Film Excess - Free Ukraine - Stop Putin - End the war NOW!!: Munich (2005) - Spielberg wrings a brilliant spy thriller from fraught real-life massacre and its aftermath

6/14/2019

Munich (2005) - Spielberg wrings a brilliant spy thriller from fraught real-life massacre and its aftermath

♥♥♥♥♥

+ Best Period Movie of the Year + Best Spy Movie of the Year + Best Revenge Movie of the Year

Star Eric Bana seems to meditate the weight of the gun and its possible deeds on this dark poster for Steven Spielberg's Munich

Munich portrays the 1972 Olympics massacre in Munich, Germany, wherein the Palestine Liberation Organization murdered 12 people, 11 of them Israeli athletes, and the aftermath, in which Israel sought justice and revenge for the misdeed.

Munich is written by Tony Kushner (Lincoln (2012)) and Eric Roth (A Star Is Born (2018)), based on the non-fiction book Vengeance (1984) by George Jonas (Final Decree (1981)), and directed by Ohioan master filmmaker Steven Spielberg (Schindler's List (1993)).
To make an objective film of the loaded story of the horrific massacre and the response from Mossad, Israel's intelligence service, is hard if not impossible, but Spielberg succeeds in making a drama thriller, which is masterly in its sympathetic, though-provoking suspense. The intelligent script and staging make the revenge missions highly exciting.
The cast features several very noteworthy actors; worth singling out are Eric Bana (Funny People (2009)), Geoffrey Rush (Frida (2002)) and Lynn Cohen (The Romance of Loneliness (2012)) as Israeli prime minister Golda Meir. John Williams' (The Accidental Tourist (1988)) score is more underplayed than we are accustomed to, subtle and mood-setting.
Munich's ending cements the moral complications it pursues. It is a brilliant film.

Related posts:

Steven Spielberg: 2017 in films - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
The Post (2017) - Spielberg returns to mastery with a thrilling salute to the virtues of real, critical, brave journalism
2012 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED V]
Lincoln (2012) - Spielberg's inspiring presidential portrait stands tall
War Horse (2011) - Spielberg visits WWI with problematic horse drama
The Adventures of Tintin/The Adventures of Tintin: The Secret of the Unicorn (2011) - Affinities for Tintin, earlier Spielberg and film will decide your experience of this 3D mo-cap adventure
Super 8 (2011) - Abrams' nostalgic family crowdpleaser (producer)

2005 in films and TV-series - according to Film Excess [UPDATED I]
Band of Brothers - TV mini-series (2001) - WWII-sacrifice and -comradeship portrayed with skill and integrity (producer)
A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001) - A robot fairy tale with both heart and mind
Amistad (1997) or, Must... Free... Slaves!
Empire of the Sun (1987) - Spielberg's grand production of boy-in-China-during-WWII is a misfire
Twilight Zone The Movie (1983) - Fear takes many forms in tragedy-struck anthology
E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982) - Spielberg's greatest accomplishment
1941 (1979) - Spielberg's bizarre 'comedy spectacular' sinks like a rock
Top 10: Best car chases in movies reviewed by Film Excess to date
Duel (1971) - Spielberg's truck terror is ideal afternoon fare

Spielberg gives an interview about the film here

Cost: 70 mil. $
Box office: 130.3 mil. $
= Big flop (returned 1.86 times its cost)
[Munich opened 23 December (North America) and runs 163 minutes. Shooting took place in Paris, France, Malta, Hungary, including Budapest and in New York from June - September 2005. The film opened #8 to a 4.1 mil. $ first weekend in 532 theaters in North America, where it peaked at #6 and in 1,498 theaters (different weeks), grossing 47.4 mil. $ (36.4 % of the total gross), ranking among Spielberg's lowest-grossing features. The 2nd and 3rd biggest markets were the UK with 8.9 mil. $ (6.8 %) and Japan with 8.4 mil. $ (6.4 %). The historical accuracy was criticized for leaving out important aspects of the story and changing the structure of the Mossad group and its members' moral considerations, and the Zionist Organization of America called for a boycott of the film. It was nominated for 5 Oscars, winning none: It lost Best Picture to Crash, Director to Ang Lee for Brokeback Mountain, Adapted Screenplay to Larry McMurtry and Diana Ossana for Brokeback Mountain, Editing to Crash and Score to Gustavo Santolalla for Brokeback Mountain. It was also nominated for 2 Golden Globes, won an AFI award, won 1/2 Grammy nominations, a National Board of Review award and several other honors. Roger Ebert gave it a 4/4 star review, translating to a notch higher than this one. Spielberg returned with Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008). Bana returned in Lucky You (2007). Munich is certified fresh at 78 % with a 7.45/10 critical average at Rotten Tomatoes.]

What do you think of Munich?

No comments:

William Friedkin has died

Born in Chicago, Friedkin accrued TV credits prior to his advance to the big screen as the director of Good TImes (1967), The Birthday Party (1968), The Night They Raided Minsky's (1968) and The Boys in the Band (1970) before his major breakthrough, The French Connection (1971), for which he won his only Oscar. He followed it up with the even bigger smash, The Exorcist (1973), arguably the best horror film of all time, for which he was Oscar-nominated. Later credits include Sorcerer (1977), Cruising (1980), To Live and Die in L.A. (1985), Rampage (1987), Rules of Engagement (2000), Killer Joe (2011) and The Devil and Father Amorth (2017, documentary). Friedkin passed away at age 87. R.I.P.

Louise Fletcher has passed away

Born in Alabama to deaf parents, Fletcher got her first credits in late-1950s TV-series.She took a 10 year-long sabbatical to devote her time to motherhood after the release of A Gathering of Eagles, but then came back and soon saw her career's most important part, as Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (1975), for which she won her sole Oscar. Later credits include Exorcist II: The Heretic (1977), The Lucky Star (1980), Brainstorm (1983), Two Moon Junction (1988), Cruel Intentions (1999), A Perfect Man (2013) and many more. Fletcher passed away at age 88. R.I.P.

Jean-Luc Godard has passed away

Born in Paris, France, Godard lived much of his life in Switzerland. He wrote for French film criticism magazine Cahiers du Cinema and became foundational for the New French Wave that inspired new waves in scores of other countries across the world with his Breathless (1960). Later credits include A Woman Is A Woman (1961), Vivre Sa Vie (1962), Le Petit Soldat (1962), Contempt (1963), Alphaville (1965), Pierrot le Fou (1965), 2 or 3 Things I Know About Her (1967), Weekend (1967), Every Man for Himself (1980), King Lear (1987), Century of Cinema (1995, documentary), Goodbye to Language (2014) and many more. Godard died of assisted suicide at age 91. R.I.P.

Wolfgang Petersen has died

James Caan has died

Caan was born the son of Jewish immigrants from Germany in New York. He got his start on TV in the early 1960s. His credits include El Dorado (1966), The Rain People (1969), Brian's Song (1971, TV movie), The Godfather (1972), - for which he earned his only Oscar nomination, - Slither (1973), The Gambler (1974), Funny Lady (1975), Rollerball (1975), Silent Movie (1976), Hide in Plain Sight (1980), - the only film he also directed, - Thief (1981), Misery (1990), Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), Bottle Rocket (1996), Eraser (1996), Dogville (2003), Elf (2003), Las Vegas (2003-07), Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009) and many more. Caan passed away at age 82. R.I.P.

Jean-Louis Trintignant has died

Born in Vaucluse, France, Trintignant's theatrical debut as an actor was in If All the Guys in the World... (1955). Later credits include ...And God Created Woman (1956), The Seven Deadly Sins (1961), Inferno (1964), A Man and A Woman (1966), My Love, My Love (1967), A Man to Kill (1967), The Great Silence (1968), Z (1969), The Assassination (1972), Three Colors: Red (1994), Amour (2012), Happy End (2017) and many more. He also wrote and directed two films in the 1970s. Trintignant passed away at age 91. R.I.P.

Ray Liotta has died

Adopted from an orphenage at a young age, Liotta got hooked on acting in high school. He had various TV credits in the late 1970s and early 80s, with his film debut in The Lonely Lady (1983). Later credits include Something Wild (1986), Field of Dreams (1989), Goodfellas (1990), Cop Land (1997), Hannibal (2001), Blow (2001), Narc (2002), John Q (2002), Identity (2003), Observe and Report (2009), Youth in Revolt (2009), The Details (2011), Killing THem Softly (2012), The Place Beyond the Pines (2012), Shades of Blue (2016-18), The Simpsons (2018, TV-series), Marriage Story (2019), The Many Saints of Newark (2021), Black Bird (2022, TV-series) and many more. Liotta passed away at age 67 in his sleep while on production in the Dominican Republic. R.I.P.

Philip Baker Hall has died

Born in Ohio, Hall didn't start acting until he was 30. His long list of credits include Zabriskie Point (1970), Miami Vice (1987, TV-series), Midnight Run (1988), Ghostbusters II (1989), Cheers (1993, TV-series), Hard Eight (1996), The Rock (1996), Air Force One (1997), Boogie Nights (1997), Seinfeld (1991-98), Rush Hour (1998), The Insider (1999), Magnolia (1999), The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999), Bruce Almighty (2003), Dogville (2003), The Zodiac (2005), Zodiac (2007), Curb Your Enthusiasm (2004-09), Mr. Popper's Penguins (2011), Modern Family (2011-12) and many more. Hall passed away at age 90. R.I.P.

William Hurt has passed away

Born in Washington D.C., Hurt's first film role was the lead in Altered States (1980). Later credits include Body Heat (1981), The Big Chill (1983), Gorky Park (1983), Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985), for which he earned his only Oscar as Best Actor; Chilrdren of a Lesser God (1986), for which he was also Oscar-nominated; Broadcast News (1987), for which he was again Oscar-nominated; Smoke (1995), A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001), A History of Violence (2005), for which he was again Oscar-nominated; The Good Shepherd (2006), Into the Wild (2007), Robin Hood (2010) and many more. Hurt passed away at age 71. R.I.P.

Ivan Reitman has passed away

Born in Chechoslovakia, now Slovakia, Reitman's family fled the Soviet regime to Austria, then Toronto, when he was 4 years old. Reitman broke into movies as a director with Foxy Lady (1971). Later credits include Cannibal Girls (1973), Meatballs (1979), Stripes (1981), Ghostbusters (1984), Twins (1988), Ghostbusters II (1989), Kindergarten Cop (1990), Junior (1994), Father's Day (1997), Evolution (1998), No Strings Attached (2011), Draft Day (2014) and more. Reitman's son Jason Reitman is also a great filmmaker. Reitman passed away at age 75. R.I.P.

Film Excess - Free Ukraine - Stop Putin - End the war NOW!!

Eagerly anticipating this week ... (6-24)

6/14/2019

Munich (2005) - Spielberg wrings a brilliant spy thriller from fraught real-life massacre and its aftermath

No comments:

Post a Comment

Eagerly anticipating this week ... (5-24)

My Blog List