Look who’s breaking bad in ‘Better Call Saul’: Season Five’
An acclaimed AMC series raises its stakes to extreme heights in DVD releases for the week of Nov. 24.
“Better Call Saul: Season Five”: Over the course of four seasons, we’ve seen Jimmy McGill (Bob Odenkirk) slowly devolve into his Saul Goodman persona, grappling with the death of his brother, Chuck (Michael McKean), his strange yet beautiful partnership with Kim (Rhea Seehorn), and deep down, his love of the game.
That slow burn explodes this season, with Jimmy inserting himself into the drug war between Lalo Salamanca (Tony Dalton, whose deranged performance continues to delight) and Gus Fring (Giancarlo Esposito). Whereas Walter White (Bryan Cranston) quickly dove right into criminal activity in “Breaking Bad,” it’s clear that Jimmy, who assumes picking up $ 7 million in cash for Lalo’s bail across the U.S.Mexican border would be an easy peasy chore, is simply in way over his head.
It’s thrilling to watch and it’s the series’ best season yet, with breathtaking cinematography by director of photography Marshall Adams. And as always, another star of the show is the writer’s room, which offers plenty of rich, shocking character development. While Mike’s (Jonathan Banks) guilt over killing Werner (Rainer Bock) and subsequent spiral and ultimate acceptance isn’t much of a surprise given what we know of his past and future, it’s fun to watch Nacho (Michael Mando) perform some Herculean acrobatics to save cartel product from DEA confiscation and woo Lalo in the process, as well as the story leading to several unexpected “Breaking Bad” cameos.
But the most powerful transformation here is that of Kim. After seemingly taking on more and more pro bono work to assuage guilt from the more capitalist-driven Mesa Verde case and ensuing problems, leading to such extreme conflict between her and Jimmy that she decides they either need to cut ties or get married, she also puts herself into the game, demanding an explanation from Lalo as Jimmy’s field trip to Mexico results in his disappearance. At first it seems she’s also in over her head, but as she saves Jimmy from Lalo’s repeated questions and proposes her own unhinged scheme, Kim’s breaking bad packs the greatest punch.
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“The Irishman”: A truck driver (Robert De Niro) rises up in a Pennsylvania crime family and earns a spot working for Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino).
“After We Collided”: In this sequel to 2019’s “After,” Tessa (Josephine Langford) and Hardin (Hero Fiennes Tiffin) reel from their devastating breakup.
“Ava”: After doubting her superiors, an assassin (Jessica Chastain) becomes a target.
“Blinded”: Sundance Now series follows a financial reporter (Julia Ragnarsson) who hits it off with a bank director (Matias Varela) whose company is shady in more ways than one. In Swedish.
“Buddy Games”: A longseparated group of friends reunite to compete in extreme physical tasks. Stars Josh Duhamel, Olivia Munn, Jensen Ackles, Dax Shepard and Sheamus.
“The Gulf”: New Zealand series follows a detective (Kate Elliott) who struggles on the job after suffering memory loss caused by a deadly car accident.
“Ice House”: Two men (Grant Reed and Greg Berman) head to a Minnesota lake house on a cold winter night, wherein debauchery turns deadly.
“Iron Mask”: A cartographer (Jason Flemyng) travels to China to face the Dragon Master. Also stars Jackie Chan, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Helen Yao. In Rusian and English.
“Sonic the Hedgehog”: The 2020 Ben Schwartzvoiced version following the Sega hero is being rereleased in a limitededition Blu-ray combo pack.
“Train to Busan Presents: Peninsula”: A soldier (Gang Dong-won) is sent on a mission in a zombie-ridden wasteland.