Much like Capote, most people know the story behind the events that led to story of Munich. But in this case, it is the events that followed the famous incident that take center stage. While based on true facts, I suspect that most of the specifics are fictional. Nonetheless, it is easy to imagine that something along the lines of the story in the movie really did happen.

The basic plot is simple: after the terrorist attacks at the 1972 Olympics, the Israel secret police finds out who the people involved in the attacks were and sets up a team of specially trained agents to kill each and every single one of them. Along with working on the details of the assassination plans, the characters question the legitimacy of their actions. The movie presents the various side of the argument but in the end, it’s really up to each one of us to decide.

Munich moves along at a very good pace, taking us from place to place, plan to plan, and involving us in the risks they face. The production quality is first rate and the ensemble of actors second to none. This is a smart, mature movie that makes us think and question what’s going on in the world when we mix up “justice” and “revenge”. Maybe one is the same as the other in some cases?

Priceless Scene: The agents setup a bomb in a telephone with the intention of killing the man in the house. But then they realize that the man’s little girl could be the one picking up the phone. That entire sequence is shot beautifully, keeping us on the edge of our seats. Of course, back in the real world we don’t have that concern about killing innocent young children these days with our bombs – we just call them “collateral damage” and go to sleep comfortably. Maybe it’s only in the movies that people care?