While the title of the film may sound like it’s a kid’s flick, Baby Driver, written and directed by Edgar Wright, is anything but! With one of the coolest opening scenes ever, this high-octane movie captured my attention from the start, keeping my interest the entire ride.
Baby, played by Ansel Elgort, is the most unlikely of criminals. With his hip shades and headphones, Baby marches to his own beat. Literally. While others around him are hatching elaborate plans and going about their daily lives, Baby’s main focus is the soundtrack of his life.
Roped into being the getaway driver for bank heists, Baby, a man of few words, remains calm, cool, and collected as he helps his team of robbers make a fast escape. The team, led by Kevin Spacey’s character Doc, is an accumulation of alias-assigned criminals eager to strike it rich by following Doc’s meticulously laid out plans.
With his baby face and apparent ambivalence, the thieves relying on Baby’s lead foot question whether he is up for the challenge of dodging the police. Baby, indifferent to suggestions that he may not be as intelligent as the outlaws with whom he surrounds himself, proves his music isn’t a distraction.
When he meets a young diner waitress, played by the lovely Lily James, Baby slowly begins to come to the realization that when it comes to getaways, it’s Doc and his team of tattooed bandits from whom he actually needs to escape. (By the way, as I watched, it was bothering me as I tried to figure out from where it was that I recognized Lily James. Halfway through, I finally realized she was one of my favorite characters from Downton Abbey, Lady Rose, as well as the title character in Disney’s 2015 Cinderella.)
With an incredible cast, including Jon Hamm and Jamie Foxx, Baby Driver is Tarantinoesque in the best way possible! Just like Baby’s driving, the movie is fast-paced. Packed with impressive action scenes and laced with humor, the movie is fresh, and viewers will love it. The cinematography is creative, the soundtrack magnetic with forty-seven songs both familiar and unfamiliar (at least to me), and the plot is multidimensional.
Throughout the movie, I kept hearing one woman in particular laughing, and afterwards I asked her what she thought about Baby Driver. Identifying herself as Jennifer from La Jolla, she shared, “It didn’t look like my kind of film, but I decided to go see it after overhearing two strangers going on and on about how much they liked it. I loved it!”
My favorite movie guest/husband Mike, reflected, “I loved everything about this movie! It was funky, quirky, and cool. If you don’t like violence, this isn’t the film for you, but if you’re looking for something worthy of your time and money, hands down you should see Baby Driver.”
I have to say that I totally agree with Jennifer and Mike. I felt like I was seeing a movie that people will be talking about for years to come! Even though one character’s eventual demise reminded me a little too much of Rasputin’s (and the fact that I now secretly yearn to drive with reckless abandon), I’m glad I saw Baby Driver. After seeing it, I shall now view it as a compliment whenever I hear someone tell another, “You’re such a baby.” Put the pedal to the metal, and get yourself over to the theater to see it.
Movie times: click here
Genre: Action & Adventure, Comedy, Drama
Director: Edgar Wright
Actors: Ansel Elgort, Kevin Spacey, Lily James, Eiza González, with Jon Hamm and Jamie Foxx
Running Time: 1 hour 52 minutes
Rating: Rated R for violence and language throughout
