Baby Driver

Baby Driver

Starring Ansel Elgort, Lily James, Kevin Spacey, Jon Hamm

Directed by Edgar Wright

The Story:
At a young age, Baby (Ansel Elgort) was orphaned and suffered an accident that led to permanent tinnitus, causing him to continually listen to music to drown out the hum.  He gets swept into a world of robbery thanks to Doc (Kevin Spacey), and Baby becomes his very effective getaway driver.

Baby meets waitress Debora (Lily James), and the two begin a relationship as Baby completes what he thinks is his last heist.  Unfortunately, he's so good at what he does, Doc pulls him back in for another caper with Buddy (Jon Hamm), Darling (Eiza Gonzalez) and psychotic Bats (Jamie Foxx).  Of course, the "last job" goes totally array and threatens everything (and everyone) Baby holds dear.

The Synopsis:
It takes a big man to admit he was wrong, and with "Baby Driver," I must admit I was terribly wrong.  This was on the lower end of the films I wanted to see this summer strictly because the title (taken from a Simon and Garunkel song) was so strange and the preview looked like it was an ordinary, run-of-the-mill heist movie.  This film is nothing but, as Edgar Wright brilliantly blends high-octane action, deep character development, slick production values and an amazing continuous soundtrack that pulls the viewer in from the first frame to the last, and leaves you with feeling like you've truly seen a once-in-a-lifetime masterpiece - with only one flaw.

That flaw lies in the lead actor, Ansel Elgort.  When I talked about the film before I saw it, I had issues with his casting, because I didn't think he had what it took to go up against the likes of Kevin Spacey, Jon Hamm or Jamie Foxx, and I was right.  While (thankfully) he didn't have many lines in the film, he carried himself as nothing less than window dressing, like a pretty model you see on the front windows of shops.  There could've been a couple different younger actors I could think who would've filled the role better - Ellar Coltrane, Taron Edgerton, Nicholas Hout or Dylan Minnette come to mind.  While he wasn't terrible, Elgort was overshadowed by the other actors in this amazing masterpiece.

Getting the bad part out of the way, it's time to focus on everything the film did right, which was everything else.  Wright didn't rely on "Fast and the Furious" style CGI, but all his effects - from the wild shootouts to the insane car chases - were all done practically and masterfully with expert stunt drivers.  The film also blended its production values with the skill of an expert seamstress, tying different scenes together in a way that seems to unfold at the same time, but actually happens far apart from one another.  An excellent example is when Baby gets a job as a pizza delivery boy, one minute walking into the pizza shop to inquire about the job as the camera pans to the left and we see him in full pizza boy outfit about to deliver some piping hot pies.

The supporting actors also held up the film in Elgort's absence.  Lily James (best known for playing Cinderella) epitomizes the lovelorn waitress girlfriend, having the down-to-earth appeal in both appearance and demeanor, turning her into a perfect love interest.  Kevin Spacey steals the show as Doc, the ringleader of the criminal syndicate, who coordinates the heists and covers all the loose ends.  Jon Hamm kills it as Buddy, who slowly unravels as the film progresses.  Yet it's Jamie Foxx's character that's the most neurotic, psychotic, and downright lethal.  He kills for the joy of it, he doesn't trust anyone (especially Baby), and he gives off a feeling of dread for the viewer, not knowing what he's going to do next.

Finally there's the story, which was a wholly original work by Wright himself, that could've come off as a typical, run-of-the-mill heist movie if it wasn't for the expert infusion of classic rock to the story.  It's like "La La Land" meets "The Fast & the Furious," combining the two polar opposites into a whole that's wholly outstanding.  I found myself tapping my toes to the music as Baby expertly drives like the best Formula One racer, exciting both my heart and brain in a way very few films could.  It's the work of an expert writer, someone who treats his audience as adults and doesn't spoon feed us every twist and turn.  It was a beautiful story to behold, even in its intense violence and unhinged characters.

The Summary:
Despite a lackluster lead, "Baby Driver" perfectly combines every other aspect of the film to form a highly enjoyable, easily re-watchable, wholly original action/musical blend that's something you rarely see in cinema nowadays.

The Score: A