When you saw the name Ben Affleck attached to a film 5 years or more ago, you'd immediately groan and think to yourself "Where has his career gone? So much potential". Pearl Harbour was a career low for Affleck. After that came the disappointing Daredevil, followed by the embarrassing Gigli and suddenly one of the potential mega-stars of the Noughties had faded out of the limelight and drifted into the shadows. In 2007, however, Affleck returned to the limelight but in a more hushed sense of anticipation with his first feature-length directorial effort, the excellent Gone Baby Gone, starring his younger brother Casey. 2010 saw Affleck gain even more plaudits for his second directorial effort, The Town, which is one of the best heist films since Heat (1995). Argo, which is directed and stars Affleck, like The Town, is a third consecutive home run.
In 1979, the American embassy in Iran is invaded by revolutionaries who capture several Americans, taking them as hostage. Six manage to escape and flee to the Canadian embassy. Affleck stars as CIA exfiltration expert Tony Mendez, who is tasked with finding a way to get these six Americans out of Iran without arousing the suspicions of the Iranians, who are more than eager to kill the hostages they've taken from the embassy. Mendez (Affleck) comes up with the rather ingenious solution of creating a fake Canadian film that is looking to shoot in Iran. The film they make up, Argo, is a sci-fi film which is pretty much a rip-off of Star Wars. With the help of some contacts in Hollywood, played brilliantly by John Goodman and Alan Arkin, Mendez proceeds with creating the ruse, and goes to Iran posing as the films executive producer going to meet with six of the more senior crew members. The Iranians get suspicious and tensions inevitably rise both within the group, who aren't convinced that the plan will work, and with the Iranians, making the second and third acts the most nerve-racking, edge of the seat stuff I've personally watched in ages.
From the opening sequence you just know that Argo is going to be a good film. As soon as the screen goes black and the end credits roll, you know you've just watched one of the best political thrillers for years. It's one of the fastest-paced films you'll see for a while, but it never loses track of the story. This is thanks to the direction of Affleck. If The Town showed that Affleck was a capable director, Argo shows that he is a brilliant director and whatever he chooses as his next project, I'll be first in line for it. Argo is tight, streamlined and just plain brilliant. All of the performances are amazing, but special note has to go to Scoot McNairy, whose role could easily have been the stereotypical 'naysayer' who jeopardises the group in someway, but McNairy's performance is admirable as he takes charge of the group and plays what could have been a very annoying character in a way that draws the attention away from Affleck's Mendez and gives a real sense of humanity and fear to McNairy's Stafford. Alan Arkin is fantastic, as he always is, as film producer Lester Siegel, giving comic relief to the proceedings with some brilliant one-liners, even giving the film a new title that only people who've seen it will appreciate. Bryan Cranston's CIA man Jack O'Donnell is hard-boiled and loyal to Mendez and brilliant to watch at times.
There is hardly a foot put wrong throughout the film. From the light-hearted moments when the six Americans are trying to pass themselves off as a film crew in a busy Tehran bazaar to the tenser moments which follow, Argo is a clever and very funny film at times, but from the first minute you're hooked. It grabs hold and never lets go for a second. What makes this film even better is that fact that it's based on a true story, and that the CIA actually did go through with this plan. It's bonkers and would seem totally far-fetched on paper, but on film Affleck pulls it off with flair and gusto, leaving the photo reel at the end of the film for the audience to wipe the sweat off their brow and let their heart rate lower. As I said before, whatever Affleck directs next, I'm there.
10/10
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