another powerful work from the master

Rating: 9/10 (28 January 2006)

There could hardly be a film more relevant to our times than Steven Spielberg's "Munich," the master filmmaker's grim and controversial rumination on how violence only begets violence and how the philosophy of "an eye for an eye," when taken to its extreme, only winds up with two men who cannot see. It certainly wasn't a "safe" subject for Spielberg to tackle, especially in the extremely sensitive post-9/11 world in which we live, but Spielberg has never been a filmmaker content to rest on his laurels and he certainly isn't doing so here.
Based on the book, "Vengeance: The True Story of an Israeli Counter-Terrorist Team" by George Jonas, the film uses as its starting point the tragic killing of eleven Israeli athletes by Palestinian terrorists at the 1972 Olympic Games. To get revenge for the murders, the Israeli government secretly hires a handful of assassins whose job it is to hunt down and kill those responsible for the act. Avner, the man chosen to be the leader of the operation, is forced to abandon his pregnant wife and later their newborn baby to perform his mission. As the body count begins to pile up, Avner is forced to question his actions, becoming more and more morally confused, guilt-ridden and paranoid as the story develops.
Spielberg has been harshly criticized for being too egalitarian and non-judgmental in his approach, for implying a kind of moral equivalence between the Israelis and the Palestinians. I don't really feel qualified to answer those charges, but from an artistic standpoint, I believe the director has taken the right approach, for in art, moral ambiguity is always more fascinating and challenging than moral certainty. Spielberg certainly generates sympathy for the Israeli athletes who are the first in the movie to fall victim to the bloodshed, and the Jewish individuals called on to exact the nation's revenge are shown as generally righteous men motivated by a desire for justice and concerned that innocent victims not fall prey to their violence. It's true that the Israeli government doesn't fare nearly as well here, and it is in this area that Spielberg opens himself up to the most criticism. However, this is something for the more politically inclined to deal with. Those of us interested in fine film-making will have less trouble with this aspect.
For as a movie, "Munich" is a powerhouse of a drama, thanks to Tony Kushner and Eric Roth's thought provoking, intelligent screenplay and Spielberg's incisive, tightly disciplined direction. The movie doesn't wander off into side alleys or irrelevancies but stays intimately focused on the characters as they go through the grim business of hunting down suspects, detonating explosives and even engaging in challenging moral discussions from time to time. Spielberg makes every moment count, whether it be showing us the intricate step-by-step process through which these men eliminate their targets or capturing a man's moment of joy and anguish as he talks on the phone to the little daughter he's never met.
As a humanist, Spielberg seems less concerned with heroes and villains than with the devastating toll escalating violence takes on both the individual psyche and society as a whole. He seems to be saying that we're in all this together, and until we begin to acknowledge our common humanity, the peaceful world we all long for will never come to pass.
The performances are uniformly excellent, especially the one by Eric Bana, who, as Avner, manages to make a complex and morally ambiguous character both believable and touching.
"Munich" is not an easy film for many in the audience to warm up to or sit through. It demands concentration and a willingness to look at some of the harsh realities of the world we live in with an open mind and unaverted eyes. But for those willing and courageous enough to do so, "Munich" is a provocative and richly rewarding experience.