Thehibikiew Not even bad in a good way

Steineded How sad is this?

filippaberry84 I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Married Baby Just intense enough to provide a much-needed diversion, just lightweight enough to make you forget about it soon after it’s over. It’s not exactly “good,” per se, but it does what it sets out to do in terms of putting us on edge, which makes it … successful?

JohnHowardReid In The Day of the Jackal (1973) (available on a 10/10 Universal DVD), director Fred Zinnemann made a surprisingly taut thriller, using a brilliantly combined French and British cast, led by Edward Fox, Michel Lonsdale, Alan Badel and Delphine Seyrig. Although the movie runs no less than 143 minutes, the direction and film editing (Ralph Kemplen) are so crisp, there is not a moment that fails to hold suspense. The screenplay by Kenneth Ross (whose writing career in movies is remarkably sparse - Brother Sun Sister Moon, The Odessa File, Black Sunday, and The Fourth War were his only other titles up to 1973) - is a model in the art of storytelling.The superbly lensed location photography by Jean Tournier also adds immeasurably to the overwhelming sense of inexorable reality.

tomsview These days, it's fascinating to see Edward Fox playing crusty old gents in episodes of "Midsummer Murders" or "Agatha Christie's Miss Marple" when you know that back in the day, he was a super-fit assassin who could kill with one blow from the back of his hand.In fact he was just about the best hit man ever in just about the best thriller ever. Although "The Day of the Jackal" was made in 1973, with not one smartphone or desktop computer in sight, it is still the police procedural par excellence.I love all the detail as Edward Fox's methodical Jackal plans to assassinate Charles De Gaulle, and how Michael Londsale's equally methodical French policeman, Claude Label, plans to stop him.When I first saw the movie in 1973, many of the British actors such as Maurice Denham, Derek Jacobi and Cyril Cusack etc., were familiar, but over the intervening years, they became almost like old friends, turning up in countless movies and television shows.The French actors and extras were perfectly cast, from the tough-looking characters playing OAS and Action Service men to the Citroën chauffeured members of parliament, and the beautiful widow who uses her charms to get information about the government's plans.A few years ago, I lent the DVD to a friend who watched it with his teenage son. When I asked what they thought of it, he told me his son thought it lacked action - I think he felt the same. That attitude goes some way to explaining why over the decades; the ratio of action-heavy movies to films of depth has risen exponentially.The more you see of Fred Zinneman's movies the more you appreciate how good he was; a perfectionist. Where it could be argued that the movies of many of his famous contemporaries went off as they aged - Ford, Huston, Preminger - his movies never did. Even his last one "Five Days One Summer" is a beautifully understated and underrated cult classic.However there is little doubt about "The Day of the Jackal" - it's a lesson in how to put a film together.

inioi The movies seems to me more intense and captivating when shown can be real. And this is a mandatory condition for action movies, thrillers, science fiction, etc.As we all know, most of Hollywood movies (even non-action) still very much lacking credibility because, among other things, they use exaggerated and unnatural methods to create a more dramatic (but unrealistic) effect in the viewer.A lot of thrillers could have been much better if it were not for this craving of "happening things" every second...thus all the magic is lost.This movie is full of magic. And this magic means that you believe what is happening.There is very little music in the film, and is unobtrusive. Photography is nothing gimmicky, and the actors performance is very natural. Special mention to the two women have a small role in the film: Olga Georges-Picotbut and Delphine Seyrig: their performance are remarkable.Editing is also the opposite of a modern film: the pace is perfect, and takes it's time when needed. Today the shots do not last more than a few seconds, and the action scenes hundredths of a second ... as a video clip or a Coke we drink in a minute and then we throw away. I prefer to drink red wine Petrus 1973 Pomerol and taste it slowly...

LeonLouisRicci First off, there are Literally Thousands of Movies out there with lots of Gunfights, Explosions, Sexy Ladies, Fisticuffs and Expounding Musical Scores, this is not one of them. It decides to take an Approach of Clean and Cool Detachment. A Docu-Style that is as Refreshing as it is Riveting. It is a Compelling Piece of Cinema in the way it is so Meticulous and Calculating. Heavy on Detail and the Pacing, Editing, and Exposition provide the Suspense and the Drama. The Film Effortlessly Divides the Story between the Assassin and Law Enforcement with Crisp, Lean, Dialog and the Action comes from Preparation, and like the rest of the Movie, there is nothing that is Padded or Unnecessary.Its Tension is in its Restraint as both Sides are Increasingly Clever and Resourceful as Things move along with the Elegance of a Streamlined Sports Car. Minimalist in Style but not in Production, it Masks its Difficulties with an Anti-Style that becomes Hypnotic and Attains a Style of its Own. No Visceral Attempts are made but they are Forthcoming. No Pretensions as the Taut Tempo comes from the Technicalities and both Protagonist and Antagonist are as Cold and Calculating as they need to be. This makes for a Fictional-True-Crime Thriller that is a Heartless but Palpitating Picture.