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Movie Info
Based on true events, Argo chronicles the life-or-death covert operation to rescue six Americans, which unfolded behind the scenes of the Iran hostage crisis-the truth of which was unknown by the public for decades. On November 4, 1979, as the Iranian revolution reaches its boiling point, militants storm the U.S. embassy in Tehran, taking 52 Americans hostage. But, in the midst of the chaos, six Americans manage to slip away and find refuge in the home of the Canadian ambassador. Knowing it is
only a matter of time before the six are found out and likely killed, a CIA "exfiltration" specialist named Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck) comes up with a risky plan to get them safely out of the country. A plan so incredible, it could only happen in the movies. -- (C) Warner Bros.
Argo has that solid, kick-the-tires feel of those studio films from the 70s that were about something but also entertained. Only it's as laugh outright amusing as it is sobering.
The movieland satire is laid on thick, but it's also deadly accurate. Schlock has never seemed so patriotic, and Arkin and Goodman have rarely been so good.
Argo is a rollicking yarn, easily the most cohesive and technically accomplished of Affleck's three films so far, but a part of me wishes the director hadn't cast himself in the lead role.
If nothing else, it proves that every so often, the CIA can pull something off - and that yes, Canadians are just about the nicest people on the planet.
Ben Affleck leaps on to the A-list of directors with this relentlessly entertaining thriller, combining comedy and nerve-jangling suspense to maximum effect.
The shaggy and bearded Ben Affleck, barely recognisable from his former self, gives a great lead performance. Understated, intense and steely-eyed, Affleck has the screen presence of legendary actor/director Clint Eastwood.
Affleck the director is utterly sure-footed with an instinctive feel for characterization, tension and pacing as he builds the action towards a nail-biting climax.
Nailing the tension, the terror and the gallows humour of its story without resorting to jingoism or losing sight of its political context, Argo is a close-to-flawless thriller with a devilishly smart mouth.
Better to watch it as a meta cinema commentary than a historical thriller. Either way, Argo is both smart and fun but ultimately lightweight. Star Wars fans may well cry before the credits roll.
It's to Affleck's credit that he manages to knit Hollywood levity into the genuinely gripping question of whether the embassy Americans can pull this off.
"Argo" is directed and edited so well and is about such serious subject matter that I fear people are going to over-estimate its merit. It's a very effective but rather shallow political melodrama based on a true story about the Iran Hostage Crisis of 1979-80.
Director Ben Affleck is becoming a major Hollywood director, which is wonderful to see. The first film he directed, "Gone Baby Gone," was on my Top 10 list of 2007. It's a must-see. I am delighted to see his success. But it is also clear that he is thinning out his projects, giving them more action-movie tautness but less depth. And (surprise!) as he gets more superficial, he gets more popular.
"Gone Baby Gone" had a tremendous amount of depth and dramatic complexity. His second, "The Town," had less depth but was tighter. "Argo" now is the tightest of them all, demonstrating admirable focus in every scene. Every shot knows what it wants to do and gets right to it. The audience is on the edge of its seat at every moment, due to superb editing.
However, "Argo" is the most superficial of the three films. I don't think anyone would say that they got to know any of the characters in the film. It has very minimal characterization. The audience is meant to bite its fingernails, wondering if the characters are going to make it out of Iran alive. The audience is not meant to ponder anything about life or people. "Argo" is melodrama, not drama. But it's one of the best melodramas you will see all year. I suspect it will be nominated for the Best Picture Oscar, with Affleck earning a Best Director nomination as well.
"Argo" does have a political viewpoint, presenting the rage of the Iranian people as legitimate. Rarely do Americans try to see world events from the perspective of other nations. This is especially rare when it comes to the Middle East. Affleck's accounting of the Hostage Crisis is impressively two-sided.
The film also rehabilitates President Jimmy Carter's performance during the crisis. Carter even gives a short voice-over at the tail end of the film, expressing pride that his Administration eventually got every single hostage out safe and sound. Furthermore, he says, it was done peacefully and the integrity of the United States was protected.
But this is a slight veneer on the project. What one ponders through 99% of the film is: Are they going to make it out alive?! Good old-fashioned action-movie melodrama.
November 11, 2012
William Dunmyer
Super Reviewer
If ''The Town'' put Affleck on the map as one of the directors you should keep your eye on in the next few years, ''Argo'' establishes him as one of the most consistently solid directors working today. Like his previous two films, ''Argo'' is very tense, filled with good performances and excellent dialogue and crafted with extreme care. The balance of drama and great moments of humour is perfection and Affleck does this incredible story justice by keeping your full attention throughout.
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