Argo, 2012 — ★★★½

We can’t leave someone behind. We have to bring the boys home. This has been a theme for many Hollywood movies. It fills everyone with a sense of pride, nationalism etc. This is an instant effect. Probably that is the reason why these films are generally a commercial success. But this is about the entertainment industry. What about when these incidents actually take place? What mettle are the people made of who go in the troubled zones when odds are stacked against them. Argo is a story of one such operation led by CIA.

What we are, are required to follow orders. — Jack O’Donnell

This is easy. Because the sense of responsibility is absolved the moment you just follow orders. Your conscience is not questioned when you introspect. Even if it does, you tell your mind how your actions were not in your control. This all goes out of the window when you decide to take decisions which are in conflict with orders. Things work or they don’t but the sense of responsibility and ownership falls on your shoulders. You can shake it off. When your decisions make an impact on others’ lives, this burden is tremendous.

The story is well known. The movie is based on a book. So the content is all there, and there are many cinematic liberties to make it a thriller. It all works out well. Although the end is far too dramatized for my taste, I would not hold it against the film. The movie gets serious when in Iran and way too superfluous when in Hollywood LA. This has an impact on the perceived genre of the film. It definitely was noticeable and odd.

I liked the cinematography. Iran looks beautiful from the lens of Rodrigo Prieto. It’s huge mosques, the skyline, and the bustle of the bazaar, all are captured very well. The movie also films the tensions in the house very well. I liked it. The movie starts like a documentary and then progresses to be a film. That works.

The characters blend in nicely. I liked Bryan Cranston as Jack O’Donnell. He merged with the role so well, that I later realized I have seen him for five seasons of Breaking Bad. Ben Affleck is marvelous. I am becoming a fan of his brooding acting and that smirk. It feels that the character comes naturally to him. There was criticism for his casting, but as a moviegoer who is not well aware of the facts of the story, he did not disappoint. I wish the he reboots Max Payne. He would fit so well in that series.

The movie maintains the pace and hence remains a thriller. It keeps the bearing of period drama too. The initial monolog of introduction helps to understand the conflict. You feel somewhat strangely sympathetic towards the revolutionaries too. As a movie, it portrays CIA and Affleck to be the only orchestrator of it whole, that goes over the top at times.

Overall, I enjoyed the film. It kept me on the edge for most of the times. I am willing to give it 3.5.