Operation Thunderbolt

This wonderful film, on the cover entitled ���� �����, "Mivtsah Yonathan", which actually is Hebrew for "Operation Jonathan", and is affectionately named (as was "Operation Thunderbolt" itself) for Yoni Netanyahu, brother of the later prime minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu. Yoni was the only soldier-fatality on the mission. Even though pricey, this film was well worth every penny spent. I'd buy it again in a heartbeat. I echo all of the other comments in support of buying this film. Although I enjoyed also "Raid on Entebbe", the American version of the same events with an all-star cast, I enjoyed this one more. Very exciting, very true to life, and very interesting. I remember the actual events, even though being ten at the time, but was quite aware, even at that age, of what was happening in the world. The movie is very accurate as to what actually happened. The film is mainly in Hebrew and English, although there is also some German, Arabic, and French, but subtitles are supplied. Definitely, purchase this film!

After reading the several positive reviews of the film, I expected something rather good. Instead, I watched a very amateurish production with only two accomplished actors, Klaus Kinski, who is here lacking in dimension, but does rather well playing the Klaus Kinski evil person that we expect from him; and the Israeli actress who, I believe, later played the mother in the Tom Hanks romance, Every Time We Say Goodbye. (Sorry, I don't know her name.) The rest of the cast appears to be in some sort of really weak acting class mode, with strong, noble expressions on the good guys (the Israeli commandos), strong, concerned expressions on the Israeli politicians, and frightened, worried expressions on the hostages. There's no depth or complexity here, just two dimensional good and evil. It quite possible that much of this is the director's fault. Actors for the most part have to do what the director specifies, and sometimes what appears to be weak acting is, in fact odd directing. On the other hand, perhaps the cleverest bit in the whole film is the director's having the captives run from place to place which effectively brings image matches with some of the nasty Nazi films of the the way Jews, Poles, and Gypsies (among others) were herded around in the death camps.Then there is the matter of weak production values, e.g., sound effects that begin, stop, and then start again (think aircraft engines).The raid on Entebbe is something that any nation can be proud of. It was mission fraught with great peril that was brought off successfully. It's just a pity that all of the films based on the event are so weak.By the way, the VHS tape version I bought from one of Amazon's sellers had no subtitles at all. I don't know if this is normal or an anomaly. I could have used them with both the German speakers and the Israelis speaking English.

SATISFIED

I had noticed the movie "Operation Thunderbolt" because it was nominated for Best Oscar for Foreign Language Film the year it came out. I've noticed that category was usually a good source of worthwhile fims I might otherwise miss completely. This movie fits the bill although I'm not sure it fits the category since it's 90% in English. It tells the compelling tale of the raid on Entebbe and is an Israeli production which has its' advantages and disadvantages. The advantage is in knowing who the "good guys" are, probable access to inside information, and an enthusiasm that Hollywood would have missed. The disadvantages are some questionable casting, a "Made-for-TV" soundtrack, about 15 minutes of film that should have been left on the cutting room floor.I found the quality of this used video tape to be a bit less than what I had hoped for. I only mention that because I see so many reviews that focus almost exclusively on the quality of the media. After the opening cast and credits, I stopped noticing the slight blurriness. The movie spends just a slight amount of time developing the characters at the beginning. Before we know it, the plane is in the air and the terrorists take control. Some of the actors are good, some are very good, and some are...well, let's just say that the liner notes tell how 12 of the hostages play themselves. I counted more than 12 that seemed to "fit" that category (if you know what I mean). Along that line, we are treated to a number of disappointing actual scenes of Israeli leaders "in action" during the time the hostage crisis was taking place. We see them sitting in chairs, walking down hallways and looking at phones. (Obviously, I couldn't seem to realize anything positive about their inclusion).Technical points aside, the movie moves along at a reasonable clip (when not showing the politicians at "work") and the suspense is well-developed. Those who know nothing of this historical event should enjoy just about every non-Knesset minute of the film. Those who are aware of the event (and may have seen other movie versions of it) will still find it an engrossing film. It is, of course, a very timely movie 30 years after it was made given the international state of affairs that we are in. Not much has changed in that time (especially for Israel) and there is a sense that the Israeli's, out of necessity if for no other reason, are the experts on dealing with terrorism. We Americans could learn a few things from the Israeli's and this movie (although not their rather inept response to the Hezballah in Lebanon last year) is evidence of that.I'm glad I bought this movie. It is one I will watch again because it tells a sincere version of what was a most impressive act of anti-terrorism.

Operation Thunderbolt is a great movie about the Israeli hostage rescue mission at Entebbe Aiport in Uganda. It is a well made movie made in Israel about the tragic events leading to and including this rescue mission in late June / eraly July of 1976.What I like about this movie is that the actors speak in their own native languages, so you can hear Hebrew, English, French and Arabian.I would also like to thank seller Adam for not wasting any time. I placed my order on 12-17-11 and today ( 12-22-11 ) it was right there in my mailbox.

I cannot add to the reviews already written except to say that I too was there, and remember this vividly. I am so glad I decided to purchase this DVD. Don't expect the Hollywood version. Expect to be awe struck by the planning and execution of this mission. BB Netanyahu's brother was a great man. It is only ashame that we had to lose even 1 Israeli life, and it was his.

En 1976, l'opération de sauvetage visant à libérer une centaine d'otages israeliens retenus en Ouganda à l'ancien aéroport d'Entebbe avait stupéfié le monde entier par son envergure et son ingéniosité... au point qu'Hollywood décida immédiatement d'en faire 2 films concurrents. Comme toujours dans ces cas-là, la précipitation est de mise pour sortir "son" film en premier et les 2 films américains ont d'ailleurs été tournés en 3 semaines mais avec chacun un casting époustouflant. Ce sont deux téléfilms sortis en salles chez nous. Le 1er ("victoire à entebbe") est aujourd'hui invisible et traine derrière lui une invérifiable réputation de nanar. Le second, avec Charles Bronson, passe pour le film-référence sur le sujet. Le 3ème, ce dvd, est à peine mentionné. Pas de stars occidentales (à part Klaus Kinski), une actrice très marquée "série Z" (Sybil Danning) en haut de l'affiche et pour couronner le tout Menahem Golan aux commandes : si on a vu "delta force" du même Golan (sur un sujet similaire), on ne peut décemment rien attendre de cette version du raid d'entebbe. C'est pourtant un monument du cinéma. Véritable film (pas téléfilm, LUI), il existe aussi en version française sur dvd sous le titre "operation yonathan : entebbe", mais cette édition est bien meilleure pour qui n'est pas dérangé par les sous-titres anglais car la VF est par endroits si mal synchronisée qu'elle rend l'ensemble très vite inregardable. Revenons au film en version internationale : chaque protagoniste parle "sa" langue (les commandos israeliens l'hébreu, les terroristes allemands l'allemand, l'équipage d'air france le français etc...) , ce qui donne au film un réalisme saisissant, de plus : il fourmille d'idées géniales et a été filmé en Israël. Il restitue à la perfection l'ampleur de l'opération. La musique est sublimissime, une des plus grandes musiques de films de l'histoire du cinéma et donne des frissons dès le générique de début. A la fin, elle donne les larmes aux yeux. Pour donner une idée, c'est une sorte de mixture entre Morricone et Hans Zimmer de "Gladiator". L'acteur principal (interprète du chef commando) est aussi un chanteur très connu en Israel : ce Yehoram Gaon porte le film avec un charisme étonnant. On regrette que le réalisateur Menahem Golan n'ait pas voulu mieux exploiter son talent dans ses films suivants mais sa mise en scène atteint parfois des sommets dans le sublime et ce film là ne dégénère jamais dans le grotesque comme "delta force". Qui se souvient des plans magnifiques des paysages américains filmés par Golan sur la route de Stallone dans "over the top", a une idée du potentiel de ce réalisateur sous-estimé à cause du nombre invraisemblable de nanars à son actif. Les dernières minutes de ce "operation yonathan" (= operation thunderbolt) sont parmi les plus émouvantes qu'il m'ait été donné de voir : ce film est un chef-d'oeuvre absolu. Précision : il vaut largement ce prix élevé. Bien qu'israelien, il parait avoir été réalisé avec des moyens hollywoodiens.