Baby Driver Review

     After the buzz from early screenings at SXSW, Baby Driver has been one of the most anticipated movies of the summer. Directed by Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz helmer, Edgar Wright, this had all the hype to be an incredibly fun flick. The film has a star studded cast with actors such as Ansel Elgort, Lily James, Kevin Spacey, Jon Hamm, Jamie Foxx, and many others. The results are exactly what audiences should expect. Baby Driver might not only be the best movie of the summer so far but could be the best movie of the year.

     When getaway driver, Baby (Ansel Elgort) finds a way out of his life of crime and develops a romantic relationship with Debora (Lily James), everything seems to be going swell in his once hectic life. Unfortunately, crime boss Doc (Kevin Spacey) has different plans for Baby and brings him out of retirement for their biggest job yet.
     This movie is phenomenal on almost all fronts but the one that stands out the most is the directing from Edgar Wright. The action sequences are incredibly well crafted and help to display the beautiful stunt work that has been put into this film. The opening scene of this movie feels very reminiscent 2011's Drive. The crucial difference though is Baby Driver is much more action oriented, whereas Drive is more character driven. That does not take away from Baby Driver though. Wright writes these characters so well and audiences will greatly attach to them. All of these characters are well rounded and not one dimensional which is typically the case with action oriented movies.

     This whole cast does a wonderful job of bringing these characters to life but the standout is Ansel Elgort. Going into this film audiences will most likely know him because of The Fault In Our Stars but soon change their tune after seeing this. Elgort shows excellent range in this movie and does excellent being the leading man. The relationship between Baby and Debora also feels very genuine. Elgort and James just seem to radiate chemistry when the two are on screen together.
     Another standout within the film of Baby Driver is the music. The music is essentially its own character in this movie and Wright perfectly flaunts it to the audience. All the sequences are greatly enhanced because of the soundtrack. Wright also uses the music as a mechanism of humor and it works in an outstanding matter. Wright beautifully blends humor with action to make for a really fun movie that has quite an unpredictable script. This story takes directions that is quite unexpected and it really payoffs.
     There are no negative aspects from me when it comes to this movie. I have a few nitpicks but overarching problems are not existent in this movie. Edgar Wright has struck gold and this is a movie that NEEDS to be seen in theaters. I cannot recommend Baby Driver enough. It is my favorite of the year so far.

Rating: 10 out of 10