Baby Driver Review

     Certain directors are known for being masters of a specific genre. Scorsese has gangster films, Spielberg has war, Hitchcock has thrillers, and Edgar Wright has action-comedies. Edgar Wright is a British director and writer who first got his start directing various shows back in the 90s, but had his first big break with 2004's "Shaun of the Dead" which is widely considered to be one of the best comedies of the decade, and one of the best zombie movies of all time, it's since become a cult classic. A few years later he released "Hot Fuzz" a ridiculous action-comedy that is lauded as well. And in 2010 he directed "Scott Pilgrim vs. The World," based off the comic of the same name; a movie that many would call one of their all time favorites. Wright has separated himself as one of the most talented British film directors in decades, so when I heard that he had another film in the works I was excited. "Baby Driver" first premiered at SXSW a few months back to wide acclaim from critics and audiences, and instantly became one of my most anticipated for the year. From the time I watched the first trailer, I knew "Baby Driver" was going to be something special. And after an agonizing delay, I finally got to watch it; and it's one of the year’s best movies.

     Baby is a young man living in Atlanta, and is a normal guy for the most part. He loves music, takes care of his disable foster father, and works as a getaway driver for a local crime boss. After, years ago, stealing a car from Atlanta kingpin Doc, Baby is forced to work for him for years to pay off a huge debt he owes him. Despite dreading the idea Baby agrees for fear of his own life and those near him, fortunately for him he's very good behind the wheel of a car and becomes a getaway driver. With only a few jobs left, Baby's almost out; but in the mean time he meets a beautiful young woman named Debora. They begin seeing each other and quickly fall in love; but just when Baby though he was almost out, things get a bit crazy.

     Being a big fan of Edgar Wright, I've been looking forward to this movie for the past few months. Knowing that Wright is an astonishingly talented director, and this is the type of movie he excels at, I had high expectations when walking into the theater; and to my surprise, it's even better than I expected it to be. All the credit in the world has to go to Wright for his exceptional direction, and the well written screenplay filled with clever dialog. He finds a good balance of hilarious jokes, sincere and surprise emotion, and very serious situations. The characters he wrote are memorable, layered, and unique. Each one feels like they could star in their own movie; Wright put more into the minor characters than most writers put in their lead. I really liked the love story as well; often with movies like this, the romance feels tacked on and unnecessary. But in "Baby Driver" it's believable and likable; you really root for the young couple to succeed. It sure does help though that every actor in this movie does a great job, and truly encompass their character. Wright's direction is really shines during the action sequences. There are only a few, but they are awesome. Whether it be the insane car chases or the fast and frantic shoot-outs, this movie has its fair share of thrills. The cinematography is well done as well. Featuring just about every camera trick in the book, the best way I've seen someone describe the cinematography is fluid. You always have eyes on the prize. This movie also does something rather difficult to do, it is always entertaining. At no point during this movie was I disinterested; while I do think the film was maybe 10-15 minutes to long, it never lost me. "Baby Driver" is the perfect mix of style and substance, and is an example of Edgar Wright at his best. Whether it be the action, the comedy, or even the killer soundtrack, there's something for everybody. It's not just one of the best movies of the year; it's one off my favorites.

Pros: Great performances from the entire cast, exceptional direction from Edgar Wright, awesome action sequences, well written screenplay with clever dialog, very funny but surprisingly emotional, memorable characters, killer soundtrack, great cinematography, always entertaining, believable/likable romance, perfect mix of style and substance.

Cons: 10-15 minutes too long.

5/5 Stars

Wonder Woman Review

     Over the past decade, comic book movies have been all the rage. The rise of Disney's "Marvel Cinematic Universe" has brought "nerd" culture to the forefront of the mainstream. The series quickly became the highest grossing film franchise in history, and Warner Bros. wanted a piece of the pie. In 2013, WB released "Man of Steel," a grittier film revolving around the legendary character Superman directed by Zack Snyder. While many were hoping it would be like "The Dark Knight," it was anything but. Drab, boring, and all around bland, it was a bust; but that didn't stop WB. Not only did they confirm they were moving forward with more comic book movies, the announced the "DC Extended Universe." Three years later we received "Batman v. Superman," another dark super hero film that was going to put DC back on top; but it didn't. The film was panned by critics, and while the opening weekend was successful the movie ultimately underwhelmed at the box office. A few months later we got "Suicide Squad," a lighter film about a group of criminals forced by the government to fight an evil force. Much like "BvS," it was panned by critics and made less than the studio was hoping for. Three films, three duds. Many, including myself, had written off the DCEU. Then in comes the most well known female super hero of all. "Wonder Woman" was supposed to be the saving grace for this failing franchise and had fans around the world excited. While I've had my doubts about this movie, publicly saying that I had little to no hope for it, I'm a big enough man to admit I was wrong. "Wonder Woman" is great.

     Diana is a young woman living on the mystical island known as Themyscira, a place meant to shield the Amazonian warriors from the rest of the world. Diana is her people's princess, but has dreams of becoming a warrior herself. She trains daily, and ultimately becomes her people's greatest warrior. One day while on the island's edge she sees something she's never seen before, a plane falling from the sky. She swims out to it and saves the only passenger, Steve Trevor. Trevor explains that he is a spy working for British Intelligence to combat the Germans in World War 1. He has gained information crucial to the war and needs to get it back to the UK. Diana, believing the war is the doing of the god of war Aeries, agrees to help Trevor; and the two travel throughout the Europe to stop the Germans and save the world.

     As you could probably tell, I have not been a fan of the DCEU movies up to this point. They've been all style and no substance, and a waste of incredible source material. But after four years, the fourth movie in the DCEU finally gets it right. "Wonder Woman" may not be perfect, but it's impressive to say the least. First off, Gal Gadot as Wonder Woman, she's fantastic, and the absolute perfect actress for the role. She really embodies the character and I can't imagine anyone else in the role. It helps that her co-stars all gave solid performances playing likable characters, with Chris Pine being a stand out. The movie's screenplay is well written, often intense and dramatic; it does a great job incorporating history into what was a rather interesting story; with the occasional splash of humor that works much better than any attempts in previous DCEU movies. And I want to credit the writers for paying respect to the source material in a way that other movies in this franchise have not (cough*Suicide Squad*cough). From the characters to the story, any changes made worked but still respected the classic stories that inspired it. And they also did a great job filling it with some kick-ass action sequences. Despite what it did well, there are a few problems that could have been addressed. The movie ends a bit suddenly, between the climactic battle and the end credits is only about five minutes or so, it feels like they wanted more time to wrap things up but weren't given it. And while the heroes were great, the villains were not. The film's antagonists were rather uninteresting and bland, and brought nothing to the movie. Now this isn't anything new to super hero movies, DC or even Marvel, but I just wish the villains in this movie were a bit more compelling. And if I had to nit-pick, a little too much slow motion shots during the action. But even with these issues, I really loved "Wonder Woman." Director Patty Jenkins helmed what is EASILY the best DCEU movie we've seen thus far and single handedly saved this sinking franchise; now I just hope no other directors drop the ball. I want to like the DCEU, but up to this point it has not unimpressed me; until now anyways. It took four years and four movies, by the DCEU finally produced a movie worth everyone's time.

Pros: Gal Gadot is exceptional as wonder woman, solid performances from the cast, well written screenplay, comedy works, great action sequences, likable characters, pays respect to source material, strong direction from Patty Jenkins, interesting story that uses history, best DCEU movie by miles.

Cons: Too much slow motion, ends a bit suddenly, villains are a bit weak.

4/5 Stars