What 1999 documentary about the Munich Olympics massacre won the Oscar?

The 1999 documentary about the Munich Olympics massacre that won the Oscar is One Day in September.

Directed by Kevin Macdonald, the film examines the September 5, 1972, attack at the Munich Summer Olympics, when members of the Palestinian group Black September took Israeli athletes and coaches hostage. The crisis ended with the deaths of 11 members of the Israeli Olympic delegation, along with a West German police officer and the eight attackers.

The documentary combines archival footage, interviews with relatives and survivors, and a critical reconstruction of the rescue attempt at Fürstenfeldbruck air base. Michael Douglas provides the film’s sparse narration. Its focus is not simply the attack itself, but also the security failures and the responses of German authorities and the International Olympic Committee.

One Day in September won the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at the 72nd Academy Awards, held on March 26, 2000. The year can cause confusion: the film was released in 1999, while its Oscar victory occurred in 2000. It is also distinct from Munich, Steven Spielberg’s 2005 dramatic film about the aftermath of the massacre.