Martin McDonagh's latest film, Wild Horse Nine, features John Malkovich and Sam Rockwell as bickering CIA agents in 1973 on Easter Island. The two actors and the director discussed the film, conspiracy theories, and death ahead of its premiere at the Venice film festival.
Bickering agents and a dying wish
In the film, Malkovich and Rockwell play Chris and Lee, CIA agents fresh from plotting the 1973 coup in Chile. They are on Rapa Nui amid crashing waves and moai statues. Chris has cancer and asks Lee for one last favour: "Shoot me in the head on Easter Island."
McDonagh wrote GUILT and REGRET at the top of page one of the script. The film opens in Santiago before moving to the South Pacific, where Chris, a CIA veteran, claims he knows who killed JFK and plans to reveal it.
Conspiracy and politics
McDonagh said he believes in the JFK conspiracy. "I definitely think there was something going on," he said. "Was Lee Harvey Oswald involved? More than likely. Was he the lone gunman? I don't believe that for a second."
The film was not intended as a comment on present-day US politics, but the shoot coincided with Donald Trump's strike on Venezuela. McDonagh said: "I don't think Trump is the worst president that we've had. Nixon was more of a fascist pig. George W Bush probably killed more people than Trump. The difference is that with old-timey fascism, you at least had to keep it secret. These days you don't have to hide it any more."
Rehearsals and life on Rapa Nui
Malkovich and Rockwell rehearsed extensively. Malkovich said: "Sam and I did each scene at least a thousand times." Rockwell added: "We ran it on the weekends. John's a workhorse."
They spent six weeks on Rapa Nui. Malkovich said: "I have two granddaughters, so it was a long time away from them. But it's a great place to shoot because there's nothing else to do. You can swim with the turtles but that's about it."
Rockwell recalled: "Every night we had a little Chile wine and some rum. And there was a drink made with sugarcane." His partner, Leslie Bibb, identified it as a pisco sour.
Death and the ideal exit
Malkovich, who has not voted since 1972, said he is not a believer in democracy. "I'm not practising," he said. Rockwell said: "I vote with faint hope."
Asked where he would ideally die, Malkovich recalled a Casanova opera he toured with 15 years ago, in which his character fakes a heart attack. He said: "It wouldn't be the worst way to go."
Wild Horse Nine is released in the US, UK and Ireland on 6 November and in Australia on 5 November.
