Argo (2012)

Rating: 5/10 (13 January 2013)

Solid direction. The movie starts very strong and basically continues well, however the actions and the entire cover-up story seem unnecessary - just until the final part, where every piece falls to its place in a manner that is way too unbelievable. It's like a James Bond movie, where Q gives Bond a gadget - and you know a specific situation would come when Bond will need just that exact thing. The entire last part is just too unrealistic in cinema terms. I haven't read the details of the true events, but I highly doubt ANYTHING was SUCH a close call. I especially hated the "Apollo 13"-like ending.
Tension is kept throughout the movie, but the problem is that you already know there's going to be a happy ending (even if you knew nothing about the real events, like myself), so it loses a much greater potential it could have had otherwise.
Still, Affleck once again proves himself as a very competent director and the production design is excellent - from a non-professional eyes it looked completely believable as Iran, both in terms of locations and people. I think it deserved a nomination for production design. Alan Arkin was good as always, John Goodman was nice but didn't have a lot of material to work with and the rest of the cast were "ok" in their parts.
All in all, it's a good movie. Like "The Impossible (2012)", it's not a masterpiece, but in a pathetic year at the cinema, it stands out as one of the better films of 2012.
5.5/10 Worth watching