|
 McKay was fascinated by the power that Cheney quietly amassed
behind the scenes of the George W. Bush administration, and he
was inspired to write and direct "Vice," which opens in movie
theaters on Christmas, to show how that happened.
"How did this guy who was so uncharismatic and so shadowy affect
history to this degree?" McKay said in an interview.
In "Vice," Christian Bale portrays Cheney as a conniving
opportunist who steers Bush into an ill-conceived war in Iraq
after the Sept. 11 attacks. But the film also tells the love
story of Cheney and his wife, Lynne (Amy Adams), and shows
tender moments with his two daughters.
"We really tried to make it a character portrait more than about
right versus left, really trying to understand the path that
America took," McKay said.
"It was a story that went from humble American ambition into
power into something darker," he added.
McKay, whose credits include wacky Will Ferrell comedies such as
"Anchorman," won a screenwriting Oscar for using unconventional
tactics to describe the U.S. housing meltdown in "The Big
Short." In "Vice," he intersperses drama with fantasy sequences
including an imagined scene where Dick and Lynne Cheney break
into Shakespearean-style dialogue to plot his next career move.
SIX NOMINATIONS
"Vice" earned six Golden Globe nominations, more than any other
film, and is considered a contender for the Academy Awards.
[to top of second column] |
Some conservatives have attacked the film as a liberal Hollywood
spin on Cheney's ascent. The National Review's Kyle Smith said
McKay, a donor to Democratic candidates, crafted "left-wing fantasy
dialogue" to make a point.
McKay said "Vice" underwent rigorous fact-checking and some Cheney
fans "still can't admit they were wrong" in backing the Iraq war.
"Anyone that says it's a liberal bias, I would love for them to
point out what's not accurate. We clearly invaded Iraq, clearly the
intelligence was questionable, clearly Cheney did X, Y and Z," he
said.
Representatives for the Cheneys did not immediately respond to
requests for comment. McKay said he believes Cheney would not object
to "the first 99 percent of the movie."
"At the end, there's definitely an implication that things have come
undone," McKay said. "He wouldn't agree with that, but I would think
up until that point he'd just watch and go 'Yeah, that's what
happened.'"
Said Bale of Cheney: "He's a thick-skinned individual. I don't think
he's going to give a damn."
(Reporting by Lisa Richwine; Additional reporting by Rollo Ross;
editing by Bill Tarrant, David Gregorio and Cynthia Osterman)
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