The last time audiences saw Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul, “The Parts You Lose”) he was beaten, broken and a completely different character than what he started out as in the beginning of the smash hit TV series “Breaking Bad.” And above all, he was freed. Freed from a life of being forced to cook crystal meth for some of the worst people that humanity has to offer. However, after being freed, we do not see where he goes, where he could go, how he could get there and what he would do once having gotten there. We simply see him drive away in the stolen El Camino, screaming, crying and laughing all at once in what is one of the more cathartic scenes in the entire series. For anyone who felt that this was not enough and for those that thought that Pinkman’s ending in “Breaking Bad” could have been extended by, at the very least, an extra five to 10 minutes just for the sake of more closure, “El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie” is for those people, but instead of five to 10 minutes, it is a full two hour feature length film, and it is satisfying, although not necessarily needed. 

“El Camino” is the direct product of what happens when the creator of a worldwide phenomenon decides to dive back into the world of their most popular project not because it is guaranteed to be successful, but rather because they are genuinely so passionate about it that they just want to return one last time. This is the vibe that comes out of what seems to have been a passion project for Vince Gilligan (“Better Call Saul”), creator and more importantly, executive producer of “Breaking Bad.” The world and tone of “Breaking Bad,” a dry, sandy and western-influenced version of the south west, is as realized as ever and almost feels like an old piece of clothing that still fits beautifully. This is due less to the fact that we get to see Pinkman roam around New Mexico looking for money, a plot that would have amounted to a fantastic stand-alone episode of the series, but more due to filmmakers behind the camera. Gilligan, in what is his directorial debut and an extremely solid one at that, takes the subtly unique filmmaking that made the series so compelling and puts it into a high definition cinematic lens. Cinematographer Marshall Adams (“13 Reasons Why”) brings the familiar mix of wide angle exteriors and handheld close-ups that you have come to expect and throws in the occasional expected but completely unexpected ambitious shot. Think of the crawl space or the heroin trip from the show. One that comes to mind here is an incredibly designed top-down view of Jesse scrambling to look for something in an apartment. In addition to the great cinematography, Composer Dave Porter’s (“Preacher”) droning percussion music and film editor Skip Macdonald’s (“Chambers”) patient editing all come together to set the mood that fans should be able to recognize fairly quickly. 

Just like usual, the acting by most on board and the mature writing by Gilligan compliment each other so well that it makes one wonder why Gilligan has not been making films this whole time. There honestly is not much to say about Paul that has not already been said, he is perfect for the character and the character is perfect for him. The film’s loose structure centered around Pinkman always in search for something makes his story feel urgent and perfectly paced. The film does not throw in a cameo and reference to every big moment in the show every five minutes, but rather lets the story play as its own and lets the references and cameos come very appropriately and spread out. It almost feels as if this movie could have come out before the show and they decided to make the show as a prequel series afterwards based on the success of the movie. They did the post-show-movie the right way by giving fans what they want without spoiling them. The climax amounts to a small scale but satisfying literalized version of the western-tone that is sprinkled throughout both the show and movie and finishes Pinkman’s story for good in a way that gives real closure more than just a moment of catharsis. However, that moment of catharsis in itself was satisfying, so if one were to watch the series finale and stop there, it is not like they are missing a ton. But they are missing something. A nice epilogue to return viewers to the world that compelled them for so long is not necessarily a bad thing. Is it needed? No. Is it still good? Of course.

Image from Netflix via YouTube