Munich: The Edge of War

Play trailer

2:23

Munich: The Edge of War

PG-13

2021

2h 3m

Biography

History

Drama

Play Trailer

Watchlist

Watchlist

Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

84%

Tomatometer

86 Reviews

77%

Popcornmeter

250+ Ratings

Based on the international bestseller by Robert Harris. It is Autumn 1938 and Europe stands on the brink of war. Adolf Hitler is preparing to invade Czechoslovakia and Neville Chamberlain's government desperately seeks a peaceful solution. With the pressure building, Hugh Legat, British civil servant, and Paul von Hartmann, German diplomat, travel to Munich for the emergency Conference. As negotiations begin, the two old friends find themselves at the center of a web of political subterfuge and very real danger. With the whole world watching, can war be averted and, if so, at what cost?

Watch on Netflix

Stream Now

Critics Consensus

Sharp direction and some outstanding performances make Munich: The Edge of War a gripping historical drama, even though the ending's no secret.

Read Critics Reviews

Randy Myers

San Jose Mercury News

Director Christian Schwochow has made a classy thriller and draws out strong performances from all three of his main actors.

Rated: 3/4

Jan 27, 2022

Full Review

Christy Lemire

FilmWeek (LAist)

A really solid, old-fashioned, well-crafted war-spy drama.

Jan 26, 2022

Full Review

Stephanie Zacharek

TIME Magazine

If the movie is handsome in an oak-paneled-office way, there's life in it too. You feel there's something at stake for the two young would-be heroes, as there is for the world.

Jan 24, 2022

Full Review

Geoffrey Macnab

iNews.co.uk

For all its subtlety and craft, Munich: The Edge of War gives us little in the way of romance or adventure.

Rated: 3/5

Jan 17, 2025

Full Review

Jai Arjun Singh

Firstpost

Munich: The Edge of War is an uneven, sometimes perplexing narrative, but moreover it's a touching story about friendship, about the ways in which the personal and the political can collide.

Rated: 3/5

Aug 27, 2024

Full Review

Daniel Allen

Loud and Clear Reviews

WWII origin film Munich – The Edge of War works well as a political biography of Neville Chamberlain, but not as a tense espionage thriller.

Rated: 3/5

Jul 25, 2024

Full Review

Read all reviews

Stephen C

2 hours and 3 minutes based on a true story. Rated PG-13 for Some Strong Language, Smoking, Brief Violence and Thematic Elements!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/02/25

Full Review

Andrei D

A little too old-school in its approach and nowhere as cool as Fatherland but has some nice interludes

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

11/07/24

Full Review

Julian P

A near perfect ww2 thriller, though the great Jeremy Irons is probably miscast as Chamberlain who was weak when he needed to be strong.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

10/23/24

Full Review

Patrick F

While the two main characters are fictional, their story is the narrative framework to discuss the real events surrounding 1938's notorious Munich Agreement. The film explores Neville Chamberline's hopes and intentions during the conference which gave rise to the agreement. The film is sort of a redeeming take on Chamberline who has been roundly dunked on by historians for decades since. The film paints Chamberline as knowing the agreement might not hold but feeling it was necessary to buy time for Britain to prepare for war. Certainly Britain was more prepared for war in 1939-1940 than they were in 1938, so it is an interesting take on Chamberline. Overall the acting was good. I think students of history will like this movie more than other people. Well done film.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

05/13/24

Full Review

Alec B

A reassessment of sorts for Chamberlain isn't completely unreasonable (even if I don't totally buy it) but a lot of this is still pretty half baked, especially since the focus isn't really on Jeremy Irons (a real shame as he's great here) and I just don't understand why this has to be a spy thriller.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

02/21/24

Full Review

Ron D

Ever heard of Chekhov's gun? Because the writers of this movie sure haven't. Set ups were not satisfying payed off, characters are under developed, and the climax ends with some out of left field deus ex machina nonsense.

Rated 1.5 out of 5 stars

02/08/24

Full Review

Read all reviews

Read More

Read Less

POST RATING

WRITE A REVIEW

EDIT REVIEW

Christian Schwochow

Director

Jessica Brown Findlay

Pamela Legat

George MacKay

Hugh Legat

Jeremy Irons

Neville Chamberlain

Liv Lisa Fries

Lenya

Jannis Niewöhner

Paul von Hartman

The Zookeeper's Wife

64%

76%

The Zookeeper's Wife

Watchlist

TRAILER

for The Zookeeper's Wife

A Hidden Life

82%

72%

A Hidden Life

Watchlist

TRAILER

for A Hidden Life

Tolkien

51%

71%

Tolkien

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Tolkien

Cabrini

90%

98%

Cabrini

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Cabrini

Victoria & Abdul

65%

68%

Victoria & Abdul

Watchlist

TRAILER

for Victoria & Abdul

Discover more movies and TV shows.

View More

Munich: The Edge of War: Trailer 1

2:23

View more videos

View more photos

Synopsis

Based on the international bestseller by Robert Harris. It is Autumn 1938 and Europe stands on the brink of war. Adolf Hitler is preparing to invade Czechoslovakia and Neville Chamberlain's government desperately seeks a peaceful solution. With the pressure building, Hugh Legat, British civil servant, and Paul von Hartmann, German diplomat, travel to Munich for the emergency Conference. As negotiations begin, the two old friends find themselves at the center of a web of political subterfuge and very real danger. With the whole world watching, can war be averted and, if so, at what cost?

Director: Christian Schwochow
Producer: Andrew Eaton
Screenwriter: Robert Harris, Ben Power, Ben Power
Production Co: Netflix, Turbine Studios
Rating: PG-13 (Some Strong Language|Smoking|Brief Violence|Thematic Elements)
Genre: Biography, History, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Streaming): Jan 21, 2022
Runtime: 2h 3m
Sound Mix: Dolby Digital

Most Popular at Home Now