Baby Driver (2017)

Director: Edgar Wright
Writer: Edgar Wright
DOP: Bill Pope
Cast: Ansel Elgort, Kevin Spacey, Jamie Foxx, Jon Hamm, Lily James

After being coerced into working for a crime boss, a young getaway driver finds himself taking part in a heist doomed to fail.

Edgar Wright is one of my favorite directors that are active right now. He was supposed to direct Ant-Man but dropped out after differences with the studio over creative choices. His only other previous big budget film has been the excellent 'Scott Pilgrim Vs the World' which didn't do very well at the box office. Baby Driver is in fact a moderate budget film compared to that in spite of it boasting a kick-ass cast in supporting roles. When you have William Friedkin (To Live & Die in LA, French Connection, Sorcerer) waxing lyrical abut what is essentially a car stunt film, you do get excited if you were not already for it being an Edgar Wright film. The film relies on practical stunts and car chases which is always the right way to go. Lead character suffering from severe tinnitus and him having to play music from his iPod to drown it out is a good enough excuse to have a killer soundtrack to go with it.

I saw what I think is the most entertaining
And original film I've seen in years...Edgar
Wright's BABY DRIVER...don't miss it...

— William Friedkin (@WilliamFriedkin) June 16, 2017

The film has got almost universal praise and after all the hype I was slightly disappointed by it despite it still being pretty great movie experience. British critics do have a bias when it comes to projecting Brits doing very well in Hollywood. Baby Driver is in my opinion Edgar Wright's weakest effort so far and some might bring up 'World's End', but I will re watch that one before Baby Driver. One of the problems with Baby Driver is that it kinda blew its wad in the first twenty minutes itself with its best car chase scene and the excellent single shot opening credits sequence. After that the film is basically playing with our expectations mainly by having Jamie Foxx play a negative character and Jon Hamm becoming an antagonist. The humor in the film is not as good as in Wright's other films and there are some tonal inconsistencies that it cannot justify throughout. This might sound like I am too down on the film but it is just that I was expecting it to be Mad Max: Fury Road level of perfection as an action film. Baby Driver is still a great watch.

Rating: 4/5

The World's End (2013)

Director: Edgar Wright
Writers:  Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg
Cast:       Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Paddy Considine, Rossamund Pike, Martin Freeman, Eddie Marsen, Pierce Brosnan

Five friends who reunite in an attempt to top their epic pub crawl from 20 years earlier unwittingly become humankind's only hope for survival. Four of them were leading a normal bourgeoisie lifestyle while their leader from 20 years back, Gary King (Simon Pegg) is now washed up and he sees them doing the bar crawl that they couldn't complete on the first attempt will change things for the better in his life. 

When I saw it first time, I rated it a 5/5 but I guess it was the result of me wanting it to be better than it was after having watched it as soon as I could. It is not a bad film by any means but is significantly of lesser standard compared to the other two in Cornetto Trilogy- Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz. Guess it was me behaving like Gary King in this film and displaying some selective memory. Shaun of the Dead had zombies while Hot Fuzz had vilgilante elders against two buddy cops. The World's End  is kind of a post apocalyptic film in which humans are turned to alien controlled blanks.  The change in the tone of the film is quite abrupt which can be quite unhinging for those who are uninitiated. Also the chemistry between the main characters is not quite as good as it was in the other two basically because there are more of them. 

In terms of filming style also it is quite different because the other two are famous for their rapid editing style with most of the cuts lasting less than a few seconds but The World's end have plenty of long cut scenes. The typical Cornetto Trilogy signatures like fence jumping, murderous twin and the cornetto itself makes their appearances and latter comes up pretty late in the film. Overall the film is pretty good watch but is not nearly as great as the other two films. It is kind of the same feeling the Gary King's friends have towards him. It just feels like a rushed job now.

Rating: 3.5/5

Hot Fuzz (2007)

Director: Edgar Wright
Writers:   Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg
Cast:       Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Timothy Dalton

Exceptional London cop Nicholas Angel is involuntarily transferred to a quaint English village and paired with a witless new partner. While on a beat, Nicholas suspects a sinister conspiracy is afoot with the residents who are paranoid about losing their village Sanford's status as the model village of England.

I have not seen Point Break, Bad Boys 2 (Switching off after 10 minutes of Michael Bay's shitfest don't count) or even Lethal Weapon. In fact I don't think I have seen any of the buddy cop films (More than 100 of them) that they have researched to make this film. It is an elaborate spoof on the genre but it probably is better than most of the films that they are referencing even when it comes to the action sequences. That is what makes Edgar Wright's films great. They don't hate the genre that they are making fun of and so, the film turns out to be immensely watchable even if you don't particularly like those kind of films. That is why Hot Fuzz if a great film whilst 'The Other Guys' is just a watchable film. 

Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg started with this project citing the fact that there have never been a British buddy cop film. The lack of gun culture in England might be one of the reason. They get around this issue by having them seize a shitload of firearms from a villager. The scene with Nicholas Angel fully armed and mounded up on a horse patrolling the village, Western Style is a great sequence. The extended ending sequence after everything is taken care of is also intentional from the director since it is something  that is common among the buddy cop films with one partner's life left hanging for a while but he doesn't quite die and all is well with the world. It is interesting that this film's violence is much more graphic than most of the action films and some people might get put off by it. But in my opinion the comedy and action has the right balance and even the action scenes are very much on the funny side.

I think this is the most well-made film out of the Cornetto Trilogy (Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz & World's End- if you are brain-dead and didn't know that). I will put World' End on a slightly lower standing relative the other two even though I loved it also when I saw it. I have to revisit it again to fully make up my mind. Edgar Wright was working on the studio backed Marvel film 'Ant-Man' but has been pushed out due to creative differences. I don't know why they would even hire him for that in the first place if they didn't know what kind of film he makes. They should have just watched 'Scott Pilgrim Vs the World' which was a big budget disaster at the box office despite being a great film (Hardly surprising). In a way I am glad he got pushed out because I don't care much for the comic book/graphic novel adaptations (Sin City, Scott Pilgirm & Kick-Ass exempted) anyway and it seems Edgar Wright and Simon Pegg will be teaming up again for another fresh trilogy over the next ten years. Hopefully Nick Frost will be also on board.

Bring the noise!!!

Rating: 5/5

Spaced (1999–2001)

Director: Edgar Wright
Writers:  Simon Pegg, Jessica Stevenson
Cast:       Simon Pegg, Jessica Stevenson, Nick Frost, Julia Deakin, Mark Heap

Two people Tim and Daisy, who meet accidentally in a restaurant, pretend to be a couple to live in the only apartment that they can afford.

It is basically the Cornetto Trilogy crew + Jessica Stevenson before they made it big in the British film industry. You can see all the elements that make Cornetto trilogy great in this TV series which was broadcast in Channel 4. It is different from other British comedies with plenty of references to scenes from famous Hollywood blockbusters like Star Wars, Pulp Fiction, Shining, Matrix, One Flew Over Cuckoo's nest etc thrown in. It might not be as enjoyable for those who haven't seen these films.

A must watch for those who love Cornetto Trilogy. Just 14 episodes over two seasons.

Rating: 5/5

Shaun of the Dead (2004)

Director: Edgar Wright
Writers:  Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg
Cast:      Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Kate Ashfield
A man decides to turn his moribund life around  by winning back his ex-girlfriend, reconciling his relationship with his mother, and dealing with an entire community that has returned from the dead to eat the living.

This was Edgar Wright's directorial film debut after the success of TV series 'Spaced' which also had the same team. The film is inspired from one episode of Spaced and obviously from 'Dawn of the Dead' (Romero's Dead Trilogy). It is dead funny.

Rating: 5/5

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010)

Director: Edgar Wright
Writers:  Michael Bacall, Edgar Wright, Bryan Lee O'Malley
Cast:      Michael Cera, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Kieran Culkin,Jason Scwartzman
Scott Pilgrim (Cera) must defeat his new girlfriend's seven evil exes in order to win her heart. The film is very funny and visually stunning with its video game looks and witty script. Its didn't do well when it got released but has been a hit on the DVD Blu Ray market.

Rating:4.5/5