Shadow the Hedgehog (film)

Shadow the Hedgehog (シャドウ・ザ・ヘッジホッグ, Shadō za Hejjihoggu?) is a 1999 American-Japanese anime/computer animated action dark fantasy drama film directed by Zack Snyder in the English version with the Japanese version directed by Kunihiko Yuyama, the chief director of the Pokémon television series. It is the third film in the Video Game Extended Universe.
The plot centers on the attempt of Shadow the Hedgehog, a creation of Doctor Eggman's grandfather, Professor Gerald Robotnik, to learn about his past while suffering from amnesia.
It was released in North America on December 17, 1999, produced by 4Kids Entertainment and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. The Japanese version was released in Japan on March 10, 2000. The film was rated PG-13 from MPAA rating because of it's darker, sexual and more violent tone.
Shadow the Hedgehog was a critical and commercial success with a worldwide gross of US$385.7 million and high critical praise. It was nominated for several awards that most notably included the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, the Nebula Award from the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. Famously, Shadow the Hedgehog became the first anime/computer animated film to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture.
==Plot==
The French Narrator introduces a new Sonic the Hedgehog movie, hosted from Montreal, Quebec, Canada as it was in 1963. From his army shelter-house, Perky the Cat, in a Cold War uniform costume, is introducing the late period War World I and talking about how historically it was. However, Patty, in a futuristic robotic soldier costume, appears and says that Cold War times were "lame" and the futuristic Worldwide Cyber War is "where it's at". They begin arguing over whether Sonic himself likes World War I or the future war better, and while working at his home, Sonic feels a disturbance, and tells Tails and Knuckles that "I've got the strangest feeling that somewhere a cat and puffin are arguing about me. And, for some reason, the cat is winning." As Perky and Patty continue to argue, Perky begins the Shadow movie.
At the beginning of Shadow the Hedgehog, Shadow suffers from amnesia. Other than the events of Sonic the Hedgehog that took place three months prior, Shadow remembers only two things: his name and "that gruesome image" of his attempt to escape the space station ARK with Gerald Robotnik's granddaughter Maria and her death by gunshot from G.U.N. soldiers. He wonders whether he is an android due to hints given in Sonic the Hedgehog The film begins with Shadow reminiscing outside the city of Westopolis when the Black Arms drop out of the sky and invade it. Doom's Eye approaches Shadow, and Black Doom tells Shadow of an old agreement for Shadow to bring him the Chaos Emeralds. Stunned that Black Doom knew his name, Shadow realizes that he must find the Chaos Emeralds to learn his past. He saves the entire city of Westoplis and the life of a young boy named Cole. The film also features two flashback stories of Arisa's and Meowth's; Arisa's story reveals she is an android girl created in 1997, two year after the events of Sonic the Hedgehog Meowth's story takes place one year after the events which tells the audience of the kidnapping of young woman (based on the film Casualties of War which is based on the actual events of the incident on Hill 192 in 1966 during the Vietnam War). Also, Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy are framed for stealing the Sand Stadium, but is later revealed to be the Sneaky Hermit (who happens to be Marlin Reserve, the antagonist from Meowth's story) who is the one behind the disappearance of buildings. Meowth, Arisa and Derekson (a soldier who turned in Reserve and his men for the murdering of the girl in Meowth's story) help Mermaid Man and Barnacle Boy defeat Reserve and return all the building to their former glory. Tails celebrates his birthday by himself and spends it with Rouge and Fiona Fox. Meanwhile, Shadow continues his quest for the Emeralds and learns the truth that Black Doom created him with Prof. Robotnik. He, along with Ash and his friends take down Keal, Black Doom's bounty hunter.
Over the commercial break, Perky and Patty continue to fight, now keeping score between the future and the past. Perky brings in a real live World War I soldier, but Patty brings in a futuristic robot super-soldier who begins repeatedly shooting the CW soldier with lasers.
Near the end, Black Doom uses Chaos Control, enhanced by the power of all seven Chaos Emeralds, to bring the Black Comet to the Earth's surface. Black Doom explains that the Black Arms intend to use humans and Pokémon as an energy source, and the Black Comet begins to release a nerve gas into the Earth's atmosphere that causes total paralysis in those who inhale it. Shadow and Ash then confront Black Doom, but Webster, Black Doom's human servant, shoots and kills Ash, angring Shadow. He soon discovers that Professor Gerald Robotnik created the ARK's Eclipse Cannon weapon to destroy the Black Comet. During their confrontation, Black Doom reveals that Shadow was created using Black Doom's blood, and Black Doom then attempts to control Shadow through mind control but fails. This prompts Black Doom to transform into his "Devil Doom" form. In response, Shadow uses the Chaos Emeralds to transform into his "Super Shadow" form and defeats Black Doom. Shadow then transports the Black Comet into outer space using Chaos Control and obliterates it using the ARK's Eclipse Cannon. He then battles Webster and kills him, in vengeances for Ash's death. as Ash is soon revived by the power of the Chaos Emeralds, His friends are elated, as are people at G.U.N. headquarters. In the aftermath, everyone celebrates Tails' birthday while Meowth and Derekson are on a MUNI J-Church in San Francisco, just a few seats from a Vietnamese-American student who resembles the murdered girl. She disembarks at Dolores Park and forgets her scarf, and Meowth and Derekson run after her to return it. As she thanks them and turns away, Meowth calls after her in Vietnamese. She surmises that she reminds them of someone, and adds, "You had a bad dream, didn't you? It's over now, I think. Chào Ông [as a response to his greeting to her 'Chào Cô' in Vietnamese]". They go their separate ways, Meowth and Derekson somewhat comforted. Shadow is then shown in the ARK's control room holding up a photograph of Maria and Gerald. He tosses the photograph aside, declaring "Goodbye forever... Shadow the Hedgehog," and leaves the room.
After the cartoon, Perky is shown sitting outside his cave, apparently having lost to Patty. However, Patty comes outside and invites him back in, where Soldy the WWI soldier and the Robot Android Cyborg DX-294888 do a rap called "When Worlds Collide". The song montage features scenes from the first two Sonic films. The film ends with Patty giving Perky a "gift": a WWI tank, which begins chasing him as Perky says bye to the audience.
==Cast==
===Main Cast===
*Kōji Yusa (Jason Griffith in the English adaptation) as Shadō za Hejjihoggu (Shadow the Hedgehog in the English adaptation), the main protagonist of the film. He suffers aminesa having no memories of his past.
*Rica Matsumoto (Veronica Taylor in the English adaptation) as Satoshi (Ash Ketchum in the English adaptation), the second main protagonist of the film. He desires to be the world's most powerful Pokémon master.
*Ikue Ōtani as Pikachu, Satoshi's/Ash's first and most loyal Pokémon - a yellow mouse capable of manipulating electricity.
*Inuko Inuyama (Jim Carrey in the English adaptation) as Genkina Za Neko (Perky the Cat in the English adaptation), a Calico cat and president of the Sonic the Hedgehog fan club. He lives in the city of Montreal Canada.
*Ryūzaburō Ōtomo (Sean Schemmel in the English adaptation) as Burakku Dūmu (Black Doom in the English adaptation), the main antagonist of the film. He is the leader of the Black Arms.
*Megumi Hayashibara (Stephen Hillenburg in the English adaptation) as Pati Za Tsunomedori (Patty the Puffin in the English adaptation), Perky the Cat's "annoying" puffin friend. He is a crudely made puppet controlled by very obvious strings. He is obnoxious and often annoys or talks back to Perky.
*Hinako Yoshino (Corey Bringas in the English adaptation) as Rei za Furaingu Sukuireru (Ray the Flying Squirrel in the English adaptation), a an anthropomorphic flying squirrel, and Shadow's friend who helps Shadow on his quest.
*Inuko Inuyama (Michael J. Fox in the English adaptation) as Nyarth (Meowth in the English adaptation), a former member of Team Rocket. He is a cat-like Pokémon that can walk upright and speak the human English language.
*Yūji Ueda (Paul Walker in the English adaptation) as Samu Derekusono (Private Sam Derekson in the English adaptation), a US Marine who's part of a Marine squadron responsible for kidnapping a woman.
*Sachiko Kobayashi (Charlotte Sullivan in the English adaptation) as Arisa, a strange android girl who falls from the sky and crash-lands into Shinichiro's cafe, causing her to register him as her new master.
*Tōru Furuya (Christian Bale in the English adaptation) as U~ebusutā (Webster in the English adaptation), Black Doom's loyal servant. He has a scar across his right eye with an eye patch and wears black clothing.
*Mayumi Iizuka (Rachael Lillis in the English adaptation) as Kasumi (Misty in the English adaptation), Satoshi's/Ash's travelling partner.
*Yūji Ueda (Eric Stuart in the English adaptation) as Takeshi (Brock in the English adaptation), a Pokémon breeder and Satoshi's/Ash's travelling partner.
===Recurring Cast===
*Junichi Kanemaru (Jason Griffith in the English adaptation) as Sonikku za Hejjihoggu (Sonic the Hedgehog in the English adaptation), the title character and protagonist of the Sonic the Hedgehog series released by Sega.
*Kazuki Hayashi (Amy Palant in the English adaptation) as Mairusu Pauā (Miles "Tails" Prower in the English adaption), a two-tailed fox who is Sonic's best friend and sidekick.
*Nobutoshi Canna (Dan Green in the English adaptation) as Nakkuruzu za Ekiduna (Knuckles the Echidna in the English adaption), Sonic's friendly rival. First introduced in the Genesis game Sonic the Hedgehog 3, Knuckles lives on Angel Island, which hovers in the sky due to the power of the Master Emerald. As the last surviving member of the Echidna people who once inhabited the island, his duty is to guard the Master Emerald.
*Taeko Kawata (Lisa Oritz in the English adaptation) as Emī Rōzu (Amy Rose in the English adaption), a pink girl hedgehog who believes herself to be Sonic's girlfriend.
*Sachiko Kobayashi (Kelly Sheridan in the English adaptation) as Sarī· arishia donguri (Sally Alicia Acorn in the English adaptation), the princess of Planet Mobius. Extremely intelligent, Sally usually hacks into Eggman's computers to find important targets on Volantis. She has the ability to go ghost.
*Rumi Ochiai (Caren Manuel in the English adaptation) as Rūju za Batto (Rouge the Bat in the English adaptation), a white, female bat who is depicted as a professional treasure hunter devoted to the pursuit of jewels, calling herself the "World's Greatest Treasure Hunter".
*Tetsu Inada (Trevor Devall in the English adaptation) as Burēku Za Neko (Blake the Cat in the English adaptation), a laid back, slothful male tuxedo cat who enjoys prowling at night, playing tricks on passersby, and eating. When he and his friends must get to a certain place in the woods, Cat often leads them through one of his shortcuts. Like Sally, Blake possesses the ability go ghost.
*Jōji Nakata (Steve Broadie in the English adaptation) as Ī-Wan-Ō-Tsū Ganma (E-102 Gamma in the English adaptation), created by Sonic the Hedgehog series antagonist Doctor Eggman as part of the "E-Series" line, Gamma turns against his master after a heartfelt conversation with Amy Rose, who becomes his friend.
*Chinami Nishimura (Lee Quick in the English adaptation) as Junsar (Jenny in the English adaptation), a policewoman who suspends the service of the ferryboats in lieu of the recent storm.
*Ayako Shiraishi (Megan Hollingshead in the English adaptation) as Joi (Joy in the English adaptation), a female doctor.
*Megumi Hayashibara (Pamela Anderson in the English adaptation) as Musashi (Jessie in the English adaptation), a member of Team Rocket who infiltrates New Island alongside Kojirō/James and Nyarth/Meowth.
*Shin-ichiro Miki (Barry Pepper in the English adaptation) as Kojirō (James in the English adaptation), a member of Team Rocket.
*(Pete Dickson in the English adaptation) as Pichu, an electric mouse Pokemon.
===Guest Cast===
*Megumi Hayashibara (Tom Kenny in the English adaptation) as Suponjibobu (SpongeBob SquarePants in the English adaptation), a yellow sea sponge who physically resembles an artificial, rectangular, kitchen-type cleaning sponge clad in brown short-pants, a white shirt and a red tie. He lives in a pineapple house and is employed as a fry cook at a fast-food restaurant called The Krusty Krab, where many stories take place; he takes pride in his work and seems to worship or venerate the Krabby Patty.
* (Bill Fagerbarkke in the English adaptation) as (Patrick Star in the English adaptation), a pink starfish who is overweight, and dimwitted.
* (Michelle Rodriguez in the English adaptation) as Arisa, a young robot girl called a sky doll code name "Fire Bee".
* (Lance Bass in the English adaptation) as Shinichirou (Shin in the English adaptation), a young restaurant owner.
* (Abby Brammell in the English adaptation) as Kotomi, Shin's sister and co-owner of Shin's mother's restaurant.
==Production==
===Development===
Before Warner Bros. bought exclusive rights to a film adaptation of the Sonic the Hedgehog series, the character of Shadow the Hedgehog was conceived by Takashi Iizuka in 1995. However, the character was not officially conceived for the video game series until 2001. The idea of Shadow the Hedgehog first became conceived in February 1997 when Snyder first met Takashi Iizuka at a Diner in Los Angeles. He became amazed by the character of Shadow and decided to direct a film adaption of the character. Before production began for Sonic the Hedgehog (1998), Snyder approached Norman J. Grossfeld, former president of 4Kids Entertainment with Iizuka's concept of Shadow the Hedgehog and asked if he could produce a film adaptation of the character. Grossfield agreed only if Sonic the Hedgehog was a sucsess.
The film features the characters from the Nickelodeon TV series SpongeBob SquarePants. Series creator Stephen Hillenburg, the voice of Patty the Puffin, initially conceived SpongeBob SquarePants in 1984, while he was teaching and studying marine biology at what is now the Orange County Ocean Institute. During this period, Hillenburg became fascinated with animation, and wrote a comic book entitled The Intertidal Zone starring various anthropomorphic forms of sea life, many of which would evolve into SpongeBob SquarePants characters, including "Bob the Sponge", who was the co-host of the comic and resembled an actual sea sponge, as opposed to SpongeBob who resembles a kitchen sponge. In 1987, Hillenburg left the institute to pursue his dream of becoming an animator, and began to envision the possible concept of a project involving anthropomorphic sea life, drawing several rough sketches.
In 1992, Hillenburg began to attend the California Institute of the Arts to study animation, having been accepted into the institute by Jules Engel, who was impressed with Hillenburg's previous work.
While attending animation school, Hillenburg received a job on the children's television series Mother Goose and Grimm, and worked on the series from 1991 to 1993. When attending the California Institute of the Arts, he made his thesis film entitled Wormholes, which was funded by the Princess Grace Foundation and was later displayed at various animation festivals. In 1993, Hillenburg graduated from the institute, earning a Master of Fine Arts in experimental animation. In 1995, Joe Murray, creator of Rocko's Modern Life, met Hillenburg at an animation festival, and offered him a job as a director of the series. Hillenburg then joined the Nickelodeon animated series as a writer, producer, and storyboard artist during the series' third season, continuing his position for much of the fourth season. The third season episode "Fish-N-Chumps" (November 12, 1995) was directed by Hillenburg, and involved Rocko, Heffer, and Filburt going on a fishing trip, oblivious to the fact that a pair anthropomorphic fish are attempting to catch them from underwater. While working on Rocko's Modern Life, Hillenburg became friends with Tom Kenny, who was later approached by Hillenburg to become the voice of SpongeBob SquarePants. "Steve described SpongeBob to me as childlike and naïve," Kenny said in an interview. "He's not quite an adult, he's not quite a kid. Think a Stan Laurel, Jerry Lewis kind of child-man. Kind of like a Munchkin but not quite, kind of like a kid, but not in a Charlie Brown child's voice on the TV shows."
===Writing===
In February 1998, Tim McCanlies and Brad Bird were hired to write the script, though Snyder was somewhat displeased with having other writers on board, as he himself wanted to write the screenplay. He later changed his mind when he read a complete unproduced script of The Iron Giant and McCanlies' unproduced screenplay for Secondhand Lions. Bird said that he felt the same way when McCanlies was hired to write the script for The Iron Giant, but had a change of thought after reading Secondhand Lions. In June 1998, a third writer named Takashi Iizuka was brought in to help with project.
===Music===
The film's score was composed by Jun Senoue, Yutaka Minobe, Mariko Nanba, Tomoya Ohtani, and Kenichi Tokoi; it was arranged by Jun Senoue, Yutaka Minobe, Keiichi Sugiyama, Mariko Nanba, Tomoya Ohtani, Lee Brotherton, Masahiro Fukuhara, and Kenichi Tokoi.
===Animation===
Shadow the Hedgehog was the first in the Sonic the Hedgehog film series produced and shot in 35mm anamorphic format. The director felt that a widescreen image was crucial, as a nostalgic reference to old action-adventure films presented in the Cinemascope format (2.35:1), noting Raiders of the Lost Ark as an inspiration. At the peak of it's production, 270 animators, artists and technicians were working on Shadow.
Like Sonic the Hedgehog, American computer animators handed the computer animated Sonic characters.
===Filming===
The live-action Perky and Patty segments were directed by Ridley Scott. The Cold War bunker was build in a studio in Burbank, California.
===Rating===
Though filmed with the intention of receiving a PG-13 rating, Shadow the Hedgehog received an unofficial R rating by the MPAA on September 15, 1999. Snyder, angered said "the MPAA changes their rules willy-nilly and it depends on who’s seeing your actual movie at the time." Director John Moore said the same thing during production of Max Payne.
On September 30, 1999, a trailer confirmed a PG-13 rating, "for violence, sexually suggestive content, and mild language".
==Release==
===Box office===
Shadow the Hedgehog opened on December 17, 1999 in North America in 3,050 theaters, debuting at No.1 on the U.S. box office charts accumulating $21,803,100 on it's Friday opening. During its first weekend, it grossed $42,046,700 and went on to generate a total of $61,009,873 since it's Friday launch, averaging to about $20,200 per venue over the three-day span. Despite dropping to #5 in its second weekend to $36,502,869, the film made $85,991,130 within 12 days. Shadow the Hedgehog crossed the $100 million mark in January 2000 at the box office.
The film was also successful on it's international release, opening at #1 in 64 of 70 territories through the first week of January, and continuing to be the highest-grossing film in the following week. Shadow the Hedgehog earned $71.2 million in 45 territories overseas; of these, Britain and France had the highest box office with an estimated $14.6 million and $13.5 million, respectively.
The film grossed over $185,100,125 in North America and $200,609,246 internationally for a worldwide total of $385,709,371, making it the third highest-grossing animated film of 1999, only behind Toy Story 2 and Tarzan.
===Reception===
Shadow the Hedgehog earned critical acclaim from critics; based on 109 reviews collected by Rotten Tomatoes, Shadow the Hedgehog received an overall 95% "Certified Fresh" approval rating. Metacritic calculated an average score of 84 (out of 100) from the 27 reviews it collected, which indicates "Universal Acclaim". The film reviews from the audience also received a 71% "fresh" approval rating. CinemaScore reported that the average grade audiences gave the film was an A-.
Roger Ebert very much liked the World War I setting. In addition he was impressed with parallels from the 1989 war drama film Casualties of War. Anime News Network's review called Meowth's renactment of Casualties of War story "honorable" and "justifying". IGN extolled the film in a 2005 review as "the best darkest heart-break non-Disney animated film".
Patrick Butters, of The Washington Times, praised the film for it's dark themes and beautiful emotions. Peter Stack of the San Francisco Chronicle agreed that the storytelling was far more superior than Pokémon: The First Movie in every other way. Jeff Millar of the Houston Chronicle agreed with the basic techniques as well, and concluded the voice cast being excelled with a great script by Tim McCanlies.
===Accolades===
The American Film Institute nominated Shadow the Hedgehog for its Top 10 Animated Films list.AFI's 10 Top 10 Ballot
Awards 	Awards 	Awards 	Awards 	Awards
Award 	Date of ceremony 	Category 	Recipients and nominees 	Result
Annie Awards 	November 6, 1999 	Best Animated Feature Film 	Allison Abbate, Des McAnuff, and John WalkerWarner Bros. Pictures; Warner Bros. Feature Animation	Nominated
Annie Awards 	November 6, 1999 	Outstanding Individual Achievement in Effects Animation 	Allen Foster & Michel Gagné 	Nominated
Annie Awards 	November 6, 1999 	Outstanding Individual Achievement in Character Animation 	Jim Van der Keyl, Steve Markowski & Dean Wellins 	Nominated
Annie Awards 	November 6, 1999 	Outstanding Individual Achievement for Music in an Animated Feature Production 	Michael Kamen 	Nominated
Annie Awards 	November 6, 1999 	Outstanding Individual Achievement for Production Design in an Animated Feature Production	Alan Bodner & Mark Whiting 	Nominated
Annie Awards 	November 6, 1999 	Outstanding Individual Achievement for Writing in an Animated Feature Production 	Tim McCanlies (screenplay) and Brad Bird (story) 	Nominated
72nd Academy Awards 	March 26, 2000 	Best Picture 	Brad Bird, Tim McCanlies and 	Nominated
72nd Academy Awards 	March 26, 2000 	Best Actor 	Jason Griffith 	Nominated
72nd Academy Awards 	March 26, 2000 	Best Director 	Zack Snyder (Kunihiko Yuyama in Japan) 	Nominated
72nd Academy Awards 	March 26, 2000 	Best Original Screenplay 	Alan Ball 	Nominated
72nd Academy Awards 	March 26, 2000 	Best Cinematography 	Conrad Hall 	Nominated
72nd Academy Awards 	March 26, 2000 	Best Actress 	Annette Bening 	Nominated
72nd Academy Awards 	March 26, 2000 	Original Music Score 	Thomas Newman 	Nominated
72nd Academy Awards 	March 26, 2000 	Film Editing 	Tariq Anwar 	Nominated
72nd Academy Awards 	March 26, 2000 	Best Original Soundtrack 	Jun Senoue, Yutaka Minobe, Tomoya Ohtani, and Mariko Nanba 	Won
Florida Film Critics Circle 	January 9, 2000 	Best Animated Film 	Brad Bird 	Nominated
Genesis Awards 	March 18, 2000 	Best Feature Film - Animated 	Nominated 	
BAFTA Children's Award 	April 9, 2000 	Best Feature Film 	Nominated 	Brad Bird, Allison Abbate, Des McAnuff, and Tim McCanlies
Hugo Award 	September 2, 2000	Best Dramatic Presentation 	Nominated 	Brad Bird, and Tim McCalines
Las Vegas Film Critics Society 	January 18, 2000 	Best Animated Film 	Nominated 	
Los Angeles Film Critics Association 	January 20, 2000 	Best Animated Film 	Nominated 	Zack Snyder
Motion Picture Sound Editors Awards 	March 25, 2000 	Best Sound Editing - Animated Feature 	 	
Motion Picture Sound Editors Awards 	March 25, 2000 	Best Sound Editing - Music - Animation 	 	Won
New York Film Critics Circle 	January 10, 2000 	Best Animated Film 	 	3rd Place
Santa Fe Film Critics Circle Awards 	January 9, 2000 	Best Animated Film 	 	Won (tied)
Saturn Awards 	June 6, 2000 	Best Home Video Release 	 	Nominated
Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America	May 20, 2000 	Best Script 	Brad Bird, Tim McCanlies and 	Nominated
Young Artist Awards 	March 19, 2000 	Best Performance in a Voice-Over (TV or Feature Film) - Young Actor 	 	Nominated
===Home Media===
Shadow the Hedgehog was released on DVD and VHS on April 5, 2000. An Unrated version was released only through DVD. It featured uncensored material, most notable it's extra CGI blood.
==HD Remaster==
The movie was Digitally Remastered for High Definition and aired by a TV station in Tokyo on May 3, 2013. It will also be aired by other TV stations in Japan. The unrated version aired on Cartoon Network's Adult Swim in the United States on January 4, 2014.
==Soundtrack==
Shadow the Hedgehog is the soundtrack to the film in the United States of America, It was released on November 30, 1999 on Audio CD and Compact Cassette.
==Legacy==
As of 2015, it is the fourth most acclaimed animated of the 1990s. The character of Shadow made his offcial game debut in the game Sonic Adventure 2 as a playable character with gameplay similar to that of Sonic. Like in Sonic the Hedgehog (1998), it was explained that he was created fifty years prior to the game's events by Professor Gerald Robotnik, grandfather of Doctor Eggman. Robotnik designed Shadow to be the "Ultimate Life Form", a first step towards achieving the goal of immortality, but the government deemed Project Shadow a threat, and dispatched G.U.N. troopers to the space colony ARK. Shadow later appeared In Sonic Heroes, where Rouge discovers Shadow in a stasis tube in Dr. Eggman's secret base. Suffering from amnesia, Shadow joins forces with Rouge and E-123 Omega to track down Dr. Eggman. During the game, Shadow encounters androids working for Dr. Eggman that resemble him, causing him to question whether he also is an android.
Shadow starred in his first video game in 2005 which is based on the film. The game was panned by both critics and fans of the film.
===Beautiful Edition===
A remastered and extended cut of the film, named the Beautiful Edition was released in 2015. The edition is approximately 9 minutes longer than the original cut, and features two new scenes. Both scenes were storyboarded by Synder during the production on the original film but never finished due to time and budget constraints. They were animated in 2015 by Duncan Studio, which employed several animators that worked on the original film. The Beautiful Edition was shown in one-off screenings across the United States on September 30, 2015 and October 4, 2015 along side The Iron Giant.
==Notes==
===Trivia===
*It is the first film in the Sonic the Hedgehog series to win three Academy Awards for Best Soundtrack, Best Sound Mixing and Best Supporting Actor.
*The World War I soldier that Perky found and thawed out is played by Bill Fagerbakke, who voices Patrick Star. Incidentally, Patty's robo cyber soldier is voiced by Tom Kenny, the actor of SpongeBob SquarePants and Patchy the Pirate.
*It is the first and only film in the Sonic the Hedgehog film series to be rated for an older audience.
*Pete Dickson, Paul Walker and Christian Bale previously starred in Hot Wheels: The First Movie and later starred in The Fast and The Furious film series. They also starred in another film titled Atlantis Planet by Walt Disney Pictures.
*Paul Walker usually didn't do voice over work for Japanese animated films, but gave it a shot when he learned that Christian Bale and Michael J. Fox were going to be involved. Walker said that voicing Derekson was his favoruite voice role.
*Michael J. Fox doesn't do voice acting for Japanese animated films or series.
*It is the only film in the series to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture. It is also one of the few animated films nominated for the award; the others being Beauty and the Beast, Up, and Toy Story 3.
*First PG-13 rated anime film to be released in theaters at the same time in the UK, the US, and Japan. It's goal was to become a sleeper hit on video and DVD. It didn't, but it became a box office hit.
==References==
==External Links==
Category:1999
Category:Rated PG Films
Category:Sonic (series)
Category:Sonic Films