Based on real events, it tells the story of a CIA agent who infiltrated Iran during the hostage crisis and rescued six Americans who had fled and were taken in by the Canadian ambassador. This transnational rescue operation, whose details were not disclosed until 1997, is obviously an excellent film material: heroism that can turn the tide, the shocking step by step, and the dark crossing with whimsy, not to mention that Hollywood has contributed a lot this time. No. Coupled with the recent American director's film insulting the Prophet Muhammad and the tragic attack on the US embassy in Libya, the film has attracted much attention.
It is generally in line with historical facts, although the real process is not so thrilling - they did not go to the market, there was no task cancellation storm, there was no separate questioning at the airport, and there was no scene of a car chasing a plane (does the tower have no phone). But I think such an adaptation is reasonable. After all, it is innocuous and everyone enjoys watching it, but it is just a little bit of aesthetic fatigue. As for some people questioning the film's political orientation, demonizing the Iranian people, and weakening Canada's credit, I also think it's not necessary - if it's a political film, it will inevitably have a tendency, and if it's a historical drama, some people will find faults. After all, this is a commercial film rather than a documentary. Xiaoben has a lot of climax and humor, and the beginning and the end also balance all parties. What more can you ask for?
Another feature of the film is that from the texture of the picture to the costumes and makeup, it deliberately creates the old movie flavor of that era. Finally, the comparison between the stills and the real photos once again shows the authenticity of the film and the pursuit of details.
Alan Arkin, who plays Hollywood producer, was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the Oscars, Golden Globes and BAFTA for the film. In fact, his role is not much, the characters and lines are the key.
With some background on the narration at the beginning of the film:
Iran, located in southwestern Asia, was known as Persia until 1935.
In 1925, the military officer in power, Reza Khan, deposed the last ruler of the Qajar dynasty and became the new Shah (that is, king) himself, establishing the Pahlavi dynasty. In 1935, he renamed Persia internationally as Iran.
Reza Khan's policy of neutrality in World War II and his refusal to expel the Germans led to the British and Soviet Union's invasion of Iran in 1941, arresting Reza Khan and exiling him. Reza Khan's son Pahlavi succeeded him.
In 1951, the Iranian parliament appointed the nationalist Mossadegh as prime minister. As soon as Mossadegh came to power, he implemented the nationalization of the oil industry, which was previously controlled by the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company (later known as British Petroleum, or BP). The move led to a 1953 coup d'état codenamed "Operation Ajax" by MI6 and the CIA. In the end, Mosaddegh was sentenced to three years in prison for treason by a military court, and was placed under house arrest until his death. Pahlavi, who had previously been in exile, returned to power.
Pahlavi was educated in the West and supported by the United States, so he launched a profound White Revolution in 1963. It should be said that this reform was of progressive significance, but due to overly radical policies, conflicts with the interests of the church, and the lavishness of the king’s personal life, it eventually aroused public anger and triggered the Iranian Revolution in 1979. Eventually, the Pahlavi monarchy was overthrown and Iran was established as the Islamic Republic of Iran, which remains to this day. Ayatollah Khomeini (the highest ranking among the twelve imams of Shiite Islam), who had been exiled for opposing the White Revolution, became the Supreme Leader of Iran. Politics and military power are combined.
The dying Pahlavi fled to Egypt and died a year later. During this period (October-December 1979), he also briefly treated patients in the United States, which aroused great dissatisfaction with the new Iranian government and became an important fuse for the hostage crisis in Iran.
The Iran hostage crisis went through:
On November 1, 1979, Khomeini called on the Iranian people to demonstrate against the United States and Israel, and soon more than a thousand people gathered around the American embassy to protest. On November 4, hundreds of Iranian students occupied the embassy in a disturbance, detaining 66 embassy personnel (3 of them at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs). The operation was originally intended to be just a show, but it became more and more out of control because of the support of the Iranian people and Khomeini himself. As a result, in addition to the 13 women and blacks who were released within 1 month, and one who was released after 8 months due to illness, the remaining 52 were imprisoned for up to 444 days.
During the captivity, although the hostages were rarely physically abused, they suffered a lot of mental damage, such as the masked and fake shooting in the film.
On January 28, 1980, six diplomats who fled to the Canadian ambassador's residence were rescued by the CIA and returned to their home country. That is the subject of the film.
Iran has demanded that the United States repatriate Pahlavi and apologize for its previous actions. Then-US President Jimmy Carter said he would never give in to blackmail and condemned Iran's violation of diplomatic immunity. On the one hand, he seeks humanitarian assistance, on the other hand imposes economic sanctions on Iraq, and on the other hand plans rescue operations. It's a pity that it was not effective, especially the military raid code-named "Operation Eagle Claw", which was canceled midway due to a sandstorm, and a plane collision occurred on the way back, killing 8 people in vain. After the action was exposed, international public opinion was in an uproar. Not only did the Delta Special Forces, who performed the mission for the first time, lose face, Carter was also implicated and failed to be re-elected.
At the end of July 1980, Pahlavi died of illness. In September, the Iran-Iraq war broke out. Both of these events make both parties hope the hostage incident will be resolved as soon as possible.
On January 20, 1981, shortly after President Reagan's inaugural speech, all the hostages were released and handed over to the United States. The hostages traveled to Algeria (the mediator), the West German air base, Ireland, and returned to the United States. So far, the 444-day Iranian hostage crisis has ended.
However, the relationship between the United States and Iran has since deteriorated and has not officially established diplomatic relations.
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