The A-Listers Talk About Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (2022)
From the couple who see a lot of movies because they have AMC A-List.
Patrick: Did you know that Tails was a boy?
Taylor: I truly could not have been more surprised. Jaw instantly on the floor. AnD tHeY wErE bOtH bOyS kiss kiss kiss
Patrick: We are of course talking about Sonic the Hedgehog 2, the sequel to a film that we really loved. Why did we love the first Sonic so much?
Taylor: I don’t know if I can put my finger on it. That little blue hedgehog is just so damn likable! Oh, and I’m in love with Ben Schwartz, who plays Sonic, so that may have something to do with it.
Patrick: Yes, I know you’re excited to see Ben in person this summer at his improv show. When it comes to Sonic, it came at a time when we really needed it: the pandemic. The movie came out right before COVID came to the U.S. and we skipped it because…of course we did. But it was the first movie playing at our local drive-in when it reopened around June 2020. It was nice to be back at the movies and so great to just get a good laugh.
Taylor: And just like I’m sure Ben himself will deliver at his improv show, Sonic DOES give good laughs! I think tonight watching Sonic 2 in the theatre was arguably one of the better theatre experiences I’ve had recently. The experience felt so shared. Everyone was laughing. Kids, adults, and definitely myself. I was impressed with the jokes in this one. Arguably… more so than the first one? I don’t know! I think Sonic deserves a revisit after watching this to see how the two battle it out.
Patrick: I thought about revisiting it before seeing the new one, but not only is time an elusive mistress, I was a little worried that I wasn’t going to like it as much because our first viewing was so great. That viewing was the exact opposite experience of this one, alone in our car, so when this movie began and we both had smiles on our faces, I knew it was as much fun as I remembered.
Taylor: Happy memories! The past two years have been hard but moments like those shine through for me. Though I’m thrilled to be seeing movies in a comfortable theatre again and not in a disgusting sweaty car in the middle of an open field.
Patrick: The sequel is different from the first one in one major way. Can you guess what it is?
Taylor: He has wingmen?
Patrick: Well, yes. Tails gets the Timmy Turner treatment and Knuckles gets the Idris Elba treatment. But that’s not it…
Taylor: It’s… better? I’m not sure what you’re going for here.
Patrick: IT’S MORE THAN TWO HOURS LONG.
Taylor: Oh yes, of course! Your kryptonite! How could I be so stupid?
Patrick: I had a lot of fun with the first two acts of this movie. They’re obviously imperfect and sometimes play to the kids a little much (although the kids eat it up), but the climax was unbelievably long. I hate when stuff like that happens. I am so close to bouncing out of the auditorium until the life gets sucked out of me by a 45-minute robot climax.
Taylor: It started to feel a little long there at the end, but I don’t think it bothered me nearly as much as it bothered you. Maybe I’m just a kid at heart, but I was eating it up for the most part.
Patrick: I was too! I’ll take the amusement park that is a video game movie over the Blink-182 concert that is The Batman any day, but that doesn’t mean I need it to be so drawn out. Rip me off! Send me out after 85 minutes!
Taylor: Yeah, I get it for sure. There were definitely some scenes that could have been cut much, much shorter. I don’t think there was much I would have cut entirely because I thought it was all pretty justified, but some things could have totally been cut in half.
Patrick: What was your favorite part?
Taylor: “Portobella Purgatory” is high up there. No, but honestly I think it was just the jokes. You know this means a lot coming from me, but I thought this movie was really funny! I wonder if the Man Himself wrote punch up for it.
Patrick: “This piece of shi…ttake planet!” surprised me. My favorite part also came in the first 15 minutes (what does that say!) — Sonic fighting crime! I love Jim Carrey as the ultimate foil to Sonic’s shenanigans, but I enjoyed his caped crusading. It was exciting.
Taylor: This movie started REALLY REALLY strong, and I was impressed by how well it sustained that momentum.
Patrick: I think that sums it all up for me: I was so excited to see another Sonic movie. Big smile on my face from the start. But my ICEE melted and there were still 40 minutes left. The crowd we saw it with exploded during the mid-credits tease for a third movie, so here’s hoping that one stays around 90 minutes.
Taylor: If there’s one thing to know about me… If there’s a Sonic movie, imma have it.
Patrick: Thanks for reading, folks.
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