The Munich massacre—when 11 Israeli athletes were captured and killed by a Palestinian terrorist group known as Black September while the world watched—may have been 52 years ago, but because September 5, a meticulously researched, thoughtfully directed, tightly edited and unbearably suspenseful film about the 1972 Olympics, comes to life again. Technically, you can't label it September 5 it's a documentary because it's scripted, and the actors play the roles of real people. But despite the new technology that allowed us to watch the Munich news that made headlines around the world, changed the way news was presented on live television and changed the course of history, I can tell you everything in this wonderful movie looks completely accurate and beautiful. as it happened on September 5, 1972. I must know. I was there.
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SEPTEMBER 5TH ★★★★ (4/4 stars) |
It started, for me, as a simple assignment. On my way back from the Venice Film Festival, I was invited by the well-known, award-winning producer David L. Wolper, who makes memorable films like. The Hellstrom Chronicles again The rise and fall of the Third Reich. In Munich, he had invited eight world-renowned and active film directors to contribute ten-minute segments on different aspects of sports that interested them most for the film to be the subject of. Eighth Ideas. With the help of ace British photographer Walter (Tom Jones) Lasally, Arthur (Bonnie and Clyde) Penn was preparing his very own bird's-eye view of the parade. From Czechoslovakia, Milos Forman created a comedy piece, combining the decathlon with a high C in the workplace. Japanese artist Kon Ichikawa selected the fastest people in the world, recorded a 10-second, 100-meter dash with 35 different cameras, using a Japanese haiku poem for his text. Claude Lelouch, famous for his deep love stories, trained his eyes on the 86,000 spectators in the Olympic stadium for the first day's festivities. John ((Midnight Cowboy) Schlesinger focused on the 26-mile marathon in the city of Munich, using 45 cameras instead of 65 cameras from electric trucks because no gas fumes were allowed on the racetrack. Yuri Ozerov, Russian director freedom, showed the warm-up before the game when the parents and coaches were gone, leaving the athletes alone with fear, worries and prayers. Germany's Michael Pfleghar chose the women's issue, while Sweden's Mia Zetterling shocked everyone when she chose weightlifters and bodybuilders. “Because I'm a woman, they thought I was going to choose the female athlete section,” said Zetterling. “But this will be different from anything you expect to see.”
I remember following him to the Olympic Village restaurant, where he copied the daily menu recipe for the heavyweights: 1.2 million eggs for 12,000 athletes, four steaks per meal, and 42 pints of milk a day. “I shot four hours of film to get my ten minutes,” he said, “but I can assure you it will be a lot of fun.”
It was everything very interesting, and mr. Wolper made it so by attaching an official badge to my badge that got me a room at the Olympic Village Hotel and access to all events. I had just watched Mark Spitz win his seventh gold medal (in the vicinity of an Olympic swimming pool until he splashed.
Every angle is covered, from the ABC-TV control room to the interior of the Israeli athletes' apartment. All three networks were there, but the focus was on ABC, where the rivalry between news and sports erupted into a behind-the-scenes contest to see who would get credit for driving the gun. More viewers watched than the number of people who were glued to their sets when Neil Armstrong walked on the moon. Director Tim Fehlbaum does a masterful job of jumping from one highlight to the next, capturing the essence of what I saw firsthand. Throughout the day, the vigil continued as ransom notes were sent and demands were made while the German police started shouting, pulling guns even on ABC reporters in the control room. Despite media reports about the tightest security in the world, I was able to re-enter the Olympic Village by taking an easy route past the hotel kitchen and climbing onto the roof of Building 31, where the Israelis were held as prisoners. There, I watched terrorists, their faces hidden in Ku Klux Klan-like masks, moving silently behind the windows. At 10 p.m., I watched from my hotel window with reporters as the terrorists and hostages left Building 31, boarded a bus that dropped them off in front of the hotel and boarded three helicopters that transported them to their last bloody massacre, and the flood. Fürstenfeldbruck Air Base, signs of the past marked, to everyone's horror, “This way to Dachau.”
It was terrifying to live through, and even when I watched it from my hotel room in the Olympic Village, I couldn't believe what I was seeing. It's all there and seen, recreated with hair growth September 5. The film is about hostages, of course, and one of the most horrific events in sports history. But also about the technical difficulties, 52 years ago, of covering an international event by satellite when each network is allowed only a few minutes on the air, and the moral question: how much tragedy can you show within the limits of good. taste? The film raises issues about journalistic integrity and broadcasting ethics September 5 the most responsible film about journalism since Steven Spielberg Posted. Not to mention the obvious fact that given the current political climate, this is a film of relative gravity and one of the best achievements of the year.
