Film

Baby Driver

Name: Baby Driver
Genre: Action, Crime
Released: 2017
Cast: Ansel Elgort, Kevin Spacey, Lily James, Jon Hamm, Jamie Foxx

A getaway driver with tinnitus and a killer earbud rotation choreographs entire heists to his personal soundtrack, and Edgar Wright choreographs the whole movie to match him — cuts, gunshots, wiper blades, all locked to the beat. It's a heist film that behaves like a music video with genuinely good stunt driving, for anyone who wants their action sequences to have rhythm as well as horsepower.

TMDb rating

7.4

If you liked this

Drive2011

The obvious spiritual cousin: a near-silent getaway driver, neon-soaked LA, a synth score doing half the emotional work. Same DNA, much colder blood.

But Glacially slow and violent in sudden, brutal bursts — the opposite of Baby Driver's constant motion.

Hot Fuzz2007

Edgar Wright before he had a music budget the size of a small country, doing the same frantic-editing trick with jokes instead of needle-drops. Pure controlled chaos.

But It's a comedy first — if you wanted more heist and less village-fete satire, this won't scratch that itch.

The Italian Job2003

Slick, star-studded heist built around a genuinely great car chase finale through LA. Mark Wahlberg and a fleet of Minis doing exactly what you want them to.

But Glossier and safer than Baby Driver — no real tonal risk, just polished heist-movie comfort food.

The wildcard

Something you would not have found on your own.

Whiplash2014

Both films use music as the actual editing logic, not just the mood — cuts land on beats, not just on story. Wright shoots heists like drum solos; Chazelle shoots drum solos like heists.

A drama about a jazz drummer and his tyrant instructor, cut and paced with the exact same obsession over rhythm and tempo that drives Baby Driver's chase scenes.

But No cars, no crime, no fun soundtrack of hits — it's tense, punishing, and emotionally exhausting by design.

Reservoir Dogs1992

The heist-gone-wrong blueprint, with a soundtrack of oldies radio hits doing the same ironic counterpoint work Baby Driver's mixtape does. Tarantino's tightest, meanest film.

But Talky and confined to a warehouse — if you came for car chases, there aren't any.

Free Fire2017no page yet

A deal gone wrong turns into one long, increasingly ridiculous shootout, scored with the same 70s needle-drop swagger. Nasty, funny, stylish as hell.

But Almost the entire film happens in one warehouse — claustrophobic where Baby Driver is all open road.

Guardians of the Galaxy2014

Another film where the mixtape practically is the main character — pop needle-drops timed to punches and getaways with the same gleeful precision.

But Bigger, goofier, and full of space wizards — the crime-thriller grit is completely gone.

John Wick2014

Action choreographed with the same fanatical rhythm and clarity, just traded driving for gun-fu. Every hit lands exactly where it's supposed to.

But No music-as-plot-device gimmick — it's pure kinetic violence rather than a soundtrack-driven experience.

Ocean's Eleven2001

Effortlessly cool heist-crew chemistry and a soundtrack that knows exactly how to make a plan feel like a magic trick.

But Much more relaxed and charm-driven — if you want tension and danger, this plays it comparatively safe.

Smokin' Aces2006no page yet

A gonzo, overstuffed crime shootout with a killer soundtrack and a genuine sense that anything could happen next. Underrated trashy fun.

But Messier and less disciplined than Baby Driver — style occasionally outruns the plot's ability to keep up.

Bullitt1968

Baby Driver's stunt team has openly cited this as the gold standard for practical car choreography; it's the ancestor whose silence Wright pointedly refuses to inherit.

Steve McQueen, a Mustang, and the car chase that basically invented the modern car chase — real streets, real speed, no music at all during the big set piece.

But Slow-burn 60s pacing and a plot that mostly exists to get to that one chase — patience required.

The Triplets of Belleville2003

Same core idea taken to its animated extreme: chase choreography built like a dance number, sound and motion fused so tightly that music stops being a soundtrack and becomes the plot.

A nearly wordless, hand-drawn French animated chase film where the entire story moves to its own jazzy, percussive score — a getaway movie as pure music.

But Surreal, grotesque character designs and almost no dialogue — a very different, much weirder register.