Eric Bana and the pipe of peace

I've watched Spielberg's Munich today. A two year gap before I had been on a movie theatre, babies do change your life.

What a great movie. Intelligent, deep, well made, the work of a master. There is really nothing that I liked less. The story was good, the ators were great, including Bana, another beautiful Australian, the fast pace. This movie is one to think about: how the Israelis and Palestinians have been at war for so long, how it will never stop, how violence only breeds more violence, how the opportunistic middle men of the so-called civilized West work. The most frightening idea is that while Munich is about Israel and Palestine, we now know how much this war has escalated and spread to a us/them, Islam and the West, one God against the other. It just got bigger and bigger and somebody has to stop first but nobody will. Spielberg gives us killers to turn movie goes into smokers of the peace pipe. We realize how Bana's character is so much alike Ali, the Palestinian terrorist. They want the same and they do exactly the same to get it.

Apparently and to no surprise, Israeli intelligent officers question facts in "Munich". After all, Israelis don't come out so well in the picture. The French neither, nor any other Europeans for that matter. There's also the criticism by Israelis that the film has been based on the book Vengeance which they claim is totally unrealistic, although claiming to be the truth. Spielberg has been accused of ignoring Israeli sources and of not verifying the facts. I think that none of this matters. The final message is stronger, who cares if this person didn't kill that other one in this manner? Those Palestinians were killed, the Munich massacre happened, the war has gone on for years, aren't those the facts that matter?

According to a retired Mossad deputy chief , this is how the killings happened: "word to our people who were posted in various countries to look out for top Black September members. When these were located, then we sent out the right agents to take care of business, on a more ad-hoc basis." Great, so where's the big difference?

A good review here, by James Berardinelli, and Ebert's review here. Both found at goodle.com/reviews, another cool google feature.

A final word for Daniel Craig, the next James Bond, who happens to be blond. I had serious doubts about a blonde James Bond but the man is great, he's going to add a sexy spicy edge to the old hero. Can't wait to see it!