During the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany, an American sports broadcasting team must adapt to live coverage of the Israeli athletes being held hostage by a terrorist group.During the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany, an American sports broadcasting team must adapt to live coverage of the Israeli athletes being held hostage by a terrorist group.During the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany, an American sports broadcasting team must adapt to live coverage of the Israeli athletes being held hostage by a terrorist group.
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- Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 24 wins & 28 nominations total
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Summary
Featured reviews
The whole cast does a great job of saying all the news jargon with a high intensity but the main 3 stand out further. John Magaro rises to the challenge of covering something he never thought he'd have to whilst feeling the most guilty about what transpires, Peter Sarsgaard is commanding and clearly just as interested in personal gain as he is in documenting the events and Ben Chaplin is the most cautious yet still waves away some errors.
Tim Fehlbaum's direction mostly keeps everything contained in the studio to increase the chaos since all the information comes from outside and adds a layer of disconnection. Markus Förderer's tight and mobile cinematography is unwavering which is then combined with Hansjörg Weißbrich's meticulous editing to move at a high speed throughout and ensures the pacing is as airtight as humanly possible.
The story feels real and intimate because it doesn't need to exaggerate the drama. There are no unnecessary reenactments or cheap emotional tricks. The pressure of the moment is conveyed through intense dialogues, uncertain glances, and the constant feeling that every decision inside that newsroom could change everything. It's a raw look at journalism when immediacy clashes with the responsibility of telling the truth.
The setting is excellent, and the pacing maintains the tension without forcing situations. While some parts may feel slightly stylized for cinematic impact, the film achieves its goal: making us feel the anguish of those who lived that day, not as mere witnesses, but as the ones responsible for informing the world.
I liked the classic 1972 vibe, sigars, the know how, the first tv's and ict difficulties in that time. You also get a rewatch of the drama that took place in that olympic village. The 100minutes flew by and I never took my eyes of the screen.
If you like movies or real good documentaires, i strongly advice to watch this. Especially if your into world wide events. A 9 out of 10! Watch ln the big screen!!!!!!!!!...
The world watched in real-time as the crisis unfolded, and Black September achieved exactly what they wanted: maximum publicity. This was one of the first instances where a terrorist attack was staged with the global media in mind, creating a model that has since been replicated.
The media's role in amplifying terrorism is complex. On one hand, coverage is necessary to inform the public, expose security failures, and hold governments accountable. On the other, the relentless focus on the perpetrators can sometimes grant them the notoriety they seek. This has led to ongoing ethical debates about how journalists should report on terrorism without unintentionally promoting it.
By revisiting September 5, the film not only honors the victims but also forces viewers to confront the enduring complexities of terrorism, security failures, and international politics that remain relevant today.
Did you know
- TriviaAll of the live video footage of the siege and the studio presentation and interviews is the original footage as broadcast by ABC during the crisis, taken directly from their archive.
- GoofsThe crew are seen drinking from beer cans with retained ring pulls. This type of opening mechanism wasn't widely in use until the original patents expired in 1975, three years after the events depicted in the movie.
- Quotes
Marianne Gebhardt: [translating] He's saying that the Games are an opportunity to welcome the world to a new Germany, to move on from the past.
Marvin Bader: Yeah, sure.
Marianne Gebhardt: I mean, it's what we all hope for. What else can we do but move on, try to be better?
Marvin Bader: [stops the video] Are your parents still around?
Marianne Gebhardt: Yes.
Marvin Bader: Let me guess- they didn't know either, right?
Marianne Gebhardt: [pause] Well, I'm not them.
Marvin Bader: No. No, you're not. I'm sorry.
- ConnectionsFeatured in 82nd Golden Globe Awards (2025)
Everything New on Prime Video in May
Everything New on Prime Video in May
Details
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- Also known as
- Septiembre 5
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- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross US & Canada
- $2,508,723
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $80,802
- Dec 15, 2024
- Gross worldwide
- $8,237,910
- Runtime1 hour 35 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.39 : 1
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