Nobody put Baby in a Corolla

Rating: 9/10 (18 March 2018)

Baby Driver is an action heist film from too talented by half director Edgar Wright who made Shaun of the Dead and Scott Pilgrim among others. Our main character Baby is a talented get away driver who is a little off, a little young, and who listens to music on an old ipod all the time to cover for his tinnitus that he got in a tragic childhood incident.
The plot itself is a simple affair that would not be out of place in a Grand Theft Auto movie adaptation. Baby needs to do "one more job" for creepy boss Kevin Spacey (who lets face ot is even creepier in the role now)while his heist mates are heavily tattooed, unstable violent sociopaths that are often not all that bright.
Baby has fallen for a diner waitress who shares his love of music and road trips and a they plan to drive off into the sunset after his task is completed. I am sure this will go smoothly.
The Good: Some movies are extremely well directed and you are never the wiser except perhaps in retrospect (Logan Lucky). Other movies are extremely well directed and are not afraid to shout this out during the film (Dunkirk). Baby Driver is definitely in the latter category. From the opening one shot where the scenery and character and extras are all perfectly timed to the music to the driving sequences done in real time without CGI the every minute detail direction is all over the place. The is a finely crafted film.
Baby Driver is also an entertaining film. If a film adaptation of say Grand Theft Auto V sounds entertaining to you it is because it is. By making our protagonist a little off and hos cohorts so very violent it creates tension in scenes where lesser films would have none. It also has a decent sense of humor with a "Halloween" mask gag being particularly funny. Needless to say a decent soundtrack as well.

The Bad: Emma Stone was originally supposed to play the diner waitress in the film (she did La La land instead) and the movie suffers for it. Lily James does her best but simply cannot overcome an underwritten role.

In Conclusion: Kevin Spacey probably cost this film a best director Oscar nomination and a host of other end of the year accolades. His scenes can be be awkward or unintentionally funny in hindsight. I liked this movie more upon reflection than right after the original viewing (Yes the ending grated on me as well) and some of the hokier heartstring tugging scenes left me a bit cold.
Some people will have a visceral dislike of this movie and I get that. It is a truly artificial construct with a lead character that seems to morph as the script dictates. I liked the little touches, the music, the fun cameos and the overall ride. It really is the Grand Theft Auto V film adaptation I didn't know I wanted by a director who never fails to entertain.