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Critics Consensus: Munich can't quite achieve its lofty goals, but this thrilling, politically even-handed look at the fallout from an intractable political conflict is still well worth watching.
Critic Consensus: Munich can't quite achieve its lofty goals, but this thrilling, politically even-handed look at the fallout from an intractable political conflict is still well worth watching.
All Critics (204) | Top Critics (41) | Fresh (158) | Rotten (46) | DVD (13)
It's a smart, mesmerizing and often angry film, from a truly confident filmmaker, but it remains, maddeningly, just beyond our grasp.
Everything that keeps it from being lovable could be looked upon as a virtue, and everything about it is intentional.
Munich ricochets all over the place, but it hits its target dead-on.
Like the superior Syriana, this isn't a Middle Eastern tale that offers much hope. It's just bloodstained history. And if we don't remember that history, Spielberg says, we learn nothing.
The ultimate problem with Munich is that it's looking for a clear-cut answer that doesn't exist. And while it frames its final act as an argument, it's an argument it's having with itself.
It's a brutal, merciless, somber picture, utterly devoid of the heart-tugging sentimentality that always creeps into even his best films. It is also, unfortunately, timid when it should be bold and clunky when it should be eloquent.
Munich's passion is clear, its intention good, the skill behind it immense; there is something brave about its decision to take politics into the multiplex.
It's an incoherent film, as if Spielberg desperately wanted to say something important and could only come to the conclusion that killing is bad and we're all human.
Munich is more measured and classy than Spielberg's action-adventures.
This punishing, borderline amoral picture is Spielberg at his most bleak, and most challenging. It refuses to pick sides and resonates in unsettling ways.
Munich is an important story to be sure but an important movie isn't the same as a great one. It's told in such a muddled way the message is easily lost, except for the moments when it is hammered home at the cost of story-telling believability.
Spielberg described Munich as his 'prayer for peace,' yet his movie strangely lacks the eloquence and yearning of a prayer.
Some Jewish guys volunteer to assassinate the Arabs responsible for planning the kidnapping of the Jewish Olympic team. Spielberg borrows heavily from The Conversation, moralizes some, and falls into typical Spielbergian emoting by the end of it. This is the work so highly regarded? Or is it the political sympathies? Better to see the aforementioned film.
Super Reviewer
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A well-done, delicately constructed drama that has a very personal feel to it from director Steven Spielberg, concerning the Munich terrorist attack against Israelian athletes during the 1972 Olympic Games, where two were killed and nine others were injured. Israel, determined not to let this slide, quietly hires a skilled agent (Eric Bana) and a team to kill those responsible for this planned attack. While the film is certainly sprawling and aiming for that usual Spielbergian epic-scope it doesn't achieve overall, it is still a skillful effort from one of the best directors in the world. The moral crisis of the situation, answering violence with more violence, is handled very well. There are some scenes that feel out of place (notably one near the end combining the attack with a sex scene), but Bana's strong performance drives the film home. Not the best work Spielberg has done, but still a worthwhile effort.
Whilst it's a bit too long for my liking, it's a great piece of cinema. I knew nothing about the real life event but now I certainly do (as long as it's mostly close to the truth). On their own, none of the characters are particularly likable, but somehow together I get a feeling of camaraderie and I want them to succeed. The attacks are always very tense and dramatic which helps you bond with the characters, especially with the little girl situation which is helped by the fantastic cast. Not a film for everyone but definitely worth a look for those with interests in history and film.
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