Baby Driver Summary & Review
In any heist, one of the most important elements is the getaway. The getaway determines whether or not you successfully make it out with whatever you have stolen. In any great getaway, you need someone who knows how to evade the police coming from every direction. While most great getaway drivers only exist in movies, it’s fun to imagine someone who is capable of talents like that. That is the subject of the new action film, Baby Driver, from British director Edgar Wright (Shaun of the Dead).
With a talent for speed and a passion for music, young Baby (Ansel Elgort) works as a getaway driver for a crime boss named Doc (Kevin Spacey). Stricken with severe tinnitus, Baby uses different soundtracks to aid him in his drives and everyday life. When Baby is tasked to help a thief named Bats (Jamie Foxx), things begin to fall apart. As friends turn into enemies, Baby must get out of the game before he and his girlfriend Debora (Lily James) are forced to “face the music.”
I was really excited going into this movie. I love the movies that Edgar Wright has made. I love his work with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. I think he really knows how to make a comedy. However, while I didn’t hate Baby Driver, I strangely didn’t think it lived up to all the hype that people created.
I thought the performances were really good. I felt a good level chemistry between Elgort and Spacey, as well as Elgort and James. I believed that Baby really loved driving for Doc and hanging out with Debora. I also enjoyed the chemistry between Elgort and the actors playing the various criminals that worked for Doc. I thought everyone did a great job embracing their characters.
I thought the action scenes were really well done. I thought it was very unique to synchronize the driving scenes to famous songs. It kept the action thrilling and brought something new to the genre. Looking back, Edgar Wright has always included music in his movies one way or another, so he has experience creating scenes like this.
I also really enjoyed the technical accomplishments of the film. I thought the cinematography successfully gave the film a unique look, different from most summer blockbusters. I thought the color palate of the film was very unique compared to most other summer movies. I give Wright credit for creating a film that looked different from everything else.
The trouble is, while I did enjoy the movie, I didn’t think it was anything amazing or memorable. When everyone started saying amazing things about this movie, I was expecting something on the same level. I guess my expectations were too high, because while I thought the action scenes were fun, they weren’t fully captivating.
I also thought that the drama was very bland. I did like the chemistry between Elgort and James, but I wasn’t fully invested in their love story. I felt like I had seen something like this many times before. I would have preferred a new take on the criminal love story, but it just didn’t deliver.
Also, I felt that, like most films this year, the tone of the movie wasn’t fully realized. There were some moments in the film that were played for laughs, but didn’t get a laugh out of me. I couldn’t tell if Wright was trying to make a serious movie, but was clashing with his comedic talents, or he was making a funny movie, but the story was too serious. I hope Wright figures out the tone of his next movie, because I don’t want him to make the same mistake that many people are making this year.
Baby Driver has some sparks of imagination and nicely filmed action scenes, but it doesn’t manage to live up to its full potential. I wasn’t fully disappointed by it, but I don’t think it’s the best movie of the summer. I’ve seen other movies that are better than this. I thought Edgar Wright had some great ideas, but didn’t know what to do with them.
