I was barely one-year-old when the opening ceremonies kicked off the 1972 Munich Summer Olympics. The games were being held in Germany for the first time since the country had been freed from Nazi rule. But the horrific events that transpired overshadowed the actual competitions. In the early morning hours of September 5th, eight armed members of the Palestinian militant group Black September slipped into the Olympic Village and took eleven Israeli athletes and staff hostage.

“September 5” chronicles ABC Sports’ live coverage of the shocking attack and the subsequent 18-hour standoff. Director Tim Fehlbaum crafts a gripping and fast-paced thriller that respects the memories of the victims while scrutinizing some of the decisions that led to the event’s violent conclusion. But at its core “September 5” is a taut journalism procedural that goes to painstaking lengths to recreate what it was like inside the ABC Studio in Munich during the unprecedented crisis.

Fehlbaum puts together a strong and well-tuned cast who all seem to understand their assignment. The trio of screenwriters which includes Fehlbaum, Moritz Binder, and Alex David pen a screenplay that zeroes in on the professional pressures and the emotional toll the broadcast team faced during a moment in history that forever changed television news. In the process, they’ve helped make one of the most riveting edge-of-your-seat thrillers of the year.

The ensemble’s actions and interactions are vital gears steadily turning to keep the propulsive story moving forward. It all plays out in real-time and is mostly set on that eponymous date. Just a few hundred yards from Munich’s Olympic Village, ABC has set up a studio that is broadcasting a live sporting event across the world for the very first time. ABC Sports president Roone Arledge (Peter Sarsgaard) runs the show, often standing in the back of the control room monitoring his team of producers and intervening whenever he sees fit.

One of those producers is newcomer Geoff Mason (John Magaro) who is about to take on his first live television broadcast for the company. Among the sizable crew is the seasoned and cautious head of operations, Marvin Bader (Ben Chaplin), the chief technician, Jacques Lesgards (Zinedine Soualem), and the crew’s German translator, Marianne Gebhardt (Leonie Benesch). Their day starts out pretty routine. That is until the echo of gunshots are heard coming from the Olympic Village.

Almost immediately reports begin pouring in and the crew starts parsing through them in order to piece together the truth. They narrow the gunfire down to the Israeli quarters and confirm that terrorists are holding several athletes and coaches hostage in two apartments. From there the decision is made to take the story to the world, providing on-air coverage of breaking news while offering live camera shots of the apartments and the surrounding chaos. Suddenly Geoff finds himself managing more than volleyball and boxing.

The story has a natural tension baked into it as the crew attempts to navigate truly uncharted territory. But several other concerns help ratchet that tension even higher. There’s their battle with ABC’s news division who wants to take over the story. There are the questions of journalistic ethics and responsibilities as they face new unknowns. And things really intensify after they realize their efforts to keep the public informed may be putting the hostages in danger.

In addition to the incredible recreation of the studio in all its 1972 glory, Fehlbaum gives his movie the illusion of being shot on high-contrast 16mm film stock. He also incorporates a ton of archived audio and video of legendary sportscaster Jim McKay and newsman Peter Jennings along with other related footage from ABC Sports. All are effective choices that help with the immersion.

While the hectic operation of the studio is fascinating to watch, Fehlbaum maintains the human element of his story by showing how the unfolding events weigh on his characters. The very nature of events doesn’t allow them a lot of time to process, but Fehlbaum ensures that we understand their struggle. It’s those small but crucial strokes of humanity that make “September 5” more than just a stone-cold procedural. It’s an in-the-trenches examination of journalism’s search for truth and the talented but fallible men and women at the center of it.

VERDICT – 4.5 STARS

Iranian filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof has endured extensive persecution for his politically charged and socially conscience art. He’s been arrested and imprisoned multiple times, banned from leaving Iran, smeared by his adversaries, and even brutally flogged. Now he stands in exile from his home country, having fled earlier this year after being sentenced on national security charges.

His latest film is “The Seed of the Sacred Fig” and it too offers an unflinching perspective on problematic systems and the oppression that comes from them (often violently). Rasoulof shot his film in secret over the course of 70 days, directing, writing, and producing what is a straightforward and unvarnished feature that tackles its heavy subject matter through the heartrending plight of a once tight-knit Tehran family.

A superb script and lights-out performances bring to life this quietly searing domestic drama with its strong political underpinning. Missagh Zareh plays Iman (Missagh Zareh), an honest but ambitious lawyer who has worked for 20 years with the current government regime. As the movie begins, Iman receives a promotion to be a state investigator which is one step away from being a revolutionary court judge. Iman’s promotion has big implications for their family including a nicer house in a better neighborhood and a more prominent social status.

But Iman’s new job also requires that his wife Najmeh (Soheila Golestani) and their two daughters, Rezvan (Mahsa Rostami) and Sana (Setareh Maleki) change their lifestyles to fit the new expectations. Iman’s new position brings more scrutiny from the government. And that can end up putting their family in danger, especially once the details of his work is fully brought into the light.

It turns out that Iman wasn’t hired for his years of experience or his judicial prowess. His predecessor was fired for refusing to approve a death indictment and his superiors want an investigator who will approve judgements without such lengthy processes as examining evidence. In fact his first assignment is to sign off on the death penalty for a case he has yet to read over. And the complications only mount from there.

Interestingly, much of Iman’s moral crisis takes place off screen while he’s away at work. During that time we’re left with Najmeh and the girls as they navigate issues of their own. Freedom protests break out across the city and are met with heavy state-led suppression by the police. And as the rallies give way to riots the violence quickly escalates. Rezvan and Sana find themselves involved once their best friend Sadaf (Niousha Akhshi) is arrested. Najmeh is caught between protecting her daughters and standing by her husband who is tasked with prosecuting the protesters.

The film’s central conflict is between a father loyal to the theocratic regime and his two daughters who begin speaking out against the oppression they witness. But it’s Najmeh who turns out to be the centerpiece and her personal journey is easily the most compelling. Golestani’s performance runs the gamut of emotions as her character gradually evolves into a much different person. She’s presents a gripping portrait of someone caught amid the political and the personal.

While Rasoulof steadily builds up the intensifying domestic drama, he frequently injects cellphone video taken from real protests which emphasize the truth of what he is depicting. It adds a significant layer of reality to what’s unfolding with the family. At 166 minutes the film extends itself a little too far. And it can be a bit unwieldy and overt in its messaging. But the burgeoning sense of fear and paranoia remains palpable, even as Rasoulof’s final 20 minutes veers dangerously close to Hollywood thriller territory.

VERDICT – 4 STARS