Argo Movie Quotes

"Argo" movie quotes capture the dialogue of the 2012 political thriller based on the true story of a daring hostage rescue of six Americans during the Iran hostage crisis in 1979. The film, starring, directed and produced by Ben Affleck, received critical acclaim after it premiered at the Telluride Film Festival on August 31, 2012, and went on to receive seven Academy Award nominations including for Best Picture and Best Adapted Screenplay.

In "Argo," six Americans escape as militants take over the US Embassy in Tehran, Iran, and find sanctuary in the home of the Canadian Ambassador. Due to the Iranian Revolution, it's arguably unsafe for these Americans to simply walk out of this refuge to travel home which creates a very difficult situation for the CIA, which is under pressure from the White House to bring them back safely. The CIA brainstorms several ideas on how to accomplish that but each are worse than the next.

That is until Tony Mendez (Affleck) comes up with the idea to fake a movie shoot in Tehran and extract the Americans by claiming they are all part of the Canadian film crew. The plan requires the utmost attention to detail and cooperation of many in the entertainment industry but is eventually approved as the best way to save these Americans. Bryan Cranston, Alan Arkin, John Goodman, Tate Donovan and many more co-star in this drama film co-produced by George Clooney.

Tony Mendez: "I got an idea. They're a Canadian film crew for a science-fiction movie. I fly into Tehran, we all fly out together as film crew."

Jimmy Carter: "Actions in Iran have shocked the civilized world. The Embassy had been seized and more than 60 American citizens continue to be held as hostages."

Lester Siegel: "Argo f*** yourself."

John Chambers: "How about 'The Horses of Achilles?'"
Lester Siegel: "No good, nobody does Westerns anymore."
John Chambers: "It's Ancient Troy"
Lester Siegel: "If it's got horses in it, it's a Western."
John Chambers: [on phone] "Hey, Kenny please. Yeah, it's John Chambers about the officer space." [to Lester] "It doesn't matter, it's a fake movie."
Lester Siegel: "If I'm doing a fake movie, it's going to be a fake hit."
John Chambers: [on phone] "Hey is A006 still on the open list? Yeah, I'll hold."
Tony Mendez: "Fade in on a starship landing, an exotic Middle Eastern vibe. Women gather offering exotic libations to the sky gods. Argo, a science fantasy adventure."
Lester Siegel: "It's a turnaround."
John Chambers: "Can we get the option?"
Tony Mendez: "Why do we need the option?"
Lester Siegel: "You're worried about the Ayatollah? Try the WGA."

Jon Bates: "They've been hiding at the Canadian Ambassador's residence. Fortunately, we do not believe that the Iranians are aware the six have escaped."
Adam Engell: "So, what we like for this are bicycles. We've identified back roads from the Chemaran District. Some of the rat lines to the mountains till they cross into Tabriz. Cars are off the table because of the road blocks."
Jon Bates: "We wait until the weather clears up then deliver the six bikes, provide them with maps to the Turkish border."
Adam Engell: "We have intelligence they can ride bicycles or we're prepared to send in somebody to teach them."
Tony Mendez: "Or you could just send in training wheels and meet them at the border with Gatorade.
Jon Bates: "Tony"
Tony Mendez: "It's 300 miles to the Turkish border. They'd need a support team following them with a tire pump."
Official: "We were just asked to sharp-shoot this. Data's handling the op."
Adam Engell: "I'm sorry, who is this?"
Jack O'Donnell: "Tony is an exfils spesh. He got a lot of the Shaw's people out after the fall."
Tony Mendez: "It's winter. You can't afford to wait around till spring so it's nice enough to take a bike ride. The only way out of that city is the airport. You build new cover identities for them, you send in a Moses, he takes them out on a commercial flight."

Tony Mendez: "Where was your passport issued?"
Robert Anders: "Vancouver"
Tony Mendez: "Where were you born?"
Robert Anders: "Toronto"
Tony Mendez: "Toronto, Canadians don't pronounce the T."
Lee Schatz: "Some Komiteh guard is actually going to know that?"
Tony Mendez: "If you are detained for questioning they will bring in someone who knows that, yes... Mary, who are the last three prime ministers of Canada?"
Cora Lijek: "Uh, Trudeau, Pearson and Diefenbaker"
Tony Mendez: "What's your father's name?"
Cora Lijek: "Howard"
Tony Mendez: "What's his occupation?"
Cora Lijek: "Fisherman"
Tony Mendez: "Where were you born?"
Cora Lijek: "Haxifax, Nova Scotia"
Tony Mendez: "What's your date of birth?"
Cora Lijek: "February 21, 1952"
Tony Mendez: "Good. What's your job on the movie?"
Joe Stafford: "Producer"
Tony Mendez: "Associate producer. What's the last movie you produced?"
Joe Stafford: "High and Dry"
Tony Mendez: "Who paid for that?"
Joe Stafford: "The CFDC"
Tony Mendez: "What's your middle name? What's your middle name? What's your middle name?"
Joe Stafford: "Leon"
Tony Mendez: "Shoot him. He's an American spy... Look, they're going to try to break you, OK, by trying to get you agitated. You have to know your resume back to front."
Henry Schatz: "You really believe your little story's going to make a difference when there's a gun to our heads?"
Tony Mendez: "I think my story's the only thing between you and a gun to your head."

John Chambers: "Target audience will hate it."
Tony Mendez: "Who's the target audience?"
John Chambers: "People with eyes"

Lester Siegel: "Okay, you got six people hiding out in a town of what, four million, all of whom chant 'death to America' all the live long day. You want to set up a movie in a week. You want to lie to Hollywood, a town where everybody lies for a living, then you get to sneak Double 07 over here into a country that wants CIA blood in their breakfast cereal then you're going to walk the Brady Bunch out of the most-watched city in the world?"
Tony Mendez: "Plus about 100 militia at the airport, that's right."
Lester Siegel: "Right... Look, I gotta tell you, we did suicide missions in the Army that had better odds than this."

Official: "Aliens and robots?"
Tony Mendez: "Yes, sir"
Official: "You're telling me that there is a movie company in Hollywood right now that is funded by the CIA?"
Tony Mendez: "Yes, sir"
Second official: "What's wrong with the bikes again?"
Jack O'Donnell: "We tried to get the message upstairs..."
Official: "You think... You think this more plausible than teachers?"
Jack O'Donnell: "Yes, we do. One, there are no more foreign teachers in Iran."
Tony Mendez: "And we think everyone knows Hollywood people. And everybody knows they'd shoot in Stalingrad with Pol Pot directing if it would sell tickets. There are only bad options. It's about finding the best one."
Official: "You don't have a better bad idea than this?"
Jack O'Donnell: "This is the best bad idea we have, sir, by far."
Official: "The United States Government has just sanctioned your science-fiction movie."
Tony Mendez: "Thank you, sir"

John Chambers: "Well this one's got an M.A. in English. She should be your screenwriter. Sometimes they go along on scouts cause they want the free meals. Here's your director."
Tony Mendez: "You can teach somebody to be a director in a day?"
John Chambers: "You can teach a recess monkey to be a director in a day. Look, if you're going to do this, you gotta do it. The Kominiacs are fruit loops but they got cousins who sell prayer rugs and 8-tracks on Le Brea. You can't book cover stories about a movie that doesn't exist. You need a script. You need a producer."
Tony Mendez: "Make me a producer."
John Chambers: "No, you're an associate producer at best. You're going to do a $20 million dollar 'Star Wars' rip-off, you need somebody who's a somebody to put their name on it, somebody respectable... with credits... who you can trust with classified information... who will produce a fake movie... for free."