Munich (2005)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Steven Spielberg

Writers (WGA):

Tony Kushner (screenplay) and
Eric Roth (screenplay) ...

Release Date:

6 January 2006 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | History | Thriller

Tagline:

The world was watching in 1972 as 11 Israeli athletes were murdered at the Munich Olympics. This is the story of what happened next.

Plot:

Based on the true story of the Black September aftermath, about the five men chosen to eliminate the ones responsible for that fateful day.

Plot Keywords:

Mossad | Olympics | Munich | Terrorist | Palestinian

Awards:

Nominated for 5 Oscars. Another 7 wins & 21 nominations

Cast

Eric Bana	...	Avner
Daniel Craig	...	Steve
Ciarán Hinds	...	Carl
Mathieu Kassovitz	...	Robert
Hanns Zischler	...	Hans
Ayelet Zurer	...	Daphna
Geoffrey Rush	...	Ephraim
Gila Almagor	...	Avner's Mother
Michael Lonsdale	...	Papa
Mathieu Amalric	...	Louis
Moritz Bleibtreu	...	Andreas
Valeria Bruni Tedeschi	...	Sylvie
Meret Becker	...	Yvonne
Marie-Josée Croze	...	Jeanette the Dutch Assassin
Yvan Attal	...	Tony - Andreas' Friend

Also Known As:

Munich (Canada: French title) (France)
Steven Spielberg's Munich (Australia)
Untitled 1972 Munich Olympics Project (USA) (working title)

MPAA:

Rated R for strong graphic violence, some sexual content, nudity and language.

Runtime:

164 min | Philippines:163 min (cut)

Country:

USA | Canada | France

Language:

English | German | French | Hebrew | Arabic

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS-ES | Dolby Digital EX | SDDS

Certification:

Ireland:15A | Australia:MA | Czech Republic:12 | UK:15 | Singapore:M18 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Finland:K-15 | Netherlands:16 | Norway:15 | Argentina:16 | Portugal:M/16 | Germany:16 | Hong Kong:IIB | Spain:18 | Philippines:R-13 | Sweden:15 | Iceland:16 | Malaysia:18PL | Malaysia:U (heavily cut) | Hungary:16 | New Zealand:R16 | South Korea:15 | Japan:PG-12 | Brazil:16 | Peru:14 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Denmark:15 | South Africa:16 | Canada:18A (Alberta/British Columbia/Manitoba) | USA:R (certificate #42321) | France:U (with warning) | Australia:M (TV rating) | India:A (cinema release)

Filming Locations:

Bir-Hakeim Bridge, Paris, France

Company:

DreamWorks SKG

Trivia:

In the opening segment of the movie, there is a brief shot of two Israeli girls watching TV appearing twice. The one of the left is Steven Spielberg's daughter Sasha Spielberg.

Goofs:

Anachronisms: The black Mercedes W114 230.6 used by the KGB agents during the Greece assassination scene is patched together to make it more "historic." The front doors were made to look like a Series 1 model, with divided side windows, made prior August 1973. The side mirror was removed completely. The rest of the car is clearly a Series 2 (post August 1973), including the model designation 230.6 itself (it should read just "230", the two different models 230.4 and 230.6 co-existed after August 1973).

Quotes:

[first lines]
American Athlete: Hey! Oh! Shame, shame! Closing down the beer garden. 100 meter dash powered by knackwurst and lager.
American Athlete: Where are you guys from?
American Athlete: What is your event?

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Standing on the Shoulders of Kubrick: The Legacy of 2001 (2007) (V)

Soundtrack:

Prelude to a Kiss

A Half Cooked Masterpiece

Steven Spielberg has absolutely everything at his disposal, he can make an epic in no time at all. But, even he must know that films, most films have a soul and that can't be rushed. Why the need to rush this film into screens? For Oscar consideration? If there was a film that needed nurturing and thought was this one. The length is a flaw in itself. It makes it appear self indulgent and, quite frankly,annoying. If one could, and one should, put that aside, "Munich" is a remarkable experience. Tony Kushner and Eric Roth deal with people in all its complexity - a welcome new detail in a Spielberg film - and that gives "Munich" its most powerful aspect. Eric Bana is extraordinary and the humanity of his gaze is confusing and recognizable at the same time. His crying at hearing his child's voice over the phone is as real as his hardness when he massacres his targets. The controversy raising after the first public screenings seems pre-fabricated by a marketing machine. The questioning of Bana's character and the appalling nature of revenge can't be controversial it's at the base of human nature. To call Spielberg "no friend of Israel" is as absurd as it is suspicious. No, this movie is a thriller, based on actual events, directed by the greatest craftsman of the last 30 years in a record amount of time. Go see it.