The Jackal

Question: At the prison, when Witherspoon tells Declan "that's our deal", the camera is pointing towards Witherspoon and there seems to be something, or an image, behind him (to the left). What is it? It looks like a cardboard cut out of a person (to me I see a face and bare chest), only it's all grey and almost looks like Lobo from DC Comics. But I don't see anything in the wide shots that it could be. (00:25:55)

Bishop73

Answer: If you look at time 24:21, you can see two murals painted on the walls. Presumably by the prisoners. The one with his arms up striking a muscular pose is what you're seeing. The camera focused on Witherspoon in the shot you're talking about makes that image blurry in the background and gives it the effect of having dreadlocks. But it's just the muscle guy painting.

Quantom X

Question: Is it possible that Jackal staged his ambush at the house as a way to test Valentina's abilities? It looks like he wanted to confront her again. (01:25:00)

Answer: Maybe to a small degree. However his main motivation for that was the fact he learned that it was Isabella's house and he could get at Declan that way. Be it he was actually after Isabella, which is likely, or was just wanting to wipe out some of the FBI that was after him or both. The Russian mole had provided him with the FBI access code which allowed the Jackal to hear the voice reports by Witherspoon telling where Isabella lived. So most likely he was going there to take out Isabella to get at Declan. But Koslova and the FBI had already moved her and were stationed there finishing things up when The Jackal got there. So he was eliminating some of his obstacles at his goal since only 3 were there and he could easily take them out. Using Koslova to sending a taunting message to Declan was an added bonus.

Quantom X

Answer: Yes. It is entirely possible. It was just a bonus that he got to take out three innocent victims in the process.

Alan Keddie

Question: Why does Major Koslova seem relaxed after the jackal presses her hand in the wound?

Answer: By putting pressure on the wound, blood flow was decreased and it can give some pain relief. It also increases her chance of survival, till someone can get to her.

She's also feeling the increased effects of blood loss and going into shock at this point.

raywest

Question: The Jackal shot Koslova just one time. Why do we see two bullet wounds on her shirt?

Answer: It's not known if it's a bullet wound or just blood that somehow was transferred to that part of her shirt. She was bleeding heavily and moving around quite a bit when she is first shot.

raywest

Question: Why has Koslova got two bullet wounds on her abdomen? The Jackal only shot her once.

Answer: There are two blood spots close together on the front of her shirt. When she was shot, she was rolling and moving around on the floor and her shirt could have gotten twisted in such a way that blood was transferred to the other side.

raywest

Question: Why did the Jackal shoot only one bullet through the sofa?

Answer: The Jackal is a precise killer, as seen when he takes his sweet time lining up his shot on The First Lady near the end of the film. He only needed one shot for Koslova.

Answer: He didn't want to immediately kill Valentina. He wanted her alive long enough to deliver his message to Declan about him being unable to protect his women.

raywest

Answer: Either this is just an illusion or it is possible that parts of this scene were shot at different intervals, allowing time for her hair to grow somewhat.

raywest

Question: Why does The Jackal looks sorry when he's telling Koslova that she will die in 20 minutes?

Answer: There's no way of knowing if he was sorry or not. He obviously is treating her differently than he does his other victims. It seems it has something to do with her being a woman, though just why he acts this way is never known.

raywest

Question: Why does Major Koslova always wear a shirt and a jacket throughout the movie?

Answer: She is a Russian agent and wears clothes that are professional, gender-neutral, and also functional while she's on a dangerous assignment. She may also not have brought many clothes with her, and she is not trying to impress anyone--she is only focused on having a serious job to do.

raywest

Question: After Major Koslova is shot by The Jackal, we see her clothes full of blood. How can she have lost so much blood in few seconds?

Answer: A variety of reasons: the type of bullet he used could have caused severe internal damage. He might also have hit an artery, causing more bleeding. Also, being a movie, filmmakers tend to exaggerate details like this for maximum visual effect. The audience realises she is seriously wounded.

raywest

Question: What was the name of the large weapon that Bruce Willis's character purchased to assassinate the first lady.

Answer: It's a Polish produced version of a Russian GSh series 23 or 30mm cannon.

Grumpy Scot

Answer: To torture her, to make her scream in pain.

Answer: To see how far the bullet penetrated.

raywest

Question: At the very end, Preston tells Declan "Thank you for everything." To which Declan responds "Oh, thank you, Da." The subtitles even say that he says Da and capitalize the D in it. Why exactly did he say "da"? is that an Irish thing? I don't think he was trying to call him Dad right? and Da is Russian for Yes. And where it being the Russian yes kinda makes sense in that contexts... it does't really. So why did he say "Da" after the thank you? (01:58:35)

Quantom X

Answer: He does say Da - it's an Irish way of saying Dad.

The_Iceman

So the English word "Dad" but then the last D swallowed in the Irish accent. I hear him say dad, the last D quiet but not silent.

lionhead

Answer: Actually, I think he does say "Dad", jokingly referring to Preston looking out for him, protecting him like a father.

lionhead

Answer: Are we sure he wasn't talking about a DA as in Deputy Assistant as a forseen promotion? As we know he is a Special Agent in the movie, but after stating he is quite the hero for saving the First Lady's life perhaps a promotion is also coming.

But that's always pronounced as the initials DA.

Question: After being shot we see Valentina wrapping her arms around her abdomen. When Jackal approaches her she slowly raises her arms and reveals her wound. Why did she do that?

Answer: Agree with the other answer, but would add this was likely also a directorial decision to show the audience how seriously wounded she is, foreshadowing her eventual demise.

raywest

Answer: I believe she knew she was dying and was making a last ditch effort to stop him. It may have been a futile try, but how many dying criminals have done the same thing, getting that last shot at the Hero.

Question: When Declan was in prison, and the FBI director asked him what his deal with the Jackal was, he replied, "That's between me and him." What was that conflict between the two? Did they really know each other from something in the past? Or was he simply just trying to convince the director that he had seen him when he hadn't, just to get out of prison?

Answer: Declan Mulqueen's former lover, Isabella Zancona, is a former militant member of the ETA, a Basque separatist group. While in Libya, the Jackal wounded Isabella, causing her to miscarry her and Mulqueen's unborn child. Mulqueen wanted revenge.

raywest

Continuity mistake: Near the end of the movie, the Jackal tries to kill the first lady in Washington. This is where the hospital opening takes place. When he flees into the subway station, the name it has is indeed of a station in Washington (Capitol Heights), the subway-cars however are from the Montreal subway system (which ride around on rubber tyres). (01:45:10 - 01:47:55)

More mistakes in The Jackal
Video

Declan Mulqueen: Preston, what about letting me have a gun?
Preston: Are you crazy? If the right people knew I was letting you walk around without cuffs, I'd have forced retirement.
(01:08:45)

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Trivia: Just a few months before his death at age 91, Fred Zinnermann, who directed the original The Day of the Jackal (1973), on which this movie is based, actually fought Universal Studios to change the name of the film. Saying that the original had stood the test of time and he did not want the remake to bear the same name. (00:01:25)

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