Imagine this: two CIA agents walk into a Latin American bar...
Chris (John Malkovich) and Lee (Sam Rockwell) are two CIA agents in Chile in 1973, soon before the deadly coup that same year. They find themselves on the island of Rapa Nui, better known as Easter Island, where they battle with past and present conspiracies.
In McDonagh's signature style, the film is a very dark comedy, but with a true emphasis on comedy as it filled the theatre with constant laughter. It is utterly dry and sharp, to the point of the jagged edge of Rapa Nui. The constant riffing and bitching can drag, although I found myself relishing the dynamic. The curses and jabs seem out of place on the grand scale of the island, with plenty of high-flying drone shots to display such majesty. As the title suggests, it is a place filled with wild horses, although I did not count whether there were nine. They are the sort of observers and neutral catalysts in whom Chris finds utter delight. A reminder of the link between the wildness of nature and man.
Malkovich does some truly exceptional work, which I say with reverence. His character, at his core, is reprehensible. Responsible for decades of CIA-backed coups, assassinations, and disorder. One would think he is a man undeserving of sympathy and kindness, but he is so utterly and often heartbreakingly human. His body is wracked with dementia and cancer, but as he nears the end of his life, his declining body seems to only bolster his morals. He is the exasperating thorn in the side of the McDonagh veteran and straight man in the dynamic; Rockwell, whose constant perturbed state comes from Chris' lack of care, more so when he freely admits to leftist Chilean students that they are here to destabilize and ultimately destroy their democracy. Is it the declining mental state or simply a desire to stop lying? I haven't asked Malkovich, but I have the feeling he would say both.
Indeed, it follows what we have come to know and expect from McDonagh: witty, rash, sharp, and violent. It is a work that fits neatly into his canon and complements the likes of In Bruges or A Behanding in Spokane. This was a truly enjoyable watch.
