on the 33rd anniversary of the Embassy Take Over

Rating: Null/10 (4 November 2012)

I saw Argo today. On what is 33rd anniversary of the start of the Hostage Crisis. While this was in fact a worldwide story, for me, I found myself awash with memories of that time and perplexed at the emotions this film triggered.
I have no recollection of the six who got out, though I am sure I saw it on the evening news. I do recall trying to marry the idea of how I could be safe in suburban DC while halfway around the World it seemed as if everything was falling apart. And I wondered how things like this could happen in the World. (Sadly, a question I still ask to this day.)
Superbly cast, an outstanding soundtrack, fantastic attention to detail. Argo is a story that is so far fetched that if it was work of fiction you'd struggle to find it believable. And yet. And yet, we sit in a dark theater, sniffling with strangers, gripped by a story that we all know the outcome of.
It was also interesting to contemplate how far technology has advanced in such a short time. One wonders in this age of almost instant communication how different the story would have played out if there had been facial recognition software and email instead of teletexts and telephones. Watching a character make a telephone call and waiting for someone to answer sparks the examination of how different communication was in a World where an answering machine didn't yet exist.
Also worth mentioning is the filming style. Cinematography was spot on. I started crying at the first shot of DC from the air. So glad Affleck didn't employ the popular "hurky jerky" filming method while shooting Argo. Though the times portrayed in the film were frantic I appreciated the subtle, patient portrayal of a story that unraveled like a spool of thread.
As a 6 year old child in the midst of a decaying marriage, and really, the start of my parents divorce, the Hostage Crisis is forever etched in my mind as a time of change not only in the World but also in my house. By the time we got to Day 444 I was in single parent home headed by the father. Was very poignant for me personally when a character in the film says that kids.."they need the mother." That they dobut they also don't need to be in a house full of fighting and tension all the time either.
I challenge those of us old enough to remember that time to not be transported to who we were and what we felt back then; I challenge those too young to remember to learn about that time as see how years later repercussions still echo in our World today.
Job well done by all.