Review of Argo (2012) by Smijatov — 15 Oct 2012

Out of over 580 films I have seen and reviewed (not all on here, yet!), there have only been 31 films that I have given a 10. "Argo" is the 32nd. I watched it at the Toronto International Film Festival and went into it without actually having a clue what it was about, which was great because I had no expectations.

Soon enough, I ended up being completely immersed in the world of the American escapees from the Embassy. Ben Affleck has managed a feat that only a few actors have - giving an excellent performance as an actor and excellently directing a film at the same time.

The entire cast, actually, is fantastic. There is not a single moment that does not have credible acting, and one must give kudos to John Goodman and Alan Arkin for kind of 'stealing the show'. But in a film with such superb acting, it is a rather hard thing to achieve, so that goes even more to their credit.

The cinematography is very subtle and very appropriate, with perfectly chosen lenses that transport the viewer into the actual space that the film portrays. Production-wise, overall, the film is very effective.

Great costumes, makeup, solid score, everything works well. The screenplay is very well written and manages a fine balance between suspense, drama and humour, which is a very difficult to achieve. "Argo" is one of the rare films that actually manages to make you sympathise and feel with the characters very fast, and basically transports you there with them.

It feels as if we are in that same Canadian Embassy in Tehran, in that market, and on the airport. After leaving the theatre, I found myself looking suspiciously at people on the street, thinking who'd figure out that I'm not one of them.

And then I realised - I am one of them. I'm not in the film myself. I've been completely engrossed in the film, and that is noteworthy. This is Ben Affleck's triumph on so many levels, and he is setting an extremely high bar for his follow-up projects.

Let us hope they are half as good as "Argo," since that would still provide for some very good films.