The Jackal

Set in the post cold war era, “The Jackal” opens with overlapping sound and video bites documenting the rise of Communism in the Soviet Union, the demolition of the Berlin Wall and the subsequent rise of organized crime in the former Soviet Union. The action begins with a cooperative effort between the FBI and Russian police to arrest a Russian mobster who they have followed to a Moscow nightclub. A fight ensues and the criminal is killed. When word of his death reaches his brother, another notorious criminal, the Jackal is retained to exact revenge on the United States.

The Jackal, a professional assassin who thoroughly enjoys his work, is armed with multiple identities and moves freely between Eurpoe, Canada and the United States as he methodically prepares for his assignment. When the joint FBI—Russian forces learn that the Jackal has been engaged by the Russian crime boss, they are forced to contact the only man who can identify the Jackal—Mulqueen, an IRA terrorist who is conveniently imprisoned in the States.

With Mulqueen’s help they are soon hot on the Jackal’s trail, with too few twists and turns and too many unanswered questions on the way.

The R rating is for graphic violence and language. There is no gratuitous violence, except in illuminating the Jackal’s phychological profile. There is no sex or nudity.

Espionage fans, as well as fans of Bruce Willis and Richard Gere, might enjoy this movie, if they can get past the largely predictable story line.

See list of Relevant Issues—questions-and-answers.