Jodi Bishop knows success. It just depends on what side of history youre sitting on. Affleck tells his version from Tonys perspectiveand wisely, I think: A heroic CIA agent is a more natural Hollywood protagonist than people trapped in a house and their brave hosts. I consider him a hero. I remember feeling relieved, thinking, Oh, I can stop looking for this moment., Your email address will not be published. "It was frustrating," Zena Sheardown said about "Argo" in an interview with The Associated Press after her husband's death. See questions on the Film Study Worksheet for a Work of Historical Fiction (discussion questions #s 1 & 2 are derived from this worksheet). In the moment leading up to the diplomats escape from the country, Revolutionary Guards come to the house to question the maid. His house was raided four days after we left. I have a friend who is 10 years older than me and 10 years more experienced than me who told me, I hate to break it to you, youre never going to feel like youve arrived, she said. One of three scenarios: 1. The hostage crisis was no closer to resolution. Updated on March 16, 2022: Richard Simmons has remained withdrawn from the public eye, and that seems to be just how he likes it. He deserves it. I agreed to do it and I look forward to seeing Ken at the recording.". Sooner or later someone would check those records and go lookingwe couldnt stay in this new house for good. Worksheet for Cinematic and Theatrical Elements and Their Effects. She graduated from UCLA with a degree in theater and directing in 2007. Military intervention in their country would only give the regime an excuse to consolidate power, making an already sad human-rights situation in Iran even worse. How do the Iranians let us go and still save face? Did they go out thinking, Man, America should stop doing stupid things so it doesnt have to create crazy mad movie plots to rescue people? They got trapped in the country for another five years.. In light of my many conversations as well as a change to an end card that Ken requested I am surprised that Ken continues to take issue with the film," Affleck said in the statement. The Associated Press contributed to this report. I think a lot of Middle Eastern roles are often associated with the publics narrow view of Middle Easterners. "We took the six in without being asked so it starts there," Taylor said. I thought it was much higher. First published on February 23, 2013 / 5:16 PM. But the movie is more substantially interested in the nature . Nina / Serksi the Gallactic Witch: Tom Lenk . The British embassy was also captured, though, albeit briefly, and there was a near attack on the residential compound itself. By the way, Jimmy Carter, who was President during this period and gave the final go-ahead for the operation, agrees. In 1992, after Mrs Norris was petrified by Salazar Slytherin's Basilisk, Filch was furious; however, his cat was . Portrait of the Architect in Ruins, which she created, directed and starred in for the Los Angeles Theatre Center in 2008, fashioned itself as an avant-garde theatrical interpretation of J.D. Don't ask me to clean your five-bedroom house and then say you need it done in two hours. The Golden Girls. Irans economy has been hit by the most crippling international sanctions in history, up to the point where its not just luxury goods but bread that has become unaffordable for many Iranians. The housekeeper is in deep trouble should she not be able to flee to Iraq, a feat she barely accomplishes. Second, it was backstopped: The phone number on my fake business card would be answered, and we had a script, storyboards, and other paraphernalia. TORONTO The former Canadian ambassador to Iran who protected Americans at great personal risk during the 1979 Iran hostage crisis says it will reflect poorly on Ben Affleck if he doesn't say a few words about Canada's role should the director's film "Argo" win the Oscar for best picture Sunday. Sahar doesnt take long to figure out that the six guests of the ambassadorwho never leave the houseare not ordinary guests. The studio had a limo pick up the couple in Anacortes, flew . Even so, we knew that both the foreign ministry and our embassy had records of houses leased by U.S. employees. My friends are tired of that. He said CIA agent Tony Mendez, played by Affleck in the film, was only in Iran for a day and a half. They had just gotten their visas to come to America when the hostage crisis happened. The movie's basic premise is based on a real mission that the Canadian government and the CIA undertook. Without his enthusiastic welcome we might have tried to survive on our own a few more days. Why does everyone hate Americans? Taylor said it was Sheardown who took the first call from the American diplomats who had evaded capture when Iranian militants seized the U.S. Embassy in November 1979, and agreed right away to. silently to avoid the deaths of those involved. What happened to the maid at the Canadian embassy in Argo? This is the side of Iran that Americans need to see, particularly in a film depicting a CIA intervention in Iran. Lastly, the plan allowed the six of us to travel as a group, and support each other. There are no easy answers. He suggested we move to another house nearby, whose occupant he also worked for. But those two seemed like throwaways, and Tony did not try too hard to sell us on them. That convinces the intelligence officer the group of six are not the escaped American diplomats and he goes away satisfied. In the end, I have only myself to blame. Friends of Taylor were outraged last September when "Argo" debuted at the Toronto International Film Festival. And oh, those wacky Arab countries!). Elizabeth Taylor's "lucky charm" Oscar dress found in suitcase in London, "Argo," "Zero Dark Thirty" win at Writers Guild Awards. There was no call by a Revolutionary Guard to Hollywood (although an office had been set up and the call would have been answered) and there was no chase of the plane by gun toting revolutionaries on the tarmac. In one of them, we would pose as businesspeople, in something petroleum-related, if I remember correctly. Click here for instructions on how to enable JavaScript in your browser. Nothing illustrated this better than Sahar, the housekeeper for the Canadian ambassador, who was the only Iranian we got to know at all. First, and most importantly, we bought the idea that Hollywood people would be so presumptuous as to think they could walk into the middle of a revolution and shoot a movie. At the CIA, Mendez specialised in disguises,. And they were right to be: While the movie presents myriad dramatic complications and last-minute twists and turns, the plan actually went off without a hitch. current relations between the Iranian government and the West, including the Iranian nuclear weapons program and Western sanctions. It takes attention away from more important stories including: (1) the American intervention in Iranian affairs which led to the brutal and repressive 25 year reign of the Shaw, an intervention that continues to be a major factor in the long-lasting hatred of the U.S. by many people in Iran; and (2) the plight of the 52 American diplomats who were held hostage and sometimes tortured for 444 days after the embassy take-over. Hood. At the end of the viewing I went to, the audience burst into a loud round of applause. Would I have kept my cool if Iranian paramilitaries questioned my identity? On Nov. 4, 1979, when the American Embassy was overtaken, we did not stroll directly to the Canadian ambassadors residence. Still, the foreign diplomats of Oman and other countries, as well as the ordinary Iranians who stood up and took risks for Shane, Josh, and me, didnt do it because they love America, they did it because they followed their own humanityjust like the young maid depicted in Argoand decided to stand up for what they knew was right. He was 81. The Staffords went to the Taylor residence. Please enter your username or email address to reset your password. Powered by Reelgood. Conclude with a judgment on the accuracy of the adaptation from magazine to film. One, an Australian, was willing to help but lived in a small apartment. And though Iranians are presented as real people with real grievances, things fall apart there toward the end and we get these crazy foolish terrorist stand-ins waving guns and chasing planes (in actual fact, the embassy workers simply walked onto the plane, without all the Hollywood shenanigans at the end. Required fields are marked *. Foreigners could leave. What happened to Gloria Satterfield? Teachers can modify the movie worksheets to fit the needs of each class. On the other hand, actress Sheila Vand, who plays an Iranian housekeeper in the film, told CBS Radio News that her role in "Argo" helps chip away at stereotypes for Middle Eastern characters. Chavez and Lewis had more of a familial relationship than one of an . It is also important to note that the Cold Warrior architects of U.S. policy on Iran in the 1950s believed that the Soviet Union posed a mortal threat to the U.S. and that a change of government in Tehran was necessary to protect U.S. interests at the time. Taylor's wife, Pat, told The Associated. Argo How the CIA and Hollywood Pulled Off the Most Audacious Rescue in History, by Antonio Mendez and Matt Baglio, Viking, 2012, page 298. Historical fiction is still fiction and uses the techniques of fiction. Would we have gone with Tony at 50 percent? Furthermore, our presence was becoming an impediment to a possible negotiated hostage releasebecause if somehow there had been a breakthrough in the negotiations, the United States would have had to acknowledge our existence and ask us to be released, too. We have no idea what happens to her, and we leave the film knowing that those six, lucky Americans will never know who their real hero is. Iranians had every right to be pissed off we helped out a democratically elected representative and put a fucking tyrant in his place. The role of Sahar is played by Sheila Vand, a young Iranian-American actress. The Iranians are busy reassembling shredded paper, and they are hunting for the missing American personnel who are now pretending to be part of a film crew. (The filmmakers took some liberties with the facts, Mr . Links to the Internet Here was the heroic story American needed right now, and I felt it too the idea that America was, in fact, still heroic and clever, even if it had to be heroic and clever because it was stupid and invasive in the first place. It was manned by Leo Valdez, Piper McLean, Jason Grace, Frank Zhang, Hazel Levesque, Percy Jackson, and Annabeth Chase. The sheer audacity of the idea knocked the breath out of me. See also Discussion Questions for Use With any Film that is a Work of Fiction. That night, lying in bed, it was still Sahar and her shattered life I thought about, though. In fact, after getting that opening about the history of the U.S.s involvement in Iranian politics, I remained even more astounded that anyone came home at all. I told my captors the same thing many, many times. John insisted, Bring em all. After our experience with the British we had doubts about foreign embassies, and we did not want to impose ourselves on anyone. Wendy Nottingham. Evaluate how accurately the actors in the film portrayed the characters who were actually involved in the events themselves. Now, lets not pretend this film doesnt have Issues. I went to see Ben Afflecks new film Argo as soon as it hit the theaters last week. Argo, Ben Afflecks new movie about the rescue of six Americans from Iran, is a terrific thriller, even if you know the ending. If Iran had supported the overthrowing of our democratically elected leader, wed be pretty pissed off at them, too. And a few days later, Sam got into a screaming fight with the housekeeper, who was also Thai. Our Canadian hosts kept us confident and comfortable, and the plan hatched by Mendez worked even better than Argo suggests. The original postscript of the movie said that Taylor received 112 citations and awards for his work in freeing the hostages and suggested Taylor didn't deserve them because the movie ends with the CIA deciding to let Canada have the credit for helping the Americans escape. I was curious to note the similarities and differences to my own situation and, perhaps most important, to tease out the perspective that, in portraying the historic events that set the stage for U.S.-Iranian relations for the next 30-plus years, Affleck could not help but present. The ability to arrange the move in Thai gave us some confidence that our plans were private. The landlord was trying to sell the house, so she had to contend with him and with visits from potential buyers. As time permits, topics can include the following: Either through direct instruction or by way of a report from students, describe for the class what is accurate and inaccurate about the movie. 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