When I tuned into El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie tonight, I didn’t realise I’d be viewing Robert Forester’s last ever performance. Forester died on the date of the premier of El Camino. I remember specifically seeing him in Twin Peaks: The Return, and being wowed by him just this year, as I went over Tarantino’s entire work, and watched him act in Jackie Brown. Forester had a gravitas, and a slow-plodding way of delivering dialogue that will be memorable. Rest in Peace.
El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie is the first Breaking Bad spin-off movie featuring the characters of Breaking Bad after the events of the main series. El Camino follows Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul), after he escapes from Uncle Jack’s prison and is on the run from the law. I loved Breaking Bad and consider the last season to be the best finale to a television series that I have ever seen. I’ve never seen Better Call Saul, the prequel series to Breaking Bad focusing on small-time lawyer Saul Goodman, because I didn’t feel I needed any extra information on what took place before Walter White. A continuation with Jesse Pinkman though, did intrigue me, especially when the first trailer for El Camino dropped, featuring Skinny Pete in the police interrogation room. I was thoroughly giddy with excitement; I see a lot of movies and movie trailers – what I’m describing was a heightened level of joy.
I was never a massive fan of Jesse Pinkman; I think the Breaking Bad series didn’t know what to do with him from time to time, and even though it’s been a while since I’ve watched it, I remember he went through two bouts of wading depression that felt similar to me, and repetitive. Pinkman was supposed to be killed off during the first season but showrunners kept him on because Aaron Paul was so good. Pinkman certainly became an integral part of the original series and room does exist to continue his story. (FYI: in my eyes, Walt is dead. Walt. Is. Dead.)
I must admit, I found myself getting bored for the first half. I think the stuff with Todd was a bit weak, even though it served as setup for Jesse knowing where to score big money. Nonetheless I think I might’ve trimmed some of that down to have less of it; maybe where Jesse is helping Todd put the roof on the car could be cut. However, the scene where Jesse finds Todd’s gun in the glovebox is the tensest part of the movie. You can understand the pain in poor Jesse’s face as he realises he can’t shoot Todd and he is destined to go back into the cage – Jesse is not a natural killer, never has been. Yet, I was surprised that scene didn’t serve a greater purpose – after seeing Jesse painstakingly give the gun back to Todd, I thought the fake-cops were goners in Todd’s house but Jesse elects not to shoot them either. I thought the threat of another jailcell might have been a trigger to start firing.
And I will admit, I had to google Ed, the vacuum salesman, as I did not remember him from the show. It turns out he only appeared in one episode of Breaking Bad but was mentioned a few times more. There’s another great scene here, where Jesse is adamant Ed has not called the cops on him and is left to scramble when they actually show up. What a great way to recount Jesse always guessing wrong, and usually for comedic affect. The final shootout with the welders is great too. Welder Neil turns out to be a right-psychotic bastard, a seriously good character and a good adversary to boot. Also, basically anything with Skinny Pete and Badger is gold as well – in any circumstance, that’s just a golden rule.
Then Walt shows up and it’s fucking marvellous. I couldn’t contain the grin from stretching over my face. Walt and Jesse – they’re like Batman and Robin at this point. Getting to see them together again is special, and I’m so happy to have seen this movie for that scene alone. The two are walking down a hotel hallway, and it’s fun to take a couple moments to try to figure out at what point of the Breaking Bad series we are intersecting here; because this duo had a pretty tumultuous relationship towards the end and at moments in between. This scene takes place probably at the highest time of them working together – I believe its season 2, maybe 3. Walt is coughing, and they’ve just spent a solid chunk of the clock cooking the motherload of meth – Walt thinks this is the last time he’ll cook; all his family troubles will be taken care of at the completion of selling this batch. Job well done. I think that’s when this scene takes place, I think. [I looked it up; it is season 2 I’m referring to. The episode is called “4 Days Out”]. Walt begins to quiz Jesse on what he’d like to do with his future. He’s fatherly in this moment, and tells Jesse he’s lucky; he “doesn’t have to wait his whole life to do something special.” It’s funny; considering how ugly their relationship became (Walt using what he thought would be his final moment with Jesse to spit out “I watched Jane die”, just to hurt him). In this moment Jesse is remembering Walt fondly, as a teacher who saw something in him once.
Also, self-praise moment, I fucking knew Kristen Ritter was going to show up as Jane, before the movie started. I’ve just finished watching Jessica Jones: Season 1, and I was thinking “…she was cool in Breaking Bad. El Camino? El Camino 😊.” Her scene is poignant too, as she shows up in the passenger seat as Jesse is finally driving away. Jesse tries to tell her that he likes what she’s said, about letting the universe take you where it wants you to go, and she tells him she’s changed her mind; it’s much better if you choose where you want to go.
The movie is ultimately about Jesse choosing where he wants to go. Throughout Breaking Bad, Jesse was always forced to do things on other characters’ behalf, causing him anguish when it was stuff he didn’t want to do. Jesse always had a caring nature, and was thoughtful, despite usually being one or two steps behind the eight ball. Now all his peers are dead, and Jesse’s own life is in front of him. El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie is slow in parts, but so was the show, and a few surprise cameos create wow-moments that more than make up for it. The story El Camino sets out to tell about Walter White’s former protégé is a good one. A great epilogue to a fantastical show.
4.0
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