Mediocre effort given the opportunity

Rating: 4/10 (13 August 2006)

For some reason, I wasn't mad about this film. Aside from the "underlying messages" of the film, I think the actual film making was wrong.
To begin with, the actual events of the Munich hostage situation is littered in sections throughout the film. While I can see what Spielberg was trying to do, I somehow would have preferred it if either: A) the events of munich were not shown at all; or B) the events of munich were shown in order and sequence at the opening of the film.
Second, the film couldn't seem to make up its mind in relation to focus. At times, I felt as though I was watching a scene in a film like True Lies or Mission Impossible and at other times, I felt as though the film was trying to deliver some poignant points about Israel and conflicts in the middle east surrounding it. It's not that it's impossible to have two separate focuses in a film, but I just felt that this film did not adequately pull it off with enough coherence.
Third, I felt that the character's "attack of conscience" seemed somewhat out of place or rather overstated. Let's face it: they are Mossad assassins sent on a mission following Munich. I found it difficult to believe that they were so distraught from carrying out assassinations. Otherwise, what are they doing in that line of work in the first place? It was just a bit too forced in my view.
Forth, the film addressed a perspective: if we kill the head of ABC, he is simply replaced and the violence continues. Well its not as simple as that. It's a bit more of a gamble in my view. Sometimes head is replace by someone who is worse ideologically, but far less competent. Other times, the head is replaced, but takes the group in a different direction or loses the faith of its members. While the members that dissociate may become part of another group, it would be in israels advantage to fight or negotiate with fewer splinters within the same "cause."
Fifth, in relation to the Arab-Israel tensions/conflict, the film really didn't say all that much more than we already know. It's a circle of violence with no end in sight and revenge gets them nowhere. So there really wasn't a fresh perspective - more of a rehashed viewpoint of a conflict where most people with all sorts of views on the subject tend to oversimplify and ignore external factors that are at play on many occasions.