Furthest-Fetched Close-Escape Movie Ever? Made Implausible & Lacking Depth, But Exciting to Watch

Rating: 6/10 (6 July 2013)

OK, I get it: this was supposed to be a "close escape" movie. Still, there is only so far you can stretch this to remain plausible; and because the creators of _Argo_ overstepped that boundary, they have taken pains to point out repeatedly, both at the beginning and at the end of the movie (see the comparative photographs), that the movie was based on "real events". Yes, it is; but the sheer amount of "last-second" coincidences and a hair's breadth escape routes, heaped one upon another as the action of _Argo_ unfolds, is finally too much to take. Does anyone *really* believe that President Carter telegraphed his OK for the rescue operation at the very moment (minutes, if not seconds) when the 6 escapees awaited the confirmation of their flight reservations at the Swissair counter? An overabundance of such scenes makes watching _Argo_ feel like watching a fairy-tale, rather than a reconstruction of what actually happened.
Still, this is a Hollywood movie, and so, on a technical level, the recreation of the period detail of Iran (and the US government premises) of the late 1970s and 1980 -- the awful fashion, hair-styles, ridiculously large eye-glasses, car makes, and whatnot -- is pitch-perfect, wonderfully faithful. You really feel as if attending the frightening scenes of the post-anti-Shah-revolution Iran in person; you feel as if present in the chaotic streets of Teheran, or in the "8 thousand years old" Teheran bazaar (dubbed by the Istanbul bazaar during the shooting of _Argo_).
The movie is also laudably ambivalent about the role of American policies in Iran and the Middle East. Yes, American diplomats and CIA agents are the heroes of _Argo_ -- but US policies as such are not. If anything, they are shown as immoral, in supporting a ruthless leader in a foreign country without regard for the consequences on ordinary citizens. That that ruthless leader may have been replaced by a possibly even worse regime, does not really excuse the US conduct. Such policies may have been "the best bad solution" (to quote a piece of _Argo_ dialogue), but that is hardly exonerating.
Watching _Argo_ feels like watching an enacted documentary, with lots of implausibility thrown in for dramatic effects. Also, _Argo_ is one-dimensional: if you're looking for a "pure suspense" movie, _Argo_ gets pretty close to that ideal. The personal-life, or family-related scenes in _Argo_ are minimalistic and cliché-ridden; virtually no inner life of the characters is displayed or believably examined; how many times have we seen a hero return to his/her estranged partner at the end of a movie, only to be lovingly embraced in a happy ending?
The actors' performances are adequate and workman-like, enhancing the movie's realistic side and helping us overlook all the implausible plot twists. The one actor outshining everyone in _Argo_ is Alan Arkin: a constant delight to watch as a goofy Hollywood producer setting up a fake movie.
Finally, is this truly the best movie made on planet Earth in 2012? By no stretch of imagination. Even if we were to restrict this deliberation to (predominantly) English-speaking movies (which the Academy -- infuriatingly -- seems to be doing by default, anyway), it would be difficult to claim that _Argo_ was the best thing the year 2012 came up with. Rather, in awarding the "Best Movie" Oscar to _Argo_, Hollywood has shown its bias again. In crowning _Argo_, Hollywood is basically congratulating *itself*; Hollywood is *not* free from bias in judging _Argo_, because Hollywood itself is (partly) _Argo_'s subject matter. Whereas Hollywoood congratulating Hollywood may have been justified in earlier similar instances (_Singin' in the Rain_ readily comes to mind), heaping accolades on _Argo_ seems as far-fetched as many of _Argo_'s plot elements. It's as if Hollywood wished to proclaim, loud and clear: "See? Hollywood is not just about empty, brainless, fake entertainment {see the wonderful fake fighting rehearsal scene disrupted by the Alan Arkin character}. Our movie-making skills can be truly useful in the real world, too!" Yes, that's true -- but that alone does not make a movie the best of the year, and proclaiming _Argo_ to be that can be seen as Hollywood trying to "ease its conscience".
Bottom line: _Argo_ is an excellent suspense movie made on the highest professional level, but woefully overrated -- no landmark in the art of movie-making; although every movie receiving a "Best Movie" Oscar should be just that.