It has been several weeks, but I finally got around to watching the movie Baby Driver. This is the story of a young man who drives fast and is basically the driver for a group of criminals even though he would prefer to be an "above board" young man. The main character who is mainly known as "Baby" has suffered a lot in his past with losing his parents, and although he has suffered much emotionally chooses to lose himself in his iPod for a lot of the movie. When he is stressed - Baby turns on his iPod to an appropriate song. When he is happy he picks another tune that matches his mood. After a while, you see that music is how Baby has coped through his tough childhood and how he adapts to stress in his adult life. Unfortunately for Baby, he has gotten wound up with many less than legal people. Even though he wants to live right (or so the movie portrays) his hands and actions are tied in with men and women who seem to want to keep him doing criminal things due to his skill with the car wheels. This movie is exceptional at illustrating the principle that 1 Corinthians 15:33 so clearly states:
Do not be deceived: “Bad company corrupts good morals.” (NASB).
Baby wants out of his life of crime, but criminals don't like to see people changing from what profits them. Kevin Spacey plays one of his crime bosses and does a decent job showing the tension between wanting to give Baby a chance to cut free, and the greed that happens when someone proves to be more useful when you have them "under your thumb". Without giving away the ending, I will make some remarks about this movie:
1. This movie does a great job showing how music can be helpful for coping with emotional pain. The soundtrack was very well put together, and I have to admit I give extra credit to any movie that can pair a good soundtrack with a good scene. "Baby Driver" does indeed do that, but unfortunately it can leave the impression that a good song is all you need to get you through tough times. While I agree music helps, it shouldn't be our only source of comfort nor does it bring true healing. The Truth alone can bring healing, and Truth is a Person (John 14:6, John 8:31-32)
2. Some of this movie falsely conveys that you have to compromise to do the right thing. I don't want to add any spoilers, but this movie does paint a picture for Baby that leads the viewer to believe he HAS to compromise in order to get out of a criminal way of life. Of course this isn't true, there is always a way out for those who are trusting God (1 Corinthians 10:13). Even when things look deadly, God can get you out. Read the book of Daniel for true stories of this happening.
3. I applaud the writers and director for showing to some degree the truth of Galations 6:7-8 : "Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life." (NASB) Many crime movies show the bad guys getting away with it all. They ride off into the sunset and crime in the movie appears to pay off. Of course that is just in the movie. Thankfully "Baby Driver" doesn't paint that picture, but it does show some of the pain and consequences that crime can produce. It was a wild ride showing the story, but it kept me engaged despite some violent moments. The soundtrack was very well chosen, and although
I don't think I would watch it more than once, I did think it showed some key principles from the Bible being worked out in the lives of the characters. Although I wouldn't classify this movie as an edifying example of cinema, it still was better than average in my opinion. Too bad they couldn't tone down the bad language and violence a bit to illustrate the story more artistically and tastefully. I would give this 3 out of 5 stars.
