Better Call Saul - Season 2 discussion

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by stereoptic, Jan 4, 2016.

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  1. BEAThoven

    BEAThoven Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey

    Is there any one here who can tell me if the recent Blu-Ray edition of this movie improves on the color? What is the aspect ratio? Are there any other bonus features other than the director's commentary track?



















    <This post was a joke> ;)
     
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  2. Hot Ptah

    Hot Ptah Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    Kansas City, MO
    Oh, sorry to spoil your initial viewing experience of an early 1970s hardcore porn film! Can one even view it today? If you do view it, will you even care about the plot after awhile?

    Sorry if I let a spoiler out.
     
  3. BEAThoven

    BEAThoven Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey
    Ha! I was goofing around, but.. this thread actually had me look up some inf on this movie, and I found this on Wiki:

    "In 2006, VCX employed Media Blasters to digitally re-master the film from the original 35mm film into a "Definitive Collectors Edition" 2-Disc set on DVD. This latest revision has been repackaged and supposedly has the best picture and audio quality of any original Devil In Miss Jones release. The DVDs contain the remastered feature, audio commentary with director Gerard Damiano, a lengthy in-depth interview with Georgina Spelvin, the original trailer, the cable TV version, and a photo gallery."

    Man, there's a "deluxe, remastered version" for everything!
     
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  4. Hot Ptah

    Hot Ptah Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    Kansas City, MO
    "Better Call Saul" inspires learning in so many different directions.
     
  5. ubiknik

    ubiknik Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago, IL USA
    I remember Tuco being quite the larger player than Domingo. I think because Gus was trying to be careful about what was being sold locally that he would avoid the Tuco branch of distribution while being fully aware of it.

    So this is very early in the show then? later on the prop/map became a barometer for where the blue meth was popping up.

    As far as good old Jimmy I think he just has to work the flexible morality path because it fully let's him utilize all of his tools and abilities in the best way he knows how. Kim is nice and all and in reality I would probably abide by her advise (because she is a babe with a nice job!), but we know basically what he's gonna do.
    Too bad for her (all he did was get the cops off of someone's back, in a court room maybe this would be questionable) -but honestly was it ever made clear in BB that Saul was Kim-less?
    I think we are being set up for some serious tragedy at some point -that's my gut feeling anyway.
     
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  6. EddieMann

    EddieMann I used to be a king...

    Location:
    Geneva, IL. USA.
    You are correct. I thought it was earlier than that but no.
     
  7. JimW

    JimW In the Process of Becoming

    Location:
    Charlottesville VA
    It's really hilarious that you were kidding but then found out it's all true; absurdity rules! It's really not surprising, this truly is a classic of the porn genre and for good reasons having nothing to do w/ the actual sex, which wasn't all that extreme- though pretty wild for the time. There was actual effort put into production values, including an interesting story.

    What I remember of the experience my freshman year was that most of it was actually hilarious. There was tons of laughter throughout the crowd all night. Of course, that kind of thing is contagious and not unexpected from a bunch of young drunk and/or high college students.

    But it was not only funny, with sex and a good story, it was truly an educational experience. What would you expect from such a prestigious school as UVA? :rolleyes: IIRC, it was put on by one of the Frats.

    As your previous example shows, high art invites comparison w/ other high art... :D
     
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  8. Hot Ptah

    Hot Ptah Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    Kansas City, MO
    At the University of Wisconsin in the mid-1970s, there were over 25 independent film societies which rented films and showed them in classrooms at night. The admission charge was $1.00. They were very popular with the students. It was a major part of the social scene on campus. The film societies showed many old Hollywood classics and foreign films--and porn. I saw Deep Throat, Behind the Green Door, and The Devil in Miss Jones in the classrooms. So UVA was not unique in that way.
     
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  9. JimW

    JimW In the Process of Becoming

    Location:
    Charlottesville VA
    This is good news. I enjoyed MM very much, but BB and BCS are a cut above imo. I hope VG and co. just bask in the light of their success and take their time w/ this. Keep pushing quality product but take their time w/ the stories. I think VG found his niche at the same time he peaked and serendipity or whatever brought together an incredible group that elevates the standards of TV- or at least reaches rarefied air along w/ _________ (name your top 3 shows) The Wire, The Sopranos, Hill St. Blues for me. They're like a band at their peak right now and I hope they stay in the studio and keep churning out these tasty albums.

    Is it fair to compare a show on a pay channel to one on basic cable? I binge-watched Homeland when I got a free 30 days of Showtime 6 or so months ago and I think it's pretty near BB/BCS standards.
     
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  10. JimW

    JimW In the Process of Becoming

    Location:
    Charlottesville VA
    No- actually, you had us beat, if you had those porn classics as part of a whole culture of movie appreciation. Ours was just a one-off done by a frat. There may have been others while I was there, but none I heard of. And you did see my eyes rolling after that prestigious comment, right? That was mostly an inside joke about the elitism sometimes present at "Mr. Jefferson's University."
     
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  11. I went back and pulled by blu ray of the episode so I hope I can shed some light.

    Although we know that Tuco is nominally connected to the cartel, by blood, when Jesse brings the meth to Tuco, Tuco is a little suspicious. He asks Jesse, "Who do you work for?," with this very leery look on his face. Recall, Tuco just got out of jail, and though I'm sure you're right, Tuco being a larger player than Krazy-8, I'm sure that Tuco was just now getting the new lay of land, as much as he was suspicious in general way, as drug dealers are wont to be. Indeed, he asks Jesse to sample the meth, whereupon Jesse informs Tuco that he's no cop.

    Here's the really interesting bit, though: After beating Jesse's ass, Tuco yells out, "Nobody works in the South Valley but me, bitch!" Now, the South Valley of Albuquerque is a section, or suburb, of the Albuquerque Metropolitan Statistical Area, composed of 80% Hispanics. So, yes, it's a part of Gus' area, but it's still rather small - street-level, if you will - probably larger than Krazy-8's territory, but I'm assuming on the same level. Why? Well, remember when Walt brought out a map of the whole area, with the plot to sling meth on a street-level? Walt had all the crews marked out, and their territories, with the help of Jesse and crew (one could only assume that, too). The goal was to take over each area, bit-by-bit, until Skinny Pete got ganked by one lovely couple, and a lot of that fell apart. What gets me, though, is everybody has to kick up to somebody. Jesse kicked up to Krazy-8, the hoods who killed Combo kicked up to Gus, Nacho is supposed to be kicking up to Tuco, but he's not, then who does Tuco kick up to? Gus? I mean, it's not without reason that Tuco could be totally rogue...and completely rogue, because he knows that Gus can't touch him because of Gus' deal with the cartel...so, this speaks to your quoted post. Personally, I think Tuco was pulling a Nacho and there's not a damn thing Gus could do about it.

    Still, it's good to know that Tuco is, indeed, running a small region, from the horses mouth, as it were.

    What does this have to do with BCS? Not a damn thing that I can think of. :blah:
     
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  12. ubiknik

    ubiknik Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago, IL USA
    I think Tuco's higher ups were the people on the other side of the border, the same people Gus had a tenuous relationship with and that he was trying to undermine/destroy. But honestly it's all a bit hazy to me -I don't remember a reference to Tuco having been incarcerated prior to his introduction in the show.
    I do know that the story of Nacho should be interesting...
     
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  13. JimW

    JimW In the Process of Becoming

    Location:
    Charlottesville VA
    There's your answer right there. ^ All this speculation is anticipating being shown more detail into the BB universe. Doesn't conflict w/ speculating on what will happen to Jimmy/Kim/Mike et al.
     
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  14. Deesky

    Deesky Forum Resident

    Emotion (heart) is definitely a large pull factor. But for tension to exist there must be a counterbalancing push factor, which is where the intellectual (head) factor comes in.

    We saw last season how he fought to do the right thing because his head was telling him that he should do so and to make his brother proud (before he found out about his betrayal), while still slippin' up by doing what's in his heart.

    To be or not to be (speaking of the classics!) - to stay on the straight and narrow and use his smarts for good, but also be bored stiff by it, or to walk a crooked line using his smarts for scams and have a blast doing it?

    It's a fine balance, and as has been astutely mentioned before, Jimmy's at a stage now where he thinks he can have it both ways. It won't take much to destroy that equilibrium though.
     
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  15. Yeah, the peeps on the other side of the border are the aforementioned cartel, who carved out a large territory for Gus to run meth. We know Gus doesn't like the cartel because they killed his boyfriend; still, Gus has little choice as a large scale earner.

    Chain of command would mean Tuco would kick up to Gus, but I think this was circumvented by Tuco's blood relation to the cartel.

    Yeah, Skinny Pete shared a cell in prison with Tuco.
     
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  16. ubiknik

    ubiknik Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago, IL USA
    I know Michael Mando (Nacho) hails from Quebec and was in a goofy but fun sci fi show called Orphan Black not too long ago.
    [​IMG] [​IMG]
    [​IMG]
     
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  17. jwoverho

    jwoverho Licensed Drug Dealer

    Location:
    Mobile, AL USA
    Went back and watched first season in anticipation of season 2. It's not BB, but the emotional weight these characters carry due to their BB connection, along with the continuing high standards of Vince Gilligan and Co. have made BCS a terrific series. Odenkirk has done an amazing job bringing all the conflicting emotions of Jimmy McGill to life. It's also great to see someone taking advantage of Michael McKean's talents.
     
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  18. stereoptic

    stereoptic Anaglyphic GORT Staff Thread Starter

    Location:
    NY
    I may be a little slow here, as others may have come to the same conclusion already, but thinking back on season one I wonder if it was Chuck, not Howard, who wanted Jimmy to take the McGill name off of the matchbook (which prompted Jimmy's billboard stunt).
     
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  19. EddieMann

    EddieMann I used to be a king...

    Location:
    Geneva, IL. USA.
    My wife just asked me (and perhaps its been noted here previously, but I don't remember), who is this Rebecca Bois who's name is written on the sheet music Chuck is playing in the episode's opening?
     
  20. Hot Ptah

    Hot Ptah Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    Kansas City, MO
    Ah, we don't know that yet. That is a mystery which will hopefully be uncovered in future episodes. We have speculated about it in earlier posts. It could be a major part of Season 2, to find out about Chuck's past and this mysterious Rebecca.

    I wonder if the name Bois, which means wood in French, has any double meaning. Or does her first name tie into the novel and later Hitchcock film, "Rebecca", in some subtle way. Anything is possible with this show.
     
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  21. Hot Ptah

    Hot Ptah Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    Kansas City, MO
    I don't think that we have specifically discussed the matchbook. That is an interesting idea, that Chuck is behind each and every effort by the HHM firm to thwart Jimmy, big and small.
     
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  22. mpayan

    mpayan A Tad Rolled Off

    Rebecca .....Sir Brian De-Bois Guilbert........

    Its an Ivanhoe connection!

    Kim will turn out to be the Rebecca accused of some horrible thing while getting into some big scheme with Jimmy.
    And Jimmy is Locksley (the Robin Hood of the show).

    Ivan-HO beeeeeeeahtch!!
     
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  23. stereoptic

    stereoptic Anaglyphic GORT Staff Thread Starter

    Location:
    NY
    I am wondering if any of this may tie in with the detail that the amc website alluded to ("Sicilienne" by Gabriel Faure (1893) was commissioned for the opera Pelleas and Melisande, which tells the story of a man who discovers that his wife is in love with his brother). In one of the Breaking Bad episodes, Saul tells Walt that he divorced his second wife after he found her sleeping with his step father. Maybe he had bad luck the first time around also, this time attribute to his brother? I thought that he made a reference to his wife another time in the series?
    But on second thought that would contradict Jimmy's devotion to Chuck and his attention to his 'ailment' (which may have been influenced by a legal case in New Mexico) . :shrug:
     
  24. Hot Ptah

    Hot Ptah Forum Resident In Memoriam

    Location:
    Kansas City, MO
    Or maybe it is the other way around--Chuck's wife was in love with Jimmy? That would help to explain Chuck's betrayal of Jimmy. There would be a reason for it beyond Chuck's feeling that Jimmy is unfit as an attorney.

    That is great investigative work, finding that New Mexico case involving a man who seems to be like Chuck.
     
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  25. stereoptic

    stereoptic Anaglyphic GORT Staff Thread Starter

    Location:
    NY
    That makes more sense. Jimmy may not have even been aware that she was in love with him, which would further explain why Jimmy doesn't understand why Chuck resents him (beyond the fact that he got his degree in Samoa (?), not a prestigious college).
     
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