Argo’s central, nutty storyline—in which the CIA establishes a fake movie production, complete with a full script and ads in Variety and The Hollywood Reporter, in order to rescue six Americans stranded in post-revolutionary Iran—is 100 percent true, and pretty incredible.
How close was Argo to real events?
Movie aficionados — and historians — know that the movie sticks pretty close to what really happened during the Iranian Revolution. In 1980, a CIA agent named Tony Mendez sneaked into Iran and spirited away six American diplomats who were hiding with Canadians.
Is the ending of Argo accurate?
The truth – which Argo artfully obscures – is that the cover story was never tested and in some ways proved irrelevant to the escape. There is a sequence in the film where the six go on a location scout in Tehran to create the impression they are movie people. According to Mark, the scene is total fiction.
Was Argo filmed in Iran?
Although most of the movie takes place in Tehran, Iran, not a single minute of film was shot there. Other than location shoots in Istanbul, Turkey and Washington, D.C., the majority of Argo was filmed in Los Angeles.
Is Argo a good movie?
“Argo” is a good movie. It is lots of fun, and I enjoyed it immensely. But it is Hollywood all the way — replete with scenes so preposterous you can only laugh at them. In places, the movie is just plain stupid, and Affleck, a good-enough director, resorts to one hoary device after another to keep the film going.
Did Argo happen?
Production. Argo is based on the “Canadian Caper” that took place during the Iran hostage crisis in 1979 and 1980. Chris Terrio wrote the screenplay based on Joshuah Bearman’s 2007 article “How the CIA Used a Fake Sci-Fi Flick to Rescue Americans from Tehran,” which was published in Wired.
Who played Tony Mendez in Argo?
He is best known for smuggling six American diplomats out of Iran during the 1979-81 hostage crisis by posing as a film producer. Ben Affleck, who directed Argo and starred as Mendez, called him “a true American hero”.
Is Anthony Mendez Puerto Rican?
Méndez (birth name: Antonio Méndez) was born in Puerto Rico. In 1927, he moved to East Harlem in New York City where he established a jewelry store.
Did the 6 hostages get out of Iran?
The group of six would remain guests of the Canadian diplomats for almost three months. On January 28, 1980 they were rescued in a CIA extraction operation, led by operative Tony Mendez, in which the group posed as a Canadian film production team scouting locations in Tehran.
Do the six get out in Argo?
Despite some inaccuracies, Argo was undoubtedly gripping. The film’s tension rose until it culminated into the escape of six Americans and one CIA operative out of Iran during the Iran hostage crisis.
How many hostages were held in Iran?
What was the Iran hostage crisis? The Iran hostage crisis was an international crisis (1979–81) in which militants in Iran seized 66 American citizens at the U.S. embassy in Tehrān and held 52 of them hostage for more than a year.
Is Argo historically accurate?
With their fake identities as a film crew, the diplomats and Mendez were supposed to simply take a flight out of Iran. And as outrageous as it sounds, that is how it happened in reality. While the basic plot and premise of the movie seem accurate, though, some details were certainly not.
When was Argo declassified?
But it was all done secretly, and the CIA role in the operation was not revealed until 1997. The 52 American hostages at the U.S. Embassy were held for 444 days and not released until January 1981. Mendez’s legacy extends well beyond his exploits in Iran.
Who was the real life movie producer in Argo?
Argo is the name of a script Mendez finds in the mansion of has-been producer Lester Siegel, a fictional composite played by Alan Arkin.
