This film is like you go outside in winter and find some ripe fruit on your peach tree. What a fun and delicious surprise to eat and share. It's a story based on actual events from the 1979 "hostile" takeover of the U.S. embassy in Iran. A bunch of Americans were captured at the embassy and held as hostages, crippling the last part of Carter's presidency, but six Americans had managed to escape to hide out with the Canadian ambassador. Some scheme had to be invented by Canadian and U.S. spy agencies to get the six safely out of Iran before someone else caught up to them and captured or killed them. Ben Affleck plays real-life CIA operative Tony Mendez (that he is separated from his wife and child adds an extra human touch) who comes up with a plan to pose the six as a film crew researching locations for a nutty sci-fi production. It's a fast-paced, edge-of-your-seat tale with excellent acting across the board and a lot of humor mostly related to the ridiculous premise of the "play within the play." John Goodman and Alan Arkin are a riot in this portraying figures in the Southern California movie industry. Props also to Bryan Cranston for his portrayal of a mid-level CIA dude who supervises Mendez. Affleck shines bright as coproducer, director, and star in this film that bagged Best Picture and two other Oscars in 2013. Read more
I love this movie! It is so refreshing to see movies like this. There are so many amazing real events out there and yet Hollywood continues to recycle mindless drivel. Argo is a welcomed departure from the idiocy that Hollywood routinely churns out. It proves they can make good movies if they want to. Argo provides all the key elements to a great movie. Character development, plot, setting, good cinematography without endless special effects. And on top of that, there’s some history, a theme, and a clear storyline that moves the viewer along. So, if you’re done with over-the-top action movies that are nothing more than a string of explosions, car chases and shootouts, this movie may be for you. If you’re an adult that grew out of comic books when you were 12, you may like this movie. If you have no desire to be subjected to the latest barrage of woke Hollywood lecturing and want entertainment with a historical connection – Argo is for you. Read more
A fine film in my opinion that I have seen a few times, will see it again at the dollar theater when it gets there, and will buy the DVD. All the cast, main roles, bit roles, and extras do an excellent job. John Goodman and Alan Arkin do a great job providing most of the comic relief in this film to the tenseness that was existent during the 1979-1981 Iranian Hostage Crisis. Kudos to Bryan Cranston, Bob Gunton, Philip Baker Hall, Ben Affleck, Kyle Chandler, Victor Garber, Clea DuVall, Scoot McNairy, Kerry Bishe, Tate Donovan, Christopher Denham, Rory Cochrane, Zeljko Ivanek, Richard Kind as well as all of the other recognizable faces in this production. Affleck, Arkin, Goodman, & chandler carry the movie very well along with Garber and the 6 "House Guest" actors, not to mention the actors who portray the Canadian Ambassador's Housekeeper & Iranian Students of the revolutionary "Komiteh". There are actual news clips woven into the film. Many of the characters portrayed are real life people. I was a very young US Airman stationed in Europe during this whole period from 1979-81 and this film brought it all back to me about what was going at the time in Europe and the Middle East. My wing's mission was as a strike fighter unit and we took turns with our sister wing taking deployments to Southern Turkey not far from Syria and Northern Iran during this entire period. I'm not defending the man, but there was really nothing that President Carter could do. This was 4 years after the end of the Vietnam War & our Armed Services were totally unprepared for this type of situation. The one operation, Operation Eagle Claw, they did try (which was referenced in the film as being in the preparation stage by the Delta Force teams) ended in abject failure. I remember a lot of this because Major Richard Bakke was from my home town of Long Beach, California. As a navigator, he was one of the Air Force MC-130 aircrew members to die in April 1980 at the Desert One site near Tehran, . Ben Affleck and company did a really fine job in this film of portraying the state of the world at this point in time. So in the immortal words of the films tagline (paraphrased), "Argo.....(see it) Yourself" LOL and thoroughly enjoyed it for comedy and drama!! A Real Fine Effort From All Involved. Read more
