Breaking Bad | Fast Lane Film

The Medellin drug cartel (helmed by notorious kingpin Pablo Escobar) at its pique flooded the U.S. with approximately half a billion dollars worth of cocaine per week in the mid 1980s, under the approving eye of the American government. This was all very clandestine at the time, but in recent years it has become accepted political history rather than mere fodder for conspiracy theorists. Television shows like Netflix’s Narcos and films like last year’s Kill the Messenger have pulled back the curtain on Escobar’s notorious exploits and the subsequent fallout, respectively. The Infiltrator, starring Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), offers a unique glimpse into the American effort to bring down Escobar’s empire.

If you’ve seen The Wire, you will recall that Detective Lester Freamon made a breakthrough in his drug case against Stringer Bell and Avon Barksdale after he stopped following the drugs and started following the money. U.S. Customs Agent Robert Mazur (Cranston) applies the same logic to bringing down Escobar. After his undercover efforts yield middling results, he switches his strategy, making inroads with perimeter players in Escobar’s network, particularly those who launder the ill-gotten proceeds of his trade. He goes undercover using the alias Bob Musella, operating as money launderer between Escobar’s associates and foreign financial institutions.

Fellow agent Amir Abreu (John Leguizamo, Ice Age: Collision Course) makes the appropriate introductions, and soon “Musella” is in. Their circle includes informants, criminals, and assorted lowlifes, and the stakes for Mazur could not be higher. He could’ve opted for retirement, but instead he dives even deeper into the underworld. A devoted family man, he maintains his integrity at the expense of his operation, while his marriage becomes increasingly strained. Slowly, methodically Mazur works his way up the food chain, with each new player getting him closer and closer to Escobar’s principal launderers. Cranston and director Brad Furman (Runner Runner, The Lincoln Lawyer) perfectly capture the tortuous duality of the undercover agent’s double life and its attendant betrayal.

Cranston does an outstanding job, infusing Mazur with dogged tenacity masking an omnipresent air of frustration and guilt. However, the most subtly revelatory performance might have come from John Leguizamo in his supporting role as the cocksure Abreu. I always appreciate the little non-verbal nuances actors bring to their roles, and Leguizamo did not disappoint. Whether a slight flicker in the eyes or a nearly imperceptible shudder, his performance bubbled with realism. Both he and Cranston shone brightest when their humanity conflicted with the tasks at hand, whether it was complicity in a murder or the need to befriend and then betray. I appreciated the film for its excellent performances and original perspective on a familiar story. The Infiltrator does not disappoint. Grade: A-

I like to remain open-minded about my film experiences, and sometimes I take a more cerebral approach to my cinematic choices by occasionally venturing beyond my comfort zone. But when all else fails, stick with what you know. When I saw the trailer for Triple 9, I knew this was my type of movie. Reminiscent of movies such as Training Day and Street Kings, Triple 9 promised a gritty look into the seedy world of corrupt law enforcement and the criminals to whom they are indebted. Featuring a talented cast including the likes of Chiwetel Ejiofor (Secret in Their Eyes, The Martian) and Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs), my curiosity was sufficiently piqued. It looked like the type of movie to fly under the radar, and sure enough my theater was sparsely populated.

I often say that movies are won and lost in their opening and closing sequences, and Triple 9 started with a literal bang and never let up. It begins in the back of a van, without about six men gearing up for what appears to be some type of tactical mission. Are they cops? A swat team? Bank robbers, or all of the above? They expertly execute a bank heist with precision, targeting only a singular safe deposit box. As they flee the scene of the crime and peel off their masks, we see that most of them are actually cops. They are lead by Michael Atwood (Ejiofor), ex-military private security, police officers Marcus Belmont (Anthony Mackie, The Night Before), Franco Rodriguez (Clifton Collins Jr., Transcendence), ex-cop Gabe Welch (Aaron Paul, Breaking Bad) and his brother Russell (Norman Reedus, The Walking Dead). The crooked bunch are working at the behest of the Russian mob, controlled by a very sinister Kate Winslet (Steve Jobs) as Irina Visalov, wife of an incarcerated Russian mobster.

Irina and Atwood’s relationship grows increasingly volatile after she ups the ante and insists they pull off another heist, this time from a Homeland Security facility – a nearly impossible feat. In a cruel stroke of genius, Rodriguez has a plan to divert local law enforcement’s attention while they pull of the job. When an officer goes down in the line of duty, his fellow brothers in blue respond immediately, citywide. Just as 187 is the police code for murder, 999 (triple 9) is the code for officer down, or in distress. If they can pull off a Triple 9, they can square things with Irina and walk away with a big payday. Stuck between the law and the mob, these crooked cops have their work cut out for them, leveraged to the hilt.

I enjoyed this movie for the simple reason that it was entertaining. There were some issues with pacing, as the movie wore on in its final act, but overall I enjoyed it because several scenes were nothing short of an adrenaline rush. The performances were mostly good, with Mackie and Ejiofor particularly bringing a convincing and conflicting emotionality to their roles. Winslet was as I’d never seen her, unnerving and vicious. The script faltered a bit here and there in terms of realism, but I mostly thought it was solid. You could say this was a poor man’s Training Day, and it won’t be remembered, but hey, I liked it! I give it a solid grade of: B