Argo (2012)

A dramatization of the 1980 joint CIA-Canadian secret operation to extract six fugitive American diplomatic personnel out of revolutionary Iran.

Director:

Ben Affleck

Writers:

Chris Terrio (screenplay), Tony Mendez (based on a selection from "The Master of Disguise" by),

Stars:

Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, Alan Arkin

Won 3 Oscars. Another 62 wins & 65 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Ben Affleck	...	Tony Mendez
Bryan Cranston	...	Jack O'Donnell
Alan Arkin	...	Lester Siegel
John Goodman	...	John Chambers
Victor Garber	...	Ken Taylor
Tate Donovan	...	Bob Anders
Clea DuVall	...	Cora Lijek
Scoot McNairy	...	Joe Stafford
Rory Cochrane	...	Lee Schatz
Christopher Denham	...	Mark Lijek
Kerry Bishé	...	Kathy Stafford
Kyle Chandler	...	Hamilton Jordan
Chris Messina	...	Malinov
Zeljko Ivanek	...	Robert Pender
Titus Welliver	...	Bates

Storyline

In 1979, the American embassy in Iran was invaded by Iranian revolutionaries and several Americans were taken hostage. However, six managed to escape to the official residence of the Canadian Ambassador and the CIA was eventually ordered to get them out of the country. With few options, exfiltration expert Tony Mendez devised a daring plan: to create a phony Canadian film project looking to shoot in Iran and smuggle the Americans out as its production crew. With the help of some trusted Hollywood contacts, Mendez created the ruse and proceed to Iran as its associate producer. However, time was running out with the Iranian security forces closing in on the truth while both his charges and the White House had grave doubts about the operation themselves.

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Plot Keywords:

canadian | hostage | cia | ambassador | u.s. embassy | 

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Taglines:

Based on the exaggerated true story.

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Genres:

Drama | History | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for language and some violent images

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English Persian

Release Date:

12 October 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

Escape from Tehran

Filming Locations:

Blue Mosque, Istanbul, Turkey

Box Office

Budget:

$44,500,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$19,458,109 (USA) (12 October 2012)

Gross:

$136,019,448 (USA) (19 April 2013)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Warner Bros., GK Films, Smokehouse Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

120 min 130 min (Extended Version)

Sound Mix:

SDDS Datasat Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

First movie in 7 years to win the Oscar for Best Motion Picture without winning the Oscar for Best Director (the previous movie was Crash). It is also the first movie in 23 years to win the Oscar for Best Motion Picture without being nominated for Best Director (the previous one was Driving Miss Daisy).

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Goofs

There's a line "some guy in Scranton is planting a flag a day", but this actually happened on the other side of Pennsylvania near Sharon, PA. The flags are still there as seen at www.avenueofflags.com.

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Quotes

Lester Siegel: Bad news, bad news. Even when it's good news, it's bad news. John Wayne in the ground 6 months and this is what is left of America.

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Crazy Credits

The movie opens with the 1970s-era Warner Bros. slash logo that eventually became the logo of Warner Music, which was designed by Saul Bass, instead of the traditional shield logo. However, the corporate copy below the logo refers to Time Warner, the current incarnation of Warner Communications since 1990, in the same typeface that was used decades ago.

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Connections

Referenced in Chelsea Lately: Episode #6.155 (2012)

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Soundtracks

"Little T&A"
Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards
Performed by The Rolling Stones
Courtesy of Promotone B.V.

User Reviews

No complaints

Ben Affleck directs and stars in the newest political thriller, "Argo". It is filled with A-list actors such as Alan Arkin, John Goodman, Victor Garber, and Bryan Cranston who each contribute to this incredibly moving film, which is based on a declassified true story.

It takes place during the Iranian revolution of 1979 and 1980 in Tehran. More than sixty Americans from the US embassy were held as hostages, but six of them escaped and were hiding out in the home of the Canadian ambassador (Garber). Tony Mendez (Affleck), a CIA extraction specialist, came along to concoct a plan to rescue these six Americans.

After speaking to his son while watching a movie one night, Mendez had a creative yet genius idea. He and the escaped hostages would pretend to be the film crew of a new sci-fi movie called "Argo". With the help of Hollywood makeup artist John Chambers (Goodman) and producer Lester Siegel (Arkin), this fake crew made their story quite credible.

Ben Affleck did a spectacular job directing this film, which pretty faithfully follows such an unbelievable story. Every actor is convincing as his/her character and the cast was impeccably chosen. Make sure you stay in the theater to watch the credits. You'll see some real photographs and clips that mirror Affleck's film and actors.

"Argo" is basically only rated R for language, making it appropriate for most teens, in my opinion. I definitely recommend this film to everyone, whether you're an adult who remembers watching this on TV or you're a kid who doesn't know anything about politics. It is extremely dramatic, exciting, and heart wrenching, but also hilarious on many occasions. When the movie ends, the entire audience applauds and cheers. It's an amazing story that deserves to be heard.

I give "Argo" a 10 out of 10. I have no complaints.