The Day of the Jackal
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Movie Reviews of The Day of the Jackal
Movie Review: Superb and meticulously etched thriller
Summary: 5 Stars
The outstanding script to this movie is by Kenneth Ross and one reason the picture works so well is its scrupulous adherence to the source novel ,not only in broad outline but in precise detail.Detail is why the book worked and it why this movie does as well .
The plot revolves around an attempt to asassinate Charles de Gaulle ,a plot set in motion by a renegade French para-military group unhappy with his plans for Algerian independence .They hire a contract killer known by the code name Jackal (Edward Fox)to carry out the deed .The French police get wind of the plan and under the leadership of Colonel Rolland (Michel Lonsdale)set out to stop the Jackal before he can execute his plan .The intricate storyline switches between tow strands -the Jackal going about his plans ,nailing down the details and preparing the ground ,and the police team's efforts to identify and then stop him .The locale moves from city to city but thankfully with nary a hint of the travelogue or any excess limgering on scenery to create ambience .This is by contrast a movie that moves- thanks to BAFTA winning editing from the admirable Ralph Kempen and the taut suspenseful direction from veteran director Fred Zinnemann .
The movie works through methodical accumulation of detail and the plan has the ring of authenticity as does the whole movie.fox is outstanding as the methodical but heartless Jackal and his performance is the ramrod of the movie .He eschews any bid for sympathy or "anti-hero"status -this is a cold unlikeable man .Lonsdale is also fine as the pursuer and achieves the hard task of making a dull but dedicated man into a hero whose job is his life.
This is the way to make a thriller without car chases or CGI -just a battle of wits and will between two powerful adversaries .It is a superb movie, a suspense filled political thriller from the top drawer
Movie Review: An Authoritative Suspense Movie
Summary: 5 Stars
The first itme I saw "Tha Day of the Jackal", I learned a lot about things that I don't need to know. However, it has been of interest to me to know how a person can create a false identity. It's even more interesting in these days of identity theft although the current methods are much more high tech than in the 1960's. I mention this because "The Day of the Jackal" does a masterful job of show how a criminal with evil intent is able to integrate himself into a country without being detected. This too is a timely message after the lessons of 9/11. All this from a movie that came out in 1973.
"The Day of the Jackal" is the story of an attempt to assasinate Charles DeGaulle by right-wing military and political Frenchmen. Edward Fox is the man hired to do the job and the movie follows his steps from the beginning to the end and all points in between. We see a cold-blooded professional who knows his trade. We follow his manipulation of individuals for his own benefit. We see that nothing is sacred nor off limits to him in his quest; even to the point of adapting a different sexual orientation to keep going. All of this is fascinatingly scripted, acted, photographed and directed in a fast-paced yet thorough suspense movie.
The acting is good but the movie's title character and most of the people involved intentionally down play their roles to bring out the sterile nature of a professional assasin and his accomplices and pursuers. Emotional outbursts are not an asset to such a man. This leaves one focussed more on the movie than the preformances and that is the way a good suspense movie should be remembered.
Even if you're not interested in French affairs in the 1960's, the subject of international intrigue is a current issue. This movie is timeless in that and many other perspectives.
Movie Review: Nail biting political thriller with an ice cold assassin !
Summary: 5 Stars
This tremendously entertaining film has lost none of it's impact in nearly 30 years. Fred Zinnemann's adaptation of the Frederick Forsythe thriller is compulsive viewing for fans of political thrillers, espionage and deadly assassins. Loosely based on events surrounding the French involement in Algeria in the 1950's, Forsythe penned his novel in only a few weeks and it shot to the top of the best seller list immediately....and attracted the movie makers with it's dynamic plot and complex characters.Edward Fox created one the best killers EVER bought to the screen...Fox's character is dashing, debonair, charming and a ruthless assassin who is innovative, driven and exceptionally cold blooded. Where as we have become sorely accustomed to seeing current day movie assassins as highly testosteroned gorillas toting machine guns and loaded with lethal gadgets, Fox's suave, intelligent liquidator is streets ahead of any of them in his murderous portrayal. Michel Lonsdale (in probably his best role) is the intrepid and wily French police inspector who is given the invidious task of finding a faceless man who is on a single minded mission to kill President Charles DeGaulle.
Zinnemann never lets the pace slow up from start to finish. His excellent direction of this deadly game of "cat and mouse" is inventive, taut and brillianty staged. A first rate support cast of predominantly lesser known actors lend a superb authenticity to the feel of the story (Loved Cyril Cusack as the Jackal's expert gunsmith).
It would have been a bonus to have some insightful extras with this DVD, but alas there were none! Never to mind, "The Day of the Jackal" is A-class entertainment from beginning to end and belongs on the shelf of any devotee of stimulating and riveting thrillers...buy it now !
Movie Review: An Espionage Masterpiece
Summary: 5 Stars
They really DON'T make 'em like this anymore. Edward Fox plays "The Jackal," an assassin hired by the OAS to kill Charles De Gaule. The entire film is a wonderful game of cat and mouse between the police and the extremely intelligent killer. What makes the Jackal so difficult to stop? No one knows his name, his nationality, or what he looks like. How do you begin to stop such a killer?Edward Fox plays the Jackal as a sophisticated, highly intelligent killer that does not make mistakes. Watching him go through his job "routine" is amazing. We feel like we are actually watching and learning his secrets of the trade. On the other side, we see his adversary, every bit his equal: the detective in charge of the investigation. What makes the movie so fun to watch is the writing of these two characters. The detective is just as good at his job as the Jackal is at his. But will one of them make a crucial mistake, giving the advantage to the other?
"Day of the Jackal" has so many outstanding qualities because it was made by one of the great masters of film, Fred Zinnemann. This was Zinnemann's first film in seven years after a long line of great films. Many consider this his best. Every scene is very precisely planned, yet (as many have already mentioned) each scene looks as if it belongs in a documentary. A great story expertly handled.
I wish the DVD had a few more extras. Production notes are included, but audio commentary by Fox would have been a great addition. Also a film of this length (nearly 2 and 1/2 hours) should probably have more chapter divisions, having only about 14 or 15 as I remember. Still, these minor points can't bring down such a great suspense classic.
Movie Review: Excellent adaptation from Forsyth's novel. A winner!
Summary: 5 Stars
Why not the jackal? This is the answer given by the hard and cold assasin who signs the agreement to kill De Gaulle.
The story runs through a set of historical issues who are part of the story. A group of officers decides by themselves to revenge the lost honor of France due the fact about the independence of Algiers.
Edward Fox - one of the best actors of his generation - played with sublime perfection the demanding role of the Jackal.
So from the first images of the film you'll be engaged with this chess film. All the movements of this exceptional mind are guided by an amazing sense of hunter behavior. He acts like a western samurai , without blinking , he kills when the circunstances don't let him other choice. The feelings don't exist in this professional.
You are invited to presence an authentical tour de force. And since the moment an important link is arrested , your histamina and cold sweat will invade you.
The efforts of Le Surete for following any possible clue leads to an unforgettable mind game to spark the human chase since the moment the Jackal decides to go ahead with the plan and drive to France from Niza.
The rest of the story runs for you when you acquire this legendary and hair raising punch thriller. And once more you'll admire how the famous film maker Fred Zinemann could win with this story.
The locations and the sense of the drama are extraordinary made. And the words are not enough to describe the countless sequences of hard beating you'll experience.
A perfect film and believe me ; you won't feel the 140 min of the picture.
This is the first and best version!