--- title: "Munich: the reviews" canonical: "https://film.one/film/munich/reviews" title_page: "https://film.one/film/munich" critics_score: 76 critics_reviews: 7 licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Munich (2005): what the critics said Critics' score 76 from 7 reviews: 7 positive, 0 mixed, 0 negative. Most critics regard Munich as an absorbing, morally serious thriller, with praise clustering around Spielberg’s handling of action and his examination of retaliatory violence. The reviews repeatedly commend its refusal to offer easy answers, finding that the Israeli hit squad’s mission allows for sustained questioning of vengeance, loyalty and the defence of home. Eric Bana’s conflicted assassin draws particular praise, while the tense set-pieces and controlled storytelling give the ethical questions dramatic force. The reservations concern how clearly those questions are expressed and how much feeling the characters generate. Slant finds the moral exploration sometimes didactic, while Screen Daily praises the pace but considers the politics simplistic. Digital Spy notes confusion and emotional distance. The spread is largely favourable, but Variety offers a sharper dissent, finding the characters uninvolving and the storytelling overlong: the principal disagreement is over whether the moral discussion sustains the thriller or slows it down. ## Radio Times — Stella Papamichael Rating 4/5. Violence begets violence in Spielberg's bold thriller about the Israeli hit squad after the 1972 Munich Olympics massacre. It provides a complex moral framework without sensationalism and resists a pat conclusion while resonating with post-9/11 anxieties. [Read the review](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-xe1qj4/munich/) ## The AV Club — Scott Tobias Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 21 December 2005. The critic calls Munich an electrifying elucidation of the cycle of violence in the Middle East that speaks to turbulent times. It is praised as a fair and morally dignified film that comes down against all nations and groups that perpetuate violence, with technical bravura and a commanding performance by Eric Bana. [Read the review](https://www.avclub.com/munich-1798201364) ## Slant Magazine — Nick Schager Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 12 December 2005. The critic describes Munich as a tense, thoughtful film that straddles calls for peace and justifications for war while critiquing vigilante measures. It singles out Eric Bana’s portrayal of a conflicted assassin for praise amid the film’s even-handed but sometimes didactic exploration of moral ambiguities. [Read the review](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/munich/) ## Screen Daily Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 12 December 2005. It is a bold move for Spielberg to address the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, resulting in a riveting high-octane thriller with elegant storytelling and brisk pacing. The politics ultimately prove simplistic despite strong performances and grainy realism. [Read the review](https://www.screendaily.com/munich/4025443.article) ## Time Out — BW Fi1m's normalised score 70/100 (inferred from the text). 24 January 2006. Spielberg acknowledges that defending family and home can yield destruction and evil. The film illustrates the moral that violence begets violence through dramatic ironies and set-pieces while recognizing the appeal of homicidal spectaculars. [Read the review](https://www.timeout.com/movies/munich) ## Empire — Ian Nathan 1 January 2006. The film is Spielberg’s most difficult but also one of his strongest: morally ambiguous, lean, intelligent and uncompromised, with a brute hardness that confronts terrible events without easy answers. [Read the review](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/munich-review/) ## RogerEbert.com — Roger Ebert 22 December 2005. Spielberg questions Israel's policy of full retribution for attacks while affirming deep love for the state; the film is an efficient thriller and a haunting ethical argument about cycles of violence. [Read the review](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/munich-2005) ## The Guardian — Philip French 29 January 2006. Spielberg delivers a controversial but absorbing thriller about the Israeli hit squad's revenge mission after the 1972 Munich massacre. The film mixes skilled action sequences and moral questioning but is not at the director's best, with some unconvincing elements and Hollywood-style dialogue. [Read the review](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2006/jan/29/philipfrench) ## The New York Times — Manohla Dargis 26 December 2005. Spielberg forgoes emotional bullying for a tough, anguished look at vengeance between Israelis and Palestinians; the film is a philosophical meditation and nail-biting action movie that invites discussion. [Read the review](https://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/26/style/tale-of-2-peoples-hands-around-each-others-throats.html) ## Total Film 27 January 2006. Nothing in Spielberg’s prior work prepares viewers for this bold, shocking and intimate thriller; it is a gruelling, remorseless examination of murky moral questions with no easy answers or compromises. [Read the review](https://www.gamesradar.com/munich-review/) ## Variety — Todd McCarthy 9 December 2005. Spielberg ponders the pointlessness of tit-for-tat retaliation but the film lacks involving characters and economical storytelling; it is a lumpy, overlong morality play rather than a pulse-quickening thriller. [Read the review](https://variety.com/2005/film/awards/munich-3-1200519762/) ## Eye for Film — Angus Wolfe Murray Fi1m's normalised score 80/100 (inferred from the text). 27 January 2006. The critic presents Munich as a powerful, thought-provoking study of vengeance, incompetence and betrayal in the world of undercover assassination, with an unusually intelligent screenplay that explores the theme of home and the futility of escalating violence. [Read the review](https://www.eyeforfilm.co.uk/review/munich-film-review-by-angus-wolfe-murray) ## Digital Spy — Daniel Saney Fi1m's normalised score 75/100 (inferred from the text). 31 January 2006. The critic finds Munich a tense thriller that examines the cycle of violence and terrorism without bias, though it can be confusing at times and maintains emotional distance from characters. Overall, it's well worth watching for its relevance and engagement. [Read the review](https://www.digitalspy.com/movies/a28637/munich/) --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Our review: https://film.one/film/munich.md