Posterized: Edgar Wright
Friday, June 30, 2017 at 11:29AM 
Who knew that you could take a coffee break on the red carpet? by Nathaniel R
After the unfortunate "creative differences" on Marvel's Ant Man (2015) which Edgar Wright abandoned despite years of passionate development of the project, isn't it nice to see him bounce back so definitely with Baby Driver? That heist-comedy-wishitwasamusical-thriller opened this Wednesday to mostly stellar reviews (alas, our own Chris Feil wasn't a fan). I saw it at a packed screening on its preview night and the crowd ate it up; the movie tasted more delicious than my stale popcorn. That might seem like meager praise but please note that I have a high tolerance for stale popcorn and a low tolerance for heist films which are the single most overplayed action subgenre.
The witty director came to fame with UK comic sitcoms (my best high school girlfriend forced me to watch the first season of Spaced one visit and it was a delight). Wright then won a new round of fans on the big screen with the zombie comedy Shaun of the Dead (2004) which launched the loosely connected fan favorite "Cornetto Trilogy". He's just 43 so there's much more filmography to come. Hooray!
How many Wright's have you seen and which is your favorite?
It's too early to say definitively but I think he just might have topped his own best with Baby Driver. It's a goofy stylish and mechanically precise blast.
Reader Comments (19)
I've seen 3: Shaun of the Dead, Hot Fuzz and Scott Pilgrim. I enjoyed all a great deal, but I think Shaun of the Dead is my favorite. Maybe even my favorite Zombie-movie of all time!
All but A Fistful of Fingers. HOT FUZZ is the only one I think is great, but I do also enjoy SHAUN a lot. Didn't care as much for WORLD'S END, wasn't sold on SCOTT PILGRIM, and I think BABY DRIVER is actively bad filmmaking (such bad framing and editing in the car chase scenes - why was the foot chase the most exciting? - and the very self-consciously quirky music stuff, that got boring fast). I'd watch him make a musical though, he uses space really well (even if it's not necessarily filmed very well, although Elgort's dancing scenes were nicely done).
I've seen five, only missing his first film.
Hot Fuzz is his best but Shaun of the Dead, World's End and Scott Pilgrim are enjoyable and fun.
This all makes Baby Driver more disappointing. The third act especially is a shit show.
Five and I've enjoyed them all.
1. Baby Driver
2. Shaun of the Dead
3. Hot Fuzz
4. Scott Piligrim vs the World
5. The World's End
I'm only missing his first film and of course BABY DRIVER, which I'll be seeing this weekend. SHAUN OF THE DEAD and SCOTT PILGRIM were both in my Top 5 of their respective years.
Nat,love this posterized series but lately some of the subjects simply don't feel worthy.
Only his three with Frost and Pegg, and I really really enjoyed all 3. Did not see that event in "World's End" coming at. all!
4, the Cornetto Trilogy and Scott Pilgrim. I like all of them but I think Hot Fuzz is flat-out great, and Scott Pilgrim is even better than Hot Fuzz.
So far...
1. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
2. Shaun of the Dead
3. The World's End
4. Hot Fuzz
5. Don't!!!!
It's a tough call, to say which one is the best, because it's a narrow margin between the top and the bottom... I've seen the Cornetto trilogy and Scott Pilgrim, and I'd say...
1. Hot Fuzz
2. Scott Pilgrim vs the World
3. Shaun of the Dead
4. The World's End
but the four of them are absolutely great, outstanding films, rewatchable to extenuation... which probably would never be reached.
By the end of the weekend, I'll have seen Baby Driver and that will raise me to 5. Scott Pilgrim is my fave, but Hot Fuzz is a close second I like Shaun and World's End.
I just want Edgar Wright to man up and make a musical already. The genre is in desperate need of talented directors. Same goes for the Coen Bros.
Mark -- the subjects are not chosen for worthiness. It's not a judgement call, just a "here's a filmography!"... but not sure why he isn't worthy? He's a really distinct filmmaker with 6 films under his belt (sometimes i have to do people with short filmographies because long filmographies take a REALLY long time to collect the visuals for.
I've seen 5 -
very disappointed in Baby Driver - Scott Pilgrim remains his movie.
^Whoops!
- Scott Pilgrim remains his BEST movie
is what I was trying to say!
Maybe someone of a higher calibre next,his style I am allergic to in films,I can't take Simon Pegg in anything.
Understand the reasoning for doing smaller filmographies,keep 'em coming though.
^I don't like Simon Pegg either -
one of the big reasons I don't like any of the movies in the Cornetto trilogy.
But Scott Pilgrim is one of my all-time favorite/favourite movies!
Great choice Nat!
Wright's got a distinctive voice in popcorn entertainment. In this age of franchise-by-committee we need to support it.
Maybe I'm just too old, but I clearly don't resonate on his frequency. I've seen four of his films, and while I found them vaguely clever, none are favorites I'd care to watch a second time. And I have zero interest in this new one.
But hey, I'm a tough room!
"Shaun of the Dead" is a classic horror comedy- "Hot Fuzz" has some funny bits but it's just too long