Blue Jasmine
After experiencing a traumatic misfortune, Jasmine French, a wealthy woman from New York, moves to San Francisco to live with her foster sister Ginger and the firm purpose of getting a new life, but she will be haunted by anxiety and memories of the past.
Despite a moderate budget of $18.0M, Blue Jasmine became a financial success, earning $99.1M worldwide—a 451% return.
1 Oscar. 56 wins & 83 nominations
Plot Structure
Story beats plotted across runtime
Narrative Arc
Emotional journey through the story's key moments
Story Circle
Blueprint 15-beat structure
Arcplot Score Breakdown
Weighted: Precision (70%) + Arc (15%) + Theme (15%)
Blue Jasmine (2013) reveals precise story structure, characteristic of Woody Allen's storytelling approach. This structural analysis examines how the film's 15-point plot structure maps to proven narrative frameworks across 1 hour and 39 minutes. With an Arcplot score of 7.0, the film balances conventional beats with creative variation.
Structural Analysis
The Status Quo at 1 minutes (1% through the runtime) establishes Jasmine arrives in San Francisco disheveled and anxious, talking compulsively to a stranger on the plane about her former wealthy life. She's clearly in a state of psychological distress, a sharp contrast to the glamorous past she describes.. Structural examination shows that this early placement immediately immerses viewers in the story world.
The inciting incident occurs at 12 minutes when In flashback, Jasmine discovers Hal is having an affair with a young French woman. This betrayal begins the unraveling of her carefully constructed life of luxury and denial.. At 12% through the film, this Disruption aligns precisely with traditional story structure. This beat shifts the emotional landscape, launching the protagonist into the central conflict.
The First Threshold at 25 minutes marks the transition into Act II, occurring at 26% of the runtime. This demonstrates the protagonist's commitment to Jasmine decides to fully commit to her new life by getting a job as a dentist's receptionist. She chooses to move forward rather than remain paralyzed by her past, though she's still in deep denial about her circumstances., moving from reaction to action.
At 50 minutes, the Midpoint arrives at 50% of the runtime—precisely centered, creating perfect narrative symmetry. Structural examination shows that this crucial beat Dwight proposes to Jasmine, offering her a complete return to the wealthy lifestyle she lost. It appears she's successfully escaped her fall from grace through reinvention - a false victory built on deception., fundamentally raising what's at risk. The emotional intensity shifts, dividing the narrative into clear before-and-after phases.
The Collapse moment at 75 minutes (76% through) represents the emotional nadir. Here, Augie exposes Jasmine's lies to Dwight, revealing her real past - the fraud, the bankruptcy, Hal's suicide in prison. Dwight walks away in disgust. Jasmine's final chance at reclaiming her former life dies completely., shows the protagonist at their lowest point. This beat's placement in the final quarter sets up the climactic reversal.
The Second Threshold at 81 minutes initiates the final act resolution at 82% of the runtime. Jasmine is forced out of Ginger's apartment. In flashback, we see the final piece: Jasmine herself destroyed her marriage by reporting Hal's fraud to the FBI out of revenge for his affair. She caused her own downfall., demonstrating the transformation achieved throughout the journey.
Emotional Journey
Blue Jasmine's emotional architecture traces a deliberate progression across 15 carefully calibrated beats.
Narrative Framework
This structural analysis employs structural analysis methodology used to understand storytelling architecture. By mapping Blue Jasmine against these established plot points, we can identify how Woody Allen utilizes or subverts traditional narrative conventions. The plot point approach reveals not only adherence to structural principles but also creative choices that distinguish Blue Jasmine within the drama genre.
Woody Allen's Structural Approach
Among the 42 Woody Allen films analyzed on Arcplot, the average structural score is 7.0, demonstrating varied approaches to story architecture. Blue Jasmine represents one of the director's most structurally precise works. For comparative analysis, explore the complete Woody Allen filmography.
Comparative Analysis
Additional drama films include After Thomas, South Pacific and Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights. For more Woody Allen analyses, see Everyone Says I Love You, Celebrity and Interiors.
Plot Points by Act
Act I
SetupStatus Quo
Jasmine arrives in San Francisco disheveled and anxious, talking compulsively to a stranger on the plane about her former wealthy life. She's clearly in a state of psychological distress, a sharp contrast to the glamorous past she describes.
Theme
Ginger tells Jasmine, "You can't just turn your back on your life." This encapsulates the film's theme about facing reality versus living in denial and delusion.
Worldbuilding
We learn Jasmine is staying with her working-class sister Ginger after a complete fall from grace. Through flashbacks, we see her former life of Manhattan wealth with husband Hal, contrasted with her current state of anxiety, pill-popping, and mental fragility.
Disruption
In flashback, Jasmine discovers Hal is having an affair with a young French woman. This betrayal begins the unraveling of her carefully constructed life of luxury and denial.
Resistance
Jasmine struggles to adapt to working-class life in San Francisco, looking down on Ginger's boyfriend Chili while trying to reinvent herself. She enrolls in computer classes and pursues interior design, resisting acceptance of her new reality.
Act II
ConfrontationFirst Threshold
Jasmine decides to fully commit to her new life by getting a job as a dentist's receptionist. She chooses to move forward rather than remain paralyzed by her past, though she's still in deep denial about her circumstances.
Mirror World
Jasmine meets Dwight, a wealthy diplomat, at a party. This relationship becomes her thematic mirror - a chance at reclaiming her former status, but built entirely on lies about her past.
Premise
Jasmine pursues a romance with Dwight while lying about her past, reinventing herself as an interior designer and widow. Meanwhile, flashbacks reveal how her privileged life with Hal was built on fraud and her own willful blindness.
Midpoint
Dwight proposes to Jasmine, offering her a complete return to the wealthy lifestyle she lost. It appears she's successfully escaped her fall from grace through reinvention - a false victory built on deception.
Opposition
The lies begin closing in. Ginger's ex-husband Augie (whom Hal defrauded) encounters Jasmine with Dwight. Jasmine's past and present collide as she becomes more unstable, her delusions harder to maintain.
Collapse
Augie exposes Jasmine's lies to Dwight, revealing her real past - the fraud, the bankruptcy, Hal's suicide in prison. Dwight walks away in disgust. Jasmine's final chance at reclaiming her former life dies completely.
Crisis
Jasmine spirals into complete psychological breakdown. She lashes out at Ginger, destroying her sister's rekindled relationship out of spite and jealousy. She has no money, no home, no prospects, and her mental state deteriorates rapidly.
Act III
ResolutionSecond Threshold
Jasmine is forced out of Ginger's apartment. In flashback, we see the final piece: Jasmine herself destroyed her marriage by reporting Hal's fraud to the FBI out of revenge for his affair. She caused her own downfall.
Synthesis
Jasmine wanders the streets of San Francisco, homeless and completely detached from reality. She sits on a bench talking to herself about her fantasy wedding plans with Dwight, fully retreated into delusion.
Transformation
Jasmine sits alone on a park bench, talking to herself and reliving her glorious past in her mind, completely disconnected from reality. The transformation is tragic: she's chosen permanent delusion over facing truth.