Jesse Pinkman Finally Gets The Ending He Deserves In “El Camino”
Starring Aaron Paul, Charles Baker, Matt Jones (others hidden for potential spoilers)
No rating provided
Drama
Run time: 2 hr, 2 min
Directed by Vince Gilligan
On Netflix October 11, 2019
Warning: Spoilers for Breaking Bad series
As someone who binged the entirety of Breaking Bad in just over two weeks, I had some high expectations for how the follow-up film would play out. Had I not known that this was coming, I’m not sure I would have felt like a story was unfinished when I completed the series, but once I did, all I could think about was hopefully getting justice for Jesse Pinkman. The poor guy had the worst life, losing so many things and people that are close to him along his downward spiral of his late 20s. Granted, I was one of those with the thought that since we didn’t fully see Walt die, did he actually do so? (Marvel movies have ruined me for this.) But when it came down to it, all I wanted to see was what happened to Jesse.
This film takes up literally minutes after the series ends, showing Jesse triumphantly fleeing his recent place of captivity and slavery, overwhelmed with emotion of finally escaping. We see Walt’s story coming to an end as Jesse’s may just be beginning. And El Camino is about to let us know just how his will go. Without giving too much away, we see him try to grapple with what he’d been through while still trying to stay alert and solve problems in order to make the most of this second chance he’s been given. All while trying to avoid the police, of course.
Aaron Paul carries this movie extremely well, combining the hardened edge we’ve come to see as a part of Jesse’s character with the softer, scared, PTSD-addled side that is starting to come out more and more. He never acts in a way that could paint Jesse as remotely one-dimensional, and makes him somehow even a bit more endearing than he had been (to me at least) in the series. In almost every move, we can see how his different relationships and interactions shaped him along the way. He’s a bit smarter, less reckless and far more calculated. This time, we can’t quite predict how things will play out, but Jesse is thinking of everything.
Sure, this movie is just a fascinating visit to characters we’ve loved. But there’s something more. Throughout the whole film, there’s that undercurrent of humor that is present during the show, but especially in the earlier seasons. There are quips that are thrown offhand that seem so natural in conversation but will still make you laugh out loud in an otherwise tense scene. The friendship between Badger, Skinny Pete and Jesse is a perfect example of that, and I was reminded once again how much I’d enjoy literal hours of just watching these guys interact. The film wraps up nicely, but after seeing El Camino, I think I’d take any more glimpses into this world that they want to give us. For now, I’ll just pay a visit to Better Call Saul.