The conceit behind Baby Driver – a getaway driver uses his iPod playlists to drown out his tinnitus, thereby providing the soundtrack to his car chases – is really smart, and works incredibly well: the film sounds as good as it looks, and it looks amazing. If you’re in the mood for an action-packed event with spectacular stunt work, effective CGI, and lots of thrills and spills, it’s a five-star experience – and it’s on Netflix.
Ansel Elgort is the Baby of the title, and while he’s tired of the life he has no choice but to take on one more job from criminal Doc, played by Kevin Spacey. As you’d expect, things promptly go off the rails – it wouldn’t be much of a movie otherwise – and the result was what RogerEbert.com described as “as much fun as you’re going to have in a movie theater this year.” And now you can have the same fun from the comfort of your couch.
Is Baby Driver worth streaming?
Definitely. It’s hard to describe the film without making it sound like an extended movie video, but while it has all the visual flair and excitement of the very best music videos there’s a proper film here too: RogerEbert.com says that “trust me when I say that [director Edgar] Wright doesn’t skimp” on the substance; “there’s enough story and action here to satisfy without the music that drives the film-making… at its core, Baby Driver recalls decades of movies that anchored their narratives on criminals and the art of the car chase.”
But “it’s not just the action sequences that strike a chord,” the Guardian says. “At times the songs serve as an on-the-nose Greek chorus, telling us that Baby has “nowhere to run to, nowhere to hide” as he’s trapped in an arms deal. But it’s when the horns and drums of the Button Down Brass’s Tequila become gunfire, or the madness of Hocus Pocus by Focus drives a breathless chase, that Wright really puts his foot down, with exhilarating results.”
Empire gave the film the full five stars, with Terri White calling it “an awe-inspiring piece of filmmaking… that plays out as a musical through the lens of an action thriller. Sweet, funny and utterly original – you won’t see a film like it this year.”