More on Munich

The more I think about Munich, the more I find fault with it. My immediate reaction, which I was a little embarrassed to admit, was that it honestly seemed like your typical action flick, with a backdrop of political conflict. It’s really your typical shoot-‘em-up type move – revenge, guns, guns, so many guns, blood, plotting, hiding, bombs. After a while, it was enough already. Boring. Spielberg inserted some of his typical melodrama. I rolled my eyes more than once –the scene with the little girl in Paris and the heavy-handed closing shot are examples. And forget about the penultimate scene. I won’t spoil it for you here, but goodness…talk about really trying hard not to giggle when it’s kind of inappropriate. And that’s not immaturity. I think it was absurdly done, with its slow motion, surging soundtrack, and…really just see it. I’m curious to know what others think.

What saves the movie is its look. The gorgeous shots of Europe and the Middle East make me want to travel like a fiend. Decadent shots of food and cooking always get me – there’s a ton of those. The acting is great.

But as a whole? What is everyone getting all a-flutter about? This and A History of Violence. Critics are treating them like they’re brilliant gems of filmmaking. “Brave,” “progressive,” etc. Eh.