Wow.
Mountain Man and I just went out to see the new movie directed by Ben Affleck, called Argo.
I was literally sitting on the edge of my seat for the entire movie.
Its riveting from the first few minutes.
We actually had to walk around for awhile after the movie ended to shake it off before getting into our car to drive home.
Affleck brings this horrible time in history, the Iranian hostage crisis, to the big screen in a way that really throws you into the middle of the crisis. This movie makes you really feel for the fugitives and hostages from this 1979-1981 period of history, by letting you view it from a more intimate perspective.
The movie provides an inside look at the fugitive’s plight, the CIA’s tough decisions, and the uprising of the Iranian people during that time.
The story centers around the six Americans that escaped during the attack on the US Embassy in November of 1979. They were given refuge at the Canadian Embassy, until they were finally saved by a US Intelligence agent. Affleck plays the part of the heroic Intelligence agent who pulls off the rescue of the century.
He has an idea to create a fake movie in Hollywood. The six Americans hiding in the Canadian Embassy in Iran are given the parts of director, production design, cameraman, and associate producer for the movie. These parts become their covers for their escape from Iran. They are given papers indicating that they are visiting as the site location team for the film.
The fake film is a science fiction film based in the Middle East, which is their reasoning for needing Iran as a backdrop for some crucial scenes.
The speed of the movie really keeps you on your toes.
I enjoy movies and books that have the ability to bring important historical events to the masses in an intimate manner. By intimate, I mean, really giving the reader or viewer the feeling that they are there in the situation, and can relate directly to the pivotal characters involved in the historical event.
It helps to create a better understanding of our past, and thats always a good thing.
I give this a hearty two thumbs up. Be ready to be a bit drained from the drama, but it is well worth it.
I would be surprised if this movie didn’t take home quite a few awards during the movie award season.
Really well done.
