Story: CIA
exfiltration specialist Tony Mendez comes up with a plan to extract six
American diplomats from Iran at a time when the Iranian public's ire
against their overthrown Shah and the US is at its most volatile. Does
Mendez succeed in fooling the Iranians into letting them go?
Movie Review: The film starts with a history lesson on the politics of the region to bring you up to speed on why Iran still hates the USA. According to them, the USA is the Great Shaitan for first installing the Shah and then offering him asylum after his ouster.
Set in the 1970s, Argo is based on the true story of the extraction of six diplomats from the Canadian ambassador's house, where they're hiding. As options are being considered, Mendez (Affleck) comes up with "the best bad option by far" - the one with the least diplomatic fallout. If it succeeds, everyone's a winner; if it fails, everyone dies.
The plan sounds deceptively simple. Make a fake movie, make Hollywood (and pretty much the rest of the world) believe that an award-winning director (Arkin) and make-up genius (Goodman) are attached to a sci-fi film called Argo, set in the Middle East. Create a media circus announcing the film and let the rest follow. Thereafter, Mendez enters the country on the ruse of location-scouting. He enters alone but has to leave with six other Americans posing as a Canadian crew. Easier said than done?
Affleck's film is being seen as a serious Oscar contender and with good reason. The film doesn't favour one side over the other. Also, the dramatisation is not without its light moments. You will sense a fine balance and an acute attention to detailing, something that's pivotal to a film of this genre. Watch out for certain powerful crowd scenes and set pieces that grab you with their sheer intensity and absolute terror. You will gasp in awe at the pains taken in casting actors who resembled the actual players of this story the closest, as they are featured during the end credits.
Tip-Off: You may not like this movie if you cannot stomach graphic scenes of violence, or if you are easily offended by explicit language.
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| ARGO MOVIE REVIEW |
Cast: Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, Alan Arkin, John Goodman, Victor Garber, Kyle Chandler
Direction: Ben Affleck
Genre: Thriller
Duration: 2 hours
Movie Review: The film starts with a history lesson on the politics of the region to bring you up to speed on why Iran still hates the USA. According to them, the USA is the Great Shaitan for first installing the Shah and then offering him asylum after his ouster.
Set in the 1970s, Argo is based on the true story of the extraction of six diplomats from the Canadian ambassador's house, where they're hiding. As options are being considered, Mendez (Affleck) comes up with "the best bad option by far" - the one with the least diplomatic fallout. If it succeeds, everyone's a winner; if it fails, everyone dies.
Watch the Argo Official Trailer (HD)
The plan sounds deceptively simple. Make a fake movie, make Hollywood (and pretty much the rest of the world) believe that an award-winning director (Arkin) and make-up genius (Goodman) are attached to a sci-fi film called Argo, set in the Middle East. Create a media circus announcing the film and let the rest follow. Thereafter, Mendez enters the country on the ruse of location-scouting. He enters alone but has to leave with six other Americans posing as a Canadian crew. Easier said than done?
Affleck's film is being seen as a serious Oscar contender and with good reason. The film doesn't favour one side over the other. Also, the dramatisation is not without its light moments. You will sense a fine balance and an acute attention to detailing, something that's pivotal to a film of this genre. Watch out for certain powerful crowd scenes and set pieces that grab you with their sheer intensity and absolute terror. You will gasp in awe at the pains taken in casting actors who resembled the actual players of this story the closest, as they are featured during the end credits.
Tip-Off: You may not like this movie if you cannot stomach graphic scenes of violence, or if you are easily offended by explicit language.
