Plot
An imprisoned IRA sniper is freed to help stop a brutal, seemingly "faceless" assassin from completing his next job.
Release Year: 1997
Rating: 6.1/10 (48,460 voted)
Critic's Score: 36/100
Director:
Michael Caton-Jones
Stars: Bruce Willis, Richard Gere, Sidney Poitier
Storyline Russian mobster Terek Murad has declared open season on the Russian militia and the United States FBI over the shooting of his brother in a Moscow nightclub. He hires "The Jackal" -- an elusive, nasty assassin -- to kill FBI Director Donald Brown. Present at the shooting of Murad's brother were FBI Deputy Director Carter Preston and Major Valentina Koslova of the Russian militia. Nearly no one has ever seen The Jackal, save for Declan Mulqueen, an imprisoned IRA sniper. Upon learning that the Director Brown is a target, Preston and Koslova enlist the services of the reluctant Mulqueen to track down the Jackal before he can assassinate Brown.
Writers: Kenneth Ross, Chuck Pfarrer
Cast: Bruce Willis
-
The Jackal
Richard Gere
-
Declan Mulqueen
Sidney Poitier
-
FBI Deputy Director Carter Preston
Diane Venora
-
Major Valentina Koslova
Mathilda May
-
Isabella Zanconia
J.K. Simmons
-
FBI Agent T. I. Witherspoon
Richard Lineback
-
FBI Agent McMurphy
John Cunningham
-
FBI Director Donald Brown
Jack Black
-
Ian Lamont
Tess Harper
-
The First Lady
Leslie Phillips
-
Woolburton
Stephen Spinella
-
Douglas
Sophie Okonedo
-
Jamaican Girl
David Hayman
-
Terek Murad
Steve Bassett
-
George Decker
Taglines:
How do you stop an assassin who has no identity?
Release Date: 14 November 1997
Filming Locations: Burnham Park Yacht Club - 1500 Linn White Drive, Near South Side, Chicago, Illinois, USA
Box Office Details
Budget: $60,000,000
(estimated)
Opening Weekend: $15,164,595
(USA)
(16 November 1997)
(2193 Screens)
Gross: $84,000,000
(Worldwide)
(26 April 1998)
(except USA)
Technical Specs
Runtime:
Did You Know?
Trivia: Sean Connery, Liam Neeson and Matthew McConaughey all turned down roles.
Goofs:
Continuity:
When Declan is looking for the Jackal and his hostage Maggie, the escalators behind him aren't moving and then in the next scene they begin moving again.
Quotes:
[to FBI Director Brown, about the Jackal]
Declan Mulqueen:
I'm sorry, Mr. Brown, but this man is no clown. He knows all your moves, back to front. Right now, you've got a name; that's all you've got. So, the Jackal's got a target: YOU. He's got a timetable. And as to making mistakes, he's spent twenty years in a trade that doesn't forgive error. And he's prevailed. You think he's the one who's up against us?
[shakes his head]
Declan Mulqueen:
It's the other way around.
User Review
Unintended parody
Rating:
I entered the theater with fond memories of Fred Zinnemann's 1973 "Day of
the Jackal", expecting a chance to scoff at a butchered remake of a fine,
suspenseful and tensely-paced film. After the first half-hour or so, it
suddenly occurred to me that what I was seeing was not a remake at all, but
a parody. Then I began to enjoy myself.
Watching to see what modern filmmaking sensibilities had made of the more
memorable scenes from the original kept me thoroughly entertained for the
rest of the show. Edward Fox's neat little sniper's rifle--with its
disguise constructed from a marvelous, high-tech material called "stainless
steel"--metamorphosed into an immense carbon-fiber contraption suitable for
demolishing an armored battalion. Fox's deadly silent assassination of a
cantaloupe turned into a market-garden recreation of the Battle of the
Bulge. And so on.
I don't think my companion, or anyone else in the theater, appreciated my
snickers and occasional belly laugh. Too bad. I had a great
time.
0