Baby Driver

Edgar Wright remains one of my all-time favourite directors. Why? Because each and every film he crafts reeks of originality, he takes a few similar traits, throws them together, delves down a completely unexpected route and forms something unique, something masterful. From 'Shaun of the Dead' to 'Hot Fuzz' and so on and so forth, each film feels like something you think you've witnessed before, but on a whole new level, something fresh, something alluring, packed with adrenaline... and of course, 'Baby Driver' followed suit.

'Baby Driver' is an utterly engrossing caper-comedy that is (in my personal opinion) the finest film to face 2017 so far, I couldn't help but smile throughout, from the stunningly executed action scenes and stunts, through to the soundtrack (with an abundance of classic rock and soul tracks) and finally the heavily relatable characters. The lack of disappointment in Edgar Wright's work continues with this masterful film, which is ultimately also one of the coolest films of the past decade or so.

Many of the heist films of recent years have been rather disappointing when it comes to both story and technical achievement, however when something like 'Baby Driver' makes an appearance, it's refreshing to know that indie films are still taking this planet by storm and shunting the blockbusters out of the limelight. To know that certain production companies still trust the creativity of a director over the monetary expectations, and by doing so, unleashing a flurry of fantastic independently "driven" films.

I'm gonna finish with this (partially odd) statement / testimonial... when I went to sleep last night, I had odd dreams of car chases and stunt driving to rock classics, and that is thanks to this film, the fact that it stuck with me even when I wasn't fully conscious. That's how much of a damn cool film 'Baby Driver' is... just go watch it, just throw away your tickets to 'Transformers' and 'The Mummy' etc, and go see this instead.

I read an early tweet that described Baby Driver as 'a mix-tape with a film attached to it' and that proved to be an accurate comment. The tweeter may have thought this was a good thing, but I certainly don't.

Yes, there are some good tracks and the action sequences are elaborate and frenetic (a little too frenetic, actually), but the characters are dull, unlikeable and bear very little relation to the real world. I simply did not believe in them, especially Darling, the sassy, kick ass stock character that only a fool would consider to be a strong female character.

Then there's Baby, whose laconic, boyish demeanour makes him a rather uninspiring protagonist. His romance with Debbie, a cute little waitress, is yawn-inducingly clichéd, too.

If you want a stylish heist film that isn't so bloody try-hard, then watch Drive. It's an exercise of style over substance much like this film, but it has suspense, atmosphere and characters that could actually exist rather than blaring music, mind-numbing action and flat, hateful comic book characters.

Edgar Wright deals with the technical aspects very well, be it camera work, cinematography, editing or soundtrack. But in pursuit of the style, he forgot to write good characters. There is absolutely no conviction. You don't feel for any character. Their actions are confusing (like Kevin Spacey in the end). It tells you a lot when I say that the most interesting character was an 8-year old boy with barely 3-4 minutes of screentime. The dialogues didn't help either. No one is interested in the comparison between weapons and different body parts of a pig.

In short, the writing is abysmal and keeps you from enjoying what could have been a very fun watch. Perhaps they could have fed some more lines from Monsters Inc.

I was able to watch Baby Driver during an advanced screening last week and and yes it's as amazing as the critics say it is. The way it uses the music is just so great. It's so different from all the other movies, but it isn't artsy in a way that only the critics will like it: this is a movie for everyone. I went with a friend who is really hard to please when it comes to movies, but I just knew he would love this. And I was right, I never saw him as excited about a movie as he was about this one. It's just so much fun to watch, but it's also serious when it needs to be and it has very intriguing characters. But I'll be honest, the core of the movie is its music. I think this is the second time I say it, but the music works so well. If I wasn't in the theaters I would sing with the songs. Even though it's completely different, it reminds me a bit of Fury Road in the way that it makes you want to punch your fist and the air and cheer during the movie. In reality I think it's more a mixture of La La Land and Grand Theft Auto (it's definitely not a musical by the way). Go see this movie. I don't want to overhype anyone, but I'll make a bold statement and say this is my favorite Edgar Wright movie. I'll be shocked if this doesn't appear on many 'Best of the Year' lists in December, at least I already know it'll be on mine.

I somehow felt love and hate sort of feeling for Baby Driver. The movie started off on nice note but then somehow slows down and eventually picks up too much pace in second half. It's pretty hard to keep the interest alive all the time. I really loved the song selection and even noticed me nodding to few beats as well. The car action sequence were well shot too. But then the second half of the movie was so fast that it feels like they just wanted to end this but still wanted to keep it alive. Don't think if there was any need of few gruesome sequences.

The story had so much potential and having some good cast along, it could have gone to great heights. But it disappoints in this area and turns out to be just another mindless action drama for light viewing.