Tag: Iran

SHAYDA – Review

Zar Amir Ebrahimi as Shayda and and Selina Zahednia as Mona in SHAYDA Photo credit: Jane Zhang. Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics.

Shayda (Zar Amir Ebrahimi) flees her abusive husband in Iran, along with her six-year-old daughter Mona (Selina Zahednia), and goes into hiding at an international women’s shelter in Australia, in the moving, semi-autobiographical Australian drama SHAYDA.

Set in the 1990s, SHAYDA is partly based on writer/director Noora Niasari’s own childhood experiences, when her mother fled Iran. Zar Amir Ebrahimi gives a charismatic, emotionally moving performance as Shayda, in a touching, emotionally-powerful drama that follows the mother’s and daughter’s journey. Young Selina Zahednia is a charmer as cute, mischievous Mona, effectively portraying her growth in understanding and maturity as they stay in the shelter. The drama premiered at Sundance in 2023, where it won the Audience Award in the World Cinema Dramatic competition, and it was Australia’s official entry for the Oscars.

We first meet the mother and daughter in the airport, where someone from the international women’s shelter is coaching little Mona on what to do if someone tries to lure her on to a plane to return to Iran. It is a chilling introduction to the precarious situation that Mona and her mother Shayda are now in, as Shayda escapes her husband who beat her and has become increasingly oppressive and brutal.

Shayda chose to flee to Australia because she and her husband had attended college there, until the Iranian government pulled her scholarship. Kindly social worker Joyce (Leah Purcell) runs the international women’s shelter where the mother and daughter go to hide, along with other women, mostly from an array of other nations. Secrecy is essential, as the men the women have fled have been known to either try to kidnap their children or attack the women. The secrecy extends to anyone the women may know, as they never know who may give away the location, intentionally or not, which would endanger all the women.

While in hiding in Australia, Shayda starts the process to get a divorce from her husband Hossein (Osamah Sami), which is no simple thing. Meanwhile, she tries to help her young daughter, who is struggling to adjust to life in the shelter. Homesick young Mona doesn’t understand why they can’t just go home, although the six-year-old does have some understanding that daddy hurt mommy. Mona longs to return to her own house in Iran, her own room and a yard to play in, instead of the cramped shelter where she shares a single room with her mother. Shayda tries to cheer her up, encouraging the little girl’s imaginative drawings, or entertaining her by singing or dancing with her to an exercise program on TV.

While Joyce, the woman who runs the shelter, is kind, not all the other women there are friendly, and Shayda does encounter some racism. The situation becomes more tense when Shayda’s husband Hossein follows them to Australia, and even gets the Australian authorities to grant him some visitation rights with his daughter, which forces Shayda to come up with a way to comply while keeping their location secret.

As the Persian New Year approaches, Shayda hears about a celebration planned by other Iranians nearby, and Mona begs to go. Shayda has to weigh the risk against homesick Mona’s emotional well-being.

Writer/director Noora Niasari does a fine job depicting the tight-rope that Shayda must walk to both care for her daughter and keep them both safe from her estranged abusive husband.

Zar Amir Ebrahimi is impressive as Shayda, and really carries the film on the strength of her appealing, nuanced performance. Osamah Sami does a nice job as husband Hossein, turning on the charm with his estranged wife and promising to change, but also pumping his daughter for information while trying to spoil her to win her affection. Young Selina Zahednia effectively portrays a girl who feels conflicted and caught between her parents.

The film is shot with a pared-down realism appropriate for the drama story. Flashes of color and energy come from little Mona’s artwork, and in the festivities and preparations around the Persian New Year, a celebration of renewal and new beginnings that mirrors the changing lives of mother and daughter.

SHAYDA is a touching drama about a mother and daughter journeying to freedom and a new life in a new land, anchored by an appealing, layered performance by Zar Amir Ebrahimi as the lead character.

SHAYDA, in English and Persian with English subtitles, opens Friday, Mar. 22, in theaters.

RATING: 3 out of 4 stars

KANDAHAR (2023) – Review

So, where does it say that only the big studio blockbusters can rattle the multiplex over the first big holiday weekend of the Summer cinema season? Certainly, there’s a bit of room away from the Furious fellas’ and the MCU. That’s what this flick is hoping for as Gerard Butler continues his quest to be the lower-tier action star, much like the Cannon crew did in the “go-go” 1980s (after Arnold and Sly there was Chuck and Claude). For this thiller-diller we travel to a real “hot spot” (in more ways than one) for a desert tale of undercover capers and narrow escapes. You see, everyone’s after Mr. B, so he’s got to somehow make it outta’ there via KANDAHAR. Heads up for lotsa’ sand and sweat!

It all does begin in the desert of Iran as a foreign tech crew is upgrading the area to high-speed internet. In the “hole”, exposing the wires is Tom Harris (Butler). His escorts are growing impatient as he tinkers, snips, and installs a special battery-sized device. Yes, he and his partner are “black ops” out to destroy Iran’s hidden, not-so-secret nuclear reactor. Soon the pair are back in town, preparing to leave. Meanwhile, a plucky news network reporter (Nina Toussaint-White) gets a call from her unknown “source” that US/British forces are there to wreck the new facility. Naturally, her cell phone is hacked by Iranian intelligence. Meanwhile, an agent deep, deep undercover (Travel Fimmel), picks up a translator (Navid Negahban) from the airport and sends him to Tom. But before they can connect, the faces of Tom and his cohort are splattered all over the local media. A Pakistan “freelancer”, Kahil (Ali Fazal) meets with some operatives. It seems that the Iranians want to capture Tom alive for a big public display. But not if Kahil grabs him first in order to auction him to the highest bidder (perhaps Isis). Tom and the translator meet just as his team overseas tells him that they’re “cutting him loose”. But wait, there’s a British transport touching down very briefly in a secret airfield about 400 miles away. The trouble is, the translator’s no soldier. Nonetheless, the two have to dodge multiple enemies and get on that plane or else it’s a worldwide broadcast execution.

Butler certainly has his “man of action” persona down pat (has it been 17 years since 300), and helps the story run smoothly from one stunt set piece to the next. There’s also a brief subplot about his marriage crumbling, which gives him an extra interest in surviving, so he can get to his daughter’s graduation(at several points he gazes at the greeting card he bought at the airport). It’s a plus that he’s playing a former MI-6 agent which allows his natural accent to flow forward. Negahban conveys a sense of everyman panic as Tom thrusts him into deadly danger (for which he’s ill-prepared). He too is a family guy, though he’s haunted by the demise of his son by radical forces. Some much-needed energy is injected into the standard thriller conventions by the off-kilter performance of Fazal, the motorcycle-riding mastermind who appears to embrace the new religious fanatics while enjoying the “infidel’s culture”, as he swipes through dating apps on his cell phone…while vaping. Fimmel has thoroughly embraced the faith in his adopted land, which makes him the “wild card”, as most of his allies aren’t sure if he’s 100% “with the program”.

The big chases and explosions are directed by frequent Butler collaborator Ric Roman Waugh, who certainly has his hands full here what with the different hunters tracking down Tom. There’s a nice claustrophobic feel to a chase during a dusty village’s traffic jam. Plus a battle in a pitch-black canyon adds lots of tension as we view this alien-like landscape through Tom’s night-vision goggles. But Waugh is often tripped by the underdeveloped subplots in the script. For a time we follow the double life of an Iranian officer, perhaps to paint him as a sympathetic family man, but nothing comes of it, ditto for the translator’s search for his sister. As the story chugs along, it feels like a less compelling, but louder variation of the superior desert war film from a month or so ago, GUY RITCHIE’S THE COVENANT. It’s a tough act to follow, but the ridiculous final battle with cartoon-like explosions and a charge right out of a late-show Western do this story no favors. The locations in Saudi Arabia give it an authentic look and feel, but it’s not enough to redeem this carnage-filled trek to KANDAHAR.

1.5 Out of 4

KANDAHAR is now playing in select theatres

A HERO – Review

Amir Jadidi as Rahmin and Saleh Karimai as his son Siavash, in Asghar Farhadi’s Iranian drama/thriller A HERO. Photo credit: Amirhossein Shojaei. Courtesy of Amazon Studios.

Debtor’s prison brings Charles Dickens to mind for most of us but this Dickensian nightmare appears to be alive in Iran – or at least prison for debt. In A HERO, two-time Oscar winning writer/director Asghar Farhadi’s latest drama/thriller, a man imprisoned for debt gets a two-day pass during which he hopes to work out a deal with his creditor. Things do not go as planned but Farhadi takes us on a twisty path and, at one point, it does look like the imprisoned debtor might become a hero.

A HERO is Iran’s official submission for the Oscars and won the Grand Prix award at Cannes last year, as well as being on several critics’ Top Ten lists. Iranian filmmaker Farhadi has built a sterling reputation, including with Oscar winners A SEPARATION and THE SALESMAN, as a director with a knack for taking stories that seem straight forward at first but then turn into something more complex and twisty, which reveals things about human nature while often commenting on life in modern Iran.

In most of Farhadi’s films, the main characters are ordinary middle-class people who find themselves in extraordinary and difficult situations, but in A HERO, the main character is someone barely holding on and on the fringe of the economic scale, a man imprisoned for a debt he can’t repay.

Rahim Soltani (Amir Jadidi) is released from prison on a two-day pass with hopes that he can work out a deal with the creditor who put him there. When he is released, he goes straight away to see his brother-in-law Hossein (Ali Reza Jahandideh) at his job, working at an archaeological site, Xeres’ Tomb, near Shiraz. Hossein greets him warmly and agrees to help him set up a meeting with the creditor, Bahram (Mohsen Tanabandeh), a miserly print shop owner, who now refuses to take Rahim’s calls.

Rahim owes Bahram 150,000 tomans for a business loan which he couldn’t pay back. It wasn’t that Rahim did anything wrong. His business partner ran off with the money, after which their mutual business went under. Previously, Rahim had been a calligrapher and sign painter but changes in Iranian society had rendered his profession unprofitable and less in demand.

When Hossein returns to finish his work shift, Rahim borrows his van, and goes to see his girlfriend Farkhondeh (Sahar Goldust). After she rushes across a busy street and hops into the van with Rahim, we learn why Rahim is hopeful about working out at deal with his creditor. Farkhondeh has found a purse on the street, with 17 gold coins, which she hopes they can sell to pay back the loan, so they can get married. Right now, their relationship must be kept secret, due to family disapproval on both sides.

But the coins turn out to be less valuable than hoped and will not cover the whole loan. When creditor Bahram refuses partial payment, Rahim makes the decision to try to return the money to whoever lost the purse. But Rahim’s decision to return the money to the owner comes with some complications, as he has to claim he found it, to conceal Farkhondeh’s identity and involvement.

Despite the small lie, his plan to do the right thing and find the owner of the purse seems to have an immediate positive effect, making him an instant media hero and gaining him admiration all around for his moral values, something that plays very well in modern Iranian society. It looks like a happy ending on the way.

But wait. There is a saying about the danger in doing the right thing for the wrong reason, and another one about no good deed going unpunished.

Both might be the case with Rahim, who is played well by Amir Jadidi. It is unclear if Rahim is doing this noble thing because he believes it is the right thing to do, or if he is hoping to use the public attention to either raise funds from donations to pay off his debt or pressure his creditor to forgive the loan. Rahim is a charming, good-looking man with a mild, pleasant demeanor and an ever-present smile that people seem drawn towards. But he is also someone with a hangdog look, who seems always to be hoping people will help him out, playing on his natural appeal. That ever-present smile starts seem odd, vanishing only briefly when he is worried, and begins to look more like a mask, or maybe a shield against anything that is unpleasant.

What seems simple at first, becomes complicated, and the characters and their relationships are revealed to be more complex than they seem at first. What seems at first like a drama turns into a thriller, with twists around every corner.

We learn more about the hero but also learn about the creditor, making him not just a villain. There are reasons for his stubbornness and resentments, and there is history between the two men. For one thing, the creditor is Rahim’s ex-wife’s brother-in-law, the wife who divorced Rahim when he was sent to prison. Further, the money he lent Rahim was supposed to be for a dowry for his grown daughter Nazanin (Sarina Farhadi), something she must have to get married.

Rahim’s and Farkhondeh’s living situations are also complicated, as both are dependent on family, reflecting the kind of extended family relationships found in modern Iran. While on leave, Rahim is staying with Hossein and his sister Malileh (Maryam Shahdaei), as his son Siavash (Saleh Karimai), a shy boy with a stutter, lives with his uncle and aunt and their two daughters. Rahim’s ex-wife seems little involved with their son, and when the boy gets in trouble at school, she tells the school to call the aunt and uncle instead. Rahim’s girlfriend Farkhondeh lives with her brother and his family. As she is now over thirty, her brother who would like her to marry, but he has nothing but disdain for her would-be fiance Rahim. She would like to escape her situation as much as Rahim wants to get out of jail, and Rahim looks to her like a lifeline.

The story is layered with commentary about Iranian society, past and present. The story takes place in Shiraz, a city near several archaeological sites, a choice that may be intended to evoke Iran’s past. A lot of the story takes place on Shiraz’s busy streets, crowded with traffic and people, which creates a noisy, chaotic backdrop against which this drama/thriller plays out. Media – and social media in particular – and the importance Iran places of morality play a critical role in how this story unfolds.

A HERO is another fine example of Asghar Farhadi’s skill as a writer and director, taking a seemingly simple situation and peeling back the complex human layers to reveal truths about people and modern Iranian society.

A HERO, in Farsi with English subtitles, opens Friday, Jan. 7, at Landmark’s Plaza Frontenac Cinema and at other theaters nationally, and is available Jan. 21 for streaming on Amazon.

RATING: 4 out of 4 stars

DESERT ONE – Review

So, who’s up for a movie history lesson? No, not about the history of cinema, but rather a look back at a time that often feels not that long ago, but with others, it may be “olden days”. Now don’t groan and whine about “homework” because this is a compelling look at an incident that was shrouded in mystery at its time. Plus the folks involved, from both sides of this conflict, are talking to one of our most celebrated and honored documentarians. You might recall a fleeting mention of this event in 2012’s Best Picture Oscar winner ARGO. Now with many articles declassified, we can learn the facts behind this mission from just over 40 years ago. Some called it Operation Eagle Claw, others dubbed it Operation Tabas, but it all rested on the spot in the sand, the landing and refueling site known as DESERT ONE.

Using newsreel and archival footage we got a brief backstory as the film begins. In 1953 Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, known by most as the Shah, took over Iran with the rumored help of United States undercover forces (particularly the CIA). Each new US president maintained close ties to the Shah despite reports of the brutality of his regime (mass graves of executed citizens). Finally, in 1979 he was overthrown by the Iranian Revolution led by religious leader Ayatollah Khomeini. The Shah fled to Egypt, and soon flew to the US for cancer treatment. Things came to a boiling point when the Muslim Student Followers of the Imam’s Line stormed the US embassy in Tehran taking fifty-two American citizens hostage on November 4, 1979. Their main demand was that the Shah be returned there to stand trial. Then-President James Carter attempted to end the stalemate through negotiations, but the occupying group, who had the full support of Khomeini, would not budge. As the week dragged into months, Carter was under pressure, particularly from the GOP nominee Ronald Reagan, to use military force to rescue the hostages. But the president was adamant about bringing them home alive and well. As the country seethed with frustration, Carter was secretly working with members of the Delta Force on a rescue plan, Operation Eagle Claw. They would drop in from the nearby stationed USS Nimitz via several RH53D helicopters along with C-130 transport aircraft for refueling. In the late afternoon of April 24, 1980, they initiated the mission. But things were not going there way almost from the start. Two of the eight choppers broke down, dust storms hindered their vision, and several vehicles, including a tourist-filled bus, suddenly appeared. But when the plans were scrapped, one of the copters, crashed into a C-130 causing a massive fire that claimed the lives of eight soldiers. The remainder quickly flew back to the Nimitz, leaving the bodies behind. When the wreckage was found near Tabas, Iranians celebrated as Carter accepted the blame for the failed mission on a televised address. He lost the election, and on the day of Reagan’s inauguration, Iran put the hostages on a plane bound for the US base in Germany before heading back to the states. After 444 days they were going home.

And just who is the award-winning filmmaker behind this? It’s two-time Oscar winner Barbara Koppel, who’s been making documentaries for the big and small screen for 44 years. She’s at the top of her game with this fascinating look at a real defining time for the late 20th century, especially in the area of foreign diplomacy. As mentioned there are many sequences culled from archival footage, from old newsreels to network video, but Kopple delves much deeper with some incredible new interviews. We talk to Iranians who were part of the siege (then, their biggest prime-time TV show was a program instructing viewers about using automatic weapons against a possible US invasion), some of the hostages (including Sgt. Kevin Hermening whose mother was allowed to visit him at the embassy), many of the special ops officers, and even President Carter and Vice-President Walter Mondale. And the newsman most associated with the crisis, Ted Koppel, whose weeknight updates became the still ongoing late evening news magazine “Nightline”. Plus there are clips of his contemporaries who signed off their newscasts with countdown/reminders (this is day 97). Of course, this fanned the flames of frustration which Reagan used to his advantage in many snippets. Carter was perceived as weak because he would not go in guns blazing, fatalities be damned. It’s evident that this part of his presidency still haunts him along with those would-be rescuers left behind (the Red Cross eventually brought the bodies home for burial). One of the film’s greatest assets is the release of the actual recorded phone calls between the Oval offices and the officers in communication with the Delta team (“Hold for the President…go ahead”). You can hear the tension in those audio pieces. But the most powerful scenes are those that visualize that fateful April night. Over the interviews of the soldiers, Kopple uses a form of limited animation (in advertising these were dubbed “animatics” which helped show a client what a finished TV spot would play), that feels like a gritty graphic novel brought to life. Figures move with camera pans, while motion is simulated via quick dissolves, as the audio effects drive home the chaos and carnage. This technique is also utilized as several hostages talk about the late-night “phony executions” which debunks the Iranians’ tales of “great treatment”. But the real “gut puncher” footage may be the footage of the Iranians putting the charred corpses on display for their TV news, leading to celebrations saying that God stepped in to stop the “evildoers”. After four decades it still stings as those there that night still see their fallen comrades screaming in agony as they close their eyes to fitful rest. And now the old copters are part of a playground, with tots climb down the blades. What stays longest may be the message one of the US team got from a British soldier, who scribbled on ragged cardboard that he still carries, “…thanks for trying”. DESERT ONE echoes this sentiment as one of this year’s best documentary features, informative and very moving.

Three and a Half Out of Four

DESERT ONE is playing at select theatres and screens exclusively in the St. Louis area at Landmark’s Plaza Frontenac Cinemas

THE PAST – The Review

thepast

More prevalent now, than perhaps anytime in history, is the combined or “blended family” when a single parent with kids weds or begins a household with another parent with kids. It’s been the staple of gentle comedy like “The Brady Bunch” TV series and feature films and both versions of YOURS, MINE, AND OURS. The biggest conflicts in those earlier shows usually involved sharing bathrooms and noisy dinners. But those families’ heads were nearly always widows and widowers without ex-spouses showing up to further complicate matters. These more untidy splits are often the source of drama instead of mirth in many serious examinations of this type of family structure. And this isn’t something native to the USA. Overseas these new families must more often deal with different languages and cultures. Writer/director Asghar Farhadi follows up his Oscar-winning family drama A SEPARATION with this new tale of family clashes and deceit whose characters must deal with their actions in THE PAST.

THE PAST begins in the present day at a very busy Paris airport. Marie (Berenice Bejo) is picking up her husband Ahmad (Ali Mosaffa). It’s after they head to the parking lot that we find out that this is not a typical domestic scene. The two have not seen each other for several years when he had flown back to his native Iran during a time of inner turmoil. Ahmad has finally returned (Marie reminds him that he’s backed out of several trips at the last-minute) in order to finalize their divorce so that she may wed her new beau (and father of her upcoming baby) Samir (Tahar Rahim). Since she had not reserved him a hotel for fear of him canceling again, Marie drives them back to the house they once shared, a place she now shares with Samir. There Ahmad meets the spirited six year-old son of Samir, Fouad and is reunited with his stepdaughter, nine year-old Lea (Marie has two daughters from her husband prior to Ahmad). Later Lea’s high school aged older sister Lucie (Pauline Burlet) finally gets home (she’s been staying out all hours). Lucie reconnects with Ahmad and confesses her intense dislike of Samir. She pleads with Ahmad to help her move away from her mother and her new man. Lucie also gives him the lowdown on Samir. Turns out that his wife, Fouad’s mother, has been in coma and lies in a hospital after a botched suicide attempt. Was this prompted by learning of an affair between Marie and Samir? If that’s true, how did she find out? This tangled web of misunderstandings and lies will turn Ahmad’s brief visit to sign some legal papers into a tortured return that may tear apart this new family before they can start anew.

The actress most familiar to audiences may be Bejo from her Oscar nominated role in THE ARTIST. Here she’s given an even greater opportunity to showcase her considerable dramatic skills. Maria is quite a complex character. She tries to act civil and friendly to Ahmad, but it soon becomes clear that his leaving still affects her like an old wound. There’s also a vagueness to her as she wishes for her ex to sign those divorce papers and be left unaware of the particulars of her new life. The most impressive scenes are those in which she must confront her eldest daughter. Tensions are usually high during the teen years, but these heated arguments and accusations unleash an almost uncontrollable fury in Marie. With this film Bejo proves to be a formidable actress beyond her dazzling beauty. Luckily her partner in those scenes, Burlet as Lucie, is able to match Bejo’s intensity. She too nurses the wounds from Ahmad’s exit and resents this new man in her mother’s life. Lucie tries to mask her sorrow with rebellious behavior (satying out all night), but we can still see a glimpse of that lonely child. Mosaffa as Ahmad also tries to hide his guilt at leaving, especially with Lucie who thinks of him as her only father figure. He knows that he must earn his way back into the family in order to try to repair the many broken lives on a collision course. It was just supposed to be a quick trip, but this legal obligation turns into a rescue mission. Rahim as Samir is also torn between his obligations to his comatose wife and desire to begin anew with Marie, complicated by his very sad, angry, confused young son. Kudos also to Sabrina Ouazani as the shy, conflicted illegal immigrant worker who witnessed the suicide attempt by Samir’s wife.

Farhadi directs this cast with great skill, but the film is ultimately sabotaged by his own overly melodramatic script. In the film’s second half, Mosaffa and Rahim almost become Iranian Hardy Boys, digging up clues and interviewing suspects, in order to find out the truth behind the botched suicide. Quickly this intimate family drama turns into an Agatha Christie-inspired daytime TV serial (or “soap opera”) with one startling revelation dropping every few minutes (almost timed for commercial breaks). Happily the melodramatic turns don’t detract from the stellar performances (especially the wondrous Bejo) or the enchanting Parisian locations. THE PAST is an engrossing look at modern blended families that often works despite some treks into florid melodrama.

3.5 Out 5

THE PAST opens everywhere and screens exclusively in the St. Louis area at Landmark’s Plaza Frontenac Cinemas

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ARGO – The Review

So, it turns out that what is perhaps this year’s most riveting espionage thriller did not originate from the pen or typewriter of Robert Ludlum John leCarre’ , or…Ian Fleming. ARGO is based on a real undercover operation that was finally declassified by President Clinton in 1997. And the man in the director’s chair is almost as surprising as the mission itself. I’m speaking of actor Ben Affleck ( who also stars ). What an interesting career! After toiling away as a child actor he became part of Kevin Smith’s repertory company with a role in MALLRATS and the lead in CHASING AMY. Then came Oscar for the screenplay he co-wrote with Matt Damon for 1997’s GOOD WILL HUNTING ( he played Matt’s best buddy in the flick ). This propelled him into the big leagues and he seemed to have a movie at the multiplex every couple of weeks. He balanced light “rom-coms” with big action epics ( even playing a Marvel superhero in 2003’s DAREDEVIL ). Ben also became a target of the tabloids ( remember ” Bennifer” ? ) and was on the verge of being a late night TV comedy punchline. Fortunately he changed course, was more selective, and took on a few offbeat roles ( like his excellent supporting turn as tragic TV iconic hero George Reeves in HOLLYWOODLAND ). And he went behind the camera to direct the Boston-based thrillers GONE BABY GONE in 2007 and THE TOWN in 2010 ( this time in the lead role ). Now with ARGO, Affleck has gone past his home town and tackled a real-life globe spanning story and proves that his superb previous works were not flukes.

Side by side. Ben Affleck in the film ARGO on the left and the real Tony Mendez on the right

To get us in the proper mood, we’re treated to the return of the simple white bar on black graphic Warner Brothers logo of the 1970’s and early 80’s. Then it’s time for a quick primer on the history of Iran using film story board art, focusing on the 20th century. Quickly we’re dropped right into that fateful day in 1979 when an angry mob stormed the United States embassy compound in Iran. But before the armed group burst through the front door, six Americans dashed out the back door and out into the street. In the states we learn that this group was taken in by the Canadian ambassador and are now ” guests ” at his living quarters. Things continue to heat up and Canada demands they leave this safe haven. The state department calls on the CIA’s Jack O’Donnell ( Bryan Cranston ) who brings in extraction expert Tony Mendez ( Affleck ). After hearing some of the odd ideas proposed, Mendez is determined to come up with a plan that can get the six out of Iran. Watching TV with his son that night, a light bulb goes on over his head. He’ll pose as a film producer, fly there to ” scout locations” and fly out with six members of his production team. But he doesn’t know film ! Luckily the agency has a friend in Hollywood : make-up whiz ( an Oscar winner for the original PLANET OF THE APES and designer of a mobile disguise kit for undercover work ) John Chambers ( John Goodman ). He, in turn, enlists the help of veteran movie producer Lester Siegel ( Alan Arkin ) and they find an available script for a space opera titled ” Argo “. After planting the seeds using Hollywood hoopla and hype ( the trade paper poster art is below ), the mission is approved. Mendez flies out to meet the ” guests of Canada “. Can he train this group to pass for film makers ? The clock is ticking away. If he fails, as O’Donnell puts it ” They die…badly”.

The real John Chambers transforms Fred Astaire into Mad Magazine mascot Alfred E. Newman for a TV special

The first-rate performances really bring this true tale of derring-do to life, anchored by director Affleck’s understated work as masterspy Mendez. Like many screen heroes dating back to Gary Cooper, he’s stoic when necessary, saving his energy for the moment demanding action…or very quick thinking. We can see the weariness in his eyes from too many late nights away from loved ones and too many brushes with death. This undercover working stiff is a true unsung hero. No fame or glory, just satisfaction when the mission is complete. Affleck and Cranston work well together in their scenes back at Langley. The indulge in some good-natured ribbing while having complete respect in each other. O’Donnell will stand up to the pencil pushers so Mendez can get the job done. The real scene stealers are back in ” Tinsle Town “. Goodman as the make-up magician has seen nearly everything and has a cool laid-back cynicism explaining the mechanics of the movie biz to Affleck. Arkin matches Goodman perfectly as the film vet who has seen everything and knows how to speak the language of the ” deal “. Most of the young studio turks have written him off, but Arkin dives back in motivated perhaps by a renewed sense of patriotism ( he views the grim newsfootage on the TV in his mansion ). In the hollywood section of ARGO Affleck almost becomes a straight man to this terrific comedy team. Luckily the rescue scenes are so riveting that we don’t miss them too much. Affleck also peppers the film with wonderful character actors like Phillip Baker Hall, Titus Welliver, and Zeljko Ivanek back in DC and includes Clea DuVall and Rory Cochrane as part of the ” six guests “. Superb work from all the actors involved here.

Comissioned production art for ARGO by Jack Kirby from kirbymuseum.com

 

Working from a lean, taut screenplay by Chris Terrio, Affleck really puts us in that tense time period. Aside from the campy fashions and hairstyles ( big mustaches and sideburns ) , all the background TVs  provide a constant stream of info using real news clips ( there’s ” Uncle ” Walter Cronkite, and Frank Reynolds, and… ), some that foreshadow current events. Affleck goes to a brighter, more colorful style for the mid section set in LA as they set up the phony flick. Speaking of which the phoniness of the film biz ( and the folks that run the town ) almost oozes off the screen. In one scene an agent insults Siegel to his face , but each man retains their frozen smiles. I only wish we could see a bit more of Michael Parks as the fake film’s artist, Jack ” King ” Kirby ( the real life Marvel Comics master ). But then Affeck plunges us back in the danger zone. Here Iran is a land of random violence. A wrong look or word can mean the end. Affleck uses subtitles sparingly in order to heighten the disorientation. A tour of the marketplace becomes a nightmare of claustrophobic terror, as glaring wild eyes and snarling bearded faces envelop them. Affleck even cranks up the tension in the ” safe ” house. One of the six just doesn’t trust Mendez. Will he be their weak link? ARGO is a remarkable achievement. Ben Affleck can now join the ranks of actors like Clint Eastwood and Woody Allen, actor who are exceptional film makers. This is an expertly produced thrill ride that grabs you by the throat in its opening minutes and doesn’t let up til the final fade-out ( oh, be sure and stick around for some great photos during the end credits ). I’m sure it will be well represented during the upcoming awards season. To paraphrase a joke exchanged during the film, ” ARGO…see this film! ”

5 Out of 5 Stars

CIRCUMSTANCE – The Review

It’s always surprising to learn that people in faraway foreign lands really have the same dreams and desires as folks next door to us here. The main conflict is how their families and communities react and respond to them. For the past several decades Iran has been a big part of the Middle East news. Our last president even included it in his “Axis of Evil”. It turns out that a lot of the population, particularly the young people, really embrace Western culture and attitudes. The new film from writer/director Maryam Keshavarz, CIRCUMSTANCE, shines a light on a part of that country that its government wishes to keep hidden.

CIRCUMSTANCE tells the story of two women in their late teens. Atafeh ( Nikohl Boosheri ) is the outgoing, musically gifted daughter of an upper class family who were at the forefront of the revolution that ousted the Shah several decades ago. Shy, reserved Shireen ( Sarah Kazemy ) lives in her Uncle and Aunt’s lower middle class home. Her mother and father were ‘radical” professors who’ve been “out of the picture” for several years. During the day Atafeh and Shireen are studious schoolgirls, but after their classes are done they doff their head scarfs and enter the world of secret parties were they drink and dance to forbidden Western music. Soon we learn that they share more than friendship and must hide their love from society. One day, Atafeh is surprised at the return of her older brother Mehran ( Reza Sixo Safai ). Mehran had given up a promising music career years ago because of his drug addiction. His father gives welcomes him back while monitoring his behavior. One night after hitting an underground dance club, Atafeh and Shireen accompany two young men to a secret storeroom of CDs and DVDs from the West. They decide to dub the film MILK into Iranian and distribute it. Unfortunately they are arrested by the “Morality Police” on the way back home. What is Mehran’s involvement with this? And will the women realize their dream of life together in far off Dubai?

Keshavarz directs her original script with a confident hand making great use of the city locations and countryside while guiding the cast in giving naturalistic performances. The two young lead actresses succeed in creating two characters who will hopefully be an inspiration to women all around the world. Boosheri practically bursts off the screen as the joyous Atafeh while Kazemy is caught between her desires and the repressive society. Safai’s Mehran may have the most complex character arc as he switches his addiction from crack cocaine to radical fundamentalism. His actions in support of his new ‘ brethren’ are quite disturbing. I’d like to have seen a bit more of the reasons why one of the girls makes an abrupt life choice and I wished that the film could’ve followed the fate of another character. Seems odd to say, but I think the film could’ve used another quarter hour in length. This is a powerful film that really turns a spotlight on the oppression of women ( they’re forbidden to swim at the beach, while the men enjoy the cooling waters). It’s a film that will make you applaud the courage of these young people and appreciate the freedoms that many of us take for granted.

Overall Rating: Three and a Half Out of Five Stars