Leaning heavily on Breaking Bad nostalgia, El Camino quietly concludes Jesse’s story

It’s a funny thing revisiting a film or TV franchise after years away. Even with the same cast and crew, it can be hard to recapture the same feeling or vibe that the original made you feel. I’m happy to report that El Camino feels like a direct continuation of Breaking Bad, six years after the show went off the air. Whether that’s a good thing I’m not so sure, but El Camino certainly brings Jesse Pinkman’s (Aaron Paul) story to a satisfying end, and stands among the very best Netflix films produced to date.

All the SPOILERS lie below.

Last we saw Jesse, he was screaming off into the night after Walter White (Bryan Cranston) freed him from his Neo-Nazi captors in the series finale. El Camino picks up right where Breaking Bad ended. Unlike Breaking Bad spinoff/prequel Better Call Saul, El Camino is not trying to be its own thing. Camino not only leans heavily on the series’ past, with flashbacks featuring almost every major characters, but it gives us updates on virtually every aspect of the Breaking Bad universe, from what happened to Los Pollos Hermanos after Gus’ death to whether Lydia actually perished from Walt’s poison. The exception is Walt’s family, who get no screen time or mention at all, but there’s no real reason for Jesse to check in with them, so it didn’t feel like a hole that needed filling.

Despite being freed from his cage, we pick up with Jesse as he’s on the run from the authorities. He’s also struggling with the trauma of his captivity. Flashbacks make up roughly half the film’s two-hour running time, focusing either on the brutality of his time with the Neo Nazis or interactions with characters like Walt or Mike. There’s nothing especially revealing in these flashbacks, though they are fun in a nostalgic sort of way. The exception is extended flashback with Todd (Jesse Plemons), which proves useful upon Jesse’s escape.

El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie – Credit: Ben Rothstein/Netflix

Jesse flees and finds Badger and Skinny Pete, who we get the impression will be playing video games and smoking weed until the end of time. After that, he sets off to Todd’s house, narrowly avoiding every cop in New Mexico, seeking money to pay off Robert Forster’s vacuum dealer/super spook to get him out of town. It’s a simple plan complicated by fringe criminal types also looking for Todd’s money, and one that eventually leads Jesse to a bloody confrontation. Along the way, Jesse shows off some John Wick-level gunplay, and even manages to screw his parents one more time on his way out of town.

Ultimately, El Camino feels exactly like an episode of Breaking Bad, although I’m not quite sure it feels entirely necessary. Like the famous “Fly” episode, not a whole lot happens over the course of El Camino, and it pretty much ends Jesse’s saga where we thought it would: Jesse escapes to live a new life, leaving his criminal past behind. There are no great revelations or plot twists, no long-forgotten conversation with Walt that somehow shaped events in ways we never considered. Aaron Paul does great work here, and whatever the movie lacks in shock value it makes up for with solid, beautifully shot scenes as a beloved character’s story is neatly brought to an end.

If that sounds too negative, let me be clear: El Camino is a natural continuation of the series, and one Breaking Bad fans won’t want to miss.

Final Grade: A-

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Random Observations: 

• The homage to Better Call Saul’s opening credits at Todd’s tarantula aquarium was a delightfully subtle touch.
• The low lit reveal of Jesse hiding under the bed should be on a cinematographer’s highlight reel somewhere.
• Jesse’s jacket catching on fire was great, and again, handled subtly as can be.
• Please don’t make a movie about Skylar and Walt Jr. still eating breakfast together each morning.

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