Argo

/ 10

Have you ever heard of Lasse Viren?  He was a 23-year-old Finnish policeman who qualified for the 10,000m run at the 1972 Munich Olympics.  In the final, he tripped and fell, Gillard-style, just before the halfway mark.  All Lasse’s competitors passed him, stomping carelessly over his broken dreams.  But, to the crowd’s astonishment, little Lasse got calmly to his feet and dusted himself off.  And then he started running.  And boy did he run.  Britain’s David Bedford had been winning the race from the start, almost lapping Lasse, so he was as surprised as anyone when Lasse ran past him.  Lasse Viren won that race, the gold and set a new world record.  All with grazed knees.

How is this relevant?  Well, because 40 years later, it seems Ben Affleck has pulled off the cinematic equivalent of a Lasse Viren.  Not all that long ago, Affleck tripped and fell hard. Gillard style.  Between 2003 and 2004, he made five movies (Daredevil, Gigli, Paycheck, Surviving Christmas and Jersey Girl) and, for them, he was nominated for a whopping eight Golden Raspberries.  That’s a startling amount of worst acting and a lot of jam.  Around the same time, Ben was also forced to trade-in Jennifer Lopez for Jennifer Garner (if you liked Hugo Boss, you’ll love Bugo Hoss!).

Yep, Ben was sitting in the dirt; his race was over.  Most film critics laughed smugly through their cigars and made Pearl Harbour jokes.  Peter Travers of Rolling Stone mentioned “the ache of watching a career become a joke and being helpless to stop it.”

But then Affleck stood up.  Hollywoodland.

Dusted himself off.  Gone Baby Gone.

And started running.  The Town.

Argo is the gold medal at the end of Ben Affleck’s astounding resurrection.  It is, quite simply, an excellent film.

It’s 1979 and angry Iranian protestors have stormed the US Embassy in Tehran, taking more than 50 diplomats hostage.  Six officials escape and hideout at the Canadian Ambassador’s place (the Canadians are being left alone because even the Iranians appreciate that a Canadian has never hurt anyone without ice skates on).  The CIA is given the task of ‘exfiltrating’ the six Americans beyond Iranian borders.  If they’re caught in the process, they’ll almost certainly be killed.  Ben Affleck plays Tony Mendez, the agent in charge of the exfiltration. His bold rescue plan involves enlisting the help of Hollywood (represented by John Goodman and Alan Arkin) to pass off the American escapees as Canadian filmmakers and slip them out via Tehran’s main international airport.  The idea is obviously ludicrous, laughed at by the bureaucracy in Washington, but, as Walter White explains to the President’s office, “this is the best bad idea we have.”

Argo is TENSE.  Tenser than a new trampoline.  Tenser than the buns on a 1990s Oz Style instructor.  Tenser than a present pluperfect subjunctive verb.

The story, incredibly, is based on real events, though Affleck treats himself to a bit of dramatic license to keep things tense.  Tenser than a fart in church.  And he really does it very well; its edge-of-the-couch, transfixing stuff.  Each hushed conversation, knock on the door and questioning Iranian stare catches you with bated breath.  I was obliviously sucking on my frozen coke straw for about 20 minutes after finishing it.  I only stopped so that I could place my fist in my mouth for the final tense airport scene.  Tenser than a Redfern High parent-teacher interview.

The script is intelligent.  The production and direction are top-notch.  And the whole film is smothered with classic 1970s style.  There are some first-rate moustaches bristling around.  As soon as I can find one, I’m buying a brown suit and vest combo.

The acting is impressive too.  Scoot McNairy.  There’s a fun name. I think we’re going to be getting used to it – he’s the pick of supporting actors at the moment, knocking out Argo and Killing Them Softly pretty much simultaneously.  Goodman and Arkin make a good comedic double as the Hollywood heavies, providing a scattering of LoLs as much-needed comic relief.  And Affleck’s own performance is understated but sincere and effective.

I think there’s a very good chance that Affleck will take home an Oscar or two for Argo, to put next to his orchard of Golden Raspberries.  Imagine if he wins Best Director.  Hilarious.  How smugly he’ll look at Matt Damon.

Oh, by the way, remember Lasse Viren?  He won gold again in Montreal in ’76.  I can’t wait to see what Affleck comes up with next.

About Willy

Willy cried in Little Miss Sunshine and only pretends to like the Godfather movies. He celebrates Jackie Chan's birthday every year.
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5 Responses to Argo

  1. Del says:

    Great review of a great movie.

    Long live Scoot McNairy!

  2. Dicker says:

    lol. seeing this tomorrow, won’t bother reviewing it because you can’t be beat.

  3. The Cat says:

    One of your best, PC. I look forward to watching this on my flight back to Australia. I also look forward to saying the name Scoot McNairy more often. I’m considering buying a puppy and calling it Scoot McNairy, just so I can say those words on a daily basis.

    • Willy says:

      I’m considering changing all my passwords to ScootMcNairy, just so I have the pleasure of typing and mouthing that name many times each day.

      Also, don’t tell anyone that.

      • The Cat says:

        I won’t (SPOILER: I already have told everyone). I’m about to board a flight from LA to NZ. I’m thinking about watching War Horse. It puzzles me why it’s held in such high regard. Expect a review.

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