I was among the “Breaking Bad” faithful who reacted with a shruggy meh when news of a sequel movie broke last year — feeling it was unnecessary after such a satisfying conclusion to AMC’s landmark drama, which ended in September 2013 and spawned the excellent prequel series “Better Call Saul” shortly thereafter.

My opinion hasn’t changed much after watching “El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie,” premiering Friday on Netflix and opening in select theaters. It’s fine, if not a little too long at two hours — but for “Breaking Bad” fans jonesing for something, anything, connected to the chronological time frame of their beloved series, it should do the trick.

The secrecy surrounding “El Camino” was such that critics were not allowed to screen the movie until this past Wednesday and Thursday. I’m guessing that was due, in part, to possible spoilers leaking out ahead of time. Suffice it to say that nothing spoiler-y will be revealed here, other than to say that “Breaking Bad” fans won’t be disappointed if they’re feeling sentimental and nostalgic for the good old “Bad” days.

It might help for fans to re-watch the series’ 2013 finale before digging into “El Camino,” since it picks up immediately after Walter White’s (Bryan Cranston) apocalyptic orgy of machine-gun violence, which unleashed holy hell on his enemies in Albuquerque — but, much to the relief of series fans, spared his onetime partner in crime Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul), who morphed from doofus to hardened criminal over the course of “BB” yet somehow retained an inner core of decency through all the muck, mire and murder.

“El Camino” is, in effect, Jesse’s story post-Walter White. It shifts back and forth from past to present, going from the days leading up to Walter’s MacGyver-style bloodbath from Jesse’s point of view — he’s being held captive like a caged animal by vanilla-flavored psycho Todd (Jesse Plemons, reprising his role) — to a scarred, bearded Jesse suffering from PTSD after being freed by Walter and plotting his next move as a wanted man with few options watching his predicament play out on local TV newscasts.

The movie plays like an extended episode of “Breaking Bad” (it’s written and directed by series creator Vince Gilligan) and occasionally dips into both its well of dark humor (“I see pastel, but in a good way,” Jesse opines when Todd brags about his apartment’s color scheme) and its innovative cinematography with unexpected and interesting camera angles abetting the on-screen action. There are several edge-of-your-seat scenes but “El Camino” also lags in spots that feel like time fillers.

I like the way that “El Camino” references “Breaking Bad” through indirect elements, sometimes only as background noise, so pay attention for a few Easter eggs dropped along the way. Paul hasn’t missed a beat in his portrayal of Jesse and shines here when handed the starring reins and asked to carry a sequel movie burdened, perhaps, by too-hopeful expectations from a loyal fan base. But when all is said and done, “El Camino” doesn’t add much to the “Breaking Bad” canon.

Sometimes you just need to walk away from a good thing.