Starring: Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, Alan Arkin, John Goodman, Victor Garber, Tate Donovan, Clea DuVall

Director: Ben Affleck

A SKILFULLY made grownup entertainment, “Argo” combines an incredible true story with crafty thriller conventions to produce a crowd-pleasing drama that should go down easy with Oscar voters. “Argo” represents another step forward for director Ben Affleck, and while its polished professionalism doesn’t negate the film’s flaws, the precision of its set pieces and the confidence of its execution are almost as convincing as the unlikely scam the movie’s heroes pull off.

    This Warner Bros. offering is based on the 1979 takeover of the U.S. embassy in Iran by militants, which forced six staff members to seek refuge in the Canadian embassy. With the Iranian Revolution raging and the American staffers in danger, CIA operative Tony Mendez (Affleck) hatched a desperate plan: Work with a Hollywood producer (Alan Arkin) and Oscar-winning makeup artist (John Goodman) to concoct a fake sci-fi movie and convince the Iranian authorities that the Americans are actually part of a Canadian film crew in Iran to scout locations.

    As preposterous as that plan sounds, “Argo” documents real events. (“Argo” takes its name from the sci-fi film, although, amusingly, no one seems to know what the title means.) Affleck finds room in his thriller to acknowledge just how ludicrous this covert operation really was, and as a result, “Argo” is something of a comedic heist film, with the first half concentrated on Mendez’s journey to Los Angeles to get together his creative team for the phoney film and then the second half devoted to his trip to Tehran to bring the Americans home.

    Initially, there’s a good deal of humor at the expense of Hollywood’s mendacity and phoniness, some of which tends to be a little too backslapping and self-congratulatory, but soon the film becomes more anxious, and Affleck smoothly navigates the tonal shift from satire to suspense.

    As he demonstrated with “The Town,” Affleck has a knack for tight, gripping action sequences, and “Argo” boasts three: the opening siege of the U.S. embassy, and then two during Mendez’s time in Iran, including a harrowing escape attempt. Without relying on frenetic editing gimmicks or overblown violence, Affleck adroitly executes each sequence, nicely building tension with intelligence and restraint.

    If there’s a major quibble with the film, it’s that the movie’s clockwork-like efficiency sacrifices character depth. Affleck gives a soulful, understated performance as Mendez, a man whose commitment to his country has wrecked his family, but beyond the actor’s inherent sincerity, the character is mysterious in a way that suggests a lack of script development rather than an intriguing artistic choice. (“Argo” is the first produced full-length screenplay from Chris Terrio.) The same problem afflicts the imperiled Americans, despite the best efforts of Tate Donovan, Rory Cochrane and their cast mates. Affleck has done a robust job making a movie about their rescue, but his film doesn’t do much to really get to know them.

    The movie is now being screened in Hong Kong. (SD-Agencies)