Aaron Wolff
Mrs. Kolb
Intro to Film
11 May 2026
Unlike typical fast paced, hard boiled crime films, Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown is extremely carefully constructed, with dialog and the slow, methodical, if at times repetitive scenes, all helping to build up an appreciation of all the characters, and the individuals motivations within the crime. Therefore it appears to be a film which is based around dialogue and trivial decisions, rather than traditional film devices. This also allows for Jackie’s character to develop, although in reality she is caught up in a web and hence trapped, in her own head she is actively searching for a way to escape it.
Jackie herself is quite observative; the fact that she is in danger from two sides of the law, and the actual crime itself, does not appear to intimidate her. She listens, she thinks and uses other characters to her advantage, in particular the fact that they do not realize the grip she has on them. She has become a nontraditional criminal figure in that respect, and it is Jackie who appears to be in control and thinking ahead, becoming more powerful than Ordell or the police alike during the clash between the two halves.
The use of dialog is obviously fundamental to the film, the simple chatting and bantering actually holds underlying hidden agendas and overtones that do not openly get stated, thus keeping the viewer constantly guessing at what is actually being conveyed. The pacing of the film is of equal importance, rather than just speeding along towards the most prominent aspects of the plot as most action movies tend to do, this movie builds tension and confusion between important developments. The character of Jackie herself is similar, she is playing the long game. The suspense is built from not spectacular shoot outs or adrenaline pumping car chases but from the expectation of, and fear of being cheated.
Hence, it seems that it is not the crime but rather the psychological aspect of the crime which is dominant within the film, Jackie is not the crime.