Law In Culture Review
Benjamin Cordova
The piece of media Iâve chosen for my âLaw in Cultureâ review is âBetter Call Saulâ a television drama by the famous director Vince Gilligan who is well known for his award-winning show âBreaking Badâ That âBetter call Saulâ is the prequel to. The show ran from 2015-2022 like its counterpart âBreaking Badâ and had a lot of the same actors involved just telling more of their backstory. Both shows are on Netflix and made by the same team of writers and directors giving both the shows the same treatment and respect from the fans.
The story of âBetter call Saulâ is a prequel to the lawyer character âSaul Goodmanâ from âBreaking Badâ in which he is a side character. The story follows directly after the events of âBreaking Badâ where we see Saul working at a Cinnabon in black in white with a new identity and in a different state like he said he would be at the end of the series âBreaking Badâ. Saul is on the run from the DEA (Drug Enforcement Administration) for representing the infamous âWalter Whiteâ (the main character from âBreaking Badâ) and helping him rise in power as drug kingpin in Albuquerque New Mexico. The story then shifts to flash backs to Jimmy Mc gill who was Saul’s previous name before the events of breaking bad. As we are introduced to Jimmy, we see him as a struggling public defender representing clients in losing cases and follows him as he struggles through his day of being a broke public defender wearing old suits and driving a small old car with mismatching doors. We also see Jimmy compare himself to other lawyers by looking at the way they dress or what they eat for lunch as he eats his bag of chips and his dollar coffee. At the end of his day, we see him go back to his office in the back of a nail salon that is a small, cramped space with a desk and a sofa that folds into a futon, and we discover that he also sleeps there. The next day we see him stop by his brother’s house who is a rich successful lawyer that is a third of the firm âHamlin, Hamlin and Mc gillâ but who has a mental condition that makes him think he is allergic to electricity and forced him to remove anything electric in his house or else he has a mental breakdown. When Jimmy walks in we can see that he cares a lot about his Chucks opinion of him because he lies about his career as a lawyer is going because his brother chuck is bound to his home because of his made-up condition that he gave himself. As they speak you get a sense of Jimmy wanting his brothers respect but also the feeling that he is living in his shadow because of the way Jimmy conducts his career because he cuts corners and is a âCRIMINAL lawyer not a criminal lawyerâ as in Jimmy breaks laws to win cases. Jimmy gets his way because he has a talent for being a con man unlike his brother who is very by the book and can sense when Jimmy is doing the wrong thing and becoming âSlipping Jimmyâ (A nick name that Jimmy that his brother gave him before his brother helped him start his law career). Before passing the bar and getting help from, his brother Jimmy was always getting arrested and was a con man and it will always be a part of him even as a lawyer.
An example of legal concepts addressed in this show is the idea of ethics because of the way that our main character Jimmy likes to bend the law and find ways around dealing with the law. An example being when Jimmy forged legal documents that his brother had filled out purposely changing the information on the documents to incorrect information. In doing this he got his brother thrown from the case because of the clients getting upset and asking he be removed from the case because of his fake condition and the mistakes that Jimmy purposely forged. Another example of a breach of ethics in this show is when Jimmy paid 2 young skaters who were trying to scam him to jump Infront of an old woman’s car and threaten to call the police because she hit them so he could get black mail on her for a case they were both involved in. Another example is when he knowingly forced a case to settle using his connections with the victims who were old of age by lying to them because in the closing of the case, he would get a piece of the money that was won in the case.
My reaction to the show was excitement because of love for the director and his past work but what I’ve got from the show was an accurate representation of the legal field having to do with clients and cases in every episode. Ethics was also a major thing that I got from the show since our main character is constantly breaking them because he doesn’t care for them and just wants to con his way to success by the end of the show but at what cost. Watching this show spiked my interest of the legal field even though most of the ideas are very dramatized I still found the whole legal system interesting and seeing other character that followed the ethics be so invested in their cases and life inside their law firm.
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Goodfellas is a very well known movie that takes place here in New York City, The film was released September 19,1990 in the USA. The movie is directed by Martin Scorsese. Goodfellas details the rise and fall of a Brooklyn teenage Henry hill and friends. Laced with heavy violence and drug activity goodfellas still invoked the sympathy for fir a younger whom just wanted success and a good life. While feeling sorry for some of the characters, my own moral standards triggered still, and an urge for the end of lawlessness in this piece I waited for.
Henry Hill, a young New Yorker in the late 1950s, born into an Irish/ Italian working class family. It appeared to be a stable home .It also appeared Henry was encouraged and enforced by his father to focus on school. Yet Henry looked up to theâ wise guysâ in his neighborhood. Henry admired their suits, cars and personas. Henry and others of his neighborhood found their local wise guys to be stand up members of the community. From afar Henry idolized these men and imagines they had developed in NYC. Soon Henry found himself working at his idol’s cab stand. His parents initially liked the fact their son was earning an honest living to their knowledge. Initially. Henryâs job was supposed to be a partime job, but as Henry worked and hung around the cab stand he spend less and less time in school. Now that Henry has basically stopped attending school to become a fulltime wise guy in training. All while Henryâs parents assumed he was in school ,he was In Fact learning what it meant to be a wise guy. Henry slow began to understand why his idols was allowed to park at fire hydrants, and not receive a ticket. Why these gangsters he looked up too was so well respected. The closer he becomes with his locks the more intertwined he become with crime. As he Henry launches his criminal career and endorses he also make a name for himself.
As time goes by Henry begins to achieve the gangster status he admired immensely about his idols. Finally being part of the inner circle Henry began to indulge in the lifestyle he dreamed of living. Now being able to afford suits from the âscoresâ he gained, Henry’s new persona caught the attention of his parents, mainly his father who opposed it to no avail. As Henry enhances his skills in criminal activity he also gets married and has children. At this point the many ruthless crimes which include theft, extortion, distribution of illegal drugs across state lines, insurance fraud and murder, and not to mention a nasty cocaine habit. Suddenly white enjoying the fruits of his illegal labor, he is arrested and sentenced to prison after the feds find drugs in his home.I would think this would be the moment he smartened up and made better life decisions, not only for himself but for his wife and children. If not for his family then perhaps for his girlfriend whom he started having an affair with while dealing drugs. Yet Henry returned from his jail sentence even more determined to life Achieve his goal. Not only does he return to crime and his wise guy lifestyle, he participates in the biggest score of his life, which includes a heist at NYC JFK airport. Although the heist when off without any problems and our movies gangbangers made off with millions of stolen dollars,
The authorities were closing in on the crew who just could keep things together within itself. Whether out of paranoia or greed, wiseguys turned against each other and murder each other. Finally the authorities had Henry testify against his gang mates for immunity. What motivated Henry was fear his gang mates would kill him to cover their own tracks or perhaps out of greed. Ultimately Henry and his family helps the government put his partners on crime away in prison, while they relocate in witness protection.
In my opinion Henry was born into a family who struggled financially and he dreamed of a successful life and happiness. Perhaps Henry saw those qualities in the mobsters he idolized growing up. If those criminals were the only major role models for success, it could explain a lot. It seems to me Henry just wanted the finer things in life and was lead down the wrong path to obtain those things. I also believe if his parents had better opportunities perhaps they could have provided him better opportunities in life. Although Henry wasnât the worst character in the film he was the most focused on and his character reminded me of many others storylines was similar in my own lifetime. As a black man in American many opportunities are present , yet we are often overlooked. Many black men in lower income or minority communities are systematically targeted and oppressed by our government, society and etc. these issues many earning an honest living hard especially if your reputation has been destroyed before you even become legally old enough to pursue any career. In My opinion after being only the second generation who can participate in a more fair education system, generational curses are hard to break.although Henry isnât a descendent of oppressed enslaved African Americans, he represents a sensitive disenfranchisement . I felt he and others who turned to crime felt left behind by our nation. I felt they choose to break the law more and more because the gain seems more than the risk.