Munich (2005) Review

https://youtu.be/gqX7H1-n10s?is=bKp5F87bVw6_2cBy

THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.

Sometimes, the longer you fight for something can lead to forgetting what it was all about.


PLOT


Based on George Jonas’ novel, ‘Vengeance’, 2005’s Munich begins following the ‘72 Summer Olympics where members of the Israeli Olympic team were murdered by terrorists of Black September. Avner Kaufman, a Mossad agent of German-Jewish descent is chosen to lead a mission in assassinating the exact terrorists responsible. Fellow agent Ephraim will be his handler that’ll give the israeli government plausible deniability. Avner’s team will include jewish volunteers: Steve will be the driver, Robert will be explosives expert, Carl will be the cleaner and Hans will be document forger. Due to being resigned from Mossad when assigned to the mission, Avner gets information from Louis whose family is connected to French Resistance. A lot of their hits would be successful when shooting down Walter Zwaiter (Makram Koury) in Rome, and committing bombings that execute Mahmoud Hamshari (Igal Noar) in Paris and Hussein Abd Al Chir in Cyprus. In Beirut, they would also get the assistance of IDF commandos to execute militants Kamal Nasser, Kamal Adwan and Muhammad Youssef al-Najjar. In between each hit does Avner’s group question the morality of their actions since there would be bystanders involved almost every time. After his wife Daphne (Ayelet Zurer) gives birth their daughter, the team goes to Athens to track down Zaias Muchasi. Louis arranges for them to be close, pretending to be PLO agents. During the hit though Avner discusses with actual PLO member Ali (Omar Metwally) on which homeland truly deserves to rule. They then move to London to go after the orchestrator of the Munich massacre, Ali Hassan Salameh (Mehdi Nebbou), but that gets foiled by American bystanders who were likely CIA agents. According to Louis, the CIA protects & funds him in exchange for his promise to not ever target US diplomats. Only after this does the team get targeted one by one. Carl would be the first one subdued by a female dutch contract killer named Jeanette van Nessen (Marie-Josée Croze) who is then killed by the team when extracting revenge. The carnage doesn't stop when Hans is found stabbed to death on a park bench and Robert is killed by an explosion in his workshop. Steve would be the only teammate for Avner to try again in going after Salameh in Spain, but their second attempt is thwarted when spotted by security. Unsure if Louis sold information about them to the PLO, they agree to abort the mission. Avner is hailed a hero, but suffers from PTSD and becomes paranoid that Mossad is spying on him. Louis’ Papa (Michael Lonsdale) assures he will be left alone, while Ephraim asks him to rejoin. When he refuses, the latter would in turn reject breaking bread with him. As the two part ways, the film ends with an epilogue that Salameh would eventually be killed in ‘79.


THOUGHTS


It’s always a coincidence when a filmmaker makes multiple films at once that it can lead to some being forgotten so quickly. Considering that War of the Worlds was a box office success, it would make sense that this period piece also directed by Steven Spielberg would have slipped under the rug until the awards season. That doesn’t diminish the quality because the fact it still got recognition at the Oscars, five nominations including Best Picture, it goes without saying this one was worthwhile. Given this explores such an intense story, it is definitely one of the more mature entries that’ll leave you stunned. Since this ain’t his first rodeo exploring a specific time period, you know there’s gonna be exceptional production/costume design. Add this with a captivating John Williams score and surreal cinematography by Janusz Kamiński, then you’re already set for an unforgettable experience. Telling a story about avenging those that were murdered in a terrorist attack is one of the more bolder narratives before Kathryn Bigelow’s Zero Dark Thirty. And because of that, you do have to wonder what is the point of it if there is no solution and terrorism remains a problem everywhere no matter the group with their beliefs. To me, I think that is part of the point Spielberg is telling with the assist of writers Tony Kushner & Eric Roth. There is no true closure nor peace when inflicting vengeance with violence only begets it and doesn’t undo past pain that was caused. I’m not saying we shouldn’t honor the fallen that are innocently murdered, but it comes to show avenging them doesn’t undo past pain and you can lose the righteousness you care so much about. This is the case when following around Eric Bana as Avner who cares deeply like the rest of the team on what they felt needs to be done, but the longer he was away from home broke him mentally that he accepted it wasn’t worth the patriotism. You look up to his practical approach on how to succeed, only to later sympathize with how isolated he feels even when with his wife and daughter. The fact he still wanted to break bread with those who refuse to be honest with him comes to show how good hearted he’ll be if the world is against him. With that being said, Geoffrey Rush makes an impressive performance in his given time as Ephraim because he needs to keep every relationship from a distance which expresses his own pragmatism. That shared feeling is why he respects Avner to the point of wanting him back on the field because he knows he’s still too good at what he does no matter the toll for the greater good. Approaching him like that however is why he can’t break bread with him, knowing there won’t be true reconciliation if their opinions remain to differ. That then leads to liking Avner’s team more than said superior because throughout each question do they make the time to question themselves and express remorse in order to differ from who they were after. Daniel Craig is interesting as Steve because he’s the only one who is most eager to be in action whereas everyone else is patient in what they have to play. The rest that don’t make it to the end like him become beloved overtime since their actions are meant to be more throughout. Hanns Zischler made Hans the most cynical, Mathieu Kassovitz portrayed Robert as the most gentle given his position and Ciaran Hinds showed Carl to be the the most weary which led to their success as time passed. Sadly, the one time he wasn’t is what led to things going downhill. Because Avner & Steve chose to abort before they could be killed, their teammates’ deaths weren’t in vein and I’m sure the former grew to understand that as he lived his life. Lastly, Mathieu Amalric was quite compelling in his given time as Louis because his allegiance sounds clear only for his way to go about it makes it hard to be comfortable around him. The fact no one really knows how close he and his father were to the threat comes to show some sides are not worth taking even when they sound better than another, which is enough good reason why the remaining protagonists aborted just when it got worse for them. In short, Munich is another captivating story for teaching viewers on how there will be a cost to any action good or bad. If you’re looking to be inspired & educated, this film will do it for you.