Article: Hot dog; 'Jackal' hopes to be next remake that's a howlin' success.

[B]By STEPHEN SCHAEFER

Why does Hollywood love remakes so?

Why does a movie based on an old movie or a TV series have the luck to get made when thousands of original screenplays are ignored or trashed every year?

The two most obvious reasons are familiarity - a recognizable title that gives the film an immediate step ahead of its more original rivals - and having a story that works. Remakes are proven commodities.

But it's never that easy.

Take "The Jackal," opening Friday in Boston, in which Bruce Willis steps into the shoes - and wigs, mustaches and even potbellies - of a merciless, international high-tech assassin who is a ...

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