Road to the Oscars #5: Best Picture

The nominees for Best Picture this year are all outstanding films that are most definitely worthy of this award. The nominees are Amour, Argo, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Django Unchained, Les Misérables, Life of Pi, Lincoln, Silver Linings Playbook, and Zero Dark Thirty. Although all the films that I have seen in this category are spectacular (minus Les Misérables), there is no question in my mind that this award deserves to be handed to Grant Heslov, Ben Affleck, and George Clooney for Argo.

Argo is a historical piece that takes place in 1979 during the Iranian Hostage Crisis, where one CIA operative comes up with a plan to create a fake movie in order to save six US Embassy workers trapped in Tehran. The film is by far the best I have seen in the past few years, creating a realistic world full of suspense and tension that kept me on the edge of my seat for the entire ride. I felt my stomach clench at the last moments when the 6 and Mendez, Affleck's character, almost didn't make it on the plane that would take them to safety. I laughed every time Alan Arkin exclaimed, "Argo fuck yourself!" The range of emotions I felt from this movie was unlike any other, making me feel connected in unexplainable ways that will forever be remembered by me.

Another piece of the beauty of Argo was the way it illustrated why Iran hates the United States so much. At the beginning of the film, it is explained that the United States and Great Britain placed a puppet of a leader in charge of Iran. This puppet did not care for the Iranian people and abused them in heinous ways, something the previous leader who the United States and Britain got rid of never did. This evil ruler was never checked by the nations who placed him there, causing the Iranian people to develop a great hatred for the two countries. Before, I had not understood specifically why the Iranians want to see the end of America; because of Argo, I now know why.

A cynical reason of mine for why Argo will win Best Picture is because of the fine line it walks between showing the mistakes and true nature of the United States while still keeping the movie "feel-good" and pro-America, a line that Zero Dark Thirty so obviously crossed. Although I commend Zero Dark Thirty for its boldness and illustration of the (partial) truth behind Osama bin Laden's murder, many will not feel the same way, and thus many will not vote for it to be chosen as Best Picture. Argo's slightly comedic yet intense take on the Middle East issues is brighter and less condemning than Zero Dark Thirty. It has a "happy" ending, one that resonates with the general American populace much more strongly and buoyantly than the eventual murder of Osama bin Laden in Zero Dark Thirty. This is the main reason why Argo will succeed over the brilliantly done Zero Dark Thirty.

In my opinion, Argo has Best Picture in the bag. Its outstanding acting, story line, overall cinematic quality, and generally pro-America attitude will all contribute to the film's success in this category, even though it was not nominated for Best Director as it should have been. When it wins, Ben Affleck can finally say to the Academy who didn't nominate him: "Argo fuck yourself!"