Posted on November 08, 2012 by Akashma Online News

by Marivel Guzman

UPDATED, February 24, 2013 10:38 p.m

Argo Wins Best Picture Oscar 2013

Meeting with President Carter. The author, Mark Lijek, stands second from right.
White House photo.

I have seen hundreds of web sites criticizing Ben Affleck’s movie Argo.

Argo is based in a true event, “Iran hostage crisis”.

The story is CIA side of the story. The accounts of Mendez CIA operative. Really? why the movie is being harshly criticized.

I m guilty to of having been swallowed into the drama of the script without taking in consideration the whole historical Iran.
Any way, I was in suspense all the way until the airplane voice said, “we are outside of Iran space, we are free to serve alcoholics beverages”.
It is a kind of freedom of expression you know, after all,  we are consenting adults not babies.

Given the pressure producers and directors go through. The process of making a good socially awakening movie, considering the odd, they did good.
They inserted little bit of history into the movie, not a historic class of course, but a decent intro of Iran 1979 Revolution aftermath.

Let’s not forget that ‘Argo’ could had not happened as it did, if it was not for Canadian Ambassador to Iran, The former Canadian ambassador to Iran who protected Americans at great personal risk during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis.

Taylor kept the Americans hidden at his residence and the home of his deputy, John Sheardown, in Tehran and facilitated their escape by arranging plane tickets and persuading the Ottawa government to issue fake passports. He also agreed to go along with the CIA’s film production cover story to get the Americans out of Iran.

Taylor became a hero in Canada and the United States afterward. He felt the role that he and other Canadians played in helping the Americans to freedom was minimized in the film.

“In general it makes it seem like the Canadians were just along for the ride. The Canadians were brave. Period,” Taylor said. USAToday

Most of the real events are not known by an ordinary citizen not just the US but any ordinary citizens does not know history at all, let alone knowing about foreign country history,  the much they will know is “Islamic Revolution”” , or the puppet Sha of Iran”, or they remember the yellow ribbons in American cars during those 444 days of “Iran hostage crisis”. To young Americans that 444 days are not even know, well I do remember seeing those yellow ribbons, and knew about the hostage situation, but just barely.
They did explained at least little bit of the situation of dissenters in Iran, the torture, the ransacking of the country during the “Sha of Iran” times.
I think you are not being fair to Ben Affleck that we know it is a open minded actor, that has spoken against Israel crimes in the pass and defended the Palestinians, he is against CEO’s high checks, he is Pro Gay marriage, consummated actor and producer.
The movie Argo it wasn’t done to straightening up the political story of Iran/US relations, but to give a us glimpse of the famous event of Iran hostages. The Argo hostage story is told by one of the hostages and he is praising the movie story.

“Argo, Ben Affleck’s new movie about the rescue of six Americans from Iran, is a terrific thriller, even if you know the ending. I left the theater sweating—just as when I exited the airport bus to board a Swissair flight out of Tehran in January of 1980, one of the six Americans who were rescued by Tony Mendez, the CIA employee Affleck plays. Affleck’s version of events is not only a well-told tale, but a useful story, a necessary and enjoyable mechanism for introducing a younger generation to the origins of our confrontation with Iran. But for me, Argo is also a peek into a nightmarish alternate universe of how things might have been. Could I have survived three months under the stressful conditions depicted in the film? Would I have kept my cool if Iranian paramilitaries questioned my identity?”

Just that most of it happened before Mendez arrived. Affleck tells his version from Tony’s perspective—and wisely, I think: A heroic CIA agent is a more natural Hollywood protagonist than people trapped in a house and their brave hosts. Besides, a traditional thriller can’t be overpopulated with all the people who play sometimes small but essential roles in a situation like ours. Still, it’s worth taking a moment to remember those other heroes, who sheltered the six of us for months at great personal risk—one of whom, essential to our survival, doesn’t appear in the movie at all.” Mark Lisek True Account

I really think that in the little minutes they dedicated to explain the political situation, they did good job. To tell the young Americans and  young people people around the world why US hates Iran and not the other way around.

The Islamic Revolution removed a puppet!. Well that is not the whole story, but part of it.
The movie did great and keep people wondering, off course this is from the CIA perspective which it is exactly why the movie is good.
If Ben Affleck was to make a movie from the Iranian perspective I think he would had used another version of the events, ‘The Iranian side of the story’.

It is common sense, there are always two sides of the story, and sometimes there  are 3, 4, 5 depend how many are involved in the event. Come on we do not shot the messenger.
I read the accounts of one of the hostages and he said Argo it is right in the mark
This is not about history, but about a single event “Iranian hostage crisis”..
And I lived the story, some how I did.  In the paid Mexican news.  I never knew why?, never heard the whole story of the Sha of Iran thrown out of Iran..and, if I was new to Iran politics, this movie gives me a glimpse.

Off course, I m not new to Iran politics so I do not expect that Ben Affleck will dedicate 2 hours to give a political class on Iran, and expect to be promoted by Hollywood Elite.
I give many kudos to Ben Affleck.

Now if you ask me, what do I think of the political situation of Iran and US, I said what I always say.
First and all I m against monarchy, which to start discount the return of the Pahlavi family, and I would support (not that it matters at lot, because I m not Iranian) the revolution that Reza Khan started before 1925. With all the restrictions and conditions of the times, I think he did great.
The US is not and should not be the world police, and Iranian government should not criminalize dissent, they just like the US, UK, Israel, France and I can name all the countries, all of them use torture, they all oppressed their citizens in one way or another, they all suppressed the innovator voices that goes against the Status Quo. There is no perfect society. Off course they are worse government than ours.
Now let’s not forget that Iranian society with all their discontent during the Sha era  lived the western life style for many decades, and at the verge of the Iranian Islamic Revolution of 1979 the majority of the population where in a explosion mode, kind of liberation, not because they dislike the Western style, but because any new revolution brings a sense of liberation. At least from some sectors of their society; like in any other, there are rule class and their benefactors and beneficiaries.

If you like to dig in history and want to know the other side of the history, I found a good article that explaines the other side of the story, not the US story, not the Islamic Revolutionary story, not the Sha story, but the story of the transition of the Old Iran to the Modern Iran. Iranians Politics Club is a web site dedicate to explore other possibilities, just like the critics of Argo Movie you might not like their perspective. I find it fascinating. It is not about The Sha the self made king but about Raze Khan which it is known as Reza Shah The Great of Pahlavi

Dr. Ismail Salami a Iranin writer, makes a harsh, harsh critic of Argo, in his article Argo: From Hollywoodism to Iranophobia

I do not agree with most of his criticism on the movie, I do agree with the current  trend to demonize Iran and to demonize Muslims in American Politics and American movies, but from that, to completely dismiss the work of Ben Affleck I do not agree. You be the judge, as always the Truth is the news and the readers are the opinion makers.