Cast: Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, John Goodman
Director: Ben Affleck
Screenplay: Chris Terrio

Synopsis: Acting under the cover of a Hollywood producer scouting a location for a science fiction film, a CIA agent (Ben Affleck) launches a dangerous operation to rescue six Americans in Tehran during the U.S. hostage crisis in Iran in 1980[2].

Review:

“Argo” is a compelling thriller to watch with a compelling narrative, but more than that, with mostly little action, this political thriller was edited in such a way that it keeps one on the edge of their seat especially during the last act. A film professor once commented that every movie is made three times: First, when the screenplay is written with a final draft, second, when the director and actors shoot the principal photography, and thirdly, when the edits are made in post-production. “Argo” truly deserves the awards that it won, but especially so for the Oscar for “Best Film Editing.” The way the multiple storylines were told in parallel with all the complexities of the story without any plot muddling or confusion is a tribute to the craft of post-production editing.

The screenplay, which won an Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay, written by Chris Terrio, weaves many complex storylines together in an impressive tribute to political thrillers in such a way that one is astounded to find out that this story actually has roots in true events during the American hostage crisis in Iran. There were a few criticisms of the events as portrayed in “Argo” such as minimizing the role of the Canadian embassy in the rescue, for falsely claiming that the Americans were turned away by the British and New Zealand embassies, and for exaggerating the danger that the group faced during events preceding their escape from the country. As valid as these criticisms are, and as much as a screenwriter should honor the source material, there are always times when the screenwriter needs to take artistic liberties in order to move a narrative forward, otherwise the audience will find the story lacking. As important as honoring the source material is, it is equally important to have an emotional narrative which compels people to watch a film even at the expense of embellishing the truth or facts. Jose Rivera, screenwriter for “Motorcycle Diaries (2004)”, mentions in an interview for “The Dialogue,” that a film is a “vehicle for emotion” and as such, a screenwriter should write by keeping this in mind. Movies are after all entertainment as much as art.

“Argo” also had a controversy regarding choices for the casting, as stated on Wikipedia, “[s]ome Hispanics and film critics criticized the casting of Ben Affleck in the role of Mendez, who is of Mexican ancestry on his father’s side. Mexican-American actor and director Edward James Olmos considered Affleck’s casting as Mendez a ‘mistake,’ and that the actor ‘had no sense of the cultural dynamic of the character he was playing.’ However, Mendez has said that he was unconcerned about the casting, and noted he does not identify as Hispanic”[4]. This brings up interesting points in films especially in regards to underrepresented roles in movies. Hollywood used to do represent Asians, American Indians, and even blacks with white actors. We have seen progress with the roles being represented with actors in the corresponding cultures, as the acting pool as grown from around the world, as well proper cultural education, even though some lingering stereotypes are still present. The case of Ben Affleck in Argo is a lesser offense than Hollywood of mid last century, but is still a reminder that when playing cultured roles, authenticity of an actor’s background should be a factor. This controversy might just be the reason that Affleck was not nominated for best Actor which is an anomaly for a movie nominated for Best Picture.

In summary, we see that even great movies are not free of their own mistakes. Movies in some ways should be celebrated for their uniqueness and mistakes. Imperfections are what make certain movies so great because they are in fact so human. There are many movies today that with CGI and special effects are stripped of most human qualities in post-production. These movies feel too perfect, and for me, sterile, stripped of any semblance of humanity. In an interview with “The Dialogue,” screenwriter Simon Kinberg mentioned a scene in Mr. and Mrs. Smith where the character played by Brad Pitt rolls his chair back to the table to get the mug he forgot during a scene. Kinberg mentions that they were going to edit that out as it was not part of the screenplay, but then they decided against that because the mistake actually gave character to Pitt’s role. None of the mistakes or embellishments of “Argo” take away from this fine movie, but instead give it memorable character qualities.

 

References:

  1. Terrio, Chris. Argo. Screenplay, 2011. Screenplay Explorer. Thurs. 20 Feb. 2014. <http://screenplayexplorer.com/wp-content/scripts/argo.pdf>.
  2. “Argo.” IMDb: The Internet Movie Database. IMDb.com-Amazon.com, 1990-2014. Thurs. 20 Feb. 2014. < http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1024648/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1>.
  3. “Argo.” Rotten Tomatoes.com, 2014. Thurs. 20 Feb. 2014. < http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/argo_2012/>.
  4. “Argo (2012 film).” Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., 2014. Thurs. 20 Feb. 2014. < http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argo_%282012_film%29>.