THE DAY OF THE JACKAL

Review: A group of resentful military veterans hire a professional hitman codenamed “The Jackal” to assassinate the French President Charles de Gaulle.
Director: Fred Zinnemann
Actors: Edward Fox, Terence Alexander, Michel Auclair, Alan Badel, Tony Britton, Cyril Cusack, Maurice Denham, Vernon Dobtcheff, Jacques Francois, Olga Georges-Picot, Barrie Ingham, Derek Jacobi, Michael Lonsdale, Jean Martin and Ronald Pickup
Year: 1973
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery and Thriller
Conclusion: 4/5
A well crafted political thriller. Based on the book by Frederick Forsyth who wrote the book over a period of thirty-five days. A fantastic cast of fine British actors. Directed by Fred Zinnemann who directed the classic High Noon (1952) film. Although, The Day of the Jackal was not a box-office success upon its release, it received generally excellent reviews and made Edward Fox much in demand in movies and on television. Interestingly, the scene where the Jackal tests his new weapon on a melon in a grassy clearing is recreated shot for shot in episode 5 of the 2024 television series of the same starring Eddie Redmayne. The only thing that is missing is the cigarette the Jackal smokes in the original. At the Bafta Awards in 1974 this won for Best Film Editing.