascinating not only from the standpoint of a filmmaker and how the cast and crew went through hell to get it made, and just as an audience member for the sheer weirdness on screen.

I'd honestly recommend anyone watch this video:

and then giving the movie itself a watch so you can just connect a picture of how much the cast and crew tried to make the best of a horrid situation and still came out with a bad movie and bad overall experience. It's a pretty sobering experience especially as a movie-watcher that often times, these bad movies can be just as much of a disappointment to the cast and crew as to us as movie-goers.

Granted, I'm not actively hoping that the Sonic movie is going to suck, or bomb or whatever else. I think it's going to be terrible, absolutely, but if they somehow by sheer miracle drag something good out of it, then cool.

Otherwise, I at least hope it ends up being entertainingly bad than just downright boring and/or downright bad. 

[Shadowlax]

48 minutes ago, a knothole resident said:

Alright let me ask a neutral question.  Do you guys think the movie will be at least entertaining? 

I hope it will be. For someone. Even if it isn't for me , I hope its a genuinely good movie and someone derives joy out of it. Maybe its starts a new section of  the franchise someone else can enjoy. I would be happy

But all the bits of info we find out about it just makes it seem like...generic hollywood shlock that doesn't even do anything with like what the character is. Like they were put into a movie template from the mid and late 00's and that's how we got this

[a knothole resident]

20 minutes ago, Shaddy Zaphod said:

Let me ask you: is anything terrible really "better than nothing"? Is a bad movie really better than the potential for a good one?

To a certain extent, yeah actually.  Good example is the live action Mario Bros movie.  Its an atrocious piece of shit that had little to do with the franchise, but for some reason, I keep going back to it.  It has this polarizing "so bad its good" quality that makes it an interesting anomaly.  If Sonic matches that level of entertainment, then it will be successful like The Room, and Im ok with that.

EDIT:  Were on the same page Ryannumber1gamer.  I posted my reply before reading yours. 

[Shaddy Zaphod]

I'm not. Besides the fact that I have little hope that this will even be a "so bad it's good" movie, I want to have something good, or nothing at all. I can go to tons of places for ironic enjoyment. I can only go one place for Sonic the hedgehog, and that should be something respectable.

 

EDIT: I dunno if that ghost mystery was ever solved, but he's in this thread.

[Zaysho]

3 hours ago, a knothole resident said:

So going back on the whole cameo idea, I took the liberty of creating a template that everyone can use to suggest whatever character they'd like to see appear, which can be shared and tweeted.  I attached a couple examples below.

Considering that Sonic and Robotnik are the only confirmed Sonic related cast, I felt it was an opportunity for Sonic fans to convince Paramount Pictures and Director Jeff Fowler, to use their CGI magic to incorporate our favorite characters as background cameos. Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Mighty, Vector, ect. Basically, similar to what was showcased in the Detective Pikachu movie trailer.  So, heres what you can do:

 

 

 

I know for a fact moderators have already spoken to you about this, publicly no less, so I'm just going to say: do not post stolen artwork/renders on this message board. And do not post here encouraging others to do it so you can get people to rally behind whatever cause you have to revive old comic book characters and bug people on social media about it. It took me no time to find that Mina render you stole and I'm sure once I can muster the strength to sift through a Google image search of Sally Acorn I'll find Rafa Knight's render you poached too. This is disrespectful and it's obvious you haven't learned your lesson so you're gone now.

[CaptainRobo]

5 hours ago, a knothole resident said:

So going back on the whole cameo idea, I took the liberty of creating a template that everyone can use to suggest whatever character they'd like to see appear, which can be shared and tweeted.  I attached a couple examples below.

Considering that Sonic and Robotnik are the only confirmed Sonic related cast, I felt it was an opportunity for Sonic fans to convince Paramount Pictures and Director Jeff Fowler, to use their CGI magic to incorporate our favorite characters as background cameos. Tails, Knuckles, Amy, Mighty, Vector, ect. Basically, similar to what was showcased in the Detective Pikachu movie trailer.  So, heres what you can do:

Instructions:

1. For those with Photoshop, download this layered PSD. https://ufile.io/j8s2h

2. Search for a CGI version of your character on Google image search. Game characters are the easiest to find, but Archie, Fleetway, and such is a bit of a challenge. They do exist though. If you're unable to find a CGI version, then use a 2D one. As long as the studio heads and CGI FX artists can tell who it is.

3. Find a transparent PNG version of that image. If not, then create one by removing the background and saving it out as a transparent PNG.

4. Swap out the black silhouette for your character.

5. Edit the [insert adjective] text to what your character would say. Or just edit the text however you want.

6. Save out as a JPG.

7. Tweet your image to @paramountpics @fowltown @sega and use these hashtags #sonicmovie #sonicthehedgehog #charactername (ie #raythesquirrel)

Now consider this. On November 8, 2019, it will be 28 years since Sonic fans have waited for this monumental event. The best thing we can do, is make this an experience that justifies our patience. Even though we're talking quick second cameos wandering in the background, it would be a small victory to witness Sonic's friends giving us the long deserved big screen fan service that this film should provide.

NOTE: I already created the entire Freedom Fighters set (Sally, Bunnie, Rotor, and Antonie) along with Mina Mongoose. If anyone wants to request those characters for the movie, simply download the set here to save you time. https://ufile.io/9xrou

 

I doubt they will appear in the movie. Nobody besides the fans who loved these characters don’t know who they are. Unfortunately, I can’t see the production crew putting unknown characters who only appear in the comics in the movie. However, I could possibly see some of Sonic’s friends such as Tails, Knuckles, and Amy in the movie. 

2 hours ago, a knothole resident said:

Alright let me ask a neutral question.  Do you guys think the movie will be at least entertaining? 

Yea, it will probably at least entertaining. The director who is directing the film worked on cutscenes for Shadow the Hedgehog and Sonic 06 with Tim Miller. Marza and Blur are working on the animation. They got the guy who produced the Fast and Furious movies. They even got the cinematographer who worked on Star Trek Beyond and some of the Fast and Furious films such as Tokyo Drift. They also got Tim Miller who worked on Deadpool and the upcoming Terminator film. The former writer Van hear that the script got more action focused, since he joined working on the film.

 

[CaptainRobo]

Found this post on Twitter.:

 

[PeterPancake]

Yes, I believe the movie will be good because of the people making the movie. Fast and Furious are decent movies. Deadpool was an amazing movie. Will it be a masterpiece? Absolutely not but there is ZERO evidence from every piece of info we've gotten from this movie to suggest it will be bad. Both writers of the movie (Patrick Casey and Josh Miller) have vehemently denied this movie will be anything like Smurfs and Alvin and the Chipmunks. Patrick compared it to Guardians of the Galaxy. Just because you don't like the creative direction that the movie has taken, just because they take liberties with the source material does NOT automatically make the movie bad. Do you think critics will be judging and condemning the movie based on their pre-concieved notion of what a Sonic movie should be? Heck no. I'm tired of the hate and I hope this movie is a huge success and spawns a franchise. I want this movie to make Sonic as big and relevant as he was in the 90s. 

 

[Sonic Fan J]

I'll never get the Guardian's of the Galaxty comparison as being a good thing since thaht movie at least used characters that were all members of the Guardian's of the Galaxy at one point or another in the series and capitalized on the relationships that he comics had laid the groundwork for to sell the "family" theme. The Sonic movie on the other hand is disregarding all of the characters but Sonic and Eggman to focus on a "family" theme movie about a small town and it's sheriff. There is no established history or characters being used as a basis to tell this story that is supposedly about Sonic, but instead a collection of nobodies from Nowhereville USA. The comparison makes no sense to me because beyond a meter tall anthropomorphic animal, there is nothing in common.

Now all that said, I don't want the movie to fail because I don't want to see another nail in the coffin of this franchise that has brought me so much joy. Conversely though, I actually fear it succeeding and being used as an excuse to scrap everything I do hold dear about it. And considering what happened with Archie, SatAM, Underground, and possibly even BOOM! now, there is more than enough precedence for SEGA to just cut it off if they think it won't make them the money they want compared to something else. And make no mistake, while the video game industry competes with Hollywood these, Sonic is not in that equation anymore so a blockbuster success could change everything and from what I'm hearing so far there is no way what the movie is selling would ever line up with the imagery the franchise has left me with after 27 years. Unfortunately for me, unless they've been doing naught but blowing a whole lot of hot air and this movie turns out to be everything I've ever wanted Sonic to be (I highly doubt that) then this movie has really been naught more but a nightmare in the making for me. The best case scenario for me would be that the movie is completely forgettable and has no effect on the franchise one way or the other. That's too selfish of me of though so I won't wish that outcome, especially considering the hard work that the cast and crew have put into making this. As an artist and storyteller myself I know how dreadful it feels to have your work not succeed the way you hoped it would and I would never wish that on anyone.

Getting off of my digressing rant though, I just wanted to say that the Guardian's of the Galaxy comparison is still a bad from any angle I look at it, be it thematically, drawing from the source materially, and even design wise since Rocket's design is nowhere near as abstract as Sonic's and actually draws from the animal it on. It's nice that the writers feel that way about their work, but I feel it would be more honest to say it's the Smurfs, but done with a focus on the title character, because to me, that's what it sounds like they are selling to me.

[Multikaris]

Maybe this movie ends in pretty much the exact same way as Cool World, for a layer of fan appeal? There’s all the cameos.

 

Just kidding, but I still hope for at least some character cameos to get in.

[PeterPancake]

When they say closer to Guardians of the Galaxy, they mean in terms of appeal and demographics. In terms of quality and the way the movie will be presented. He's saying that not every CG/live action hybrid has to be like Smurfs. Nothing to do with the content of the movie itself 

[Adamis]

*sees post about cameos*

Do you realize that, after the Penders debacle, Sega wouldn't be too keen to use Mina, a character created by Karl Bollers ?

[Myst]

Quote

LOL. Sorry to get off topic, but her, ahem, 'figure' is quite exaggerated in this render. She's a chipmunk dude, not Pamela Anderson. XD

Anyway, I was looking through the IMDB page again. It lists Tina Kerwin as the makeup artist for Jim Carrey.

https://m.imdb.com/title/tt3794354/fullcredits/make_up_department?ref_=m_ttfc_11

Looking through her resume, she was also the makeup artist for Jim Carrey's hit 1994 film, 'The Mask' (which I think is a very good sign for how Robotnik will possibly look in this)

I also looked at some of the visual effects staff on the Sonic movie. Joshua Hakim has a pretty impressive resume, having worked on Deadpool 2, the upcoming Captain Marvel, and Skyscraper.

https://m.imdb.com/title/tt3794354/fullcredits/visual_effects?ref_=m_ttfc_17

Other visual effects people have films like 'War for the Planet of the Apes' the Michael Bay-produced 'Ninja Turtles' films, the 2018 'Predator' movie and 'Tron Legacy' under their belt. This is a VERY good sign, imo. 

 

[Tarnish]

4 hours ago, PeterPancake said:

Just because you don't like the creative direction that the movie has taken, just because they take liberties with the source material does NOT automatically make the movie bad. Do you think critics will be judging and condemning the movie based on their pre-concieved notion of what a Sonic movie should be? Heck no. I'm tired of the hate and I hope this movie is a huge success and spawns a franchise. I want this movie to make Sonic as big and relevant as he was in the 90s.

If it will barely have anything to do with the Sonic franchise/universe, can you honestly call it a Sonic movie tho? Cuz at that point, it's nothing more than a movie with some Sonic characters. Those two are very different things. It might be a good movie, but a terrible Sonic movie.

To me it sounds like you want Sonic to be big/popular, quality be damned.

[Red Hot Jack]

42 minutes ago, Tarnish said:

If it will barely have anything to do with the Sonic franchise/universe, can you honestly call it a Sonic movie tho? Cuz at that point, it's nothing more than a movie with some Sonic characters. Those two are very different things. It might be a good movie, but a terrible Sonic movie.

To me it sounds like you want Sonic to be big/popular, quality be damned.

So what does it make an actual Sonic movie? For me, it has to do with Sonic being the protagonist, and according to the screenwriter, he is.

Plus, where does the whole thing about fans proclaiming "it's doomed to suck hard" even come from? I've heard the arguments "because it's Sonic/it has humans/videogame movies just suck". Lmao. For me the counter argument that it's in capable hands is actually stronger than just comparing it to bad movies. I'll wait for the trailer, maybe I'm wrong and it does suck. Who knows.

[Tarnish]

7 minutes ago, I Love Sticks said:

So what does it make an actual Sonic movie? For me, it has to do with Sonic being the protagonist, and according to the screenwriter, he is.

Plus, where does the whole thing about fans proclaiming "it's doomed to suck hard" even come from? I've heard the arguments "because it's Sonic/it has humans/videogame movies just suck". Lmao. For me the counter argument that it's in capable hands is actually stronger than just comparing it to bad movies. I'll wait for the trailer, maybe I'm wrong and it does suck. Who knows.

So Sonic could be a transgender gay emo ballerina that smokes crack as long as he's the protagonist? That might be good enough for some people, but not for me.

For me, I want it to feel like he's the same character I got to like all those years ago from the games, set in the same world he was introduced in (tho that character and world now doesn't even really exist in the games either, thank you Sonic Team).

Regarding the Sonic characters + humans settings: they never really managed to make it feel natural for me, the best attempt I felt was with Sonic Adventure 1 and 2, but that's mostly just because there was so little focus on humans, to the point you kinda forgot they were even there. Sonic set in a real world setting tho is definitely a concept that just turns me off from the get go. It's like trying to make Shrek work in a real life setting where there is no magic or magical characters. You need the world he's part of, not just the character.

[Red Hot Jack]

1 hour ago, Tarnish said:

So Sonic could be a transgender gay emo ballerina that smokes crack as long as he's the protagonist? That might be good enough for some people, but not for me.
 

Ok, I didn't know Sonic was a transgender gay emo ballerina that smokes crack in the movie. Then I agree this movie sucks because that's not Sonic.

[Tarnish]

35 minutes ago, I Love Sticks said:

Ok, I didn't know Sonic was a transgender gay emo ballerina that smokes crack in the movie. Then I agree this movie sucks because that's not Sonic.

It's probably not gonna be like that, I just used it as an extreme example to make a point. Tho I don't know if they ever told us what he's gonna be like compared to his games counterpart. He might be a cocky, smug asshole who rubs you the wrong way.