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Munich: Spielberg casts the spell again
Despite variations from the facts of 1972, the master director waves the magic wand again
OUR MOVIE EDITOR
24th December 2005
Steven Spielberg's Munich has opened in theatres across the world, with most critics giving the movie a thumb-up. Pictured in a short time span, the movie recounts the events of 1971, when Palestinian terrorists massacred 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Summer Olympics. The movie has spun from the book Vengeance, which recounts the horrific events and its fallout.
The 1972 massacre was a turning point in Israel's relations (or the lack of it) with Palestinians. The massacre, carried out by a faction of the then-outlawed Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) pitted the Jewish state of Israel in dire confrontation with the rebel state of Palestine.
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'Munich'
Cast: Eric Bana, Geoffrey Rush, Ciaran Hinds, Mathieu Kassovitz, Hanns Zischler, Daniel Craig
Direction: Steven Spielberg
Written by: Tony Kushner and Eric Roth
Studio: Universal |
Following the massacre, the leadership of Israel, headed by Prime Minister Golda Meir decided to take revenge on the Palestinian perpetrators of the horrible crime. Mossad, the dreaded Israeli secret intelligence agency, put together a team of assassins, to track down and eliminate the terrorists involved in the crime. The Steven Spielberg movie Munich recounts the events following massacre, and sticks to Vengeance as much as possible.
But even Vengeance is not an authoritative re-telling of the facts of the seventies, but based on recollections from members of the Mossad squad. To be on the safe side, Spielberg has mentioned in the movie that the story behind the movie has been "inspired" by the events of 1972. So, the ace director leaves an escape route open for use when the critics turn on the heat.
To be fair, it is highly unlikely that anyone else would have been able to narrate the story of the Olympic massacre and its fallout as professionally as Spielberg has done. Schindler's list, Steven Spielberg's story of Holocaust dwelt on the theme of Jewish suffering at the hands of Nazis and how one of them helped their emancipation in his on maverick ways.
This time, it is a story of the Jewish state avenging an attack on its nationhood. The movie begins with a short recap of the Olympic massacre itself, when shouts and screams of the terrorists and the victims rent the air. Shortly thereafter, the movie starts off.
The story depicts the Israel government putting together a team of assassins to carry out the mission. In the movie, Prime Minister Golda Meir herself is seen selecting the head of the squad, though critics and former Mossad agents say this was highly unlikely. Most of the dirty work on spying and killing was directly carried out by Mossad, which never required the office of the Prime Minister to step in.
In Munich the movie, the assassination squad comprises a team of five men, who pan out across the Europe and the Middle East to carry out their mission. This number has been disputed, since elaborate missions such as this often required more men and material. Also, as per the movie, the secret agents spend about five months in the field, which too has been contested. Mossad rarely let their operatives 'wander' for five months in the field. Most of the ground work was usually done by other Mossad staffers, while the assassination agents were deputed to the field for barely a few days to carry out their task. Killer agents homing in on their prey over a period of five months would no doubt make Munich more watchable, but it clearly defies facts. On a lighter note, it seems Spielberg had the luxury of deputing them to the field for such a long duration, since the movie itself takes up about 160 minutes!
One of the botched assassination bids shows the operatives zooming in on their victim in Norway. The operation bungled, and one of the operatives was caught by the Norwegian Police. He was supposed to be a junior operative, and spilled the Mission Murder details to the authorities. However, Israel never admitted or denied that it ever authorized such a mission.
In the movie, the bungled spy is shown to have kept his expense receipts, for reimbursement from Mossad later. This led to a paper trail exposed the mission. However, this too is seen as highly unlikely, since Mossad - or any other spy agency - rarely asks for receipts to allot reimbursements. More often than not, the operatives are reimbursed all expenses at the end of the mission.
Despite variations from what could have been the absolute truth of Vengeance, the master director, once again, casts his spell on audiences with superb story-telling. Asks a miffed critic: "Why should I admire someone who is capable of manipulating me?" - a clear admission that Spielberg can make you believe in his movie, even if you have no love for him.
Munich narrates the formation of the killer squad, their field work and the trauma and confusion which some members encounter as they go about doing their work. Most of the movie is seen from the perspective of Avner, a member of the hit team. alf way through the mission, he starts developing doubts about the correctness of his path, when Ephraim, another member of the team, steps in. Avner is played by Eric Bana, and Ephraim by Geoffrey Rush. The new James Bond actor Daniel Craig plays the role of Steve, who is steadfast throughout the mission.
Munich portrays the opposing demands of the spy's job as a family man and the commitment to fulfill the mission exceptionally well.
OUR MOVIE EDITOR
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