Coup 53 (2019)

Introduction Coup 53 is a 2019 documentary about the 1953 Iranian coup d’état AKA “Operation AJAX” to overthrow Iranian prime minister Mohammad Mosaddegh, co-written and directed by Taghi Amirani and co-written and edited by Walter Murch. Outline Theatrical feature documentary on the story of Operation Ajax, the CIA/MI6 staged coup in 1953 in Iran that…

Andrew Marshall

01/09/2020

2–3 minutes

Coup, Coup d'Etat, History, Military Coup, Military Documentary, Operation Ajax

Introduction

Coup 53 is a 2019 documentary about the 1953 Iranian coup d’état AKA “Operation AJAX” to overthrow Iranian prime minister Mohammad Mosaddegh, co-written and directed by Taghi Amirani and co-written and edited by Walter Murch.

Outline

Theatrical feature documentary on the story of Operation Ajax, the CIA/MI6 staged coup in 1953 in Iran that overthrew Prime Minister Mossadegh.

Production

The film, directed by Taghi Amirani, was edited and co-written by Walter Murch. Amirani devoted several years of sleuthing to research the story behind the 1953 coup. The film relates the escape of Amirani’s family from Iran to England and then follows Amirani as he uncovers the evidence of the plot hatched by British and US intelligence, led by the CIA’s Kermit Roosevelt Jr.

Central to the documentary is a series of clips in which actor Ralph Fiennes reads from a transcript of an interview with MI6 agent Norman Darbyshire, who admitted to plotting the coup (codenamed “Operation Ajax”) together with the CIA.

Cast

People interviewed by the makers of Coup 53 include:

Ralph Fiennes as Norman Darbyshire.
Walter Murch as self.
Taghi Amirani as self.
David Talbot as self.
Stephen Kinzer as self.
Ervand Abrahamian as self.
Malcolm Byrne as self.

The documentary also draws on footage from an episode of the 1985 UK TV documentary series End of Empire, produced by Granada Television.

Release

Coup 53’s world premiere was at the 2019 Telluride Film Festival, and it also played the 2019 BFI London Film Festival. At the 2019 Vancouver International Film Festival, It was released to the general public on 19 August 2020 with an online release in the USA, UK, Canada and Ireland using the platform Eventive.

Reception

Coup 53 won the audience award for Most Popular International Documentary at the Vancouver International Film Festival. The film has received a nomination for Best Documentary, in the British Independent Film Awards.

Coup 53 has received positive reviews from critics. As of August 2020, 100% of the 29 reviews compiled on Rotten Tomatoes are positive, with an average rating of 8.01/10. The website’s critics consensus reads: “Rife with the political intrigue promised by its title, Coup 53 is a spellbinding documentary with the heart of a thriller.” The critical aggregator Metacritic awarded the film a score of 80 indicating “generally favourable reviews”.

Production & Filming Details

Director(s): Taghi Amirani.
Producer(s): Taghi Amirani and Paul Zaentz.
Writer(s): Taghi Amirani and Walter Murch.
Music: Robert Miller.
Cinematography: Taghi Amirani, Simon Fanthorpe, Chris Morphet, Claudia Raschke, Vicente Franco, and Ben Richards.
Editor(s): Walter Murch.
Production: Amirani Media.
Release Date: 31 August 2019 (Telluride Film Festival).
Running Time: 118-120 minutes.
Rating: 15.
Country: UK.
Language: English and Persian.

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