It's Playing On My Mind (Munich (DVD))

Member Name: spencer_hawken

Product:	Munich (DVD)
Date:	01/11/09 (40 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: A compelling story, and an educational resource

Disadvantages: None

In 1972 the Olympic games held in Munich became a topic greatly discussed; and not for the sporting events. One night terrorists known as "Black September" a Palestinian group forced there way into the room of the Israeli Olympic team. Some of the team were executed there and then, while others were held hostage while negotiations were carried out. After a considerable time the terrorists moved the Israeli team to the airport; upon arrival they executed the rest of the team.

In Israel (allegedly) Prime Minister Golda Meir summoned one of her top military men Avner and presented him with a special task. Avner must travel the world with a team of highly skilled specialists and kill every person behind the terrorist atrocity. He is told that if he is caught the Israeli government will deny al knowledge of his existence. For Avner to receive such a request from the most powerful woman in Israel is one he finds difficult to turn down. But for Avner it means making a dreadful sacrifice, he will be separated from his wife who is due to give birth at anytime; and face the risk of not seeing them for several years, and that is if his mission is successful.
Avner accepts the task and assembles his team of four associates; together they form alliances with people who can get information on the people behind Black September. Initially all goes to plan, but when tracking down one of Black Septembers top men a blood bath occurs; the people that Avner gets his information from start selling information about him and his team to another interested party.

Cast

Eric Bana .... Avner
Daniel Craig .... Steve
Ciarán Hinds .... Carl
Mathieu Kassovitz .... Robert
Hanns Zischler .... Hans
Ayelet Zurer .... Daphna (as Ayelet Zurer)
Geoffrey Rush .... Ephraim
Gila Almagor .... Avner's Mother
Michael Lonsdale .... Papa
Mathieu Amalric .... Louis
Moritz Bleibtreu .... Andreas
Valeria Bruni Tedeschi .... Sylvie

Possibly like lots of people I had heard vaguely about the events of 1972, but knew very little of exactly what happened, bearing in mind we are talking 34 years ago and before I was born. So to see Munich was a good opportunity to get a bit of adult education.

The movie as a whole although directed by Spielberg with the odd exception it did not look like his work. I describe Spielberg movies like a stick of rock, if you snap it in half his name goes right through it. Munich is the exception; elements that Spielberg uses seldom in movies are a frequent occurrence here. There is a quite a lot of swearing, some quite graphic gore and even sex scenes all elements that are taboo normally for Spielberg. So for those of you that are not endeared by Spielberg because of his familiar traits then this movie is a safe and highly educational movie for you.
The performances were rather good, although I found that with the exception of the character Papa (a source of information) it was very difficult to warm to any of them. They all had a layer of the unapproachable about them. Avner for example played by Eric Bana I personally felt no warmer to him in the last minutes of the film as I did in the first few. But I guess this is intentional, at the end of the day the main characters are all revenge assassins. The character Steve played by the new Bond Daniel Craig was the warmest of the characters; he displayed clear emotions when things annoyed him.

The story itself based on the novel Vengeance by George Jonas, is very well crafted and easy to follow despite the complexities of the overall storyline. Although its difficult to warm to the cast members you are given a wide view of the characters themselves and how the events of their actions effect both there home life and their mental health. You can clearly see the effects their actions have had after several years pursuing this mission.
Having watched this film several weeks back I find myself haunted by one specific scene, and this is where Spielberg proves himself in my eyes to be an excellent craftsman. At one point during the film a woman comes under the teams sites, because of an event she may or may not have been involved in; and forgive me if I'm wrong but I do not actually believe that her involvement was confirmed. Avner leads his team onto her houseboat where they confront her, she has a basic awareness as to why they are there and almost certainly knows that she is minutes from death. When Avner and Steve fire one bullet each into her, she moves across the room and reaches out for her cat. She grabs her cat giving it a final farewell hug before moving to a chair where she is finished off. This scene plays on my mind because of the humanness of it. I found myself questioning if in the same circumstances I would hug my dogs before dying. This scene puts a whole new slant on a movie that up until that point had been cold and unfeeling. This image is clear in my mind today, and I find myself thinking about this on a daily basis. I discussed this with a friend and they said they felt the same emotion; any director that can make an image last in someone's mind like this has mine is undoubtedly the master of the cinema.

I found no down sides to Munich, it was well paced out and while others argue that the two and a half hour length was a bit over the top, I think if it had been any less something important would have been missed out. I also feel that those concerned about the time length may actually have not had much interest in the movie to begin with.

Special Features

An opening introduction sees Spielberg explain some things he feels the viewer should know. He discusses why he set about turning vengeance into a movie, and why the events of Munich should be considered when looking at the state of our modern world.
Munich: The Team, The Mission. Is quite a length documentary, if you have asked a question about the movie (with the exception of the scene I mentioned earlier) its explained here. It separates fact from fiction, and highlights the fictionalized areas because of those areas nobody truly knows what happened. It also explains the selection process of Avner and his men covers the expanding list of targets and offers some views that have not been thought of.

You can pick up Munich anywhere for a few pounds.

Summary: Dramatisation of the events surrounding the 1972 Olympic killings