"Argo's" Oscar Win Is Wedded to Politics

Having swept up several awards at the Golden Globes, “Argo” aspired to the Oscar for best picture of the year. Lead actor and director Ben Affleck’s opus has caught everyone’s attention.

The movie’s plot is not complicated. To summarize it in a sentence, the movie tells the story of how the CIA used a fake movie to extract American hostages from Tehran. Although most audiences watching the movie will be able to predict that the six hostages will safely escape Tehran, they will nevertheless likely become worried about the fate of the six hostages as the plot develops. Due to the film’s artistic techniques, the intensely exciting plot and the actors’ remarkable performances, it was only natural that this movie should win the little golden man, but politics can never remain completely absent from the Oscar voters.

“Argo” very effectively catered to people’s interest in Iran and the Middle East. Over the past 10 years, America and the Middle East have been engaged in serious conflicts. Following America’s unceasing intervention in the “global Balkans,” the Oscars have paid more and more attention to that region; from “The Hurt Locker” to “A Separation,” and now again with “Argo,” Americans over and over again use movies to focus on the Middle East. Given this, from the very beginning of the story, the choice of content established the intense level of “Argo”’s public attention and large audience base.

“Argo” is an “educational film” which exhibits the American style of individual heroism. Because the American government was worried that a failed mission could bring shame, Washington suddenly canceled the rescue plan. At the critical moment, the male lead Tony Mendez decides to disobey his orders, single-handedly brings his six compatriots home and forces the U.S. government to operate according to the original plan, and thus the values of American individual heroism are vividly described. According to the statistics, over half of the Oscar voters are over 60 years old, over 90 percent are white and over 70 percent are male. They are the spokespeople of mainstream American culture. “Argo” raises the banner of individual heroism, and thus the fact that it has received the favor of the judging panel is hardly surprising.

By the end of “Argo,” the six American diplomats are safely returned home; one could even say that it is a “happy ending.” But at the end of the film, the following line is spoken: “History is a farce that turns into a tragedy.” Some analysts believe that this thought-provoking lamentation is another highlight of the film, that it reflects the film’s reassessment of America’s policy toward the Middle East. If we recall the last 10 years, the situation in Southwest Asia and North Africa could be described as chaos, from the Afghanistan War to the Iraq War, from the Arab Spring to the civil war in Syria, many thousands of civilians have lost their lives and a million people have been left destitute and homeless. The expansion of the American democratic system has not borne substantial fruit, but rather has caused many nations to taste the bitter fruit of turmoil and unrest. Moreover, America has also paid with the lives of several thousand soldiers who have died in battle.

“Argo” did not win those awards by chance. Under the shining rays of the little golden man, movies and politics were married once again.