I was late in joining the Breaking Bad club. I always get put off TV shows that have a lot of hype and fans who claim it to be flawless and perfect. As soon as I did start watching it I was hooked and I recently finished the five season run. It’s not flawless nor perfect. But, it IS one of the most consistently constructed television shows that, even in weaker points is leaps and bounds over most TV.
In the aftermath of the season 5 finale, everybody and their gran had an opinion, something to say about how the show ended and its ultimate legacy. Director Oliver Stone is the most recent celebrity individual to express his thoughts and they aren’t as positive as you might think. At a press conference for his new Documentary The Untold History of the United States he had this to say;
“I happen to not watch the series very much, but I happened to tune in and I saw the most ridiculous 15 minutes of a movie – it would be laughed off the screen,”
He continued on to talk about the specifics of the final episode and Walters actions;
Nobody could park his car right then and there and could have a machine gun that could go off perfectly and kill all of the bad guys! It would be a joke,”
“It’s only in the movies that you find this kind of fantasy violence. And that’s infected the American culture; you young people believe all of this s***!
Batman and Superman, you’ve lost your minds, and you don’t even know it! At least respect violence. I’m not saying don’t show violence, but show it with authenticity.”
Now, I have no problem with someone who doesn’t like the show or didn’t like how the conclusion played out. I’d go so far as to say there was some minor pacing issues and some of the actions could be accused of being a little bit easy in comparison to earlier seasons. I do have a problem with someone who, as he admits, didn’t watch the series very much. The events that took place were built on previous experiences the characters had been through and work well because of it – yes what Walt did wasn’t exactly difficult, but he ultimately didn’t have anything to lose therefore it can be argued he was being slightly careless in his actions. Actions which ultimately had consequences for Walt which he certainly expected, though not necessarily in that way. If Oliver is a passive viewer, seeing a couple episodes out of context, how is he to understand that? How could he understand the power of Walt and Skyler in the apartment? Also, any violence that took place was far more realistic than what I saw in Oliver’s work such as Natural Born Killers.
What do you guys think? Is his assessment right? Is he merely trying to stir the pot for his own publicity? Comment below.
