Terrorists – STREAMING MOVIE NIGHT

2024 Constantin Film

Rated: R

Length: 1 hr 35min

Drama ~ History ~ Thriller ~ True Story

Starring: Peter Sarsgaard, John Magaro, Ben Chaplin, and Leonie Benesch.

The Day Terror Went Live

During the 1972 Summer Olympics in Munich, Germany two very important events took place that altered the course of history. ABC Sports was covering the event live in Munich with a full team and broadcasting live worldwide via satellite for the first time ever, and a Terrorist group named Black September broke into the apartments housing the Israeli athletes and took them hostage. They immediately demanded release of 200 Palestinian prisoners being held in Israel. Word spread quickly and the ABC Sports News Team jumped into action covering every minute of the ordeal and broadcasted it worldwide. It was the first ever televised Olympics and a terrorist attack in real time. September 5 recreates the event from the perspective of the ABC crew in their control room.

FROM THE OFFICIAL WEBSITE:

“September 5” unveils the decisive moment that forever changed media coverage and continues to impact live news today. Set during the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics, the film follows an American Sports broadcasting team that quickly adapted from sports reporting to live coverage of the Israeli athletes taken hostage. Through this lens, “September 5” provides a fresh perspective on the live broadcast seen globally by an estimated one billion people at the time.

At the heart of the story is Geoff (John Magaro), a young and ambitious producer striving to prove himself to his boss, the legendary TV executive Roone Arledge (Peter Sarsgaard). Together with German interpreter Marianne (Leonie Benesch) and his mentor Marvin Bader (Ben Chaplin), Geoff unexpectedly takes the helm of the live coverage. As narratives shift, time ticks away, and conflicting rumours spread, with the hostages’ lives hanging in the balance, Geoff grapples with tough decisions while confronting his own moral compass.

Interwoven with real footage from that day it is a fascinating look at the events that happened and the quick thinking of the ABC team in real time as they decided that since they had the capability, the world should see the events unfolding before them. It is also an interesting look at TV production in real time without the aid of computers and graphics. There is an interesting scene where we see how they came up with titles to overlay on the live feed. Very interesting stuff, way different than now when we can quickly add graphics to video in seconds.

It is a True Story and you know I love the True Story Movies. It is also a really good movie, you feel as if you are right there in the control room with them sweating out every second and every decision. Very well done down to the details in the control room, I was eyeing some of the vintage audio gear on the wall. Very Authentic!

I highly recommend this one. Give it a go!

2025 Amazon MGM Studios

Rated: R

Length: 1 hr 50min

Action ~ Drama ~ Suspense ~ Thriller

Directed by: Patricia Riggen

Starring: Viola Davis, Anthony Anderson, Marsai Martin, Ramón Rodríguez, Douglas Hodge, Elizabeth Marvel, Sabrina Impacciatore, Clark Gregg, and Antony Starr.

“Never Underestimate A Patriot”

President Danielle Sutton (Viola Davis) of The United States is scheduled to travel to Cape Town, South Africa to attend the annual G20 Summit. But first she must contend with her underage teenage daughter Serena (Marsai Martin) who has bypassed Secret Service Security and has been spotted dancing at a night club by the press. Secret Service Security intervenes, apprehends her and brings her back to the White House. President Sutton and her husband Derek (Anthony Anderson) decide that Serena and her brother Demetrius (Cristopher Farrar) will travel with them to Cape Town.

When they arrive in Cape Town they discover that Security is very tight and the First Family feels secure. But as the Summit commences things quickly escalate out of control. A small army of highly trained and organized Terrorists take over the building and the conference room where the World leaders are gathered for the summit. They secure the perimeter of the resort grounds and blow up the building that houses the G20 Summit Security forces. As they storm the Conference room where the G20 Leaders are, President Sutton and her security team dive for cover and look for a way out.

President Sutton’s Military background and experience jumps into action and the race is on to fight their way out of the chaotic scene. As President Sutton, her bodyguard and a few World leaders they have taken with them escape out of the conference room, her husband and children are fighting to escape capture by the terrorists. The First man is no slouch and holds his own against the terrorists. Their children are quick on their feet as well and Selena’s Tech savviness comes in handy in hacking into the Terrorist’s Wi-Fi.

There is non-stop action as the movie unfolds. Lots of gunfire, explosions and hand to hand combat. Viola Davis as President Sutton, who has war experience in Afghanistan, is a complete bad-ass fighting to save her family and Democracy. I am a big Bessie Smith fan who is a Blues singer from the 1930’s and Viola Davis played Ma Rainey (Bessie Smith’s Mentor) in Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom. Like Bessie Smith, Ma Rainey was a rough and tough, take no shit kind of woman. So it was interesting to see Viola Davis in this, it was like seeing the rough and tough Blues Singer Ma Rainey in action with a semi-automatic.

Anthony Anderson held his own duking it out with the terrorists, protecting his children at any cost. It is exactly what you think it is, an action filled terrorist political thriller. Shades of White House Down, Olympus Has Fallen and Die Hard all rolled into one. Throw in a Female Black American President with Middle East war experience and some Crypto for some extra spice. There are a ton of similar movies with the same familiar plotline. But with that said, I liked it. I thought Viola Davis was a complete bad-ass and pulled it off. I don’t think the movie would have survived without her, it would get lost in the mix of all the others that came before.

So, yeah…it was good and I enjoyed seeing Viola kick some butt, but I wouldn’t watch it again. Definitely a one-off, not a favorite repeater I’d watch over and over again.