Argo

Ben Affleck has struck gold. Producing, directing, and starring in this thriller that, last weekend, four weeks out, was the highest grossing movie of the past weekend. And for good reason.

We were among the many who went to see Argo last weekend. The movie is true edge of your seat fare. The challenge of a historical movie, one in which we know the ending, is to create real drama. After all we know as we watch the movie that the plane carrying those being rescued will get in the air, they will evade the Iranians, and the plan to get them out will work.

Still, with these challenges, Affleck makes it work and work beyond compare.

The movie tells the story of six American embassy workers who escape from the takeover of the embassy by the Iranian protestors. Hidden by the Canadian embassy for a time what becomes clear is that they need to be brought out of the country before the Iranians discover their presence. Affleck as CIA agent Tony Mendez comes up with a plan, a crazy plan, to create a fake movie to provide cover for getting those embassy workers out of the country.

Casting in the movie is brilliant. Alan Arkin and John Goodman play the Hollywood types brought in to help create the supposed movie. Arkin is perfect in his role but truly needing to be recognized is Goodman. Is there anyone acting today that is better at these character rolls than John Goodman. Familiar faces abound in the movie, most however are not those one can put a name to but we know that we know them. Kyle Chandler of Friday Night Lights fame makes an appearance as Hodding Carter.

The movie in all respects however is all about Affleck. He dominates this movie and it is a good thing. His character is an agent who takes his job seriously and has a sense of responsibility toward each and every person he is to help.

As we watch a movie we often wonder about how it will age, this is a movie that could easily become a classic. A fantastic movie.

Super 8

Last Saturday my wife and my daughter went to this movie with me. We have heard the reviews and with me a Spielberg fan and my wife a Lost fan it seemed like a story we could agree on.

Plus one thing we can all agree on is that it is not summer unless you go see a pure escapist movie.

In the movie one can certainly see the traces of the fifties monster movie that Spielberg must remember from his youth. In this movie Joel Courtney plays Joe Lamb a 13 year old boy whose mother has been killed in a mill accident four months earlier leaving him with just his Dad Sheriff's Deputy Jackson Lamb. This character is played by the extremely likeable Kyle Chandler of Friday Night Lights fame. It may be that Chandler is now incapable of playing anyone but an earnest, likable, do the right thing in a quiet unassuming way with as little emotion expressed as possible role but if this is the case there is no doubt that he has the role down pat.

Joe Lamb accompanied by his friends to help his best friend Charles ( played by Riley Griffiths) film a zombie movie for a local film festival. Elle Fanning plays Alice Dainard a girl both the boys admire who ends up playing the female lead in thier movie. During thier filming a train goes by, a crash occurs and the kids are swept up into a plot line right out of the fifties monster movies.

This movie tells us a story, the film centers on buidling suspense in an understated way. There are chills mostly bumps in the night to provide goosebumps but in the end both the visitor terrorizing the city and young Joe learn what he says is true " that bad things happen but you have to go on living. "

A lesson we should all learn. Take your kids, take your family, take your date this is a very good summer movie.