Les 21 heures de Munich

I was 16 when the Israeli massacre occurred in Munich 33 yrs ago today and this made for TV film is an excellent feature about those events. Made in 76' the film holds up very well. The film does not "hollywoodize" the events in Munich in any way. It tells the story about what happened in 72' in a very straightforward manner. William Holden, nearing the end of his career, is surprisingly good as the Police Chief of Munich. Franco Nero at first seems like a stretch to play an Arab terrorist but he is very good in this picture. The film also shows how the other Olympic activities kept going on while the hostage crises unfolded which now seems impossible to imagine. The bravery of the Israeli athletes, the confusion and ineptitude of the German police, the dbl-speak of the politicians, nothing is overlooked in this movie. If this movie was based on fictional events it would be a very fine film. The fact that the tragic events depicted actually occurred, and that the film so honorably and sensitively captures what happened in Munich means this film is worthy of the highest praise in my view.

Released only one Olympic cycle after the actual events occurred during the 1972 Olympics, this film documents many of the behind-the-scenes events that happened while the world watched the horrible drama unfold. As a big fan of the Olympics, I was watching as news stories interrupted the peaceful competition to explain the unthinkable had happened.

Terrorists had invaded the Olympic compound--the ultimate symbol of peaceful coexistence--and killed Israeli athletes, taking others hostage as leverage to demand the release of comrades held in captivity. As a viewer, I vividly remember the shadowy image of a man on a balcony, a man who threatened the Olympic principles and the world at large, but somehow, though he was visible, was beyond the reach of retaliation. It was frustrating and tragic, but hostages' lives were in the balance.

This film was no doubt an attempt to fill in the blanks for many people who only saw those shadowy images from a distance. But is it more than a documentation? Is it a warning to the world or to those who would use terrorism for their political purposes? Or a tribute, perhaps, to those who did their best to tragic events that unfolded or those who were the victims of those who promote the initiation of violence (even against civilians) as a means to an end?

The narrative seems to bear few embellishments to the actual events of 1972. Hostage situations--with all of the accompanying negotiations and strategizing--are dramatic enough. William Holden, as chief of police, adequately portrays a man who will forever second guess his decisions. The leader of the terrorists (Franco Nero), becomes more than a shadowy figure as the film shows moments when his humanity is revealed. Presented with the option to walk away from further bloodshed, he says, "And have people think I am a coward?" When I first heard this line in 1976, I thought it referred to the world at large, but now I wonder if he was thinking about others who sympathized with his world view.

This film has the look of a theater film instead of a made for television film. Overall it is very satisfying. William Holden does a very good job portraying the West German Police Captain in charge. The supporting members around him are very good as well.

The Black September kidnapping attempt of part of the Isreali Olympic team at the 1972 Munich Olympic games is not just a tragedy, but cast a bit of a shadow on the Olympics first visit to Germany since the 1936 Nazi affair. Unfortunately, terrorism seems to have gotten even worse than this incident, but this film tells the story very well about 1972 terrorism.

I watched this on an HD broadcast and am very impressed with the quality of the film picture in HD for this 1976 production. The film feels quite authentic, and looks quite so being done only 4 years after the actual events. The Director of this film has over 130 TV & Movie credits in his career and his work here is as good as any on his resume.

A semi-documentary movie about the terrorist attack on the Israeli team at the Olympic Games at Munich 1972.

In opposite to later adaptations of the same historical event, "21 Hours at Munich" was shot on the original locations. However, it is a little bit less of a documentary than it seems at first, it does take a bit of creative freedom in the narration. Which has been criticized by some reviewers, but makes it a better movie after all. Excellent performances by William Holden as the police chief and Franco Nero as the terrorist leader, whose motivation is explained remarkably well. He is not just the one-dimensional Hollywood villain firing bullets in all directions. That was important to make the film believable, as well as the discussions between the politicians. Even it makes the movie quite wordy, the reasons why and when and how the police fights the terrorists are explained well. "21 Hours at Munich" is a movie you should watch, first for the tragic history that hopefully will never be repeated, second for its solid story telling and acting which is above the genre average.

21 Hours At Munich tells the tragic story of the Black September terrorists who took Israeli athletes hostage at the 1972 Olympics and issued a demand to the government of Israel that a couple of hundred of their comrades be freed for the lives of these athletes. It was a story that gripped the world at the time and is still sadly relevant for today.

This was a new phenomenon at the time, mindless terrorist acts against civilians and governments then and now can't quite come to grips with the concept of pure evil wrapped in a political cause. Black September no doubt picked the target as Munich not only because of the Olympics, but because of the special significance the city has in the rise of Adolph Hitler. Maybe they thought some sympathy from the authorities might linger from Nazi days.

In that they were much mistaken. The West German government was as mortified and embarrassed by the events as anyone else in the civilized world. This was their opportunity to exhibit a post Nazi Germany to the world and it was horrifyingly blown.

William Holden played the head of the Munich PD in charge of dealing with the problem and it's a sincere and level performance he gives. Chancellor Willy Brandt of West Germany is played by Richard Basehart who is the liberal politician who can't grasp even after Hitler there are some folks that just can't be reasoned with. Other performances of note are Franco Nero as the charismatic Black September leader, a picture of homicidal malevolence just itching to kill and Shirley Knight the negotiator for Holden and the Munich PD.

Stephen Spielberg did a great job in putting this film together which should be required viewing for those finding justice in brutal acts of homicide.