Walter White Wednesday 17

. . . which is the one about family.

The concept of family runs throughout Breaking Bad - most obviously with Walt, who uses his desire to provide for his family as his reason for getting into the meth trade.  For new viewers, when Walt is diagnosed of terminal lung cancer, he begins to take stock of his life and he doesn't like what he sees.  Teaching high school chemistry to bored teenagers hasn't brought Walt happiness or prestige.  Desperate to at least leave behind a tidy nest egg for his wife and children (Skyler is pregnant with a "surprise" baby at the beginning of Season 1, remember), Walt comes up with the hare-brained idea of using his stellar background in chemistry to manufacture the purest methamphetamine on the market.  He's got the skills in the manufacturing arena, but doesn't count on the casual viciousness of the drug trade.  I've argued before that his motives aren't really that pure, anyway.  With Walt, it's more about pride than it is about providing.  He refuses help when it's offered (and offered by well-meaning people, including his brother-in-law) and digs his hole deeper and deeper until he apparently decides he likes the darkness he finds underground.  He doesn't like - not one little bit - his son's efforts to raise money for his treatment.  Walt wants to be The Man Who Provides, but he's busy keeping secrets and shoving away the very ones he's supposed to be providing for.

Not that he's the only screw-up in that household.  Skyler has her own sins to atone for.

But the White family is not the only example of family ties in Breaking Bad.  Look beyond that small circle and you find the strong bonds of family loyalty in the Schrader household, for instance.  Marie and Hank have problems (mild kleptomania and a streak of jackassery), but their loyalty to each other is above question.  Exhibit A - see how Hank tears out of the junkyard when he thinks Marie has been injured, even though it means leaving ABQ's drug kingpins behind to flee (and if you don't think Walt owes a debt for that lie, just ask Jesse, much less Hank, or Marie, or Skyler).  And Exhibit B - see how Marie transforms from self-centered memememe! to Tiger Wife when Hank's treatment options are being discussed.

Now expand out to Jesse's circle.  From what we see of Jesse's parents and brother, he was raised in solid comfort, but his choices have caused his family to make the painful decision to cut ties with him.  Call when you're ready to actually change, not just when you're in trouble and we'll talk is the message his parents send to him after years of shattered promises and broken hearts.  Jesse comes close - so close! - to forming a family of his own with Jane (I'm not counting Skinny Pete and Badger here, although a case could be made), but that ends badly.  The bad ending is the result of a toxic combination of miserable choices and Walt.  Collateral damage here includes Jane's father and an entire planeload of innocents.

But go even further from the bright firelight of the middle-class American family.  Look at the family in "Peekaboo," but don't stare too long - that cracking sound in your chest is your heart breaking for the child.  Oh, and drug lords have families, too.  Just ask the bloodthirsty Cousins, who arrive in Season 3 to exact vengeance on those responsible for the death of Tuco, a hit that has the blessing of the patriarch of the family.  Well, the family that slays together . . .

Normally, family ties are seen to be good things that serve to hold the fabric of society together.  But the family values of Breaking Bad challenge that viewpoint.  Is it love that holds these people together and drives their actions, or is it something more sinister, like the desire to control and to be held in esteem by those under you?  And just what sort of family is it that has these levels of secrecy, violence, and a running body count?

Tune in to AMC beginning on July 15 for Season 5 to find out!

Walter White Wednesday 5

Shhhh!  The silent edition.

Usually, television and film are all about the “tell” and not so much about the “show.”  Showing  without explanation requires the audience to focus on the scene and (heaven forbid!) figure things out independently.  Gilligan and company understand that - it's one of the many elements that make Breaking Bad a show you have to watch as opposed to one that you simply turn on while you putter about the house. 

This week, I want to talk about not talking.  Our everyday lives tend to be noisy, filled with street noise, the buzz of copier machines, the “ding!” to alert us that a tweet or e-mail has arrived, ringtones, and of course human conversation.  However, studies show that the amount of emotional content we pick up nonverbally (through expression, tone of voice, posture, etc.) to be as high as 90%.  If you’ve ever been involved in some minor escapade or another and been caught (say, by your mom or a teacher), you probably had a moment of thinking, “Uh-oh.  It’s that look.”  You’re in trouble and you can probably calculate fairly closely just how much trouble you’re in.  That is the essence of nonverbal communication. 

Just three examples to illustrate.  I’ll try to stay spoiler-free, but know the first two come from Season 3 and the last one is from the first episode of Season 4.  If you haven’t watched to that point, just stop now, okay?

SKYLER from the very end of Season 3, Episode 3 (“I.F.T.”).  Skyler has taken a desperate road in her effort to get Walt to leave the house.  Walt is in fine fettle, trusting that his efforts to manipulate the situation are causing things to break his way – she cares too much about the family to cause a scene in front of their son and his friend, whom Walt has cannily invited to stay for dinner.  (“Look honey, I made pot roast instead of meth!”)  Just watch her as Walt prattles on.  There’s a monologue of frustration, disgust, and revenge in her face here, which gives her line that much more power when she delivers it.  And now it's time for salad!

THE COUSINS from pretty much any episode in the first half of Season 3.  Both are trained and ruthless killers and neither of them talk much.  In fact, it’s Episode 6 (“Sunset”) before we hear a word from either of them.  Silence can make a scene heavy with meaning and the meaning is often threatening or menacing.  Think of seeing people meet each other at an airport – the ones who are happy squeal, stretch out their arms, and dash towards each other.  The ones who just glumly stare at each other – well, that car is going to host a different conversation on the way home.  From the cold open of the first episode of Season 3 (“No Mas” [which was directed by Bryan Cranston who plays Walter White]), something very, very creepy is going on here – and we don’t need dialogue to tell us that.

GUS from Season 4, Episode 1 (“Box Cutter”).  To be fair, I could’ve picked nearly any scene with Gus.  I find the casting of Giancarlo Esposito in this role to be downright inspired – he can do so much by staying so very, very still.  Gus is a very dangerous man wearing a very pleasant face and that fools many people who interact with him.  (I doubt his Los Pollos managers think of him as a particularly harsh boss, although he is very meticulous about how he wants even minor tasks done, for example.)  To borrow an old phrase, he’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing.  And at the end of this episode, he doesn’t have to say a word to get his point across.  Also note the difference in Walt and Jesse’s reactions to what Gus does – it says a lot about the changing relationship between all three characters.

There's much more - Hector Salamanca's "bell of doom" comes to mind, which communicates so much without words - but it's a start!