Baby Driver (2017)

☆ ☆ ☆ 

Baby Driver (2017) – E. Wright

Sometimes a movie’s hype can be its undoing – or perhaps I’ve just gotten tired of the Edgar Wright formula which seems to focus purely on style (with content chosen to match).  Here, he takes on the heist genre, focusing on Ansel Elgort’s Baby who drives the getaway car for boss Kevin Spacey’s capers, due to a past debt.  He wants to get out...and never more so then when he falls for innocent waitress Lily James.  But he can’t get out and so we see some hi-octane robberies replete with stunt driving and the usual ultra-violence.  The key to the film that allows Wright (or his editor) to strut his stuff is the fact that Baby has tinnitus and so listens to music on his various ipods at all times (to drown out the ringing) – thus, the soundtrack to the action is whatever Baby is listening to.  Unfortunately, I wasn’t wowed by the soundtrack.  I mean, “Tequila”? It was used to better effect in Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure (1985).  That’s not to say that the movie isn’t enjoyable –it has a slick flair and doesn’t include any missteps; in other words, it is better than your usual Hollywood tripe.  But I couldn’t quite get excited about it – everything felt too calculated and eager to please.  That’s why Wright is making millions, I guess.