Sword of Gideon (1986)

Such a frustrating disappointment

One of my all time favorites.

Captivating movie !

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

This film has been released in various lengths. The video release (Cineplex Odeon) in Canada has a length of 150 minutes. The DVD release has a length of 172 minutes and is somewhat confusing. The disk itself shows a Platinum release but the DVD content shows no Platinum logo or trademark whatsoever. The DVD cover shows no company at all. The print quality is fairly good - about par for an Eighties TV production.The film was originally produced for television (HBO in the U.S. and CTV Network in Canada)."Sword" has the same source material as Spielberg's "Munich" and this is reflected in a number of similarities between the two films.At any rate, "Gideon" can stand on its own merits. It is an absorbing film detailing the Israeli response to the slaughter of their athletes at the Munich Olympics.The acting is effective especially Rod Steiger as their Israeli boss and Collen Dewhurst as Golda Meir.Considering the limited budget (compared to "Munich") this is a first rate adaptation of Jonas' book.

After seeing Spielberg's high-budgeted production based on the book, "Vengeance;" I was entertained but not really connected with any of the agents (Mossad) as they planned and implemented their assigned duties. Most of the IMDb reviews hash out the plot so that is not necessary here. What is necessary is to recommend finding this HBO movie in its uncut length which IS available on DVD. The length enables more intimate contact with all Samuels' collected agents adding, without expensive production values, a much more intense look at the increasing doubt and anger compounded upon Avner and his team following each assigned accomplishment. The scene with Avner sitting in the hospital waiting room having to watch the agony, terror and loss conveyed by the wife and daughter after being advised of the certain death of their husband and father conveys more emotion and sense of doubt than any scene I recall in "Munich." Michael York's search for possible explosive entrapment in the safe house builds tension not provided in "Munich" and is logically more realistic than Spielberg's counterpart of this agent's final assignment. The long film moves quickly and the time is will spent. Again, time to explore characters' motives and feelings can be far more valuable than high-budgeted special effects. (Though the special effects here are not inadequate by any means) In short, seeing this film after "Munich" was a wonderful experience and answered some questions the "Munich" film failed to answer. And, finally, this is a movie based on an historical based fictional book. It is NOT an historical document. Watch and enjoy this fine film.

Steven Bauer, an underrated actor, does a magnificent job as head of a team dedicated to avenging the deaths of Israeli athletes. The plot is logical, credible and well-organized. Action scenes are just-plain terrific and the conclusion is excellent.I particularly liked the care the team took to "get" the criminal while taking great pains not to injure any members of his family, to the point that, when their actions could have injured an innocent, the team called the kill off. Direction was crisp, and to-the-point with very little wasted footage. This movie is so good that I fail to understand its absence from the shelves of most video rental/sales stores.

This is a well produced TV movie which purports to be a docudrama about the beginning of the program by the Israeli Mossad to destroy all of the terrorists responsible for the kidnapping and murder of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics. In fact, it seems to me to have very little semblance to authenticity about it. One cannot be sure, of course, but it does not seem that a powerful secret organisation like Mossad would operate as shown here: an independent squad, operating on its own with minimal help beyond the financial from its parent, and depending in part on hired outside organisations for information and assistance. At worst, this film has the smack of anti Israel propaganda; at best, weak-minded, turn-the-other-cheek pacifism. While taking an ostensible stand against vengeance as an effective means of combating terrorism, the philosophy clearly advocated is: do nothing about terrorist murderers and perhaps they will get tired and go away.The film is not without some merit, though. The psychological pressures on agents of organisations like Mossad, CIA, MI-5, MI-6, the Deuxieme Bureau, etc. must be harrowing for some, perhaps not for others, and of this we are given a good glimpse in the film. The cast and direction are first rate, though editing is typically careless as in most TV movies. It is a film worth watching provided you are on your guard for the propaganda. A portion of the film was done in Israel with an Israeli crew and presumably without opposition from the Israeli government. If this story were turned around and portrayed a Palestinian group unfavorably in going against, say, Mossad agents, can one imagine the government of Libya,Syria, or the like permitting filming within its borders. It is to the credit of Israeli freedom of expression that such a movie was made, even though it would not appear to be friendly in intent.There is one aspect of Mossad's campaign against the terrorists responsible for the Munich horror which the film omits to mention in its final statement that all the targetted people were killed. This is not quite historically accurate. Mossad is a pretty thorough outfit, but they also killed one more palestinian than targetted--a man who was actually totally innocent of any involvement. This happened in Lillehammer, Norway, a tragic case of mistaken identity. As for the nine terrorists involved directly in the Munich massacre, six were killed in the shootout with the German police, three were captured. These three were later released by the Germans in a hostage deal with the terrorist organisation. Two of these were killed by Mossad, one is still alive.