Let me finish tonight with this.
I see most of the good new movies that come out. I can remember only one in which the audience applauded: it was Argo.
For whose benefit were they applauding? The theater manager? The projectionist?
The truth is, the only truth, is that they were applauding the fact that, finally, they had just seen a movie that showed an American success story. No dark humor, just the fun of seeing an escapade succeeding, a group of Americans escaping from their captivity in Iran. No cynical anti-heroes, just straight-arrow heroes, people serving their country and this scared group that desperately needed help.
I’m glad it won the Golden Globe last night for drama, glad that Les Mis won for musical. Both are heroic tales, one old, one new; one fictional, one joyously as true as yesterday’s headlines.
Chris Matthews