Manohla Darghis is a Goddess

I got sucked into her review of "Munich" and she is just incredible. Precise, bitchy, brilliant, well-informed, and always, always brings a film into context with intelligence, urgency and suave (as in Rico-suave).
http://movies2.nytimes.com/2005/12/23/movies/23muni.html?oref=login

Some highlights:

"With its art-directed verisimilitude and promiscuous use of archival material..."
(promiscuous use of archival material?!)

"... and the sight of the future Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, who pops up during a mission in Lebanon, mowing down terrorists while dressed in a woman's wig and high heels.In between the cloak, dagger and drag, the telephone bombs and a veritable alphabet soup of intrigue (C.I.A., P.L.O., K.G.B.)"

(Ehud Barak in drag!)


It would do a disservice to Mr. Spielberg to linger too long on the pre-emptive attacks on the film: more than anything, "Munich" is a slammin' entertainment filled with dazzling set pieces and geometric camerawork.

(aw yea)


But Mr. Spielberg is doing nothing more radical here than advancing the idea that dialogue ends when two enemies, held hostage by dusty history and hot blood, have their hands locked around each other's throats.

(nuff said)

** My only objection**
the nebbishy Belgian toy and bomb maker, Robert (Mathieu Kassovitz)

My favorite little Jewish Frenchie could never, ever by nebbishy. He's so beautiful and delightful, second only to Vincent Kassel. Je t'aime, Mathieu, vraiment.