Argo

Argo is based on the serious topic of Americans whose lives are in danger as they are stranded in Iran, sensitively lightened up by a playful Hollywood approach. The director’s craftsmanship is excellent; Ben Affleck is growing up. The clichéd scenes in the last third are probably not an accurate depiction of the actual events, but they fit well in the film’s concept, where a reallife political problem is resolved at the last minute by means of Hollywood heroism reminiscent of a comic book. Argo is visually polished and has a great cast and period atmosphere, as well as fantastic music by Alexandre Desplat. (07.02.2013)

Ben Affleck really is the man. I must admit that I never believed that he could be the leading representative of decent and intelligent Hollywood of this day and age, but every new movie he makes is such a smash hit that my brain is having a hard time coping with such amounts of quality. Argo may not be a five-star smash hit and that’s only because it drags on a bit at the beginning and it takes a while for the movie to finally get to the action. But once the action starts, which is actually the entire second part of the movie, your heart will stop beating with all the suspense the same way it did for me. The story itself is absolutely amazing and interesting and I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Argo wins the Oscar for Best Picture. It has all the traditional Oscar-winning qualities, so we will see. For me, this was a job really well done about a certain chapter of CIA and Hollywood history, which couldn’t have been filmed any better. Yeah and Ben Affleck was absolutely perfect in his role. (24.02.2013)

Ben Affleck confirms his quality as a director. This time, and based on the responses from abroad, he hit the bullseye of the taste of the American public and critics, and it’s no wonder. Argo is a decent period piece, a thriller, a drama, has a pinch of filmmaking comedy, it’s based on real events and you end up rooting for the clever and nice Americans. And from a genre perspective, it can be viewed without any politics. Personally, however, it didn’t captivate me, maybe because the climax relies too much on coincidences, and though the tension escalates nicely, the overall pleasant realistic feeling is lost. But overall, it’s your typical well made four star film, and a nice scapegoat for anti-American posers. (30.11.2012)

Not the event of the season - American critics and audiences must logically be enthusiastic about a film that is not foolishly simplistic, but at the same time is able to maintain popular schemes and a certain "power-film" patriotism. From my point of view, I appreciate the clever and functional montages (reading the Argo screenplay / drastic scenes from Iran - the heist parallel "escape planning / pursuit procedure"), the famous self-defeating humor of the Hollywood storyline and the escape sequence shot exclusively in detail and semi-details - retro styling and camera movement by Rodrigo Prieta are a pleasure in and of themselves. However, after a "problematic" political introduction, Argo finally capitulates to the tried-and-true schemes, but this does not degrade the fact that Ben Affleck made another uniquely-crafted film, which I "purely enjoyed". (24.11.2012)

As excellent as he is a director, he is simply a little bland as an actor. He proves the first not just in the opening, most powerful scene of the year, but throughout the movie. He manages to demonstrate immense bravado as a director, building up stifling tension in a story where you know what happens, while poetically interleafing political thriller with satire on a burned-out "_llywo_d". He also proves his acting (non)skills throughout, tripping himself up by otherwise casting acting aces in the other roles, or at least actors who constantly out-act him. This said, most detrimental turned out to be the airport finale where he comes across like an unintentional parody of himself. Certainly cinematic exaggeration of reality is one thing, but dishing out so many clichés in ten minutes is just too much. It is all the more surprising because up until that point he has been avoiding them and going his own way. So, in the end no new Munich or Baader Meinhof Complex occurs, it’s just too naive and shallow for that, but ranking it amongst them is sufficient recognition of Argo’s qualities. (29.11.2012)