Munich

[Guest ScarletKnight41]

I don't think I'm in any shape to rate this one tonight. It was draining. Which is a sign of a very powerful film, and I'll probably give it nine or ten stars once I can distance myself a little bit from it.

For those of us old enough to remember the Munich Olympics, this will bring back memories. If you have studied the murder of the Israeli Olympic athletes (such as by watching the HBO documentary from a year or two ago), you'll appreciate the great attention to detail in the scenes involving the athletes.

The film starts with the terrorist attack in the Olympic village, although most of the movie deals with the tracking down and slaying of those who planned the attack, as well as the moral dilemma faced by those involved in the mission. It's an "inspired by true facts" kind of movie, and as far as I know the characters involved are the writers' creations based on what kind of people they thought were involved, although such a mission did, in fact, take place.

The ending was somewhat less than satisfying, but overall it was a very well done and gripping film.

On Edit - after a night of sleeping on it, I went with the 10. The fact that I'm still thinking about this film so much the next day is significant.

[Vic Sage]

disagree, mom.

i was very disappointed. Its lethargic, heavy-handed and obvious.

I also found certain parts ludicrous:

* the old guy with the hand grenade is able to rush past the russian guards and not only blow up the bad guy, but survive and get away? puhlleeez

* the old guy whose job it is to worry and be careful picks up the "honeytrap" at the bar, even after the hero warns him? puhllleeeez.

* as a Mossad agent, he's probably been involved with killing people before. Now his conscience is tormenting him over the death of 7 palestinians? puhleeez.

Stuff like this only bothers you when you're not really involved in the story. And i wasn't, because Spielberg's skills as a director of "political thrillers" are dubious. The movie is a series of assassination set pieces, none of which is brilliantly planned or brilliantly executed, or excitingly rendered. The pacing is leaden.

If you want to see a movie about how a govt agent becomes involved in an assassination plot and cover up, and, after losing faith in his own govt's morality, becomes paranoid that his govt is trying to kill him, then i've got a great film for you... its called THREE DAYS OF THE CONDOR.

rent it now!

[Guest ScarletKnight41]

I saw it. In the theaters. A zillion years ago.

I still found this compelling. It was the attention to detail that really did it for me. I have seen enough documentary coverage of the Munich massacre to know what several of the athletes looked like, and their portrayals in the film (even in small roles) was eerily accurate.