Director Taghi Amirani wanted to shine a light on Britain’s involvement in the 1953 coup that overthrew then prime minister of Iran, Mohammad Mossadegh. The documentary “Coup 53” released this week on the anniversary of the events. According to the New York Times, British involvement isn’t a secret, and the United State’s involvement has also been acknowledged. 

The documentary uses Amirani’s personal connection and desire to track down information to detail the events, capturing the director and writer throughout his work on the investigation. It also uses archival footage that spans across years creating the narrative that leads up to the overthrow. While the film investigates the details of a historic event, it leaves room for dialogue around the existing impacts to today. Larry speaks with Amirani and co-writer Walter Murch about the newly released film, what it took to visually capture the events and how Amirani’s personal connections with Iran and Britain played into the storytelling. 

Guests:

Taghi Amirani, director and co-writer of “Coup 53”; he tweets

Walter Murch, co-writer of “Coup 53”