MUNICH — ** 1/2 — Eric Bana, Geoffrey Rush, Daniel Craig; with English subtitles (for some European and Middle East dialects); rated R (violence, gore, profanity, nudity, sex, ethnic slurs, vulgarity).
If his remake of "War of the Worlds" represented the commercial side of filmmaker Steven Spielberg, then "Munich" is clearly the work of his artistic side.
He's obviously prone to take more chances with this politically charged thriller, which is sure to divide audiences because of some of its material. (The film has already received criticism for its perceived "moral ambiguity.")
However, Spielberg and screenwriters Tony Kushner and Eric Roth are almost trying too hard to be even-handed in their treatment of dicey Middle East issues. The film is a little overstuffed as a result. Running well past two hours, it feels a bit lengthy, though it is still watchable.
"Munich" is based on George Jonas' book, "Vengeance," which also served as the inspiration for the 1986 television movie "Sword of Gideon." This heavily fictionalized version follows Avner (Eric Bana), an agent for Mossad, or the Israeli Secret Police.
In the wake of the kidnapping and killings of Israeli athletes during the 1972 Munich Olympics, Israeli leaders have assigned Avner to track down and kill 11 Palestinians believed to be part of Black September, the organization that masterminded the terrorist plot.
But his actions are supposedly unsanctioned. He's not working alone, though. Avner's team includes a demolitions expert (Mathieu Kassovitz), a trigger-happy South African (Daniel Craig) and an espionage veteran (Ciaran Hinds), who serves as the group's conscience.
The film has a few haunting moments — none more than the opening sequences, which feature the voices of late newsmen Peter Jennings and Howard Cosell.
But all too often Spielberg seems to be more concerned with creating striking visuals than with building tension and genuine suspense. And the script, courtesy of Tony-winning playwright Kushner ("Angels in America"), so desperately wants to say something that the dialogue sounds like "speechifying."
Australian actor Bana seems a little tentative and bland as the film's main character (particularly during the scenes featuring him and Israeli actress Ayelet Zorer, who plays Avner's wife).
The supporting cast fares better. Hinds is superb in limited screen time, while both Craig and Geoffrey Rush, who plays Avner's Israeli "handler," do have their moments.
"Munich" is rated R for strong scenes of violence (including shootings and explosive mayhem), graphic gore, scattered use of strong sexual profanity, full male and female nudity, scenes of simulated sex, and ethnic slurs and vulgar slang terms. Running time: 160 minutes.
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