The Bigamist (1953)

Despite being categorized as a film noir, Ida Lupino’s 1953 film The Bigamist isn’t as much of a noir as it is a straightforward drama, detailing a man’s double life and how it came to be. The film’s protagonist, Harry Graham, attempts to adopt a child with his wife Eve only for an adoption agent to grow suspicious and look for information about Harry, eventually discovering that he has another wife and a child. The bulk of the film is told via flashback as Harry attempts to explain himself to the disgusted agent by detailing how he met Phyllis while on the rocks with his wife and made the decision to marry her upon discovering she was pregnant. The narrative doesn’t defend Harry’s crimes as much as it explains them in a way that makes him both sympathetic and reprehensible. Even the agent is conflicted as to what to feel regarding Harry as he makes the decision not to call the police. The film ultimately ends with Harry tried for bigamy only for the matter of his sentencing and whether or not Eve or Phyllis will take him back to be up to the audience.

Better Call Saul: "Saul Gone"

“What would you do if you had a time machine”?

That’s the question Jimmy/Saul asks Mike and Walt in the flashbacks that occur throughout "Saul Gone". For both characters asked, the answer is true to their characters. Mike would go back to the day he took his first bribe that indirectly led to his son Matt’s death. Walt would go back to the day he decided to leave Grey Matter and lost out on billions of dollars, rather than the day he decided to become a criminal which ultimately led to his family being destroyed.

For Jimmy, he’d go back to when Warren Buffet first became famous and invest money in becoming a billionaire. In Saul’s conversation with Walt, he’d go back to the day he broke his leg performing a Slippin’ Jimmy scam. Neither Mike nor Walt is impressed with these answers, with Mike prodding Jimmy to think of any regrets he may have had and Walt dismissing Saul as having “always been like this”.

The third and final flashback with Chuck doesn’t have Jimmy asking him this question, but it’s clear that it’s the answer to what Jimmy would do if he did indeed have a time machine. It’s back when Jimmy first started out as a lawyer and bringing Chuck supplies. Chuck invites Jimmy to stay, only for Jimmy to dismiss him, not believing that Chuck would be interested in hearing about his day\. It’s a moment of genuine connection from Chuck that may or may not have ultimately salvaged their relationship if Jimmy had taken him upon his invite.

The finale itself functions as somewhat of a time machine, going from Gene Takovic to Saul Goodman and then ultimately back to Jimmy McGill. After getting captured by the police, Gene calls up the Cinnabon to let them know they’ll need a new manager and then has a breakdown in his holding cell. The scene is similar to Walt’s breakdown in the crawl space in Breaking Bad, where it is believed by many that Walter White died, and Heisenberg was born. Similar to that scene, Gene Takovic dies, and Saul Goodman is reborn.

Saul manages to convince the prosecutors to reduce his life sentence to seven and a half years at a golf-course prison, lying that his reasons for aiding Walt were in fear for his own life after he kidnapped him and held him at gunpoint in the desert. Both the prosecutors and Marie(!) know this is bullshit but Saul has them by the vice and they're forced to acquiesce. It isn't until Saul smugly makes a request for ice cream in exchange for information on Howard Hamlin's death does he find out that Kim already confessed and is facing a civil suit.

This leads to Saul's final transformation back into Jimmy McGill. With Kim in attendance at his hearing, Jimmy confesses that while he was indeed afraid of Walt, he made the choice to help him out of his own volition and reaped the rewards for his crimes. He also finally comes to terms with his role in Chuck's suicide, admitting that he got his malpractice insurance canceled. 

Jimmy's confession may have saved his soul, but it doesn't save him from eighty-six years in the federal prison he described as "the Alcatraz of the Rockies". Yet on the bus ride there, several inmates recognize him as the infamous lawyer and chant "Better Call Saul!". It's the one moment in the finale that comes close to being cartoonish, yet instead it feels earned, affirming Jimmy's legacy while also assuring the viewer that his time at ADX Montrose won't be the total "hell-hole" he described it as.

In the final scene, Kim visits Jimmy in prison, claiming to be his attorney. They both share a cigarette (in a brilliant callback to their first scene in the pilot) and reflect on Jimmy's decision. As Kim leaves, she steals one last glance at Jimmy, who gives her the pointed guns gesture he gave her back in Season 4. Whether this is the last time they ever see each other, or simply the last time we the audience will ever see them together, it's a perfect coda on which to end their relationship and the series.

I'd like to thank everyone who took the time to read my Better Call Saul reviews. It's been a joy watching and reviewing this excellent show, which has proven to be equivalent to Breaking Bad in terms of quality and legacy, if not more so in certain areas. What a marvelous experience this show turned out to be.

Notes and observations:

* Bill Oakley once again becomes the butt of the joke, as Saul hires him on as his lawyer, only to hijack the hearing and completely torpedo his plea deal.

* Kim goes back to her lawyer roots, volunteering at Florida's Legal Aid and sorting files. It's a far cry from where she was years ago, but it's a somewhat hopeful note to end her character on.

* Aside from Marie, Breaking Bad cameos included SAC Ramey as well as the appearance of Gomez's wife Blanca, who was mentioned but never seen on the parent show.

*Walt's final scene in the flashback goes a long way to establish him as the rotten prick he's always been, for those who felt like "Felina" was a little too kind to his character.

* An excellent script and directing from co-creator Peter Gould, who ultimately deserves the lion's share of credit for this show rather than Vince Gilligan (who stepped away after Season 3).

Better Call Saul: "Waterworks"

With there being two episodes left, it's only natural that we check back on Kim, who is just as central to the show as Jimmy is. "Waterworks" is an incredible penultimate episode of Better Call Saul, providing closure to Kim and Jimmy's relationship while also leaving room for it in the series finale, which promises to be nothing short of apocalyptic.

Having dyed her hair brown and now living in Florida, Kim lives the life of an ordinary housewife, making potato salad (sans mayonnaise) and doing jigsaw puzzles. At her job, she continues to live in mundaneness and self-flagellate herself for her sins, even refusing to choose the flavor of her co-worker's birthday cake. We get to see the other side of her phone call with Jimmy, where she advises Jimmy to turn himself in. Jimmy, somewhat righteously, furiously points out that she has yet to do so herself for her role in Howard's murder. Kim ends the phone call with an "I'm glad you're alive", seemingly closing the book on their relationship for good.

True to Kim, she takes Jimmy's accusations to heart and travels to Albuquerque, where she gives Howard's wife and the district attorney an affidavit confessing her involvement in Howard's death. As Cheryl points out however, Howard's reputation and legacy is still destroyed, and Kim is unlikely to be prosecuted as there is no proof or knowledge of where his body is. On the way back to Florida, Kim finally allows herself to feel the full weight of her guilt and breaks down sobbing on the bus (just give Rhea Seehorn next year's Emmy). Similar to when she was caught stealing as a child, the universe won't punish her for her sins.

Meanwhile, in Omaha, Gene follows through in breaking into the cancer patient's house, proceeding to compound his crime by stealing the man's watches and preparing to knock out the now-awake man with an urn full of his dog's ashes. A police car shows up and startles Jeff, frightening him enough to crash his car in an escape attempt. Gene uses the distraction to flee the scene and later receives a call from Jeff, who has been accused of robbing the mark's house.

We get a flashback to Alburquerque, where Kim arrives at Jimmy's office to sign the divorce papers. Jimmy is cruelly flippant about the whole thing, clearly using his Saul persona as a coping mechanism to deal with the end of their relationship. Kim leaves the office and encounters Jesse Pinkman, who is there with his partner Emilio to get legal counsel for the latter. After recognizing Kim from when she helped out his friend Combo, Jesse asks her if Saul is a good choice for legal representation. "When I knew him, he was", Kim finally replies before running back to her car in the rain, not knowing that she has indirectly helped bring her ex-husband into Walt and Jesse's orbit

Gene calls Marion and promises to bail her son out. Growing suspicious of why Jeff would call Gene instead of her, as well as his knowledge of the law in Omaha, Marion uses her new laptop to look up his old Saul Goodman commercials, thus confirming his identity. Gene arrives and attempts to stop her from calling the police, ripping the cord out of the wall and fashioning it as a garret. "I trusted you", Marion almost tearfully replies, distracting Gene enough for her to use her Life Alert to report him to the police. His cover now blown, Gene immediately flees the house.

Where do we go from here? The series finale of Breaking Bad at least ended on a decisive victory for Walter White. I don't see one for Jimmy McGill at this point.

Notes and observations:

* It's only natural that the man who started this all, Vince Gilligan, writes and directs this episode (ironically this is his first and only solo writing credit on the show). Lots of great camerawork but my favorite shot, other than the final scene with Kim, has to be the reflection of the colorful Saul commercial in Gene's glasses.

* I haven't commented on the teasers for the final six episodes as they have been deliberately vague, but the one for next week's series finale deserves special mention. The camera pans on an abandoned car and the monochrome slowly transitions to color as Gene attempts to remember the phrase for the vacuum cleaner repair man (played by the late Robert Forster). Does this mean that the finale will be in color?

* I really want to try tuna salad with Miracle Whip.

* I will unfortunately be out of town when the finale airs so the review for it will sadly be delayed.

Better Call Saul: "Breaking Bad"

It's only fitting that the long-awaited Walt and Jesse appearances happen in an episode titled "Breaking Bad". Not only is it a reference to the parent show, but it also brings Saul's first appearance from the Breaking Bad episode "Better Call Saul" full circle. But the episode's title isn't just a nod towards the show that started it all. It represents the final turning point for Jimmy McGill, who proves he still has some way to fall even after all that has happened to him.

Fresh off of the department store heist, Gene calls Francesca for information on what has happened since leaving Albuquerque. Upon learning that Kim called Francesca and is currently working in Florida, Gene calls her place and asks to speak to her. What follows is a wordless sequence that ends with Gene destroying the phone booth and falling back on old habits, recruiting Jeff and his friend Buddy for a new scheme that involves drugging rich men and stealing their identities. It's here that a fourth persona of Jimmy McGill emerges named "Viktor", the same name he came up with when and Kim were running scams. When their latest mark turns out to have cancer, Buddy refuses to go through with the crime, leading to Gene to break into the man's house to finish the job.

We get an extended look at the scene where Walt and Jesse took Saul out into the desert, with him connecting the dots and realizing that Walt is Heisenberg after taking a look inside the RV. Jesse asks about Lalo and it's clear how the man still haunts Jimmy years after their last confrontation. Later, Mike brings information on Walt to Saul, including the fact that he has lung cancer, and cautions against getting involved with him. The final scene intercuts Saul walking into the high school where Walt worked at to Gene breaking into the mark's house. Similar to how getting involved with Walter White ruined Saul Goodman, Viktor's determination to pull off schemes is destined to ruin Gene Takovic.

Notes and observations:

* There's a nice reference to the Breaking Bad episode "Four Days Out" when the RV overheats, forcing the trio to wait for the engine to cool down.

* Aaron Paul and Bryan Cranston look noticeably older than they were back in Breaking Bad Season 2, but it's still electrifying to watch the duo slip back into the characters.

* Through Francesca, we get some closure on Skylar (who got a plea deal with the DEA after all) and Huell (who went home to New Orleans after leaving the safehouse). We also find out that Bill Oakley, the slovenly lawyer who butted heads with Jimmy, is now a defense attorney.

* An interview with Thomas Schnauz confirms that the Breaking Bad scenes weren't shot on film like the one back in Season 4's "Quite a Ride", but were shot digitally with grain added to them.

* Gene's first mark Alfred is played by none other than Devin Ratray from Home Alone.

* Marion's joy at discovering funny cat videos on the Internet is infectious.