Movie Review: Why Argo is Captivating Audiences
Although Americans love their reality TV, they also love seeing movies regarding foreign relations. This must be the reason why I had a nagging urge to go see Ben Affleck’s latest film Argo this weekend. Based on a true story, Argo “chronicles the life-or-death covert operation to rescue six Americans, which unfolded behind the scenes of the Iran hostage crisis-the truth of which was unknown by the public for decades.”
Argo stars Ben Affleck, who both directed and starred in the film, and Alan Arkin, Bryan Cranston, John Goodman, Victor Garber, and Tate Donovan. If you’re looking for an action packed film, this is not the movie to see, but Argo does keep you on the edge of your seat, never knowing what’s going to happen next.
As a cast, everyone clicked. It was refreshing to see Affleck play such a different role as Antonio Mendez, the CIA chief of technical services, who came up with the plan to fake a movie in order to get six hostages out of Iran during the 1979 embassy crisis. In this film, Affleck is mysterious and pensive, quiet yet determined. Let’s just say he’s come a long way from Gigli. The Herald-Mail writes, “It’s hard to believe that it wasn’t so long ago that Ben Affleck’s career was a joke.”
Critics are giving Argo rave reviews, and rightfully so. National Review writes, “That Ben Affleck has become such an accomplished director is one of Hollywood’s less predictable developments, but he has, and Argo is his best movie yet. It shines, in part because Affleck understands instinctively the pacing that a story such as this requires, and in part because he is admirably willing to show without attenuation the brutality of the Iranian regime and the desperate irrationality of the enraged Muslim street that enabled it.” I one hundred percent agree. Argo is out in theaters and you should definitely see it – although waiting to rent it isn’t out of the question. If you haven’t seen the trailer for Argo yet, check it out below.
