Film and television commentary The most intriguing aspect of *The Day of
the Jackal* is the protagonist, the Jackal. Despite his exceptional skills, the
story spends much time depicting moments when he can't utilize his expertise—like waiting half a day at a computer for a client's reply. Even
this cold-blooded killer, who exudes poise while on the run, is at the mercy of
his "clients." He grows anxious when payments are delayed, constantly
checking his computer for confirmation of the transfer. These moments humanize
the master assassin, reducing him to a vulnerable figure.
I can't bring myself to like the Jackal. He
kills for profit and resolves every obstacle with violence. When infiltrating a
German politician's building, his original target was to wound the politician's
son, but upon being discovered by a subordinate, he instinctively shot her in
the head without hesitation—no thought to whether she'd
seen him assembling his gun or whether she deserved to live. His speed and
ruthlessness are inseparable. Even as the protagonist, and despite glimpses of
his tender side, it's undeniable that he harms countless innocents.
Yet this fugitive criminal has married and
started a family, choosing a life of normalcy. The affection his wife, Nuria,
shows toward him suggests their romance was filled with love, and his
tenderness toward family seems genuine, not an act. With his wife and child, he
doesn't resemble a villain. His obsessive protection of his identity (often
eliminating witnesses) hints that he may have wanted to retire. This explains
why he accepts a lucrative assassination mission: he needs a fortune to escape
a life of bloodshed and secure a wealthy, stable future.
The Jackal wants a new life, yet he's a
born killer—adept at performance, disguise, deception,
infiltration, strategy, and murder. So, what torments him most in life? What
truly drives him? These are the answers I seek.
As a notoriously corrupt politician, he
knows an assassination attempt is inevitable, so he travels with two carloads
of bodyguards and uses military resources to isolate himself. To avoid snipers,
he stays in a bulletproof car and rarely ventures out; his security team plans
his every move, ensuring he can enter a building within ten seconds of exiting
the vehicle.
On the day of the attack, as he emerged,
the crowd could only see a hazy building where the shot originated. Through a
telescope, a glint from a sniper scope was spotted. Minutes later, German
police swarmed the building, and SWAT teams breached the suspect's room,
finding a time bomb under the bed. The German Intelligence Agency calculated
thesnipe distance: 3,815 meters. The bullet would take 6–7 seconds to travel, meaning the shooter had to predict the target's
position and fire into the "future." The killer was captured on film
twice:
- 2 minutes and 52 seconds after the
shooting, he was photographed leaving the building.
- The previous night, he was filmed posing
as a long-time cleaner in the politician's office building. Despite many
witnesses, no one recognized him as an impostor. Entering required facial
recognition, proving his disguise fooled even technology.
Though the killer seemed infallible,
legends leave traces. Based on his build and complexion, European militaries
investigated active-duty special forces, but no one could make such a shot.
Checking sniper school records from the past 30 years yielded no leads.
An old sniper recalled a forgotten legend:
a sniper who "died" in Afghanistan a decade ago, whose files were
classified—this was the Jackal's story.
Rewinding to the day before the shooting,
in a Munich laborer's home: an elderly cleaner was strangled on his sofa while
watching TV, a bottle of alcohol by his bed and a plate heaped with cigarette
butts. A man identical in appearance and clothing sat beside him, took a pack
of cigarettes from his chest pocket, and put it in his own—this was the Jackal.
The Jackal had tracked the cleaner for
days, planted a bug on him, and recorded his voice. He'd spent days mimicking
the man's behavior, and this night was his "debut." He replicated the
cleaner's route: public transport, then walking, even matching the number of
cigarettes smoked.
Before entering the politician's building,
he smoked another cigarette as the cleaner would. A screen played the
politician's speech—once a billionaire capitalist, now
running for German chancellor. The Jackal crushed the cigarette roughly, not
discarding it but stuffing it in his pocket, entering the company reeking of
smoke.
Grabbing cleaning tools, he reached the
target's floor, covered in cameras but guarded by only one security guard. He
saw two people still there: the politician's son and his aide. The Jackal
pushed his cart into a room, closed the blinds, turned on a vacuum, and began
assembling his pistol.
Then an accident: the guard heard the noise
and approached. As he arrived, the Jackal emerged from the room. The Jackal
calculated the guard's trajectory but only shot him in the leg. Hours later,
back in his safe house, the Jackal smiled at his disguised reflection in the
mirror. He removed his dental appliance, tore off his beard, eyebrows, wig,
colored contacts, prosthetic skin, and hood— in some
ways, he was an artist. His true face wasn't that of a fierce criminal but a
lean, haggard man. Gazing at himself, his eyes were sad, yet someone like him
was fated never to mourn.
He checked the next morning's wind forecast
on his phone—here, he would fire the unprecedented
shot. Killing the son was a ploy to lure out the father, the real target,
during the chancellor campaign's critical final days. The politician had
planned to stay indoors, but after his son's assassination, public opinion
blamed his anti-immigration stance. He had to visit the hospital to avoid
appearing heartless, a move the Jackal had anticipated.
He'd prepared the room: removed balcony
glass, placed a pinwheel to monitor wind, and emptied his suitcase to assemble
a sniper rifle. The suitcase was a masterpiece: the handle contained the
barrel, wheels hid bullets, and all parts were disguised as luggage components,
allowing him to pass security undetected.
Before the target arrived, he needed to
calibrate his scope. Noting that soldiers on the only nearby building were
focused on distant roads and crowds, he risked a test shot (the distance muted
the sound). The first shot missed; he loaded a second... The rest is
known.
After the kill, he dismantled the rifle
swiftly, repacked his clothes, donned a coat, bought a bomb, and left—triggering a fire alarm on the way. Just 2 minutes and 50 seconds
after firing, he was downstairs, calmly entering a prepped car. He knew police
would converge on the hospital, and their actual drive would exceed 3,800
meters, so he even passed patrol cars.
His route included tunnels to evade
helicopters. When police reached the building, he arrived at a parking lot with
a second car, switched vehicles, and detonated the first—erasing all traces.
That afternoon, in a new suit, he posed as
a chess collector in Nuremberg, purchasing an expensive set. By night, he
reached the German-French border. Despite tighter checks, he had a fake
passport with pre-registered info—standard infiltration
work.
Police searched his car. He'd placed an
elegant box on the passenger seat to draw attention, distracting them from what
mattered. Inside was an ivory chess set; he claimed it was his reason for
visiting Germany—a clever decoy that worked.
The next day in Paris, safe but unrelaxed,
he still hadn't received his final payment. At a Lyon train station internet
café, he inserted a hacking USB, replaced the OS to
erase traces, then logged into the dark web—the client
portal. When the client didn't respond, he chased the payment. Even a
professional killer must wait. Hours later, he pressed for a timeline; the
reply: "within 24 hours."
A new message arrived: someone heard of his
assassination of the German candidate and sought his services. Hesitant
(Intensive order taking risked exposure), he was tempted by the offer—$10 million. The client wanted a meeting; he refused, but the money
overrode principle. He demanded a $1 million meeting fee (half upfront, half on
arrival), with both sides free to back out. The client agreed. He stayed until
the deposit arrived, then boarded a train.
The Jackal never met clients, relying on
reputation: clients trusted him, paid half upfront, half on completion. He
always honored contracts, trading on professionalism and anonymity.
He chose a remote Swedish nature reserve
for the meeting, a place with birds he liked to sketch. The client, a woman,
arrived alone—a bold move. In a viewing hut, the Jackal
entered silently; she could only confirm his gender and accent by voice—his maximum concession.
They discussed the target: one of the
world's most high-profile figures, code-named "UFO." The Jackal
immediately demanded a tenfold increase from $10 million, plus expenses. The
client needed to consult—indicating seriousness, ending
the first meeting.
Who was UFO? A controversial tech mogul and
billionaire. He founded an IT firm providing global financial services,
amassing a fortune and 240 million social media followers, worshiped as a god.
Witnessing financial corruption, he declared war, developing software to
transparency all large-money flows—seeking nothing but
economic justice.
Such radicalism drew enemies: wealthy
capitalists led by an elderly magnate, with the meeting woman as his aide.
The Jackal's next stop: Cádiz, Spain, Europe's southernmost port. At a hillside villa, he
parked, stowed his gun, and entered unhindered, dressed as a businessman. By
the pool, a woman cleaning toys turned—at the sight of
him, her fear dissolved into joy. She was his wife. This was his home; he lived
here between missions.
Even at home, he slept little. At dawn, he
walked, letting sea and foliage scents drown out memories of bloodshed. He
loved watching birds; seeing an eagle hunt, he couldn't identify with the
predator. This was the life he craved: solitude by the sea.
He sought peace here. His local wife and
their blond son, untainted by the world, knew him as "Chal."
Here are some wonderful English book
reviews for *The Day of the Jackal*:
"The Day of the Jackal is a
captivating battle between two meticulous professionals, two experts of their
trades on either side of the law. And finally, beneath all its action, drama
and chases, it actually boils down to which of them is more disciplined about
his work. The Jackal, with a meticulous personality and obsession for planning
to the last minute detail, will be one of the most intriguing and enigmatic
characters ever created in the thriller genre. Frederick Forsyth infused this
novel with historical details that added more validity to the plot and added
richness to the flow of the narrative. He also included the intricacies of
political plotting and the difficulty, even with a small group, in keeping
anything a secret. The ruthlessness and the zeal with which the assassin
approaches what seems to be an impossible task was unnerving, chilling. This
book is one of the best books in its genre. Haven't found a book which can be
at par with The Day of the Jackal."
"The Day of the Jackal is a must -
read thriller. The author does very well in setting up the context in the first
half and drives the reader to fast - paced action that follows. It's a story
about a tall, blond Englishman, a killer at the top of his profession, unknown
to any secret service in the world. He has a contract to kill the world's most
heavily guarded man. With his rifle, he seems to be able to change the course
of history. The way the story unfolds, with the assassin's every move and the
investigators' efforts to stop him, keeps you on the edge of your seat. It's a
masterfully written novel that showcases Forsyth's talent for creating suspense
and tension."
"Frederick Forsyth's The Day of the
Jackal is a masterpiece of the thriller genre. The detailed descriptions of the
assassin's planning and execution, as well as the efforts of the authorities to
catch him, are both fascinating and terrifying. The author's use of real -
world political events as the backdrop gives the story a sense of authenticity
and makes it all the more engaging. The character of the Jackal is truly
unforgettable, a cold - blooded and highly skilled professional who commands both
respect and fear. This book is not only a great read but also a study in the
art of suspense and intrigue."
"In The Day of the Jackal, Forsyth
weaves a tale of political intrigue and assassination that is both gripping and
thought - provoking. The contrast between the methodical Jackal and the
determined investigators creates a dynamic and engaging narrative. The book's
detailed account of the assassin's techniques and the political context
surrounding the plot offer readers a unique insight into the world of espionage
and political violence. It's a classic thriller that has stood the test of time
and remains as relevant and exciting today as it was when it was first
published."
"The Day of the Jackal is an
outstanding example of the thriller genre. The author's ability to build
tension and maintain suspense throughout the story is remarkable. The character
of the Jackal is complex and mysterious, and his actions keep the reader
guessing until the very end. The historical and political backdrop adds depth
and authenticity to the plot, making it more than just a simple story of murder
and mayhem. It's a book that will appeal to anyone who enjoys a well - written,
fast - paced thriller with a touch of realism."