Sonic the Hedgehog: The Movie

A bona fide animated classic whose appeal is as timeless as it is universal. That would be Disney’s Snow White. This particular cartoon, however, seems like nothing more than an hour-long promo for the titular blue mammal who, not at all coincidentally, will appear in a CD-ROM bundled with Sega’s much-hyped Dreamcast videogame system. Even allowing that it’s meant for kids, Sonic is awful: Its incomprehensible plot (something about giant robots) and head-scratching dialogue (”Metal Robotnik then sabotaged the robot generator … ”) make an episode of He-Man sound like a Hemingway story. While the mostly competent animation should satisfy less discriminating viewers, the inclusion of some animé archetypes (a lingerie-clad schoolgirl, plenty of heavy artillery) might make it unsuitable for younger tykes. Dreamcast may be a boom, but Sonic is a bust.