The Brave One (C-) It stars Jodie Foster, and it's directed by Neil Jordan-the 'Crying Game' and 'Michael Collins' guy, so you'd think you're getting an adult look at Foster's character dealing with the overwhelming emotions that come with being a victim of a brutal random assault. What you're actually getting is "Death Wish" for the NPR crowd. There's the shred of a good movie buried in here, esp. with Terence Howard's portrayal of a detective with a strong moral core, but in the end, it just pusses out. I realize that's an odd statement regarding a movie which shows a tiny, middle-aged woman coldly shooting young men, but there you go.
Breaking Bad (A) I didn't want to write about this series on AMC until I'd seen enough of it to figure out whether it was going to stay on the tightrope or fall off. I've maintained earlier that black comedy is the hardest genre to work in, as if you go far enough in one direction, and you're too distanced from the story to invest any further interest - like the movie, 'Wag The Dog', for instance. Head too far in the other direction, and you fall into the same pit the final third of 'Fight Club', did. (In that case, by the time the Narrator had come to his senses, so to speak, his attempt to redeem the actions of Tyler came across as fake as a death-row inmate's twelfth-hour confession...)
Breaking Bad (the not-great title refers to the American Southwest phrase of going off your rocker.) is the story of Walt White, (Bryan Cranston, the dad from Malcolm in the Middle) meek New Mexico high-school chemistry teacher who has what could be called the worst. mid-life. crisis. ever. See, not only is Walt having to work at a car-wash to make ends meet, and having his former triumph as part of a Nobel Prize-winning research team mock him, and factor in the fact that his much-younger pregnant wife and cerebral-palsy stricken son regard him as kind of like a bigger version of the family cat, but as the series starts, Walt, a life-long non-smoker, has been diagnosed with lung cancer.
Well. Where your average show would handle this plot point with tearful speeches from friends and family members, poignant piano solos on the soundtrack whilst Walt gazes meaningfully into the distance, and warm-hearted reassurances from the screenwriters, Breaking Bad is not that show. Our boy Walt proceeds to 'Break Bad', and quit his job at the car wash, meet up with an old student whom he failed, and begin a partnership with the young lad that involves cooking and selling meth. And who better, you may well ask,to turn this stuff out than a Nobel Prize winning chemist. As the series progresses, schlubby Walt goes from repressed nerd to bald-headed bad ass who uses mercury fulminate to gain the upper hand in negotiating with a local big-time drug dealer. (I especially love how the show treats Walt's understanding of chemistry like a comic book hero's super power.)
Where it works the best in maintaining that balance I mentioned earlier, is in it's even-handed treatment of Walt, especially the restrained performance that Bryan Cranston gives. He goes from awkwardly begging the cashier at the oncology clinic he's being treated to not cash his check until Monday, to gleefully pounding his fists on his steering wheel over intimidating the above drug dealer to his fifty-thousand dollar payout. Actually, the series is full of awesome moments of dark comedy:
-Walt's new 'business partner' Jesse attempting to reconcile with his estranged parents, only to get kicked out again after his mom's maid discovers a joint in his room. (The joint actually belongs to Jesse's over-achieving younger brother, who thanks the outed Jesse for taking the rap.)
-Walt's hyper-macho brother-in-law Hank, a DEA agent, taking Walt's son, Walt Jr. to a hotel parking lot to show off the low-lifes and give Jr. the old nostrum about how 'Dope is for dopes'. Walt Jr. is truly bewildered at Hank, as neither one knows it was a joint from Walt which prompted this intervention.
-The White family meeting where Walt's family confront him about his reticence regarding his dealing with his cancer. It devolves into Walt's wife taking over the meeting and nagging him to get chemo. (I should point out that Anna Gunn, who plays Walt's wife Skylar, pulls off her role without becoming bitchy or shrewish.)
-Walt's giddy fantasies about seducing a college student with his masterful lecture on bonding molecules. He even imagines himself with the flowing locks of a paperback romance hero. (We later see this dream student is in fact, his former partner's wife, and the series hints at a previous affair between the two. She'll be back...)
-Walt's family car, a Pontiac Aztek, the setup and punchline when it makes an appearance.
On whether the series can maintain a consistent tone, my prognosis is good. My only worry is that with Hank sniffing around closer and closer to Walt, what'll happen if Walt's cancer goes into remission?
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