One Day in September is a 1999 documentary film directed by Kevin Macdonald examining the September 5, 1972 murder of 11 Israeli athletes at the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany. Michael Douglas provides the sparse narration throughout the film. 1999 (MCMXCIX) was a common year starting on Friday, and was designated the International Year of Older Persons by the United Nations. ... Documentary film is a broad category of visual expression that is based on the attempt, in one fashion or another, to document reality. ... Kevin Macdonald (born October 28, 1967) is a Scottish documentary film director, best known for One Day in September (2000) and Touching the Void (2003). ... September 5 is the 248th day of the year (249th in leap years). ... 1972 (MCMLXXII) was a leap year starting on Saturday. ... One of the Black September terrorists on the balcony of the Israeli team quarters at the Olympic village The Munich massacre occurred during the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, West Germany, when members of the Israeli Olympic team were taken hostage by the Palestinian organization Black September, a militant group... The 1972 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad, were held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. ... Munich: Frauenkirche and Town Hall steeple Munich (German: München pronunciation) is the state capital of the German Bundesland of Bavaria. ... For other people bearing this name, see Michael Douglas (disambiguation). ... In fiction, a narrator is a voice or character who tells the story. ...

The film won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature in 2000. The Academy Award for Documentary Feature is one of the most prestigious awards for documentary films. ... 2000 (MM) was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Subject matter

The documentary begins with an advertisement by the Munich Tourism Bureau with a beautiful young girl inviting the world to visit the city for the Olympics, then shows interviews with the wives of some of the murdered athletes, including Ankie Spitzer, widow of fencing coach Andre Spitzer. The film also features the first interview with Jamal Al-Gashey, allegedly the only surviving terrorist. Al-Gashey, who is in hiding in Africa, wears a cap and sunglasses and his face is slightly blurred. Andre Spitzer (1945 – September 6, 1972) was a fencing master and coach of Israels 1972 Summer Olympics team. ... Jamal Al-Gashey (born 1953?) was a member of the Black September offshoot of the Palestine Liberation Organization and is the last-known surviving hostage-taker from the 1972 Munich Olympics Massacre. ... A world map showing the continent of Africa Africa is the worlds second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. ...

There are various shots of the Games getting under way, and attention is given to the lax security the Germans had at the Games. The terrorists are seen preparing for the assault; Al-Gashey claims that he and the other members were trained in Libya before going to West Germany to begin the assault.

The assault is described by Al-Gashey as well as by some of the German security staff present. Footage of ABC anchor Jim McKay is interspersed, along with sound clips of Peter Jennings, to give an impression of events unfolding as they happened. General Ulrich Wegener, founder of the German counter-terrorist unit GSG 9, was also interviewed during the film, and was roundly criticized for his seemingly flippant attitude about the subject matter. The American Broadcasting Company ( oftenly known as ABC) operates television and radio networks in the United States and is also shown on basic cable in Canada. ... James Kenneth McManus, better known by his professional name of Jim McKay (born September 24, 1921 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania), is an American television sports journalist. ... Peter Charles Archibald Ewart Jennings, CM (July 29, 1938 – August 7, 2005) was a rock star Canadian-American journalist and news anchor. ... Ulrich K. Ricky Wegener was a renowned German police officer and a founding member of the counter-terrorist force GSG 9. ... Grenzschutzgruppe 9 (GSG 9 - Border protection group 9) is a German counter-terrorism unit, and is considered to be among the best of such units in the world. ...

The film alleges that the rescue operation was poorly planned and executed: the snipers were not prepared and were poorly positioned. The film implies that had the German government prepared better, the athletes might have been saved. Former Mossad Director Zvi Zamir, who was present at the airport during the final gunfight, is interviewed about his views on the failed rescue (he had previously been interviewed on this subject in an NBC profile of the Munich massacre broadcast during the Barcelona Olympics). Potential viewers should note that graphic photographs of the dead Israelis and Palestinians are shown at the end of this section. One of the Black September terrorists on the balcony of the Israeli team quarters at the Olympic village The Munich massacre occurred during the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, West Germany, when members of the Israeli Olympic team were taken hostage by the Palestinian organization Black September, a militant group... Zvi Zamir (1925) was the Director of the Mossad from 1968 to 1974. ...

The film also alleges that the October 29 hijacking of a German Lufthansa jet and its subsequent release in exchange for the three Black September members being held for trial was a set-up by the German government, who did not want their failings to be made obvious in the trial. October 29 is the 302nd day of the year (303rd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Deutsche Lufthansa AG (ISIN: DE0008232125) (pronounced ) is the largest airline in Germany, and the second-largest in Europe (behind Air France-KLM, but before British Airways). ...

Criticisms

After the movie's release, film critic Roger Ebert penned a review criticizing the movie as one sided and alarmist, in particular noting that it did not fully explore the Palestinian position or what he felt were the reasons for the terrorist's attack, as well as noting what he felt was the film's "tasteless conclusion". He continued these criticisms after the movie won the Academy Award, complaining publicly that in his belief the movie had won by subverting the Academy laws. After the events of September 11, 2001 made the movie appear to some people remarkably prescient, Ebert's original review was changed on his web site to reflect a less critical tone and remove some of the more in hindsight embarrassing charges.

Companion book

• Reeve, S. (New York, 2001), One Day in September: the full story of the 1972 Munich Olympic massacre and the Israeli operation 'Wrath of God' ISBN 1-55970-547-7

See also

• Olympic films

External links

• One Day in September at the Internet Movie Database