"Argo" - unexpectedly well directed political thriller

When the name "Ben Affleck" appear on the screen, one usually knows what to expect. Affleck as an actor does not really get many compliments. But when he decides to direct others - ah - that's a different story. His several other projects have brought him exactly to the place he is at right now. Praised and awarded, established, well-to-do, influential director - that's what he is, when promoting "Argo." The movie itself is a wonderful political thriller with solid background actors: magnificent John Goodman and Alan Arkin, along with Bryan Cranston, Tate Donovan and Scoot McNairy. Affleck plays the main character, but although his acting lacks passion and vigour, he doesn't spoil everything.
"Argo" is about a very imaginative covert operation led by the CIA in the beginning of 1980 in Tehran (Iran). Historians will remember that it was an extremely difficult time to be American and be there personally, as Shah Reza Pahlavi, supported by the US had to flee Iran and leave the spot for Ajatollah Khomeini - a religious and political leader. The hostage situation in an American embassy requires certain controversial actions from the CIA, and exfil agent Tony Mendez (Affleck) thinks of an ingenious plan to get the six escapees currently living in the house of Canadian ambassador out of Tehran safely. In order to do that, he establishes a hoax production of a B-class sci-fi movie called "Argo," that is supposed to be shot in locations around Tehran.
The movie is very enjoyable and thrilling to watch, although critics say it's rather nationalistic and one-sided. Of course it doesn't tell the whole story, it's just inspired by real events, but nevertheless one can sense the echoing of "All the President's Men" and "Munich," and that actually is the best recommendation there is.
My review here.

Golden Globes 2013 Nominees

On December 13th 2012, exactly a month before the award ceremony, the nominees for the 2013 Golden Globes have been announced. The dates are important here, because the final ceremony will take place just two days before the nominees for Academy Awards are revealed.
Who has biggest chances of winning this year?
It seems that over the years the "who-got-the-most-nominations-must-be-likely-to-get-the-most-awards" predictor has lost its impact and importance. Nevertheless, Hollywood loves Steven Spielberg, and Daniel Day-Lewis as well, and when they both tell the story of one of the most beloved yet controversial politicians and presidents in the history of the United States - Abraham Lincoln, these 7 nominations seem like a good score. "Argo" and "Django Unchained" are close behind, with 5 nominations each, but it seems, that "Zero Dark Thirty" with 4 nominations (along "Les Miserables" and "Silver Linings Playbook") might end up as a dark horse of the race.
More from The New York Times, Los Angeles Times and on the official website.

BEST PICTURE: DRAMA 
"Argo" 
"Django Unchained" 
"Life of Pi" 
"Lincoln" 
"Zero Dark Thirty"

National Board of Review Awards

The Board is one the most prominent New York societies that have a say in the movie business. It was established as early as in 1909. The ballots for the awards are distributed among 110 members of the society, and the members are selected from film enthusiasts, academics, filmmakers and students. Of course, it's not the same as the Academy, but surely it mirrors the actual worth of a film more than the Oscars. 

Based on the results, it seems that Kathryn Bigelow is sure to get a few Oscars nominations for her film and a couple more awards on the way. This would be absolutely unprecedented. Never in the history was a female-director so successful. Way to go! Other nods include Ben Affleck - really, serious repertoire does good by him, and "Silver Linings Playbook," so far the biggest mystery, as it only premiered in the US.

More on the Awards here.

This year's winners are:

Best Film: "ZERO DARK THIRTY"

Best Director: Kathryn BIGELOW for "ZERO DARK THIRTY"