Argo
| An exfiltration specialist masquerades as a Hollywood producer in order to rescue six Americans who are held captive in Tehran during the US hostage crisis in Iran.
CAST
Previously exiled by the regime, the religious leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, returned and took on ruling Iran. This revolution descended into chaos and terror. The overthrown Shah, who was dying of cancer, looked for a way to flee the country and went to the USA which granted him asylum. The Iranian people did not take this well and large protests broke out in front of the U.S. Embassy in Iran with only one demand - the death of the Shah. Meanwhile, the situation at the embassy remains calm and diplomats joke about the carnival outside and bulletproof windows. Civilians are waiting in line to apply for visas. Helicopters patrol the area.
At the same time, some protesters have managed to climb over the fence and enter the territory, internal mobilization begins. Shortly thereafter, a remaining crowd of angry and incensed demonstrators breaks through the lock and enter the premise, causing the diplomats to panic.
As the breach of security becomes more serious, measures are taken to destroy all documentation. The windows are not bulletproof. The security team dons its gear and prepares a plan, while diplomats are still hesitant about whether Iranian police and government help will ever arrive. The security chief thinks he is a superman. He takes a leap of faith and goes outside to confront the people and is immediately struck down. Realizing he is their chance to get inside, they blindfold him and threaten
his life by holding a gun to his head, successfully using their free pass inside. Meanwhile, every bit of information is destroyed by any means available. The protesters make
contact with some of the diplomats and take them hostage. At the same time, six of them take advantage of the building's direct access to the street and escape.
The U.S. government discusses the situation and says that the Soviets would have already invaded Iran. They have information that six diplomats have managed to escape
from the embassy and made their way to the Canadian ambassador's, Ken Taylor’s house. The Secretary of State criticizes the work of CIA's agents in Iran regarding threats
of revolution and states that extraditing the Shah to the Iranians is not an option, as he is already half-dead in chemotherapy. It is decided to focus on those who managed to escape, dismissing the diplomats held hostage at the embassy. 10 weeks later, news of the atrocities in Iran has spread around the world, and Americans are expressing their support and praying for the victims. Tony receives a phone call, whereupon he immediately leaves his house and rushes to the CIA office. The atmosphere is tense and he is briefed by his boss Jack about the situation in Iran, focusing on the escapers. While the U.S. government is too scared to take any action, the Canadian Foreign Secretary wants Taylor to leave the country because his own safety is threatened.
Jack is concerned that one of the little geniuses at the embassy has kept the mug book of everyone who has worked there. The Iranians are trying to restore shredded documents, which poses a big risk that they will find out there are escapees. The State wants the CIA as consultants for the rescue mission, which confuses Tony. The meeting is held by the state members. The 6 embassy diplomats who escaped are introduced to those present. The States member introduces their plan which is to give them bicycles since cars are not an option due to the roadblocks. Hearing that, Tony is amused and suggests sending them training wheels as well. He criticizes this idea, saying that the distance to cover is 300 miles and they would need a support team with a tire pump.
Attendants question his competence, but Jack introduces him as an expert in exfil missions.
Tony explains that they do not have time because the revolutionaries will soon find out about the missing diplomats. Afterwards, other options are discussed, but none of them make sense to Tony, so he objects, comparing exfils to abortians and explaining that missions like these require direct intervention. Both America and Iran make their demands, expressing their opinion on the matter, and protest, while the Iranians succeed in their attempts to recover the shredded documents. Tony is having a phone conversation with his son when an idea pops into his head to hastily pitch at a meeting with state members. At the meeting, Tony offers to set up a fake Canadian movie production team looking for an exotic location in the Middle East - Iran. The members are hesitant and doubt that it is possible to fake a movie production. They already have credentials for the teachers, but Tony has a contact who could help him. The meeting ends with Tony convincing the members of his plan.
Unfortunately, at the same time, the Iranians have confirmed that some diplomats are missing and are working to find out their identities and whereabouts. Tony arranges a meeting with Mr. Chambers, a famous donut loving movie producer and flies to LA with the blessing of the CIA, to see if his idea could become a reality. At LA, Tony informs him of the situation and asks for his help in setting up a production company and establishing coverage for the movie itself. “You want to come to Hollywood, acting like a big shot without doing anything? You will fit right in.” They discuss the roles of the diplomats and Mr. Chamber suggests that Tony needs a script and a producer to make the cover story believable. Mr. Chamber takes Tony to a meeting with a man named Lester, a well-known movie producer. Their plan amuses him. Lester says odds of pulling this through are close to 0, yet agrees to go along and they start developing ideas for a script. At this time, the housekeeper confronts Taylor’s wife about why her friends from Canada never leave the house, suspecting they are Americans. While Tony is working on possible scripts, he receives a call from Jack, who informs him that he only has 72 hours left, otherwise the government will choose another option. After hanging up, Tony is going through the scripts when he notices ''Argo'' an adventurous science fiction movie, and shows it to Mr. Chamber and Lester.
Lester brings Tony to a meeting with a scriptwriter, to whom they make an offer
that he declines because others are offering four times as much, but after a few spot-on
words from Lester, he accepts the deal for even less money. Lester is a master talker.
The next day, Tony is on the phone with Jack, who informs him that Iranian airport security
is getting stronger and a thorough background check is inevitable. Tony asks for extra time
to work on the production, but Jack is not optimistic and tells Tony that there is no time.
Afterwards, Tony, Lester and Mr. Chambers organizes a huge Hollywood press event,
where they draw more attention to the movie. At the same time, Iran issues a statement that
there is no evidence that people who worked in the US embassy are diplomats and calls them spies. They also call the U.S. and CIA terrorists and keep demanding return of the Shah. The statement ends with threats of beginning trials on hostages. The press event was a success. Eyes are on their movie, ''Argo'' is in the magazines, and posters are on the streets. Word has spread, giving them another level of credibility, hopefully enough to convince the Iranians. Tony returns from his trip to LA ready to present progress to the State.
The meeting immediately goes south. State finds the idea ridiculous. Tony and Jack don't step back and explain that there are only bad ideas and they have already chosen the best bad idea. Seeing how honest and desperate Tony and Jack are, State finally grants it's approval and sanctions Argo. Jack takes Tony to the airport and reminds him that the CIA will not claim him if he is arrested.
Before taking the flight, Tony writes his son a letter apologizing for missing his birthday and telling him how much he loves him. Meanwhile, 6 escapees fear for their lives, still hoping for a miracle, while the situation becomes more and more tense as Iranian soldiers patrol the streets looking for them. The first stop of Tony's journey is Istanbul, the capital of Turkey, where he meets a British agent who is familiar with the situation in Iran and informs Tony about it. He gives him valuable insight into how the Iranian border security system works and what he should do when he is there. Tony applies for his visa at the Iranian consulate. He behaves icily and gets his visa without any problems. Tony eventually makes his way to Iran and gets through border control with ease. His first stop is the Ministry of Culture and Guidance. On the way there, he witnesses the cruel reality that has gripped Iran - large protests, chaos, fear, public hangings, and terror all over the streets. At the ministry, Tony is asked if the movie crew consists only of himself. Tony says that there will be 6 others from Canada as well. Locations for possible filming are discussed, and he submits film production documents for review. Later Tony meets with Taylor, who has prepared the Canadian passports for all 6 escapees. The passports still need to be stamped and the identities of the escapees need to be learnt, which will take a day or two. Taylor encourages Tony to finish as soon as possible. Finally, Tony meets with the escapees at the Taylor's house. At the dinner table, he presents the plan and hands out their screenplays. Fear runs deep among the 6 of them and they do not have much confidence in Tony's plan. They begin to question him and the chances of success.
Tony handles the distrust well, staying calm, informing them of the risks and emphasizing that it's time to go. Afterwards, in a private conversation, the ambassador tells Tony that the Canadian government has given the order to close the embassy and leave Iran, leaving the escapees without shelter. Despite all their doubts and fears, the escapees realize they have no other options and agree to take the risk and trust Tony with their lives. After they feel that he is trusted, Tony introduces them to their new identities and stresses the importance of knowing every aspect of them. He will be back tomorrow. Tony is working on passports at the hotel when a letter is slipped under his door. The Minister of Culture and Guidance has approved the location for his movie and invites him and his crew to meet at the Grand Bazaar tomorrow. Tony calls Jack to tell him the news. Jack thinks it's a trap, but Tony makes him understand that this is their only chance to get out of Iran. Refusing would only lead to death. The next day, Tony pays a visit to the companions and tells them about the meeting in the Grand Bazaar. The news causes hesitation, fear, and even more distrust of Tony among the group, but they realize that there are no other options stronger than this. Once there, they meet the ministry's representative and take a look around the place under his guidance.
While the group wanders around, they are secretly photographed by Iranian intelligence.
The group takes photos of the bazaar, which angers one of the storekeepers, who demands
that they hand over the photos they took. The conflict with the storekeeper gets
more and more attention and the situation quickly comes to a head. Reza suggests they end the tour, which they do. At the same time, a car with Iranian soldiers stops in front of the Taylor's house, where they meet the housekeeper. Iranian soldiers question her about how long the Taylor's guests have been here. She does not rat them out and calmly answers that they have only been here for 2 days. After a stressful trip to the bazaar, the group returns to the ambassador's house. He asks Tony if they will be ready to leave tomorrow, to which Tony agrees. After everyone calms down, Tony briefs the group again and prepares them. They discuss what questions they might be asked at border control and refresh their knowledge of their identities.
At the White House, the Chief of Staff is confused that they approved of this whole movie plan. Tony gets a call from Jack, who informs him that the government is planning a military
rescue of the hostages and are aborting the “Argo” plan. The government officials have
changed their minds. Tony is shocked because he is only one step away from getting the diplomats out of Iran, but Jack is helpless and demands Tony to follow orders.
After the conversation, Tony sits alone and is frustrated with the government's decision to
stop him when one of the group members comes in and says they are ready for another interrogation of Tony. He pretends nothing happened and tells her they are ready and to loosen up. The group's mood is lifted, they are ready for the most important day of their lives. Tony is looking at them from the side when the ambassador shows up and tells him that he has received orders to burn the fake passports. He suggests Tony leave the group without them knowing anything about it. Tony is speechless, he takes a bottle of scotch and leaves. Arriving at the hotel, Tony looks desperate, he sits down on a bed and stares into the wall, he understands that at this point the only thing that awaits the diplomats is death.
The next morning, Mr. Chamber and Lester receive orders to pack their things and
leave the movie production office. Meanwhile, the escapees prepare for their final move,
unaware that their faith has changed.
At the hotel, Tony is determined to go through with the mission anyway, he just can't abandon 6 people on a whim. He calls Jack and tells him that he is going to finish his job despite all the orders from above and hangs up. Jack rushes to his colleague and tells him that 7 tickets from Tehran need to be reinstated, but he is turned away because there is no authorization from above for that. Tony arrives at the ambassador's house and picks up the group of 6. Meanwhile, Jack is furious. He rushes to his boss, yanks him out of the ongoing meeting, and tells him that he must do everything he can to get government approval.
At this point, Tony and his group are on their way to the airport, and Taylor and his wife are also leaving. Things come to a head while Jack is running around the CIA office doing everything he can to solve the ticket problem. Tony gives his brave group the final briefing, emotions are running high and everyone is dead serious, they can not crack under the pressure or they will be executed. When the group finally arrives at the airport, they begin registration. The airport employee tells him that there are no reservations under his name, Tony kindly asks her to check again, keeping his composure. In the meantime, Jack finally gets the green light from the White House to proceed with the mission and confirms the tickets as soon as possible.
Luckily for the group, the employee finds their reservations during the second check. Meanwhile, Iranian forces have restored one of the shredded photos of the Escapers. At the airport, the group is subjected to a border check. They have succeeded in the first step which includes checking disembarkation cards. Tony knew that they would face problems at the next checkpoint because of the exit papers they never had. Eventually, the border control finds out about the missing papers and starts to investigate, while at the same time the Iranian forces compare the portrait they put together with the pictures of the group they took at the bazaar. They identify one of the fugitives. The interrogation begins as the border control cannot find any proof of their entry into the country. They present the letter from the Minister of Culture and luckily for them, it is enough to convince the border control.
They proceed to the last checkpoint. Their passports are checked and they are denied boarding. They are sent to a separate room for further interrogation. The group is questioned in the local language.
Diplomat, who speaks Iranian, begins to explain to the soldier that they are a film crew of the movie "Argo" and shows him the script and drawings of the movie. He has done his homework and knows the script perfectly. Tony is amazed at how good he is. He tells the story so passionately that they get lost in it and it is impossible not to believe him. Once he is done, the soldier tells the group that they will be allowed to leave, once it's verified that the movie is real. Tony hands them the business card of the LA office, not knowing that Mr. Chambers and Lester are no longer there.
The final boarding is announced.
The soldier decides to call the office of LA. Mr.Chambers barely manages to pick up the phone and plays his part - location scouting in Iran is verified. Meanwhile, Iranian forces find out that the Canadian film crew are actually U.S. Embassy diplomats storm the Taylor's house looking for the group. At the airport, the group is allowed to depart and head straight to the gate. They are the last ones and barely made in time. The Iranians find no one at the ambassador's house, so they call the airport and tell them that the Americans may be boarding the plane. Fortunately for everyone on the plane, the Iranians are unable to
track them and they successfully take off. After the announcement that they have left
Iranian airspace, the diplomats are tearing up in joy, hugging each other, and enjoying the moment of their escape.
The Iranian government made threats against Canada, but that was just background noise
at the time, the heroic act was in the spotlight. After successfully turning what was once the best bad option into one of the most historic missions CIA has ever pulled through, Tony was awarded an Intelligence Star, the highest award of merit in the Clandestine services of the United States. The Iran hostage crisis ended in 1981 when all hostages, who had spent a total of 444 days in captivity, were finally released.
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