(Originally reviewed: 05/03/2017) There I was thinking Mr Willis didn't have any more hidden pieces of trash lying about but here is The Jackal a film that would be formulaic if it had any style in its plotting. The film starts with atrocious dialogue, stereotypically personality free bad guys and a Russian antagonist asking one of his friends if he managed to kill any militia cops in the event of his brother's death and when he says none he apparently must die and gets an axe in the back of his head. It's the code says this villain, but others might say well we think it's stupid and over the top and you would be correct on both counts as I found that whole scene an insulting to audience members who like a better reason for how events turn out; but luckily that Russian simply hires Willis's character a few minutes later, now his name is unknown as he is in and out of identities and a master of disguise so he's nicknamed The Jackal. I 'll admit Bruce Willis play's this character effectively; playing a harsh but menacing villain, if only he had some form of a competent story to help him; but to no avail.Richard Gere play's the imprisoned Irish protagonist 'Declan Mulqueen' and though at first I was unsure if he was going to go in and out of accents; he really did give a solid performance and he's likable; has a good Irish accent and has a vendetta against The Jackal for a reason I will not disclose but he and Willis do have a couple of good scenes together; and the performances by the rest of the cast, especially Diane Venora as a major militia officer are decent with the exception of a weapon and so called info dealer played by Jack Black who is plain and simple a pig and an annoying hippy who belches, rambles on and brings nothing to the film except another reason to dislike it. Also featuring are a cringeworthy, unnecessary gay bar sequence and a completely separate, cruel, distasteful scene involving a character being used as target practice to test a weapon and the way its shown is completely sick and twisted; and whether you like the character or not, there's no need for such a sinister sequence.The outcomes of the plot are as inept as the plot; instead of explain anything it just hopes the audience will find it believable but anyone willing to ask questions may be extremely frustrated like myself, as I kept wondering how could The Jackal operate a Gatling gun/multi tuned weapon while being a huge distance away from it, we know it's operated by a button and yet that button is obviously shown on the weapon and it can go off from a distance with no explanation on how, as I didn't see Willi's character with a detonator or a switch so it's clear the picture is beyond absurd and it even tries to twist it's alleged plot several time's thinking it's clever but in truth it's merely stupid and so bad I couldn't even merit a laugh.Then of course a lot of people are killed like usual in these type of films, usually FBI agents or Russians cops for nothing more than a pointless body count; and whichever way you look at it; the action is forgettable and poorly directed. I was simply unimpressed with it; and especially Michael Caton-Jones's direction; which is equally as bad as Kenneth Ross and Chuck Pfarrer's screenplay which is truly awful at times; and most noticeably in the final act which defies sense and reason where Declan's wife played by Mathilda May manages to come out of nowhere at a shootout in a train station and fire off a shot; two questions 1) how did she manage to get there so fast and 2) how on earth did she know exactly where to find them. The picture is filled with pure idiocy, void of sense, trashy and an utter mess; it may not be the worst film Willis has ever done but it sure is among them.

They, whoever they are, say this is an action movie. No, this is a love story about two men who have guns, and also they are sad. Love is hard to come by for some folks, like for instance the protagonist and antagonist, so the story plays out as a mirror between the two. Like Bruce Willis's character wants to love dudes but his commitment to his job blinds him to happiness , so instead of getting laid he kills people. Richard Gere wants to love ladies but his past gets in the way and all he gets to do instead of loving is kill Bruce Willis. The moral of the story is : Human beings concoct mountains of bullsh*t everyday specifically to get in the way of love, because loving somebody for real, like no bullsh*t, is scary.

FBI Deputy Director Carter Preston (Sidney Poitier) is working with Major Valentina Koslova of the Russian MVD to take on the Russian mob. In a raid, they kill the brother of mob boss Terek Murad (David Hayman). He hires the Jackal (Bruce Willis) to assassinate a target in revenge for $70 Million. The joint task force is desperate to identify the mysterious Jackal. Basque separatist Isabella Zanconia (Mathilda May) may have seen the Jackal and they use former IRA shooter Declan Mulqueen (Richard Gere) to help track her down. When they tell him the target is FBI Director Donald Brown, he tells them that he actually met the Jackal.Everything about this movie screams 70s. The pacing is slow like a 70s movie. There are unnecessary side trips. It's a terrorist plot ripped out of a 70s novel. The premise itself is ridiculous. For that amount of money, the Russian mob could hire dozens of killers. Like almost everything in this movie, it feels a little old and outdated. Director Michael Caton-Jones tries his best but this just doesn't have a chance. It's interesting to see Bruce Willis play the calculating assassin but there isn't much else that interest me in this movie.

Apparently, in this terse thriller, there was a split between various Soviet groups. Soviets have sent the Jackal out for his next killing,but yet there are Soviets who are working against him.That being said, we have a tense thriller where Bruce Willis sheds his usual crime stopping prevention to assume the role of the cold and calculating killer. He is wonderfully matched by Richard Gere's IRA terrorist, with a great Irish accent who has a score to settle with Willis.Willis is cunning, sly and remains unknown to all with the exception of Gere who had worked with him at one time.What the Willis character does to the Jack Black character is horrifying and yet we're able to watch it on screen.Sidney Poitier gives excellent support as a CIA agent. He comes to trust the Gere character fully as seen by the film's ending.