September 5 (2024)
September 5 is the story of a hostage crisis that occurred at the 1972 Olympic Games in Munich. It’s an intense movie and technically brilliant, although it takes a narrow focus that mostly ignores the historical context of the events.
The movie is set almost entirely in the control room of ABC’s sports studio, which was set up in a building that had direct visual access to the building where the hostages were being held—the accommodation for the Israeli Olympic team. The thrilling story unfolds in this claustrophobic setting as the journalists are forced to deal with ethical dilemmas during the first-ever global live coverage of an Olympic Games.
What transpires in the newsroom and the temptation to sensationalise and use tragedy to entertain and boost ratings is as relevant today as it was back in ‘72. There’s a very high cost for turning human tragedy into entertainment. How do you objectively tell the story of what’s going on, with live footage as it is happening, without falling into the trap of voyeuristic entertainment or furthering the cause of the terrorists? Even the label of terrorist to describe the hostage perpetrators was new, and the journalist team had to discuss whether they were going to even use the term or not.
John Magaro, who plays the guilt-ridden producer, and Peter Sarsgaard, who is driven by his desire for high ratings, are the standout performances. The supporting cast is also excellent as they recreate the intense challenges in managing what is mostly a manually operated process—unlike today’s newsrooms with digital technology to help.
The production design is stunning. Watching this movie is immersive as it recreates the ‘70s era CRT screens, the radio chatter and the clatter of typewriters as they try to communicate effectively. It highlights, for those of us who lived in that era, the incredible progress that has been made in information technology.
September 5 is only 95 minutes long. This is great for maintaining the tension. But it does mean that any deeper exploration side issues are severely limited. For example, one of the characters, Marianne (Leonie Benesch), is a young German woman who struggles with intergenerational guilt. This is hinted at but never explored in any depth. Nor is there any focus on the Palestinian perspective. There is just no time for any of this. I did hear an interview with the director who said that they wanted to keep the focus of the story on the perspective of the journalists. This is accomplished, but it does leave a lot of the richness of context absent from the movie.
Watching September 5 reminded me of some of the critique of the media made in the 1972 movie Network and the historical gravity of Steven Spielberg’s Munich. But September 5 carves out a niche for itself as a procedural thriller. It’s a gripping, morally complex movie that will suit history buffs or journalism enthusiasts. After watching it, though, you may need to go and do some research about the events to fill in the gaps. Otherwise, it’s a decent watch.