An Excellent, if not completely historically accurate - Movie

Rating: 9/10 (9 June 2013)

I've just viewed Ben Affleck's "Argo" for the second time, and it really is a well-made film (and surprisingly so, considering its leading actor and director). The acting, script, and direction in this film are all very good, and the final thrilling scenes at the Tehran Airport were especially well done.
"Argo" has something for everyone - comedy, suspense, and intense historical drama. What makes "Argo" less than a 10 for me, however, are a couple of historical inaccuracies. As the film portrays very well, the Canadians carefully sheltered the six Americans who managed to flee the Tehran Embassy but the Canadian government also played a leading role in their evacuation from Iran (which is why the real operation was named the "Canadian Caper"). Perhaps the most glaring inaccuracy in "Argo," however, deals with the British and New Zealand Embassies, which, contrary to the film, did shelter the beleaguered Americans for a time rather than simply turning them away (Ben Affleck later admitted in an interview that he decided to alter the British and NZ contributions in order to dramatize the dire situation facing the Americans in Tehran).
In spite of these inaccuracies, "Argo" is still an excellent film that deserves much of the accolades that it has received. Its historical inaccuracies are worth mentioning but in my view do not seriously take away from an otherwise well acted, well written, and well directed historical drama.