Argo

When you think of Ben Affleck what comes to mind?

Good actor? Maybe not so much (although I think he gets too much crap for stinkers like Daredevil and Gigli).

Good writer? Well he did win a writing Oscar for Good Will Hunting after all so, yes. 

How about a good director? He was responsible for Gone Baby Gone and The Town, two movies that were both very good, but ultimately not great in my opinion. 

Well, it might be time to change up your opinion on Ben Affleck. With Argo, he not only delivers his best directorial performance yet, he performs one of the best movies of 2012. 

Argo tells the true story of a CIA operation that was kept classified until the late 90's. And let me tell you, it is absolutely remarkable. The quick and dirty outline is that Iran  turns against the U.S. for giving amnesty to their leader that was trying to westernize the country, among other things. The people of Iran want justice against their leader and they can't have it because of the United States. So what do they do? They start revolting and rioting and take over the U.S. embassy in Iran (sound familiar to current events?). Six embassy employees escape and hide with the Canadian embassy leader and the politics of the situation commence. 

Bryan Cranston channels some Walter White into his
performance. He's quite efficient at running around the office
and yelling obscenities.

The movie transitions to day 69 of the hostage situation. Both nations are tense, Iran doesn't know where the missing six are hiding (in fact they dont even know that they are missing six), and the CIA is trying to come up with ideas on how to get them out. After several bad ideas, the "best bad idea" that they have is brought forward by Tony Mendez (Affleck) to fake a movie production and go into Iran pretending that they are a Canadian film crew scouting exotic locations for a sci-fi movie titled, Argo. Yes, you read that last sentence correctly. And YES, that is the true story. Absolutely nuts if you ask me. 

The CIA apparently comes up with some absolutely ludicrous ideas...

John Goodman and Alan Arkin provide the pitch-perfect comedic
relief. Their characters were also completely real.

I won't delve any deeper into the plot (and dont worry, that's only about the first 30 minutes anyway), but suffice it to say that it is unique. What Argo does so well is...well, everything really. As we were exiting the theater, one of my friends simply stated: "That was just a really well made movie" and he's completely right. For starters, it is miraculously paced. Sometimes historical, political movies drag on. Not so with Argo. When the movie isn't white-knuckle intense, it's often being hilarious. Bryan Cranston, John Goodman, and Alan Arkin all provide several laughs in a movie that is about things that aren't necessarily a laughing matter. And that in and of itself is quite a feat. And about that intensity? Holy s**t. During the last 20 minutes in the airport I'm not even sure that I breathed. I honestly probably should have died because I think that my lower-end brain functions stopped because it was devoting so much concentration on how this was going to play out. It could be for this reason alone that I now completely regard Ben Affleck as one of Hollywood's best directors. 

Dear Lord! I never thought that sneaking people out
of a hostile country could be so intense. 

But that is just one of the many reasons that Affleck has officially won me over. His movie is poignant, especially considering current events surrounding U.S. embassies. Its got all the technical boxes checked: great camera work, quick and real dialogue, good acting, superb editing,  and a "this is interesting"-factor that's off the charts. But on top of that, it makes me proud to be an American. It shows the incredible lengths that a country will go to get back its own even when it seems like there is no way to do so. 

It's interesting. It's completely riveting. It's true. It's immensely funny at times. It relates to current events. 

And it's one of the best movies of the year (that doesn't have to do with a superhero). 

Pros:

• The fact that this is based on a true story makes it about 654 times more interesting. I'm sure there were some things changed to make it more "Hollywood", but regardless, the basic plot is still the same
• Technically very well done. I can't seem to find any complaints with regards to editing, camera work, etc. Ben Affleck has officially arrived as a director
• Great acting. Probably wont get any acting Oscar noms, but still great nonetheless. It's so much fun to see Bryan Cranston get pissed outside of Breaking Bad
• Funny as hell at times
• Intense as ALL hell at times. Airport scene might be one of the most memorable scenes I see all year for me personally
• The score is not epic, but still very good. There were a few times where it stirred some emotions in me so I figured I'd mention it
• Great historical explanation before the movie and after the movie

Cons:

• Some scenes weren't absolutely necessary. They dont hurt the film, just kind of slow it down
• Has a tendency to not be able to decide if it's a comedy or a drama

Rath's Review Score: 9.5/10

And be sure to check out Rath's Reviews' new feature: user polls! Let me know you thoughts by answering the question ON THE RIGHT SIDE OF YOUR PAGE (wave your mouse around and click the icon that looks like a bar graph)! I plan on changing the question every couple of weeks and near the end of the year will be featuring a Favorite Movie vote which will appear as a User-Award in the 2012 Rath Awards!