Faced with Jack's mature and skillful control of the scene, Hugo was calm and calculating as he laid a massive trap. But when he delivered that final line—"Can you explain that?"—nearly everyone on set turned to look at Jack, almost without exception.
In that brief exchange, not only did Hugo resist being pulled into Jack's rhythm, he actually countered with his own unique tempo. Their conversation wasn't particularly heated or intense, but this seemingly sparkless confrontation raised the tension on set to a breaking point.
It could be said that Hugo was completely in the zone.
"There never was a transfer order. Santiago wasn't going anywhere, was he, Colonel?" Daniel didn't give Colonel Jessep a chance to respond. He seized on the colonel's brief hesitation and immediately launched a fatal blow.
But this time, before Colonel Jessep could say a word, the prosecutor Jack stood up. "Objection, Your Honor. Clearly, Lieutenant Kaffee is attempting to defame a high-ranking naval officer, using this disrespectful stunt to achieve his aim. Your Honor, I request disciplinary action against Lieutenant Kaffee and ask that the court issue a formal apology to the witness."
The judge paused for a moment before saying, "Request denied." Jack wanted to protest further, but the judge cut him off directly. "Your objection has been noted." In other words, the judge wanted to hear Colonel Jessep's answer.
"Colonel?" Daniel pressed on, sensing this might be the breakthrough he was looking for. But Jessep showed no sign of panic. Instead, he actually smiled.
"You think this is funny, Colonel?" Daniel asked.
"No, not funny. Tragic," Colonel Jessep replied, completely unaffected by Daniel's tactics. "I have no damn clue. Maybe he likes waking up early. Maybe he likes packing in the morning. Maybe he didn't have any friends. I'm an educated man, but I'm afraid I can't answer a trivia question about William Santiago's morning routine." Jessep's tone remained calm and steady, still completely in control. "All I know is, he was scheduled to leave the base at 0600."
"Is that why I'm here? To answer these questions?" Jessep counterattacked. "The phone call and the duffel bag? Please, tell me what else you want to know, Lieutenant." Each word he spoke felt like a nail driven into Daniel's heart. Daniel's previously unwavering expression began to falter, as though on the verge of breaking. "This trial will determine the fate of two Marines. Tell me their lawyer isn't pinning everything on a phone record. Do you have any other questions, Counselor?"
Though Jessep's tone was measured, the weight of his words dominated the courtroom and crushed Daniel's momentum. Even Daniel's earlier rapid-fire questioning hadn't thrown him off. With just a few words, Jessep had unraveled all of Daniel's prior efforts.
Daniel hesitated. His amber eyes flickered. The confidence and determination in his gaze seemed to melt away. The firmness in his brow slowly softened. He didn't speak or show any particular emotion, but the confusion and hesitation in his eyes tugged at everyone's hearts.
Was this the moment Daniel crumbled? Was Hugo, facing the seasoned and unshakable Jack Nicholson, about to fall apart?
Without realizing it, everyone on set had become emotionally invested in Hugo. They were watching Daniel in the film but also Hugo the actor. Their emotions rose and fell with his performance.
What did this mean? It meant Hugo's performance was so convincing that it pulled everyone into the story. And in this head-to-head with Jack, he held his own matching him in presence and intensity, creating a scene that was utterly gripping.
But what Hugo felt at that moment was even more profound. He didn't feel the pressure of acting he felt the weight of two Marines' lives on his shoulders. Jessep's composure, in Hugo's eyes, was cold indifference to human life. Maybe Jessep believed his decisions were for the greater good but Hugo saw them as excuses. Excuses for hiding behind national duty while covering up the death of a young man named Santiago.
Hugo was angry and so Daniel was angry too.
Without realizing it, Hugo had fully merged with the character. He no longer needed to think deliberately about the performance. His real emotions flowed effortlessly into the role, producing exactly what the scene required.
So, just when everyone thought Daniel was about to give up just when Colonel Jessep stood up to arrogantly leave the courtroom—Daniel spoke and stopped him in his tracks.
"Sorry, I haven't excused you yet."
Faced with Jessep's overbearing presence, Daniel slowly lowered his voice, the chaos in his expression gathering once more. His amber eyes began to gleam. Even though the hand holding his water trembled slightly betraying his true emotions he still managed to smile. His aura began to rise once more.
"Colonel, is the earliest flight out of the base at 0600?" Daniel resumed his cross-examination, continuing with his plan. "There's no flight that left seven hours earlier and landed at Andrews at 2 a.m.?"
The judge was visibly annoyed by the repeated questioning and raised a concern. But Daniel had already regained his composure. He picked up two flight logs.
"Your Honor, these are the flight logs for Guantanamo and Andrews. There's no record of a flight leaving Guantanamo at 2300, and no record of one landing at Andrews at 2 a.m." He handed the logs to the prosecution and the judge. "The defense requests confirmation from both bases."
"What are you trying to prove?" the judge asked. "That a flight that never happened actually happened?"
"We believe it did, Your Honor," Daniel said confidently. "The defense requests to call Air Force personnel Omar and Rodriguez as witnesses. They were on duty at Andrews at 2 a.m. on the 7th." Naturally, the prosecution objected, but one of the defense attorneys stood up and cited the legal code to submit the request on the spot.
While both sides were arguing before the judge, Daniel stepped up to Jessep again calm, composed, confident but not confrontational. This time, Jessep lost his rhythm.
"This is ridiculous! For God's sake, check the damn logs!" Jessep's voice was filled with urgency and frustration. His pitch involuntarily rose, turning shrill.
"There's an Air Force team ready to confirm it, sir," Daniel replied coolly, further unbalancing Jessep. "Earlier you said you ordered Kendrick to tell his men not to touch Santiago. But was he clear on your orders? Could he have ignored them? Could he have forgotten? Could he have left the office thinking, 'The old man's wrong'? When Kendrick told them not to touch Santiago, could they have just brushed it off?"
Daniel's barrage of questions pushed Jessep over the edge.
"Have you ever served in an infantry unit, son? Ever been on the front lines? Ever put your life in another man's hands or had another man's life in yours?" Jessep shot back with a flurry of counter-questions. "We follow orders, son. We have to follow orders! People die if we don't. It's that simple. Do you get that?"
Jessep was clearly enraged by Daniel's questioning, his words biting with fury.
But Daniel stood firm. He raised his voice just slightly and deliberately slowed his speech, adding weight to every word.
"Before I call Omar and Rodriguez to the stand, I just have one more question. You said you ordered that Santiago not be touched and your orders are always followed," Daniel paused, then continued, each word heavy as a hammer, "So why was Santiago in danger?"
His voice didn't rise, but the slowed pace made each word hit like a blow to the chest. The quiet intensity built between his brow, radiating an invisible pressure.
"Why did he have to be transferred off the base?"
Colonel Jessep fell silent. After a moment's pause, he finally said, "Santiago was an unqualified team member. He was transferred…" But before he could finish, Daniel abruptly cut him off, his voice speeding up sharply, "But that's not what you said earlier. You said he had to be transferred because his life was in danger. I can read back the court record to you."
"I know what I said! I don't need you to remind me!" Colonel Jessep gave up explaining, directly following Daniel's line of questioning with a rebuttal.
But Daniel once again interrupted Jessep, his voice steady and fierce like a tiger charging down a mountain, "Why were there two orders, Colonel?"
Under Daniel's relentless pressure, Colonel Jessep began to lose his composure. "Sometimes subordinates act on their own initiative."
"You made it very clear your men do not act on their own initiative!" Daniel stepped forward, pressing him with rapid-fire questions. His amber eyes sent chills down everyone's spine. "They follow orders. Otherwise, people die! So tell me, was Santiago actually in danger or not?"
"You insolent bastard!" Colonel Jessep finally lost control. The prosecuting attorney tried to call for a recess, but was immediately denied by the judge.
At this moment, Hugo entered a special state. He was Daniel, and Daniel was him. But deep inside his mind, the part that was Hugo remained Hugo, only now it had fused with Daniel's body in a unique way. Hugo didn't lose control by yelling or screaming his voice, tone, volume, and rhythm were all tightly within his grasp. He used the simplest but most powerful manner to unleash all his inner conviction, forming an overwhelming confidence. That powerful aura stood in direct opposition to Jack Nicholson on the other side not only did it hold firm, it even faintly elevated the scene to a higher level. That dazzling brilliance made the entire set fall into complete silence.
Hugo felt it this was acting!
....
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