Toxic male friendships built on cruelty and violence are a familiar theme for Martin McDonagh, one that he returns to in Wild Horse Nine. The film stars John Malkovich, in a role that could lead to a Best Picture Oscar nomination, and Sam Rockwell, who already won an award for McDonagh’s Three Billboards, as undercover CIA agents fomenting political unrest in 1973 Chile while also grappling with past sins.
Written and directed by McDonagh, Wild Horse Nine premiered in Venice earlier this year. It recently played at Toronto, which is where I was finally able to catch up with it. The buzz for Malkovich’s performance is legit. He’s never been this funny, sympathetic, and menacing all at the same time.
Also in the cast are Steve Buscemi, Parker Posey, Tom Waits, Mariana di Girolamo, and Ailín Salas.
Here’s the official synopsis: Shortly before the 1973 Chilean coup, CIA agents Chris and Lee are dispatched from Santiago to Easter island by their bureau chief, MJ. Amongst the Island’s iconic statues, and as the longtime partners wrestle with their dark pasts and present conspiracies, Chris’s newfound bond with a pair of rebellious students threatens to send everyone’s trip to this remote paradise sideways.
Searchlight Pictures releases Wild Horse Nine in theaters on November 6th.
