We’re learning English with TV today. I asked you
what movies and TV you wanted to study for English and you said “Breaking Bad”.
Today’s clip is an intense scene that was recommended by one of my followers
on Instagram, thank you for suggesting this scene.
It’s got some great phrases to study. As always, if you like this video or
you learn something new, give it a thumbs up and subscribe with notifications. Thank you so much.
First, let’s look at the scene together. As we watch, you’ll see on-screen the words we
will pull out to study together. If you’re not familiar with the storyline, here are the basics.
Walt is a high school chemistry teacher. He was diagnosed with cancer and money got really tight.
If money gets tight, that means you don’t have a lot of money. It’s hard to pay all your bills.
So he ended up making the street drug meth. Turns out with his chemistry background,
he’s really good at it. He became powerful and important, this changed him. Now his wife, Skyler,
she knows he’s got into something but she doesn’t know the whole picture.
She wants to involve the police in an attempt to get Walt out of the situation. Here’s the scene.
Walt, I’ve said it before. If you are in danger, we go to the police.
No, no, I don’t want to hear about the police!
I do not say that lightly. I know what it could do to this family. But if it’s the only
real choice we have, if it’s either that or you getting shot when you walk in your front door
I don’t want to hear about the police!
You’re not some hardened criminal Walt! You are in over your head.
That’s what we tell them! That’s the truth!
No, it’s not the truth.
Of course, it is! A school teacher cancer desperate for money?
Okay, we’re done.
Roped into working for, unable to even quit? You told me that yourself Walt.
Jesus, what was I thinking?
Walt, please, let’s both of us stop trying to justify this whole thing
and admit you’re in danger.
Who are you talking to right now?
Who is it you think you see?
Do you know how much I make a year?
I mean if I told you, you wouldn’t believe it.
Do you know what would happen if I suddenly decided to stop going into work?
A business big enough that it could be listed on the NASDAQ goes belly up, disappears! It
ceases to exist without me, no. You clearly don’t know who you’re talking to so let me clue you in.
I am not in danger Skyler, I am
the danger. A guy opens his door and get shot, you think that was me? No.
I am the one who knocks!
Intense right? Now, let’s look at some of the phrases we learned. Skyler tells Walt he’s not
a hardened criminal. What is a hardened criminal? Hardened has a couple of different meanings. It
means unlikely to change, it means someone who is toughened by seeing a lot of horrible stuff.
For example, a war reporter might be hardened. He isn’t as affected anymore with all the suffering.
A hardened criminal is a criminal that doesn’t have remorse,
doesn’t feel bad for what he does. He’s used to that way of life.
Skyler is saying, sure Walt is doing something illegal but he kind of slipped into this crime
because of his circumstances. He doesn’t want to continue, he doesn’t want to be a criminal.
She doesn’t quite understand his circumstances, does she?
She thinks of him as being a nice guy. A chemistry teacher trying to do the right thing.
You’re not some hardened criminal Walt!
You are in over your head. That’s what we tell them, that’s the truth!
No, it’s not the truth.
She uses the phrase “In over your head”.
This is an idiom that means a situation has gotten too complicated for you to handle.
When I was in college, I tested out at first year Physics. And they put me in an
upper-level Physics class my freshman year. But I really didn’t get it. I was definitely in over my
head so I dropped that class. I actually thought I want to be a Physics major but even just one
week of that class was enough to change my mind. I was so in over my head. Let’s see that clip again.
You’re not some hardened criminal Walt! You are in over your head.
That’s what we tell them, that’s the truth!
No it’s not the truth.
Walt doesn’t like that she sees him as weak. She goes on describing.
A school teacher cancer desperate for money?
Okay, we’re done.
Roped into working for, unable to even quit?
Roped into working. If you’re roped into something, it means
you were made to do something you didn’t really want to do. Or you agreed to do something you
didn’t actually want to do because someone kept pestering you or you felt bad saying no.
Can you think of something you were roped into lately? Anything you think you couldn’t say no to.
I really do my best at this point in life not to get
roped into things. I’ve gotten a lot better into saying no, sorry I can’t do that.
Skyler thinks Walt fell into this job because of his circumstances and that he’s trapped in
it. He feels that he can’t quit. He got roped into position and he can’t make it change.
Walt doesn’t like her having this picture of him.
A school teacher cancer desperate for money?
Okay, we’re done.
Roped into working for, unable to even quit?
Let’s keep going.
Jesus, what was I thinking?
Walt, please, let’s both of us stop
trying to justify this whole thing and admit you’re in danger.
If you justify something, you explain why you did it. It’s your reason. We justified
buying expensive champagne because we were celebrating our anniversary.
Or, the punishment wasn’t justified. What the kid did wasn't really all that bad.
Skyler wants him to quit justifying Walt making drugs. They were justifying it because he was
really sick. They really needed money. It was tempting to justify doing something wrong
that made a lot of money. But she’s tired of making excuses for it. Of
coming up with reasons why it’s okay to do it. She doesn’t feel okay doing it anymore.
Who are you talking to right now?
Who is it you think you see?
Do you know how much I make a year?
I mean if I told you, you wouldn’t believe it.
Do you know what would happen if I suddenly decided to stop going into work?
A business big enough that it could be listed on the NASDAQ goes belly up.
Listed on the NASDAQ.
The NASDAQ is an electronic marketplace for buying and selling securities. An index that investors
can track. It's like the Dow. Is it down? is it up? Did it crash? Did we lose all our savings?
Walt is saying the company he works for, the secret company
making and selling all the meth is huge. So profitable,
so much money. It’s equal to the companies listed on the NASDAQ. If he quits, it goes belly up.
We use this phrase to describe a business or organization
when it can’t make it financially anymore. When it goes bankrupt or it has to close
down. A lot of business went belly up in the pandemic. Where does this phrase come from?
Think of a fish. If it’s dead, it floats in the water on its side or belly up.
Do you know what would happen if I suddenly decided to stop going into work?
A business big enough that it could be listed on the NASDAQ goes belly up, disappears! It
ceases to exist without me, no. You clearly don’t know who you’re talking to so let me clue you in.
Wow. I do not want to make Walt mad. Let me clue you in. This means let me help you understand
something you don’t understand. Let me give you the information you’re missing. So, you can use
it as a phrasal verb. Why are you so upset? Let me clue you in. But also as an adjective.
I’m not clued in. Or, he’s really clued in to the kinds of toys kids like. He gets it.
You clearly don’t know who you’re talking to so let me clue you in.
I am not in danger Skyler, I am
the danger. A guy opens his door and get shot, you think that was me? No.
I am the one who knocks!
I’m the one who knocks. He’s the one on the other side of the door knocking.
Not the one inside in danger which is her idea of him. He set her straight. He’s
clued her in. She has no idea who he is or what he is doing.
Have you seen this show? I watched it a few years ago and I really liked it. Violence, graphic,
I didn’t like that part but I did love how the characters change and the situations evolved.
Now, pick a scene from TV or movies,
put it in the comments below. What other clips would you like to study English with?
Thank you so much for learning with me. Keep it going now with this video and don’t forget to
subscribe with notifications. I make new videos every Tuesday and I love to see you back here.
That’s it and thanks so much for using Rachel’s English.