Over five seasons, we see Walter White go from the timid teacher struggling to do whatever he can for his family, to the ruthless monster who'll do anything it takes to protect his empire, and, like with everything we've seen so far, while some of the credit for this remarkable on-screen transition is down to the writers, a heck of a lot must go to Cranston as well. As mentioned in the previous entry, you can see the way Walter carries himself, hunched over. Gradually he grows into a far more confident figure, and that's evidenced in the way he walks, and the way he talks. Gone is any sense of worry or nervousness, instead he's a commanding, authoritarian figure. One key element of this is the popular theory that Walt takes on traits of the victims he kills. For example, he murders Krazy-8, and starts cutting the crusts off his sandwiches, or starts taking ice in his drinks like Mike. While that isn't confirmed, one person Cranston did take something from was Gus. No, not the car he drives, or putting a towel down before throwing up, but in his body language - that coldness and stillness that makes Gus seem so threatening. And that came from Cranston, who said that he "wanted to plant a subliminal thing with the audience." It obviously worked, and is part of the way he created two incredibly compelling characters at the same time. What else did Bryan Cranston bring to the role of Walter White to make Breaking Bad awesome? Share any more down in the comments.
NCTJ-qualified journalist. Most definitely not a racing driver. Drink too much tea; eat too much peanut butter; watch too much TV. Sadly only the latter paying off so far.
A mix of wise-old man in a young man's body with a child-like wonder about him and a great otherworldly sensibility.
