Baby Driver - "Wheelie F*cking Good"

The first words in my head to describe Baby Driver after emerging from last night's Cineworld Unlimited Preview were "Wheelie F*cking Good" and not my words Carol but the words of Top Gear Magazine!

Edgar Wright's long term passion project (that wasn't Ant Man) has been parked in neutral for several years but now he has ditched the Cornettos in favour of a Zoom as Baby Driver is the most exhausting thrill ride since Mad Max: Fury Road because one it puts the pedal to the metal, it doesn't take its foot off the gas.

Born out of a music video he directed for Mint Royale and the idea of setting a car chase to the tune of Jon Spencer Blues Explosion's song Bellbottoms, this is Wright's love letter to the classic car chase movies. Now we're talking about The Driver, Bullitt, French Connection, etc. NOT The Fast & The Furious franchise.

Wright's first film as sole writer/director is a "World's End" away from Spaced and the Three Colours Cornetto Trilogy. This is a much more American Hollywood style of filmmaking, albeit with some traditional Wright-esque flair when it comes to editing and use of music, with virtually every action sequence meticulously timed to the beat of the song. Think of Michael Mann directing Drive choreographed by Bob Fosse.

Following Scott Pilgrim where Wright worked with Captain America, Captain Marvel, Superman and a Punisher, here he continues to expand his superhero collection with Lex Luthor (Spacey), Electro (Jamie Foxx) and another Punisher (Jon Berthnal). I wonder if Dolph Lundgren will appear in his next film?

Performances are strong across the board with extra praise going to Ansel Elgort (NOT Angel Elsort as I am prone to typing) delivering a breakout, star making role as the getaway driver who just wants to get away, and Jon Hamm having a lot of fun getting to switch gears throughout the three acts.

A breath of fresh air in a multiplex full of sequels and remakes, fantastic reviews and strong word of mouth should drive audiences to the box office ensuring that nobody puts Baby Driver in the corner this summer.

5 stars

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 - review

While the plot of The Amazing Spider-Man felt like an unnecessary retread of the Spider-Man saga with extra subplot about Peter's parents which was introduced then inexplicably forgotten, where it did improve on the original Raimi trilogy was in the casting of its two leads.

Andrew Garfield and Emma Stone are more natural and likeable fits for Peter Parker and canon first love Gwen Stacy and with their on-screen chemistry it's easy to see why it transferred off-screen.

Garfield grows into the role and really becomes the wise-cracking webslinging crime fighter from the comics and Stone makes Gwen one of the most independent and non-damsel-in-distress female characters in comic book movies (the complete opposite of Dunst's insipid Mary Jane).

The rule of superhero movies is that the sequel is better and the third instalment is not as good but this film lies somewhere between Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man 3.

It builds on the complex relationship between Peter and Gwen as he struggles with his responsibilities as New York's newest hero and his promise to Gwen's deceased father Captain Stacy but rushes the move to build up its extended universe as too many undercooked villains spoil the broth.

Dane DeHaan is excellent as Harry Osborn but his issues with his father and descent into madness feel rushed in the third act and would have worked if explored over two films.

Jamie Foxx's Electro follows in the long line of Spider-Man villains who are misunderstood scientists who become evil following a tragic accident and become a poor man's Dr. Manhattan.

Also can anyone explain why Martin Csokas was allowed to play his doctor character like he was appearing in Batman & Robin? It was completely out of place.

After a strong start with some fantastic webslinging sequences (that make good use of the 3D), the final action set pieces feel too CGI heavy and have a video game feel to them.

But the main draw of the film remains the central relationship of Peter and Gwen (even if some of the time Peter can come across as a stalker) and it helps build towards the climax of the film which plays out very similarly to one of the most famous story arcs and it is admirable that they follow it through to its moving conclusion and poses interesting questions for the next instalment.

It is not perfect but it spins enough of a web to keep me hooked for the The Amazing Spider-Man 3 because with the characters and storylines potentially on the way, lets face it Tiger, they might just hit the jackpot.

3 stars