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[VenomousCoffee]

Saw it this afternoon. I thought the driving sequences were great and the shooting sequences were pretty good, and I really liked the over the top criminal performances of Jon Hamm, Berenthal, Spacey, and Foxx. It felt like Tarantino without the "hey I love to use the n word but I swear I'm not a racist" aspect.

But I didn't find any of the plot and character development with Baby interesting games. Everything in his apartment, the gf, the music, it all rang flat for me. It might just be an old man thing, because I was also put off by his style. I guess I'm not ready for an action-y movie lead who wears skinny jeans and whatever those dumb shoes are.

I also want to point out (sorry if old) that there are flashbacks where characters are using an iPod but the clothes and car dashboard are from the late 1980s.

 

[kswiston]

Saw it this afternoon. I thought the driving sequences were great and the shooting sequences were pretty good, and I really liked the over the top criminal performances of Jon Hamm, Berenthal, Spacey, and Foxx. It felt like Tarantino without the "hey I love to use the n word but I swear I'm not a racist" aspect.

But I didn't find any of the plot and character development with Baby interesting games. Everything in his apartment, the gf, the music, it all rang flat for me. It might just be an old man thing, because I was also put off by his style. I guess I'm not ready for an action-y movie lead who wears skinny jeans and whatever those dumb shoes are.

I also want to point out (sorry if old) that there are flashbacks where characters are using an iPod but the clothes and car dashboard are from the late 1980s.

I got the impression that the film was being anachronistic on purpose.

 

[lawnchair]

great popcorn action/heist flick. not a re-watch fifteen times classic like some of his other movies imo.

 

[William]

I loved it, my favourite Edgar Wright film I think. Also was there a

Spoiler

Timothy Dalton cameo in the coffee run dance scene?

 

[Incitemaybe]

This movie was a huge missed opportunity. I'm a little sad.

 

[MC Safety]

Too much style, almost zero substance. Didn't care about the characters or the action.

The only part of the movie with a touch of humanity was the scene at the end with the old man and the nursing home.

 

[borghe]

People saying the romance was flat? Wha? Do you guys really need stuff that on the nose? The romance angle was superbly handled.

Best movie I’ve seen this year, and in a very long time. Period.

 

[Bronx-Man]

Loved this movie, thought the intensity was off the charts and Baby & Deborah had some really great chemistry.

Also jesus CHRIST Jon Hamm is a scary motherfucker.

 

[gutterboy44]

Great movie, loved it. A lot of fun and so unique from start to finish. Already preorder the soundtrack on vinyl. I think this is my second fav Edgar Wright movie.

 

[VenomousCoffee]

People saying the romance was flat? Wha? Do you guys really need stuff that on the nose? The romance angle was superbly handled.

Best movie I’ve seen this year, and in a very long time. Period.

It struck me as flat because I didn't care about the two characters involved in it. Baby and Debora seemed more like they were 13 than 20 or whatever they were. No idea how the phrase "on the nose" is related here.

 

[The Bookerman]

I usually like Jamie Foxx, but goddamnit I wanted to beat the living shit outta him during this film.

 

[brianjones]

If anything it was on the nose.. lol

ur names debora? let's listen to a song called debora 2gether

also all the fuckin baby references jeez

kinda surprised be my baby wasn't on the ost but maybe that's too much since they already had goodfellas pizza

Baby and Debora seemed more like they were 13 than 20 or whatever they were.

I would have thought they were both virgins honestly.. "I make bad coffee"

 

[Anton Sugar]

People saying the romance was flat? Wha? Do you guys really need stuff that on the nose? The romance angle was superbly handled.

Best movie I've seen this year, and in a very long time. Period.

Just saw it and still processing, but overall, I really enjoyed it.

I need to see it again. Feeling a sort of "At the World's End" feel where I can appreciate it more the next time. FWIW, At the World's End ended up becoming possibly my favorite Wright film.

It's absolutely different from his others, in a lot of way. A lot more muted, for lack of a better word.

But damn, I was not expecting the movie to be this...cute? Really enjoyed the chemistry and interactions of the leads, even if (overall) the characters felt less fully realized than his past movies.

In a weird way, I get a La La Land vibe from it. That movie's effectiveness hinges completely on whether or not you buy into the leads. La La Land wasn't that successful for me, but here, I think it was.

 

[peanutbutterlatte]

If anything it was on the nose.. lol

ur names debora? let's listen to a song called debora 2gether

also all the fuckin baby references jeez

It was very twee but Lily James (and the lead tbf) are gorgeous enough that I didn't really care.

 

[VenomousCoffee]

If anything it was on the nose.. lol

ur names debora? let's listen to a song called debora 2gether

also all the fuckin baby references jeez

"My sister is Mary! She gets every song!"

Like I said, I think parts of the movie are very strong. But their dialogue doesn't even work for an overly stylish action movie.

 

[borghe]

"My sister is Mary! She gets every song!"

Like I said, I think parts of the movie are very strong. But their dialogue doesn't even work for an overly stylish action movie.

Strongly disagree. Fit the tone of the movie to a T. As someone else said the dialogue played out like a 90s Tarantino flick without F and N for every other word.

 

[lawnchair]

i still like this movie, but Pain and Gain w/ marky mark and the rock is 3x better than it.

 

[Discotheque]

More people need to cast Jon Hamm. Dudes screen presence was off the charts in here, and his don draper was always one of the best characters on tv while mad men aired

 

[Bronx-Man]

Yeah, they got him and Deborah cuz they have this 50s Diner Americana look. Deborah even works at one of the vintage type diners. I didn't really appreciate that part.

The movie is really steeped in old Americana, which is getting a bit old. I guess you can tell its made by a white British guy since it doesn't seem to nod to youth culture at all.

Just listening to the same music that people have been putting in movies for decades up decades like no new good music or fashion has come out since then.

Its also really weird how none of his British movies have minorities but he throws in some tokens in his American movies. Cynical. Like actually doesn't care about it at all, but understands in America people won't accept the racist only white nature of his movies, but he can get away with it in Britain since no one cares there, so he does.

I understand this completely and honestly, I was feeling a type of way about it too but I let it go after realizing this is a really stylized movie. Tarantino-type stylized as others put it.

Also yeah, in my mind I was like "Holy crap, an Edgar Wright movie with a black guy in it".

 

[AngmarsKing701]

Saw it this afternoon and enjoyed it overall. Thought the performances were great, loved the way the soundtrack was a character in the movie, the way the rhythm of the action clung to the song being played, especially in the opening sequence. The chemistry between Baby and Deborah worked for me, though it veered toward too sugary at times; I think Elgort and James did a superb job keeping it from going too over the top.

The only real issue I had was the elongated action at the end. Hamm was going Terminator levels of just not dying, and it was getting a bit too long and far-fetched.

Other than that, super fun film.

 

[dcelw540]

Question about the ending

Spoiler

if his real name isn't baby then why does he keep using it? I missed that part.

Also good movie a bit slow in the middle but damn so good! I wish we had more Jon Bernthal his character seemed pretty neat to me.  

 

[Discotheque]

While it would have been nice to get more contemporary music in here cuz I like a lot of that shit why does he owe it to us? He likes this music. And it seemed he was going for a throwback vibe with some of the codenames like baby, darling, buddy, doc etc. Hell, the waitress looked a lot like Shelly from twin peaks. Very romanticized 50s style relationship and dialogue here similar to some of the stuff lynch tends to do for example.

It would be nice to get like a more atl trap take on this type of movie but it aint his bag.

 

[hydruxo]

One of my favorite things about the soundtrack is how Edgar played with the audience's expectations with some of the songs by playing the original song instead of more popular ones that sampled them. Harlem Shuffle instead of Jump Around. Bongolia instead of Jump On It. I love it.

 

[Discotheque]

One of my favorite things about the soundtrack is how Edgar played with the audience's expectations with some of the songs by playing the original song instead of more popular ones that sampled them. Harlem Shuffle instead of Jump Around. Bongolia instead of Jump On It. I love it.

The song that dre's next episode sampled too

A lot of these are tracks I normally would not have heard before but I'm loving it all. Solid summer mix here. The first track of the movie when baby is waiting on the crew is really good

 

[Bronx-Man]

One last thing

I love this movie, but we ain't gonna talk about how Edgar Wright made a movie about a music-obsessed daredevil with headphones always in his ear that cherishes a mixtape his mom made?

Don't remind y'all of anything at all?

 

[Blitzrules240]

What a fucking movie. I'm buying the soundtrack asap.

 

[xandaca]

Loved the movie. One of the funniest films I've seen in a while, great soundtrack, Jon Hamm and Kevin Spacey were wonderful, the car stunts were fantastic and Lily James was absolutely incendiary - that shot of her at the end in her sundress and boots was mind-melting. Downsides were that the car stunts mostly fell by the wayside in the second half, the female characters weren't given anything to do, and the third act dragged a bit. The plot hinged on some massive contrivances as well, but I was enjoying the movie too much to really care. Coming out I was wondering if it was Edgar Wright's best film, but on reflection, Shaun and Hot Fuzz edge it. Still a big recommendation, though.

 

[border]

Does that diner actually exist in Atlanta?

 

[Scarecrow]

What a wonderful time. My favorite film this year.

 

[Discotheque]

One last thing

I love this movie, but we ain't gonna talk about how Edgar Wright made a movie about a music-obsessed daredevil with headphones always in his ear that cherishes a mixtape his mom made?

Don't remind y'all of anything at all?

Nice try. Dude wrote it way back in 2011

 

[Chairhome]

There's a pretty good podcast called Soundtracking where the host interviews directors about their song choices.
This week she has Edgar Wright in again to talk about Baby Driver's songs.
The previous Wright ep was about his previous works.

http://www.edithbowman.com/soundtracking

 

[peanutbutterlatte]

Question about the ending

Spoiler

if his real name isn't baby then why does he keep using it? I missed that part.

Also good movie a bit slow in the middle but damn so good! I wish we had more Jon Bernthal his character seemed pretty neat to me.  

Spoiler

Codename I.e. Doc, Buddy

 

[robotrock]

One last thing

I love this movie, but we ain't gonna talk about how Edgar Wright made a movie about a music-obsessed daredevil with headphones always in his ear that cherishes a mixtape his mom made?

Don't remind y'all of anything at all?

I am dumb and incredibly uncultured. Please tell me what you are referring to

 

[VenomousCoffee]

I am dumb and incredibly uncultured. Please tell me what you are referring to

Guardians of the Galaxy. Personally, I don't see it.

 

[VenomousCoffee]

Strongly disagree. Fit the tone of the movie to a T. As someone else said the dialogue played out like a 90s Tarantino flick without F and N for every other word.

....... I was the one who said that.

 

[ElBoxyBrown]

I liked the movie but I was not feeling that romance at all.

 

[TheXbox]

I guess South Park has been unseated; this was my favorite musical ever.

 

[Toothless]

Baby Driver is a fun time. Wright directs with panache and knows exactly how to make the film constantly watchable. Foxx and Spacey are both really fantastic, easily stealing the show. The sound design is truly incredible, constantly making one astound even if they never notice such a thing. It's a joyous film, taking some of the best qualities of the musical and transplanting it into the action genre. Overall, despite all of its faults, Baby Driver remains fun and enjoyable throughout.

It's a shame that the film itself never really rises above its cheap fun though. Baby as a character comes off as a generic "adorkable" guy, and Elgort seems to be as severely miscast. He is fine in the role, but it's clear that so many other actors in Hollywood would've done a better job elevating such a mediocre role. Wright also needs to seriously examine how he writes his female characters, as it's super obvious how poorly conceptualized the females are in this film compared to the male characters. The music, although thankfully eclectic, sometimes comes across as picking obscure tunes just for the sake of being niche, and that's disappointing considering how fun it is when one finally recognizes a song that's playing.

The action is pretty great, but often blurs together since it all feels the same. Understandably, it's mostly vehicular, but considering how wonderful Wright does hand-to-hand combat, it's really disappointing there's none of that here. More variety would've been appreciated in addition to the spectacular car chases. It's also worth noting that the "action-comedy" label is a misnomer; this is clearly an action movie with a few jokes here and there, and that's slightly disappointing coming from Wright, but not necessarily a knock against the film.

Baby Driver amuses, and ultimately, that's all that matters. Wright has crafted a clever action film that utilizes music in a really enjoyable way. However, it ultimately feels more slight than it should, thanks to poorly developed characters and humor, along with a lack of variety with its own action. Still, it feels fresher than most films this summer, and it's definitely worth checking out in theaters for the really phenomenal sound design. It's just a shame it can't elevate itself to any higher than just good, as Wright has proven before that he knows how to play with genre better than most directors working today. He has made a solid straight-forward action movie, but it could've been so much more. An odd disappointment that remains still a fine, technically sound film that's well worth seeing.

 

[Bronx-Man]

Baby Driver is a fun time. Wright directs with panache and knows exactly how to make the film constantly watchable. Foxx and Spacey are both really fantastic, easily stealing the show. The sound design is truly incredible, constantly making one astound even if they never notice such a thing. It's a joyous film, taking some of the best qualities of the musical and transplanting it into the action genre. Overall, despite all of its faults, Baby Driver remains fun and enjoyable throughout.

It's a shame that the film itself never really rises above its cheap fun though. Baby as a character comes off as a generic "adorkable" guy, and Elgort seems to be as severely miscast. He is fine in the role, but it's clear that so many other actors in Hollywood would've done a better job elevating such a mediocre role. Wright also needs to seriously examine how he writes his female characters, as it's super obvious how poorly conceptualized the females are in this film compared to the male characters. The music, although thankfully eclectic, sometimes comes across as picking obscure tunes just for the sake of being niche, and that's disappointing considering how fun it is when one finally recognizes a song that's playing.

Hmmmm, I don't know about that. I feel like Wright's just probably a guy with really eclectic taste, not a music snob or anything.

 

[broncobuster]

What songs are considered obscure on the soundtrack? Felt like most were stuff I'd hear going through channels on the radio.

 

[Kabuki Waq]

Was just ok could have been great.

Spaceys action at the end was really out of character.

Wish there was more Jamie Foxx as he was the most fun character

 

[Discotheque]

What songs are considered obscure on the soundtrack? Felt like most were stuff I'd hear going through channels on the radio.

Frankly a good majority of that stuff was pretty obscure to me. But I really liked it quite a bit

Dudes music taste is pretty eclectic but enjoyable

 

[Zoloft Sonic]

Intense, funny and actually *written*. Don't go in expecting the second coming of movies; just enjoy a terrific ensemble heist flick with a great script and style for days.

 

[Hexxen-Panda]

Just got back and I really loved it! I was a little disappointed because I really missed how good the gags were in his previous stuff, but I enjoyed it for what it was.
I loved how the editing and music choices vitalized normal dialogue scenes and really hyped up the action scenes.

I didn't really look up the trailers or hyped myself up with reviews; feels great to just go to the movies to have fun.
Really excited to see it a second time.

 

[Moppeh]

It's a good film, but not sure if I'd call it great. There were a few scenes or sequences that didn't perfectly fit in tonally. And the middle does a drag a bit.

But I loved the action, the music, and Jon Hamm. That dude was a fucking beast in this.

My affection with Edgar Wright movies tend to grow over time, so I'm sure I'll be loving the shit out of this movie after a couple more rewatches.

@Toothless

I knew about a third of the soundtrack, which is good enough for me.

 

[ThatGuyfromMars]

I saw the movie yesterday, around a half hour after seeing the movie I ordered the soundtrack.

It's probably the best movie I've seen this year, I loved the hell out of Baby and Jon Hamm's

Spoiler

surprise heel turn near the end, even after he and Baby chilled for a minute listening to Queen, that and the bell bottoms beginning are probably my favorite scenes.

.

 

[broncobuster]

Frankly a good majority of that stuff was pretty obscure to me. But I really liked it quite a bit

Dudes music taste is pretty eclectic but enjoyable

Maybe it's just that I still use the radio as an alarm clock.

 

[Admiral Woofington]

Glad to see I'm not the only one bothered by the writing on spacey at the end. It could have been done better for me if

Spoiler

spaceys character was the one out for revenge and hamms character is out to kill baby until he realizes he did it all for love and decides to forgive him

Besides that it was a fantastic film.

 

[NotTheGuyYouKill]

That was an awesome movie. Worth the wait. Deserves an Oscar for editing

 

[Zen Aku]

i still like this movie, but Pain and Gain w/ marky mark and the rock is 3x better than it.

This opinion is almost as bad as saying Batman v Superman is better than Civil War.

Also my group loved it, personally for me. It's this year 'John Wick'. We actually ended up going home and watched John Wick Chapter 2 together.