Rating: 
Summary: Good Stuff
Review: Looking for a thriller with an engaging plot and violence that doesn't look like it came out of a vega-matic? Then by all means check out THE DAY OF THE JACKAL, an intriguing film made over 30 years ago, based on Frederick Forsyth's exceptional novel of the same name.A plot has been hatched to assassinate French President Charles de Gaulle; a professional killer with icewater in his veins known as "The Jackal" (Edward Fox) is hired. The French authorities learn of the plan and dispatch their best investigator, Inspector Lebel (Michel Lonsdale), to capture the Jackal and prevent the assassination. The movie subsequently follows the two characters--one as he implements his fascinating plan through disguise and deceit, the other as he races against the clock on a relentless manhunt--until their paths cross in a thrilling and riveting conclusion. Fox and Lonsdale are wonderful. As the Jackal, Fox makes this cold and calculating killer absolutely believable, while Lonsdale lends a comic vulnerability to his role as the often-frazzled inspector. And director Fred Zinnemann knows exactly when to zip the lines of the actors and let the camera tell the story; in fact, a significant portion of this film is presented in golden silence. THE DAY OF THE JACKAL, although it looks tired at times and definitely shows its age, is quality entertainment. Good stuff.
--D. Mikels
Rating:
Summary: ONE SHOT IS NEVER ENOUGH !
Review: Fred Zinnemann's THE DAY OF THE JACKAL is not the kind of thriller you are familiar with nowadays. For once, french actors don't look silly and have the terrible task to trace Edward "The Jackal" Fox who gives an award-deserving performance. DAY OF THE JACKAL made me think of these cold war spy movies of the seventies. Do you remember ? We had the impression they were filmed only in green and blue, the characters didn't speak much leaving to the audience the task to understand the plot by itself. You will feel this kind of atmosphere in this film with the difference that Zinnemann worked with a solid gold screenplay. The final scene, the day of the jackal, is about 30 minutes long and is already part of Motion picture History. A few problems with the images ; white spots, images standing still during 1 or 2 seconds. The sound is, in my opinion, the best we can expect from a 1973 movie. A DVD worthy of multiple viewings.
Rating: 
Summary: no let down although i read the book first
Review: it is rare that a movie doesnt let one down after having read the book. this movie does a great job, it kept me glued although i knew what was gonna happen. out of the top of my head only one other movie was that much of a positive surprise (actually more) after reading the book first, Das Boot.
if u r a forsyth fan, don't worry, this movie won't disappoint u!
if u r not, it probably won't either :P
Rating:
Summary: Nail biting political thriller with an ice cold assassin !
Review: 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 !
Rating:
Summary: An Espionage Masterpiece
Review: 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.
Rating:
Summary: No, it's not Baby Willis -- It's the REAL 'Jackal' !
Review: Not much to add to earlier comments, except this: if you're looking for that truly dreadful Bruce Willis disaster of a so-called 'remake', and were directed instead to this original 'Jackal' by mistake, then go no further. You don't know how lucky you are to have missed the pure dreck of the remake -- rather, you've found your way to another masterpiece from the director who gave us "High Noon", and much more. Think of it as having embarked on a snipe-hunt for junkyard trinkets but happily stumbling onto a real gem. The DVD print is excellent, right down to conveying the subtley bleached effect that I recall from the original release, and the classic "look" and texture of the old Schneider Panavision lenses and European lighting -- all effects that heighten the movie's authenticity and mid-60's ambience. This classic is a far cry from the phony, who-are-you-kidding cinematic comic books of today that try to emulate computer games for overgrown adolescents. The writing, directing and acting are lean and direct, the visual style is spare, efficient, exceptionally effective. When you consider that this is a well researched, fairly accurate telling of actual people and events, you have one of those rare movies that, like "The Third Man", seriously upped the stakes for the espionage/suspense genre, raising the bar to heights that its imitators can't even hope to reach.
Rating:
Summary: Why can't they make movies like this any more?
Review: Rarely does a movie do justice to a book, but Fred Zinneman's production of "The Day of the Jackal" is wonderful adaptation of Frederick Forsyth's novel which, I continue to believe, is one of the greatest thrillers ever written. It's hard to put a finger on what exactly makes this film great: excellent performances by relatively unknown actors, a wonderful plot, fantastic location shooting or a complete desire to avoid the bells and whistles, special effects laden movies that are all that makes up the "suspense" genre of films these days. Like other reviewers have said, be this the first or the fiftieth time that you watch this film, you will be left on the edge of your seat with its "cat and mouse" plot of the search for a lone assassin hired to murder President De Gaulle. The young Edward Fox is brilliant in the title role and the supporting cast excellent. If anything, this film proves that you do not need big named stars, explosions around every corner or computer generated effects to make a fantastic film. The only downside to watching this film is that you realise that the movie industry just does not make films like this any more. Highly, highly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: An Espionage Masterpiece
Review: 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.
Rating:
Summary: A First Rate Spy Thriller
Review:
Not so much "spy" as "assassin," though, for Edward Fox is cast as an assassin, doing a job that will earn him his retirement. He is to kill President Charles de Gaulle, "le Grand Charles" himself, in Liberation Day, as we eventually find out--but not until much later in the film.
The killer goes through many personalities, disguises, and changes, and manages to kill a few innocents on the way to his final conquest. He is unknown to the gendarme, who are on his trail early, with the help of an informer on the inside, but eventually his appearance becomes known to them--and even then, in spite of an alert commissioner of police in Paris who is every bit his match, Inspector Lebel (Michel Lonsdale)--he almost makes his kill. Had he done so, of course history would have had to be re-written because of a movie, an unlikely event--so we knew that he would fail, but still the plot was so well played that the suspense was never lost. Written by Frederick Forsyth and directed by Fred Zinneman, perhaps this film was predestined for greatness, but in any case it is one of the great ones. Joseph (Joe) Pierre
author of Handguns and Freedom...their care and maintenance
and other books
Rating:
Summary: If only it had had a happy ending
Review: _Day of the Jackal_ is one of the best film adaptations of a book ever done, the directors managed to keep the vital elements of the plot and the pacing of the book and successfully transfer them from one medium to another. When I read the book after seeing the movie I was amazed at how much they had managed to keep. Edward Fox was perfect as the Jackal, it's a pity that he's ended up starring in so many bad films in his career as he is truly a fantastic actor. There are some wonderful moments of irony such as when the leader of the French terrorists says that no soldier of France will ever raise a weapon against him and then is shown being shot by firing squad the next day. The only thing that would have improved this movie is if the Jackal had succeeded in blowing Charles DeGaulle's head all over the pavement in Paris, I mean really, the guy goes to all of this work and fails in the end, and come on, he's trying to shoot DeGaulle, it's not as if he was attempting to shoot a decent human being or something, heck, even Eisenhower and Churchill wanted to shoot DeGaulle because he was such a useless, vainglorious prick.
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