The Jackal

Other mistake: The Jackal only test fires 1 shot at the pumpkin target before he tells Lemont to run for the speed test. When he's siting the weapon in on Lemont, the read out on his screen shows that the number of shots fired is 2. (00:58:55)

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Continuity mistake: When the Jackal shoots Lamont, only the lower arm is shot off. Then we cut to the Jackal, who says 'I told you it was off', and when we cut back to Lamont, the arm is cut way up at the shoulder. (01:00:30)

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Revealing mistake: When Lemont reacts to getting shot in the arm, this exact same footage of him is used again right before he gets shot in the chest. They just reused the same expression reaction shot twice. (01:00:30 - 01:01:10)

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The Jackal mistake picture

Revealing mistake: As the Jackal is opening up his large weapon onto Lemont and Lemont's car, there is a close up of the car's fender as bullet holes get riddled through it. Just before the third hole appears, you can see an outline in the paint where a patch is covering one of the special effects explosive charges rigged to blow the hole open. (01:01:05)

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Character mistake: Jackal begins to unload his weapon at Lemont and his car. And as the camera pans to a reaction face of Lemont, it quickly cuts to his chest where you see a large burst of blood suddenly happen as one of the shells nails him in the chest. The very next shot is of him tumbling backwards and now there is no hole in his chest. (01:01:10)

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The Jackal mistake picture

Visible crew/equipment: After Bruce shoots Lemont with the big gun, you can see the crew's reflection in his sunglasses as he's rubbing his ear. (01:01:20)

Plot hole: Part of the reason that the Jackal killed Lemont, asides from him being very annoying and money grubbing, was the fact that he wasn't going to give up the blueprints and plans for the device he made for him. Made a big deal about how he had to turn it over, and he tricked Lemont into going out into the testing ground with him so he could kill him. Then in the next couple scenes, the FBI is investigating Lemont's warehouse after they find Lemont's body, and Delcan finds the plans for the device Lemont bluilt for Jackal. This makes no sense. The Jackal was so adamant about getting those plans back, and even killed Lemont over it, it's just baffling to think that he would not have returned to the warehouse to get them after disposing of Lemont. Not doing so lets the FBI find it exactly as shown in the film. The Jackal is show to be very intelligent and has been doing this line of work for 20 years. And as Declan says, he's not inclined to make mistakes... Especially a mistake like that. (01:02:35)

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Other mistake: When the Jackal is on his boat, you see him set the spinnaker sail, which fills out with air in the shot from above. This sail is only usable when wind is coming from behind. But in the next few shots after the Jackal sits down, the wind is coming from in front of him or slightly to the side, as seen by his hair and the flag behind him blowing. (01:05:20)

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Factual error: In the scene where the Jackal is sailing in the "Mackinac Regatta" toward Chicago, the direction seems to be wrong. I believe that race is from Chicago to Mackinac. Also, all the boats are shown flying spinnakers, which makes a colorful scene, but which would require a very unusual north wind since the boats are headed south into Chicago. (01:07:05 - 01:17:15)

The Jackal mistake picture

Continuity mistake: When the Jackal is sailing over the Great Lake, he sees the coast guard and puts his hat on. In the shot where he is putting it on, there is only one boat behind him with a yellow sail. It cuts to the coast guard then back to the Jackal, and now there are 6 boats behind him, none with a yellow sail, and the sun is no longer visibly behind him reflecting off the water. The director stated that this happened because the shot where he puts the hat on was a reshoot. The shot with the 6 boats behind him was filmed in Lake Michigan, whereas the other shot was done in the Atlantic Ocean. (01:07:30)

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Character mistake: In the Chicago-Mackinac race, the Jackal is trying to blend in with the other boats. But he has an American flag visible on his boat. When in the race, the boats only use fleet pennants. Other flags indicate "Not in the race." So the coast guard that waved at the Jackal would have realised this. (01:07:40)

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The Jackal mistake picture Video

Continuity mistake: During the briefing on the hood of the car, after the regatta, both Mulqueen and McMurphy change positions at the cut from wide to closeup. Mulqueen is at the side of the car in the wide shot with his arms crossed, then leaning against the car with his hands on the hood in the close up. McMurphy is about a foot behind Preston in the wide to right beside him in the closeup then back again. Also Koslova lights her cigarette twice during the scene. (01:08:20)

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The Jackal mistake picture

Continuity mistake: At the marina, around the time the kids burn the firecrackers, the Russian Major is smoking a cigarette. In one shot it's slightly bent, then in the next it's straight. (01:08:40)

Character mistake: At the docks, The Jackal draws his pistol on Declan to kill him, but Koslova returns fire to save Declan. The Jackal's pistol is silenced, however Koslova's is not. And they engage in a fire fight and foot chase on a dock crowded with people. Koslova appears to be using a Beretta 9mm pistol, which is loud in it's own right. Yet as they exchange shots, not a single civilian near by reacts to the fire fight or panics whatsoever. She even runs past a few and pushing them out of the way waving her gun around, and they merely treat it like an annoyance. There was plenty of people around to hear the loud gunshots of Koslova's pistol and could see the Jackal firing with his as well. (01:12:20)

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The Jackal mistake picture

Factual error: On the ferry boat ride, which should have been from Canada to the United States, they were aboard a North Carolina ferry... The North Carolina flag was flapping in the wind next to the US flag. There was a closeup, and you could even see the name of the boat, which is named after a North Carolina Governor, and home ported in Moorhead City, North Carolina. (01:15:20)

Continuity mistake: After the mole in the FBI room is discovered and escorted out, Preston shuts the door and steps back into the room. In this shot you see two of the FBI sitting on a couch next to the door. The one on the left has his left arm relaxed beside him and the one on the right is looking straight forward. It then cuts to a close up of them before the guy on the left speaks, and now his arm is ridged with his fist balled on the couch, and the guy on the right is now suddenly looking to the right. (01:17:10)

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Continuity mistake: At Isabella's house, Koslova is walking with her into the kitchen as the FBI is placing her in protection. As they are walking, Koslova has nothing in her mouth and as the camera pans around, she starts to lift her right arm up to her face with her cigarette in her right hand. The camera cuts to a frontal view of her, and suddenly she has a cigarette in her mouth and is now taking it out with her left hand. (01:18:45)

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The Jackal mistake picture

Deliberate mistake: Declan and Preston are hanging out at an airfield in a blue car when they realise one of the numbers in the notebook they have is an FBI access code that The Jackal now has. In establishing shot of this scene you see the blue car sitting more towards the left with Declan on the hood. Then when Preston calls in this finding and they get a helicopter to come pick them up, in the shot with the chopper coming the car is now suddenly much further to the right. It seems they had to move it during filming to allow a place for the chopper to land. (01:19:05 - 01:20:30)

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Continuity mistake: As the helicopter is coming down for Declan and Preston, in the wide shot Declan is standing outside the car leaning against the door facing forward. But as the chopper draws near, he turns his body around and looks at it. It then cuts to a close up of him and suddenly he's facing forward again. (01:20:30)

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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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More quotes from The Jackal

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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More trivia for The Jackal

Question: Why did the Jackal tell Koslova how she is going to die?

Answer: He's sadistic, and it's a way to torment her during her final moments.

raywest

More questions & answers from The Jackal

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