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Baby Driver

The second day of the double-header brought a slightly more satisfying film (though both were enjoyable). Baby Driver is the film Edgar Wright got stuck into after his Ant Man debacle. Apparently, he's been planning this film for a good while, even before he made the clip for 'Blue Song' by Mint Royale in 2003 (starring Noel Fielding in the driver role, and Nick Frost, Julian Barrat and Michael Smiley as the bank robbers).

It's bags of fun, as technically adept as you'd expect from Wright, full of visual flourishes - the steady-cam coffee run and the foot chase are notable sequences. The pictures almost take a back seat to the soundtrack here, which melds everything together. This is where the energy lies in the film. The titular Baby has tinnitus and needs to listen to his pod most of the time, especially when driving. I have to say, though the system worked well, I didn't like any of the music, aside from the brilliant Queen track, 'Brighton Rock'. This is the third Queen song Wright has used, after 'Don't Stop Me Now' and 'You're My Best Friend' in Shaun of the Dead.

A word or two on the cast. Kevin Spacey and Jon Hamm are fantastic but it's Jamie Foxx who steals the booty here. He's better than I've ever seen him before - properly menacing and funny but not too many eggs in the pudding. The 'leads', Ansel Elgort and Lily James on the other hand, were pretty underwhelming and did just enough to hold the focus until the action or other cast members took the reins again.

It goes without saying that the driving was..........but I reckon the dialogue was the star of this caper. There are a multitude of witty lines and one or two scenes that rival Tarantino and the Coens. The four way face off in the diner was one of the tensest nail-biting moments I've seen in a long time.

One slight issue I had was with the final 5 or so minutes. For me, the ending betrays what came before it a bit. Too sappy and moral, I thought. It was probably the most logical ending but I didn't think it was necessary to show us the nuts and bolts of Baby's penance. At any rate, a new Edgar Wright film is one to mark in the calendar. More please. Listen to "ep001 Baby Driver" on Spreaker.

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