A spiritual sequel of sorts to Coup 53 yet very much its own film, Barbara Kopple’s Desert One honors the people who tried to bring home the Iranian hostages from the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, 40 years after a daring mission went horribly wrong.

Featuring an impressive breadth of interview subjects, extending to Delta Force family members and Iranian hostage takers, there’s a sense that the full story — or something very close to it — is being told in as objective a way as possible.

Kopple nimbly sets the scene for the international crisis and employs thrilling animation of the operation itself, tastefully depicting events of which there’s understandably no actual footage, and interjects previously unheard phone recordings between President Jimmy Carter and his top military leaders as the endeavor goes terribly awry.

This informative, suspenseful approach intelligently conveys the elevated stakes of the rescue operation, and the refreshing modern-day clips of tough military and government men being vulnerable while reflecting on the events is bound to inspire similar displays of emotion for all but the hardest hearts.

Grade: A-minus. Not rated. Available to rent via fineartstheatre.com and grailmoviehouse.com

(Photo: Greenwich Entertainment)