Movie: Nobody (2021)

I'm a Bob Odenkirk fan. I have been since seeing him on "Mr. Show" in the mid 90s. It's one of those shows geeks like me want to recite to each other, like Monty Python or early "Saturday Night Live". We know it's annoying but there's some primal, genetic urge to repeat the words that filled us with so much joy. We want to participate in it, not just spectate.

When he showed up in "Breaking Bad" I was thrilled. I thought it was a wonderful bit of stunt casting, to get Bob Odenkirk, famous for such a specific kind of over the top smarminess, to play this ambulance chasing lawyer. That joy grew as he became a major figure in the show. Now more people would see how great he was. And hey, he was doing a bit more than just the obvious comedy stuff. He was filling in the caricature of Saul Goodman with a real person.

After "Breaking Bad", the news broke that he would be in a spinoff. I tried not to get my hopes up. That's the kind of thing that seems like a dream come true, and usually isn't. But it was. "Better Call Saul" is, so far, one of my favorite TV shows ever. I've never seen a relationship like Kim and Jimmy on screen before. I'm still trying not to get my hoper too high for the finale.

Last month the trailers for "Nobody" started playing before every movie I saw at the Drafthouse. It was promised as a John Wick-esque movie starring Bob Odenkirk. I've only seen one John Wick movie, the third one, and I was not impressed. It was like watching someone else play a first person shooter, a pastime that has never appealed to me. But I could see the elevator pitch appeal: celebrated comedian brings quirky charm to ultraviolent shoot em up. I had to watch it, but I was prepared to be unimpressed.

The trailers do not do this movie justice. It is near perfect. The editing is just tight enough to feel like you are only watching the good parts without confusing old fogeys like me. The fight scenes are readable - you know where the characters are in relation to each other and their environment, you know the story being told by each one, who is winning and losing, and they are filled with comic flourishes.

The trailer also portrays this as a simple revenge story, but it isn't. Sure, he wants his daughter's kitty cat bracelet, but that's just an excuse. The character understand that about himself. It's really a mid-life crisis story, where our hero realizes he was happier as a mass murderer and is willing to sacrifice the placid family life he has created as an alternative to mass murder.

I hope this spawns at least one sequel. There were scenes I hoped for after the credits that did not show up, and now I want them to set up "Nobody Kills Again".

Also, thank you to the Drafthouse pre-show reel compilers for including the ad for Mundee's Mustmayostardayonnaise.