Argo is a top-notch political thriller. Most movies like this resort to some sort of violent conflict at the end, but Argo knows the suspense of the true story is good enough to not need such a cop-out. Director Ben Affleck stays pretty close to the source material, with the climax slightly intensified. The main story is coupled with a complete knowledge of the Iranian Hostage crisis and the time period, and solid performances from the leads. Not all the subplots work in Argo, but they are minor inconveniences. Affleck can add Argo to his growing resume as a top-notch director; by increasing his pedigree, he will have ample chances to continue to star in his own movies.
The Iranian hostage crisis was a tense time from 1979 to 1981. Made worse was the fact that it was very public. However, behind the scenes, 6 US workers at the embassy fled and hid in the Canadian Prime Minister’s (Victor Garber) lodging in Iran. As pressure mounts to remove the 6 and keep Canada’s allegiance in the dark, the State Department and CIA decide to intervene. After numerous illogical ideas, extraction expert Tony Mendez (Ben Affleck) and his boss (Brian Cranston) suggest making a fake movie and using the 6 as the film crew. Eliciting help from makeup artist John Chambers (John Goodman) and producer Lester Siegel (Alan Arkin), Mendez concocts his fake sci-fi movie, Argo, and puts his plan into action.
Affleck’s directing skills grow with each new feature. In this one, he performs a great multi-cut sequence between a Hollywood table read for Argo, irate Iranians reading a list of grievances at a table, and the 6 trapped US citizens at a table discussing their fate. It is brilliantly cut, with one scene weaving into another without really disorienting the viewer. His pacing in Argo is more refined here as well compared to his earlier efforts.
Affleck has publicly stated he remembered the Iranian hostage crisis and the day the embassy was overrun. It is here that Argo’s strength lies. The siege on the embassy is filmed with the correct mix of terror, confusion, and determination. The protests feel just the right size for the period, and the TV imaging is wonderfully constructed. The period piece touches add to Argo’s authenticity. The haircuts, glasses, and little customs (smoking inside, tiny TV’s) are very in tune with what was happening at the time.
The dichotomy between Hollywood and Iran gives Argo’s more intense scenes more fire. By filming the scenes in Hollywood with lots of humor, it elevates every intense standoff in Iran to the level of needing a tension reliever. The solid mix gives and exra punch to the emotional payoff.
If there’s one flaw in Argo it is the generic acting jobs required of the screenplay. Only one of the 6 escapees gets some sort of complexity (Scoot McNairy, very solid). The rest are there to look like their 1979 counterparts. The villains are slightly humanized, but never given any acting heft, leaving them faceless adversaries. Affleck tries his best, but wisely leaves the true acting to his stars. Bryan Cranston has a fun mix of his two TV acting jobs here. His Jack O’Donnell is as intense as Walter White in Breaking Bad and as funny as Hal in Malcom in the Middle. John Goodman and Alan Arkin steal every scene they are in, and they are surprisingly sentimental for two old Hollywood staples. Affleck’s Mendez is a stoic, charismatic figure, and intended to be so. There is a subplot with his kids that attempts to humanize him, but we don’t really need this part of the back story other than the inspiration for the movie idea.
Argo was declassified in 1997. It is great to see the effects of international cooperation and the desire for people to take responsibility and do the right thing. Even funnier, Mendez was given the highest medal in the CIA that he couldn’t even acknowledge because of the secrecy. Argo is the thank you that Mendez never received. If you feel like paying your respects to these fine Americans, please go see Argo. You’ll laugh, you might cry, but you will definitely have a good time.