6 reasons why new Netflix movie Munich The Edge of War falls flat
I see World War movie, with Hitler and 1917’s George McKay and I say yes to investing my two hours' worth of time to watch a movie seriously on Netflix and click play. Munich: The Edge of War, Netflix’s latest drop on the Second World War, had it all. The film had me glued to my seat in anticipation…
PLOT
The film is an adaptation of the historical fiction novel, Munich, by Robert Harris. It is based on the real event of the Munich Conference that took place in 1938, a year before World War II started.
The film focuses on the political and diplomatic side of the Munich Conference with a little bit of ‘spy-thriller’ fiction sprinkled on the top. Most importantly, the film sought to defend the actions of the then UK Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain, who remains a disdained figure in UK politics to date due to the Munich Conference.
The fictional additions are the two characters – Hugh Legat, private secretary to the UK PM and Paul von Hartmann, a German diplomat translating foreign press to Adolf Hitler.
SPOILERS AHEAD.
The former Oxford classmates reunite during the Munich conference to do some back-channel spying.
THE REAL EVENTS
Munich Conference was an agreement reached between the UK, France, Hitler’s Nazi Germany and Mussolini’s Italy. The UK and France agreed to surrender Sudentenland in Czechoslovakia, as per Hitler’s demands in exchange for a promise to not invade all of Czechoslovakia and declare war.
Of course, Nazi Germany flouted all agreements, invaded its neighbouring country nonetheless and declared war just one year after. The agreement left the UK and France looking like naïve idiots.
The resistance working against Hitler was also a real one. The prime instigator of the resistance Claus von Stauffenberg wanted to get rid of Hitler in what was called the ‘July Plot’, which failed.
However, the resistance wasn’t sickened with Hitler’s anti-Semitic views, but only thought he wasn’t going as strong. They also followed the same ideology as Hitler.
THE GOOD...
There were some good parts that still speak to the audience because they are still relevant to this day.
1. German actor Jannis Niewöhner portrays Paul Von Hartmann who goes from Hitler-loving German to a Hitler-hating German-in-resistance bent on the dictator’s assassination.
In today’s divisive political climate in India and around the world, it is easy to spot Hartmann’s hot-blooded and anxious-natured character in our surroundings. It is easy to understand his character which falls for Hitler’s hackneyed promises of a glorious German future, only to be hard hit with reality later on and feel the responsibility to do something.
2. It is also very relatable in the way the UK politicians rally behind the fascist dictator, believing he will live up to his words. Not much has changed since 1938, when it comes to politics.
Remember US President Joe Biden's slip of the tongue during a recent presser on the Ukraine-Russia conflict where he said that a ‘minor incursion’ by Russia would only evoke a weaker response?
3. August Diehl of Inglorious Bastards plays another role of a bad Nazi officer.
...AND THE BAD
However other than the few relevant structures of the story, the film lacked in many ways.
1. Novelist Robert Harris's defense of Chamberlain is based on the narrative that his actions were not in cowardice, but were a noble gesture of self-sacrifice. However, the character is devoid of any flesh other than some dialogues, that barely leave a mark.
"As long as the war has not begun, there is always hope that it may be prevented," one of his dialogues goes.
2. The film tries very hard to make the bureaucratic proceedings look tense and interesting, but fails.
3. Hugh Legat's character is just looking around dumbfounded all the time. The ending scene where he tells his wife that a war is looming and he’ll resign to join the RAF, comes off as anti-climactic, though it’s not supposed to be.
4. The female characters are essentially non-existent.
5. Do we need a defence of a Tory politician who messed up in history? The Independent answers a scathy 'no' to the writer and the director of the film. It comes at a time when Tory MPs including UK PM Boris Johnson are embroiled in a pandemic party scandal - another mess-up.
6. The film focuses on 'Britishery' or more loosely, 'British-snobbery', going by the narrative that ‘whatever the British did, they did it right’, while failing to show the side of the story on the repercussions of the Munich Conference on the Jews of Sudentenland.
All-in-all the film had me glued to my seat in anticipation of an Inglorious Bastards or even 1917-like World War movie filled with intense action, emotion and drama, that never came.