A fine film

Rating: 8/10 (28 January 2013)

While I am old enough to remember the Iran hostage crisis of 1979, I am also old enough to have forgotten many of the details, particularly with respect to "The Canadian Caper", the story of the 6 Americans who evaded capture to find refuge in the residence of the Canadian ambassador.
The story of the 6 and the plan to extricate them forms the basis of Ben Affleck's latest film, Argo.
The film grabs the attention of the audience immediately as the Iranians storm the U.S. embassy compound. The editing of these opening scenes was well done, shifting back and forth from the angry mob outside the gates to the terrified U.S. embassy employees inside.
The tension lessens from those frantic opening scenes but never goes away. The twists and turns of the plans to rescue these Americans kept me on high alert for the duration.
This is not a political film. I appreciate the fact that Mr. Affleck does not editorialize one way or another about the seizure of the hostages. Indeed, the film provides the viewer with sufficient historical backdrop detailing the circumstances which precipitated the coup of Mohammad Rezā Shāh Pahlavī in February, 1979 as well as news footage of American reactions to the seizure of the hostages. Yet, the filmmakers leave it up to the viewer to formulate opinions or judgments.
The only goal here is to tell a good story and the film does just that. The script is excellent, the casting is spot on, and the editing is most effective. Some who know the true details of the "Canadian Caper" may quibble with how events are presented here but in my opinion, this is mere artistic license to make a better film.
By far, Argo is the most entertaining film of the year.