Munich – Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Chris Eberle

Synopsis

Based on true events, Munich tells the story of the aftermath of the Black September attacks at the 1972 Munich Olympics. Eleven Israeli athletes were killed by Palestinian terrorists in a failed kidnapping attempt. In retaliation, Israel’s counter-terrorism group, Mossad, launches a mission to find and execute the men who planned the attack. Avner Kaufman (Bana) is tasked with leading a team of four specialists to eliminate the targets in Europe. He employs an information source who is loyal to no one and manages to find many of the men he’s looking for. Unfortunately once his activities become known to the Palestinians, he becomes the hunted. Soon he and his team are in danger. He quickly moves his wife and daughter to safety in New York. Eventually, he is recalled to Israel and now must deal with the enormity of what he has done.

Commentary

From a historical perspective, Munich seems fairly accurate according to what I’ve read about the 1972 terror attacks and the Israeli response. The mission was called Operation Wrath of God and consisted of several small teams sent out to find and eliminate the planners of the athletes’ kidnapping. The film is very well-made and acted but the subject matter and the intensity portrayed on-screen make it difficult to call “entertaining.” The sixties and early seventies were an extremely turbulent time in the Middle East and Munich does not hold back with any sort of “stylized violence.” The killings are brutal and no effort is made to water it down. I always appreciate a movie that teaches me something and inspires greater knowledge and Munich definitely does that. I’m not sure I’d watch it more than once however. If you haven’t seen it before, I highly recommend it.

Technical

Video quality is somewhat inconsistent ranging from excellent to not-so-good. Some scenes are extremely de-saturated with blown-out highlights, softness and lots of grain. Nighttime material is a little washed-out but detail remains solid. Then there are sequences where color is warm and rich with just the right level of sharpness. I saw occasional edge enhancement and smearing as well.

The DTS-HD Master Audio encode is the star of this Blu-ray release. Every sound effect is perfectly placed in the surround envelope and the sub is used to great effect. When the action becomes more intense, loud sounds retain their detail and are never distorted. Dialog is very clear and properly centered.

Extras

There are plenty of bonus features included but they are all in standard definition presented in a 1.33:1 aspect ratio. You get an introduction by Stephen Spielberg, three documentaries on the history behind the film and three making-of featurettes.