El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie (2019)

It’s been six long years since Breaking Bad last aired, leaving millions of die-hard fans around the world mourning for what is considered by many to be one of the best TV shows of all-time.

Boasting a 9.5 (out of 10) on iMDB and 95% good reviews on Rotten Tomatoes, the show was a delight to both fans and critics, who praised its cinematic look, the cleaver and fast paced storytelling, the character development, acting and directing.

One could almost claim Breaking Bad is near perfection that has built a legacy next to other iconic shows such as The Wire and The Sopranos.

When the last episode aired on September 29 of 2013, fans were sad to see the show go, but incredibly satisfied with how it came to an end. This, as we all know, is a crucial landmark for any series legacy.

For many, it could be a “make or break” scenario, like we’ve seen in recent times with HBO’s Game of Thrones. For many years it seemed the fantasy TV series was on its way to join the top elite of cable shows, but two very average seasons and a dreadful ending have stained its name and ruined its credibility as one of the “greats”.

Breaking Bad however, started in glorious fashion and ended with a bang. People didn’t feel like the story needed anything to be added… it had delivered everything that it had promised over those five years and then some.

Since then, a (very) successful spin-off working as a prequel has been created and a show reunion has been teased on numerous occasions…  All of this leading up to the announcement of a Breaking Bad motion picture released by Netflix, starting Aaron Paul as Jesse Pinkman, the character that brought Paul three Emmy wins, along with other several nominations.

On October 11^th, El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie came out to  rave reviews (94% RT and 7.7 iMDB) and after seeing it this morning, it is easy to see why.

It takes a lot of guts to take a near perfect TV show and make a movie that picks up where the series left off… but the brilliant mind of Vince Gilligan, the show creator, and his team, managed the impossible and delivered a two-hour film that offered absolute closure, while emphasizing on the nostalgia/sentimental value attached to an array of rich content and characters that we now have a chance of revisiting.

All of this in a flawless cinematic style, told through a brilliant script brought to life by Aaron Paul’s “tour de force” as the leading man.

This isn’t rocket SCIENCE, B**TCH! (See what I did there?)

If you are a Breaking Bad fan, this movie is for you!

Note:

I would also like to mention actor Robert Forster, who plays Saul Goodman's "disappearer" Ed Galbraith in the show and movie.

Forster, once nominated for an Oscar in Tarantino's Jackie Brown (1997), passed away at the age of 78 on the day the film was released on Netflix. Felt weirdly poetic to have him one last time on-screen for this particular project. It wouldn't make sense without him.