When it comes to the art, there are few filmmakers who create and perfect their own signature brand. Tarantino, Scorsese, Kuebrick and many others all share distinct characteristics that make there films recognizable to those serious about cinema. The men listed above are all Master Class in my opinion and dare I say Edgar Wright is on his way to joining them?
Summary
Baby Driver follows a young man who goes by the name "Baby" (Elgort) who is what the title suggests, a Driver and a damn good one. His talents led him to becoming the prized getaway driver for a group of criminals. With his heart not aligned with the lifestyle and actions of his co workers he seeks a new start, especially after becoming interested in a girl. It is until he finds himself ready to abandon the life he finds out how intertwined he really is.
Review
Pros Referencing back to the intro, the first 6 minutes of this film shows why Wright is in a class only a few are in. The scene uses its soundtrack to act as choreography, every snare hit and kick means something and are perfectly timed to the world our characters are in. We the audience soon realize that music is more than just a soundtrack in this film, but provides an arc for our characters, especially Baby. We learn a lot about him based solely off of the music being played, which is unlike anything I have seen at this level. We then proceed to a long tracking shot of Baby navigating to a coffee shop, which in my opinion is one of the most beautiful shots of 2017. I never thought Watching someone get coffee would be this entertaining. Wright does a good job from the start of putting us into this kids world while simultaneously showing us why he doesn't belong in it. The casting choices were all good and added different elements to the story. Baby was the only one tied to music physically through his iPod, but each character was choreographed as if they were listening too. The action was shot really well especially the getaway scenes, both on foot and in the car. The car chase scenes are pure brilliance making The Fast and The Furious movies look 2nd tier. Edgar truly kept me engaged and I never felt cheated in any scene.
Cons
Much of the film focused on visuals to the point where I felt some characters were a tad bit flat. Subtracting Baby and Doc (Kevin Spacy), I felt the others could have had a little more substance. Some of their decisions and actions felt somewhat robotic in my opinion. With that being said Buddy (Hamm) and Batts (Foxx) did shine in a couple of scenes due to them being quality actors. With this being said please understand that even this didn't ruin this movie due to them still being entertaining characters.
Lastly the only other minor issue I had was the romance. Although there was nothing wrong with the acting or chemistry between the characters, it was just a little difficult to believe or get invested in.
Conclusion/Grade
What makes Baby Driver great is that it is a unique experience and is visually stunning. Edgar Wright does a great job of blending action, suspense, romance and comedy making it one of the most enjoyable films of 2017.
8.1/10
