Argo (2012)
Argo (2012), an American historical drama thriller, was directed, produced by, and starred Ben Affleck. The screenplay, based on the 1999 memoir The Master of Disguise by U.S. C.I.A. operative Tony Mendez and 2007 Wired article The Great Escape: How the CIA Used a Fake Sci-Fi Flick to Rescue Americans from Tehran by Joshuah Bearman (edited by Nicholas Thompson), follows a group of diplomats who escape capture during the Iranian Revolution on November 4, 1979 at the United States Embassy in Tehran. This event occurred after President Jimmy Carter granted asylum to the Shah for cancer treatment, causing retaliation from Iranian Islamists. While sixty-six embassy staff members were taken hostage, six found refuge in the home of Canadian Ambassador Ken Taylor.
As the U.S. State Department considers options for exfiltrating the six escapees from Iran, they bring in Agent Tony Mendez, an expert in this area. However, he is not satisfied with the proposed solutions and struggles to come up with an alternate plan. One day, while chatting with his son on the phone and watching Battle for the Planet of the Apes, he gets a brilliant idea: to create a cover story that the escapees are actually Canadian filmmakers searching for filming locations for a sci-fi movie. To make this believable, Mendez contacts John Chambers, a Hollywood make-up artist who had previously worked for the CIA. Chambers then connects Mendez with film producer Lester Siegel, and together they establish a fabricated film production company and publicly announce their plans to create a film called Argo – a “science fantasy adventure” similar to Star Wars – as part of their cover story.
Date of download: 2015-11-11T17:22:34+00:00
Cast:  Ben AffleckTony Mendez  Bryan CranstonJack O'Donnell  Alan ArkinLester Siegel  John GoodmanJohn Chambers  Tate DonovanBob Anders  Clea DuVallCora Lijek  Christopher DenhamMark Lijek  Scoot McNairyJoe Stafford  Kerry BishéKathy Stafford |
Argo (2012), an American historical drama thriller, was directed, produced by, and starred Ben Affleck. The screenplay, based on the 1999 memoir The Master of Disguise by U.S. C.I.A. operative Tony Mendez and 2007 Wired article The Great Escape: How the CIA Used a Fake Sci-Fi Flick to Rescue Americans from Tehran by Joshuah Bearman (edited by Nicholas Thompson), follows a group of diplomats who escape capture during the Iranian Revolution on November 4, 1979 at the United States Embassy in Tehran. This event occurred after President Jimmy Carter granted asylum to the Shah for cancer treatment, causing retaliation from Iranian Islamists. While sixty-six embassy staff members were taken hostage, six found refuge in the home of Canadian Ambassador Ken Taylor.
As the U.S. State Department considers options for exfiltrating the six escapees from Iran, they bring in Agent Tony Mendez, an expert in this area. However, he is not satisfied with the proposed solutions and struggles to come up with an alternate plan. One day, while chatting with his son on the phone and watching Battle for the Planet of the Apes, he gets a brilliant idea: to create a cover story that the escapees are actually Canadian filmmakers searching for filming locations for a sci-fi movie. To make this believable, Mendez contacts John Chambers, a Hollywood make-up artist who had previously worked for the CIA. Chambers then connects Mendez with film producer Lester Siegel, and together they establish a fabricated film production company and publicly announce their plans to create a film called Argo – a “science fantasy adventure” similar to Star Wars – as part of their cover story.
