Munich

[Deleted]

While the German government comes acrosss as massively incompetent, you will never be able to stomach another Olympic Games, because the IOC comes across as some of the most bottom-feeding scum-sucking bureaucrats in the history of the world.

This does not surprise me in the least. Didn't we just catch freaking MORMONS bribing the IOC around the time of the SLC winter games? I hate to dog on all international bureaucrat types because the majority are extrememly hard-working, but these inernational organizations, including the UN, are havens for lazy dilletantes.

[speciousreasoning]

I heard the opposite WRT the terrorists. But hey, it would almost redeem the movie if Spielberg DIDN'T send people to speak with the terrorists.
At any rate, I just saw the preview again in front of the Johnny Cash movie (now THAT is a fabulous movie) and the preview looked terrible. Although they sure did find someone who looked like Golda Mier. That was cool. I get the sinking feeling that this movie is not only going to be politically correct about events that are not in the least bit politically correct (as well they shouldn't be - revenge and wrath are always ugly) but that Spielberg is entirely incapable of making a movie that should be dark without some pat "happy ending". I'm still angry about the end of "Saving Private Ryan", with the "earn this" bullshit and the end of "War Of the Worlds" (from what I hear - wouldn't go near that movie with a ten foot pole). But he may surprise me.

ETA - WRT to the IOC, considering they awarded an Olympic games to Nazi Germany and recently to China, I really doubt they are allowed to pretend they take the high ground in anything. They are corrupt, there's no doubt about that.

[Deleted]

There's only one surviving Black September member, Jamal al Gashey. He was among the hostage takers, and is now living anonymously in Central Africa. He was interviewed (via voice only) in "One Day in September."

The planners of the attack, including the worldwide head of operations for Black September and the heads of Black September in France and Greece, were all assassinated by the Mossad. al Gashey and two other hostage takers (the rest had died in the final standoff which claimed all the Israelis) were briefly captured by German officials, but then let go in what was essentially a phony hijacking so the Germans could wash their hands of the entire incident. I highly doubt Spielberg talked to al Gashey, nor could he have talked to any of the masterminds behind the attack, what with them being dead and all. The two other hostage takers who fled on the hijacked plane (along with al Gashey) were also assassinated.

specious, did you read Vengeance (the book this is based on)? I think the movie looks great, and I don't think it treats the subject with kid gloves just because there's some moral shading. If you read the book, Avner (who Eric Bana plays) has no doubt about the purity about his mission, but ended up with very mixed feelings about the whole experience, and the Mossad in particular. I wouldn't like the movie if it went the other way, and portrayed the Israelis as inhuman monsters who had no problems killing willy-nilly.

Here's a bit from Salon about "One Day in September," BTW:

Near the start, we learn that Olympic security guards were dressed like -- and were equipped like -- ushers at an Up With People concert. They patrolled the Olympic Village unarmed. In an irony that Stanley Kubrick might have found too cruel, Germans frantic to erase a Third Reich-inspired image of cold and brutal efficiency left their Olympic guests open to attack, and were helpless to deal with the attack after it happened.

One of the movie's many shocking revelations is that a police unit disguised as a flight crew abandoned the idea of ambushing the terrorists at the airport because they didn't feel properly trained and considered it a suicide mission. They retreated too late for the anti-terrorist strategists to compensate with a new plan.

German police had secured neither road routes nor radio communications, not even with the few snipers they had managed to deploy. The snipers were expecting five guerrillas, while international TV-watchers quickly learned there were eight.

The appalling mayhem at the airport defines the point where incompetence becomes immoral. Officials yearning to erase their country's history of genocide found themselves with Jewish blood on their hands.

"One Day in September" portrays human life sacrificed to public relations -- all under the banner of Olympian peace, love and understanding.

[speciousreasoning]

No, poorfrances, I didn't read that book but I watched an interview with Ehud Barak who lead the raid into Beirut to assassinate three or four of the planners and masterminds. Yeah that Ehud Barak, the one who used to be Prime Minister of Israel. Funnily enough, he was dressed as a woman during the raid. He was very very matter of fact about the fact that he and his group of elite commandos went in and wiped those people out. He was very unemotional about it. He was very "soldier"-y about it. He probably did have emotions about the killing but they were probably more, hey, they massacred our people, let's get them.
Boy I hope Spielberg has an Ehud Barak character dressed as a woman. That would be one macho looking woman. Have you seen Ehud Barak? Looks like a commando to me.

ETA (very late) - Actually if you talk to either the Israelis or the Palestinians involved in the Operation, that particular book is considered complete fiction by both sides. Both groups of people completely dismiss the book, saying it's nothing but a fictional book based on what happened after the massacre. Who says Israelis and Palestinians never agree on points?

[tommytimp]

It is interesting (but predictably Spielberg, I guess) that even though it deals with the aftermath, the name of the movie is Munich. Word association and all that, I guess.

[lpatrice]

The movie has Eric Bana and Cirian Hinds, so I'm so there.

[hillbillylover]

Spielberg is on the cover of next week's Time magazine in which he's interviewed by critic Richard Schikel - who incidently - loved the film.


But Richard Corliss will write the mag's official review.

[margarita]

Lurker, first-time poster, blah, blah, came from the Other Site.

I saw this movie being shot in Budapest last summer. Apparently, Budapest is standing in for Milan, London and Paris as well as itself. I saw the Paris part being shot just outside the State Opera on Andrassy ut. They had large numbers of '70s cars and trucks with French license plates, covered up the front of a bank to make it look like a stereotypical Parisian cafe, and changed all the street signs into French (as if I weren't getting lost enough already). They made it rainy in a very small area, and were shooting at night (while I was seeing La Traviata), but I didn't actually see Spielberg himself, just a lot of extras wearing fabulous 70s clothes. The locals were infuriated that they had to move their cars and couldn't walk down all the streets undisturbed.

They were doing something with red double decker London buses down by Parliament as well, but they had almost finished shooting when I was there. I think the Hungarians were very glad to see them go.

[speciousreasoning]

I just read a review of this movie in Jewish World Review and one in The Jerusalem Post and both are bad. I can't find them on the Internets so I'll paraphrase.

The Jewish World Review reviewer (?) says the story is overwhelmed by Spielberg's tendency of hitting people over the head with what HE wants us to see. And the reviewer is sick of being overwhelmed. The reviewer also says that the characters are one dimensional and thinly drawn.
The Jerusalem Post is even meaner. The reviewer there brings up the book this movie is based on which has been discredited by both sides. Then he questions that if Spielberg wanted to make an accurate movie about the events following Munich, why he didn't simply go to the Mossad agents and the IDF and get the stories from them. He also points out that unlike the characters in the movie, the Mossad and IDF agents involved in the targeted assassinations feel that they were doing their jobs and do not feel remorse for killing the masterminds of the Munich massacre. Okay there was more questioning of the methods Spielberg used in making this movie in this review, but the review was not good for the movie).

I'm still torn on whether I want to see this. I love "Schindler's List", but "Saving Private Ryan" was crap. Spielberg can make some incredible movies, but more often than not, he crosses the line into annoying and bombastic (and unsubtle). So I may wait until I hear what others think of it.

[lazerusgerbil]

Some say that it's possibly Spielberg's least manipulative movie. Personally, tacky endings aside, I think this is something Spielberg kind of gets a bad rap about this. Like, I'm not saying he doesn't play the manipulation game--it's just he gets caught.