The legends who schooled Edgar Wright on how to shoot a car chase
The humble movie car chase can trace its origins back to the early 1900s, with each new generation of filmmaking bringing something new to the long-established trope. Bullitt, Gone in 60 Seconds, The French Connection, The Blues Brothers, Ronin, take your pick. There have even been movies based on high-speed pursuits like The Fast and the Furious. When considering a car chase scene, like Edgar Wright was, there is a wealth of educational material available.
In 2017, the British director gave us Baby Driver, a movie about a young getaway driver whose life is timed to the music he constantly listens to. The film received tonnes of praise, particularly for its action sequences, which are fast-paced, tightly choreographed, and utterly fascinating. As it turns out, Wright had a little bit of help when it came to crafting his chase scenes – help from some of the best to ever do it.
In an interview with The Skinny, Wright revealed that he consulted his friend Walter Hill when making the movie. Hill has quite the pedigree when it comes to road-based action flicks, as he directed 1978’s The Driver, widely regarded as one of the best car movies ever made. “I’ve known Walter for the last seven years,” Wright said. “I’m a big fan of his and he’s a real hero of mine.” He also revealed that the director, who also made 48 Hrs. and The Warriors, has a small part in the film as the voice of a courtroom interpreter. “That was very important to me,” Wright admitted. “To have his sort of spiritual blessing.”
It wasn’t just Hill that Wright turned to whilst putting Baby Driver together. “I remember talking to George Miller and Quentin Tarantino,” said the ‘Cornetto Trilogy’ mastermind, with specific reference made to the 2007 film Death Proof. Written and directed by Tarantino, Death Proof stars Kurt Russell as a murderous stuntman who runs down women with his modified car. Wright was clearly a fan of this approach, though thankfully, Ansel Elgort’s character doesn’t follow in the same footsteps.
Even with this wealth of knowledge to draw on, Wright still wasn’t done getting advice. “Ron Howard I remember talking to,” he recalled. “Because he’d just done Rush, and I thought the driving stuff in that was really good.” Rush, which came out in 2013, chronicles the 1976 Formula 1 season and the rivalry between Englishman James Hunt and Austrian driver Niki Lauda. Wright also spoke to Frank Marshall, the legendary producer and co-founder of Amblin Entertainment, because of his involvement in the Driver and Bourne series of films.
When it came to actually shooting Baby Driver, no expense was spared in getting the best crew available. “Our amazing stunt team,” Wright revealed, “their credits are long, and they’d worked on the Bourne films, Mission: Impossible, Fast & Furious, Drive and John Wick.” He also singled out Director of Photography Bill Pope, who worked on the iconic chase sequence from The Matrix Reloaded. According to Wright, “I think everybody can agree is the greatest part of that movie.”
Baby Driver was a big hit, netting around $227million from just a $34million budget. It also became the first Edgar Wright movie to be represented at the Oscars, picking up nominations for Best Film Editing, Best Sound Editing, and Best Sound Mixing.
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