Jackie Brown: One Worth Betting on

Isaac Rexford ENG 1102M Spenser Simrill Jackie Brown: One Worth Betting On The film Jackie Brown begins with a predominant focus on Jackie herself, one of the film’s main characters by a panning shot following Jackie in the first scene. Jackie’s initial focus is very much related to the film’s plot. As the plot develops, Jackie finds herself in the center of a situation where a guns sells man (Ordell) refuses to let Jackie run her mouth to the authorities, while the authorities already know all about Ordell’s business and simply want a name from Jackie due to the fact they have been unable to arrest Ordell due to his unknown identity.
But getting just a name is not that simple; and, Jackie’s no fool. She hatches an intricate plot of her own not only to protect herself from the authorities and prevent future incarceration, but in order to steal Ordell’s $500 thousand fortune. In a surprising turn of events, Jackie’s ability to negotiate and get what is in her favor really demonstrates the power Jackie has invested in herself to get what she wants. Jackie’s Trouble From The Start From the start the audience is made aware that Jackie had it in with Ordell the first time she is confronted by two detectives, Nicolet and Dargus.
They take her in for questioning like normal, already having some knowledge of Ordell, but all they want from Jackie is a name. The camera itself emphasizes the scene with an array of close-ups of Jackie and the two detectives as they carry on this conversation in this first scene. The two parties, Jackie and the detectives, are battling back and forth; Jackie resisting their every attempt to seize information from her. This unfortunate meeting leads Jackie to meet a fellow named Max, who assists her in her real goal: getting Ordell’s fortune.

But for now she is happy to get the detectives off her back and on to her next problem: Ordell. The time finally arrives and one evening after a meeting with Max Jackie comes into a confrontation with Ordell. Like stated earlier, Jackie is no fool and picked up a pistol from Max, if my suspicion’s correct, in case the conversation between her and Ordell became a little heated. In the confrontation the lights are off and the audience is not able to see a single thing; but the conversation between the two continues loud and clear. Jackie’s Power Jackie’s first show of power is shown in the scene where Ordell comes to “visit. Jackie had caught on that Ordell was the one who murdered Beaumont so she steals a pistol from Max. Above, a closeup is shown of Max just realizing his pistol had been taken. It is confirmed he knew it was Jackie at the time as he shows up knocking on her door the next day. This screen shot shows the true power of Jackie, that she is willing to do anything to get what she wants. In the split image, Jackie is seen in the darkness with Ordell’s hand around her throat. At that moment she presses a gun steadily against Ordell’s penis, as he says “It feels like a gun pressed against my dick. Later in the scene Jackie essentially interrogates Ordell, with a gun pointed to his face the entire time. The image above displays the transition of power between Jackie and Ordell, in this case Jackie stripping Ordell of his. Jackie continues to keep the gun pointed to Ordell as she, by change of plan, questions him instead. As it plays out, Ordell is now the one with a gun pointed to his dome and his hands up high in defense. Jackie astonishingly creates a turn of events from this scene alone; she essentially takes the authority from Ordell and places it in her own hands to aid in her own plot: getting Ordell’s money.
Jackie’s methods of achieving this, however were the most cunning and sneaky among the best. Jackie really lures Ordell into a trap and uses the element of surprise to sneak the gun on him; at the time speaking with a soft voice, alleviating Ordell of all his suspicion so that he would come close to Jackie thinking she wasn’t a threat; as it is shown he was terribly mistaken! As shown in the image above, Jackie sits with her feet facing away from Ordell and closed, with the gun in her hand, resting on her knees and the gun pointed straight ahead at Ordell.
In conclusion, Jackie’s persona is demonstrated very well in the character. Jackie really does serve as an example of a hard working black woman who’s just trying to live comfortably in society. Furthermore, the film itself really helps the audience notice these facts, with its use of closeups and panning during eventful scenes in the film. Regarding this one select scene as the most important, the movie itself shows a transition of power and authority from the main characters who first held the authority like Ordell and Lewis for example, to characters like Jackie who hold the power up towards the end.