All people are equal, but some are more equal than others

Rating: 8/10 (20 September 2008)

Spielberg is a master... when he wants to be. Or, usually he is. Munich has to mark the first occasion where I've felt that Steven Spielberg has tried, succeeded, but still failed. Unlike the misguided A.I., this film is good -- it's quite good, in fact.
As has been the trick of late, the sepia tones and oversaturation are in play. The cinematography, the responsibility of Janusz Kaminski, is well-handled and beautiful.
But it is, in fact, this technical aspect which most weighs down Munich. It distracts unnecessarily from the action. In Saving Private Ryan, it reflected the bewilderment of the characters; here it seems to prevent us from seeing the action clearly. In truth, the bleeding colors and gold-red tinged moments represent the moral vacuum of the plot: is it justice, or murder, that Avner (Eric Bana) and his crew are exacting? Following the 1972 massacre of several members of the Israeli national team by Islamic terrorists, Avner is recruited by the Mossad to lead a team of assassins in the killings of 11 men of prominence in the Munich incident. Of course, this is a petty set-up that seeks to examine the rightness vs. wrongness of such an endeavor. Spielberg avoids the clichés by deliberately avoiding commentary. This is an exploration of ideas of nationalism and humanity and where they collide; nothing more.
The cast is exceptional. Screenwriters Tony Kushner and Eric Roth fashioned a strong script, and the actors are given terrific material to work with. Daniel Craig and Bana are standouts, but equally stellar (and probably better) is Geoffrey Rush.
Munich is too long, especially since it never reaches any conclusion. There is no reward for any viewer who watches the entire film; the insights end half an hour before the credits roll. This might ruin the film for some, but the subject matter is contemplative enough to keep one placid through the end.
There did happen to be one scene which I picked as my favorite. Avner has sent his wife and child to Brooklyn while he continues working in Europe. He calls his wife, who is carrying his daughter in her arm. When he hears his daughter call him "Dada," he wells up in tears. This scene is my favorite because I felt it summed up the film, that is, there are no monsters in the war of ideology; only humans.