Baby Driver

A heist film set in Atlanta. Baby is a getaway driver. A crash in his childhood left a ringing in his ears and he listens to music constantly to cover it. He owes a crime boss. He stole his car years ago and is paying the debt by driving. The crew changes every time. Only Baby and the boss are constant. He meets Debora at a diner. She waits tables and lives by music as well. The last job is finished and Baby wants out. The boss will not let him. From there the film is an escape. A post office, a car park, a motorway and a bridge. What the narrative is interested in is not the robbery but rhythm: every movement in the film is cut to the music. The songs were chosen before shooting, the scenes were planned around them, and door slams, gunshots and gear changes land on the beats. The opening chase lasts exactly as long as one song and was filmed almost entirely with real vehicles. The next scene is a walk to buy coffee, in one take, to the same song; the writing on the street matches the lyrics. Baby's recordings are inside the narrative. He tapes the conversations he hears and makes tracks out of them. Ansel Elgort, Lily James, Jon Hamm, Jamie Foxx, Eiza González and Kevin Spacey are in the cast. Edgar Wright wrote and directed. Who it is for: anyone who likes films where editing and music work together. Who it is not for: anyone looking for depth; the characters are thin and the last section falls into the genre's habit.