20140119: Drama Review--Argo

Argo

1. Fundamentals, reception.
1. American live action feature length film, 2012, rated R, 120 minutes, biography, drama, history.
2. IMDB: 7.9/10.0 from 289,273 audience ratings.  Estimated budget, 44.5 million USD; estimated domestic gross, 136 million USD.
3. Rotten Tomatoes: 96% on the meter; 90% liked it from 193,623 audience ratings.
4. I watched this on DVD.  The picture quality was good but not HD.
5. Directed by: Ben Affleck.  Screenplay by Chris Terrio.
6. Starring: Ben Affleck as Tony Mendez, John Goodman as John Chambers, Bryan Cranston as Jack O'Dell, Alan Arkin as Lester Siegel, Victor Garber as Ken Taylor, Zeljko Ivanek as Robert Pender, Kyle Chandler as Hamilton Jordan.


2. Setup and Plot
1. During the storming of the US embassy in 1979, six American personnel escape to the Canadian embassy.  The CIA puts together plans to get them out of Iran.


2. The winning plan was to produce a Canadian science fiction movie shot in Iran.  Tony flies to LA and gets together a director, a complete script that they own, a prosthetics genius, a walk-through of the script by a full cast of actors in full costume, and a storm of press coverage.  In Iran, Tony convinces the six escapees to study up on their biographies as his crew.


3. The relevant ministry gets the script for the fake film, Argo, and the press releases.  He writes Tony that he wants to discuss locations with his crew the next day.  The six learn their new identities as movie people.  They meet with the minister at the appointed place. This is not without challenges along the way.  Presenting the difference between American and Canadian has to be done now and then.


4. In the night before the last day, the day to fly back, Tony grills the six on their backgrounds.  After a long session of this, the movie tells us that Washington pulled the plug on the operation.  So what do Tony and the group decide to do?


5. No surprise.  They go through with it.  Jack in the CIA threatens Hamilton Jordan with embarassment if it does not go through.


6. The last piece was really delicate.  The only Farsi speaker explains the story boards.  The guard wants to verify with Los Angeles.  Unfortunately, John and Lester are out of their office and blocked by filming.  But they connect just in time, and the guard sees a story about Argo in the papers.


7. Still, other parts of Iranian justice are after them, and the suspense continues.  Will they make their flight and get into international air space?


3. Conclusions
1. One line summary: Entertaining when considered as fiction; fine ensemble acting.
2. Four stars of five.


4. Scores
1. Cinematography: 9/10 Good looking, even on DVD.


2. Sound: 9/10 No problems.


3. Acting: 10/10 Great performances by Alan Arkin, John Goodman, Bryan Cranston, Victor Garber, and Ben Affleck.


4. Screenplay: 7/10 This account was strongly different than the one given to the public in 1980. At the time, the efforts of the Canadians were assigned roughly 100% of the credit for the plan and the successful execution.  I remember feeling a great deal of kinship toward the Canadians at the time.  Also, reactions from Canada in 2012 mirror the same view.  So, accuracy was not set at a premium here.  Considered as a fiction, however, this is an entertaining movie.