When the list of 2017 summer movie releases was made, I listed the ones I found interesting and possibly worth checking out (you can read the full list here).

One of the films that was most certainly on my radar was the Edgar Wright written/directed Baby Driver.  Of the movie I said this:

I’m a sucker for well done car chase movies and this film, directed by fan favorite Edgar Wright, looks interesting… though I really don’t like the “main character has to listen to music to get into the zone” thing.

Even with the caveat regarding needing to listen to music to get into his “zone” (something which was, by the way, used before by Jessica Biel’s character when she “got into a zone” to fight in the 2004 movie Blade: Trinity… yes, my head is just chock full of useless trivia!), I was interested in catching the film.  I have generally enjoyed the films of Mr. Wright and feel he’s always trying hard to give audiences something unique and good.

When the movie was finally released to theaters, I unfortunately never found the time to go see it.  But my interest in the film grew stronger as the reviews were almost uniformly positive.  To this date and over on Rottentomatoes.com, the film has a pretty spectacularly high 93% positive among critics and an equally impressive 88% positive among audiences.

I was certainly interested enough -and figured this was such a no-brainer- that I pre-purchased the film through VUDU figuring this would be a film worth owning.  It was only the second time I’ve ever pre-purchased a film (the previous one being Batman v Superman which blah blah you already know how much I like it blah blah).

Last night and along with my wife we put it on, fully expecting a night of enjoyment and fun.

Ho boy.

To say I was disappointed with this film is a gross understatement.

Mr. Wright undeniably continues to show great skill as a director, but the fact of the matter is that Mr. Wright, the movie’s writer, let down Mr. Wright, the movie’s director.

Big time.

Baby Driver doesn’t need all that much explaining: It is a crime film cum musical which features Ansel Elgort as “Baby”, escape driver supreme with a severe case of tinnitus which he got as a result of a bad car accident which left him an orphan, who has to do jobs for Doc (Kevin Spacey) who he owes while having to deal with low lifes like Buddy (Jon Hamm, quite good here), his psycho girlfriend Darling (Eliza Gonzalez), and the deranged Bats (Jamie Foxx, also quite good).

Baby longs for paying his debt to Doc and, when he finally does, things look bright for him as he meets the love of his life, Debora (Lily James) and looks forward to a straight life.

This is not to be because Doc knows he has a great driver in Baby, and the last job turns out not to be so final and Baby is forced into another job, one that could upend his life as well as Debora’s.

Watching Baby Driver I felt it was as if Mr. Wright was combining two Walter Hill films, the 1978 film The Driver (not to be confused with the Ryan Gosling film with the similar name) and 1984’s Streets of Fire.  The former is about a driver (duh) who is just like Baby and ferrets criminals out of their heists and eventually having to deal with the consequences.  The later was a criminally underperforming rock n’ roll “fable” that featured some gruff characters and a very young, and absolutely stunning, Diane Lane in a musical milieu.

Both films, IMHO, are much, much better than Baby Driver, even if one could argue that technically (i.e. The way Mr. Wright mixes sound and visuals) is on a level of its own.

The problem, as I stated before, is that while the film exhibits technical brilliance, the movie’s story is ultimately weak.  To begin with, why have the revolving cast of bad guys Baby has to drive?  Why not stick with the consistent cast, then have the jobs turn more and more deadly and present the moral quandary to Baby that things are slowly, inevitably, getting out of hand?  This would work better than what we’re given as it would allow us to feel some sympathy for Doc… he’s the brains behind everything but he’s becoming powerless to stop the bloodbaths and, when (MILD SPOILERS) he finally sides with Baby, it would make a hell of lot more sense than the “I was in love once” absolute  -pardon my French-  bullshit we’re given.

Also, had Mr. Wright used the same group of thugs, he could can have more organically shown the progression of Buddy from what appears to be a “decent” criminal into a violent, blood-lusting creep he eventually became.

But there’s so much more.  How convenient the group happen to drive by and decide to go to the diner Debora is working at.  Really!?  There were no other diners in all of Atlanta?  Also, why exactly did the thugs leave Joseph alive?  These “hardened” thugs aren’t all they’re cracked up to be.  Finally, at one point toward the film’s climax Buddy becomes Jason and/or Freddy Kruger all rolled up in one and that, to me, became silly rather than a genuine threat to Baby and Debora.

Finally, given all the carnage, are we really to believe the movie’s ultimate resolution regarding Baby?  Wouldn’t he merit pretty stiff punishment as an accessory to multiple murders and untold property damage?  How can we sympathize with him by the movie’s end?

When the movie was over and I looked over at my wife, she wasn’t happy to have wasted her time on this film.  Yet she, like me, couldn’t help but acknowledged the direction was quite great and there are some extended sequences, especially one toward the movie’s beginning, that are eye-popping.

But good -hell, great– direction takes you only so far.  There is a great deal of talent on display in Baby Driver.  I just wish the story was as good as the rest of it.

Sadly, a pass for me.