One thing is for sure: men love films about cars. Gentleman’s Journal cover star, Ansel Elgort, recently joined the long list of actors who have been behind the wheel on the silver screen. Racing through the streets of Atlanta in Edgar Wright’s Baby Driver, Elgort plays the young getaway driver called Baby who, as Kevin Spacey’s character Doc describes as: “A young Mozart in a Go-Kart.”
We’ve collected the best films starring man’s real best friend: his car, picking out the best drivers, high speed chases, and whips ever caught on camera.
Undoubtedly one of the most talked about films of the summer, Baby Driver has an incredible cast chosen to impress the boys in the audience, including: Kevin Spacey (House of Cards), Jon Hamm (Mad Men), Lily James (War and Peace), Jamie Foxx (Django Unchained). Following the reluctant getaway driver, Baby, who times his escapes by listening to music. Played by Gentleman’s Journal cover Ansel Elgort, Baby is a stylish criminal with an ear for some really killer tracks.
When you think of getaway films you think of Gone in Sixty Seconds. Nicholas Cage heads up a crew including Angelina Jolie, who take grand theft auto to its grandest heights, stealing 50 of the best cars for a British gangster. The list of cars that the all-star gang end up boosting includes all the best manufacturers like Aston Martin, Bentley, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Dodge, Ferrari, Ford, Jaguar, Lamborghini, Lexus, Mercedes, Porsche, Rolls Royce, Shelby, amongst others.
The film that made it okay for men to like Ryan Gosling. Getting behind the wheel of a 1973 Chevy Malibu in Nicholas Winding Refn’s stylish getaway drama, Gosling’s character who is simply called “Driver” really lives up to his name. The leading man even restored an old Chevy to prepare fro the role.
Easily the biggest film franchise on the planet. The Fate of the Furious, the eighth film in the series broke the record for the strongest worldwide debut ever, taking an estimated $532m. And, whilst not officially a heist series, the fifth movie (pictured) was a definitive getaway film – adapted from a script (The Brazilian Job) originally intended to be a sequel to 2003’s remake of The Italian Job. The original title in the Fast and Furious series was released in 2001 and starred the young Vin Diesel and Paul Walker, playing an undercover cop who feels the bite of illegal street racing. Walker tragically died in 2005 when his Porsche Carrera GT collided with a tree in California.
Few other films use quite as many iconic motors as The Italian Job. a Lamborghini Miura, Jaguar E-Types, an Aston Martin DB4s and not to forget the car of the 60s, the Mini Cooper. It is still one of the best loved car films in any man’s DVD collection. Michael Caine’s line: ”You’re only supposed to blow the bloody doors off!” was even voted the nations favourite one-liner.
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