Munich Quotes

The subject matter is very tricky. It`s about the Munich massacre and what Mossad did afterwards with the assassination squads. I think it`s a turning point in history, especially for the Palestinians.

Of course the Munich tragedy was the biggest event in my career and the most terrible.

Naturally, it is a terrible, despicable crime when, as in Munich, people are taken hostage, people are killed. But probing the motives of those responsible and showing that they are also individuals with families and have their own story does not excuse what they did.

During an interview with Roger Ebert regarding his film Munich (2005) and the response from Jewish critics that claim it depicts Israeli and Palestinian causes as morally equivalent: Frankly, I think that`s a stupid charge. The people who attack the movie based on `moral equivalence` are some of the same people who say diplomacy itself is an exercise in `moral equivalence` and that war is the only answer. That the only way to fight terrorism is to dehumanize the terrorists by asking no questions about who they are and where they come from. What I believe is, every act of terrorism requires a strong response, but we must also pay attention to the causes. That`s why we have brains and the power to think passionately. Understanding does not require approval. Understanding is not the same as inaction. Understanding is a very muscular act. If I`m endorsing understanding and being attacked for that, then I am almost flattered.

The stadium here in Munich is the best of the lot for me. It is absolutely fantastic, especially the way it lights up a different colour according to who is playing. It`s superb.

The memories of the Munich games for me are of triumph and tragedy.

We are Bayern Munich and English teams always have trouble as soon as they leave the island.

The attack on `Munich` was not coordinated but it amounted to a real campaign to have a lot of people not see the film and it got mixed up with Oscar issues.

What astonishes me about the response to `Munich` is this angry rejection of the idea that it makes any difference to know what motivates people to do bad things, that you don`t need to know why. It is like saying that real men shoot first and ask questions later like in `Dirty Harry` movies.