Related movies

• Alien
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• Rob Roy
• Shooting Dogs
• The Skeleton Key
• Syriana
• V for Vendetta

Related people

• John Hurt
• Michael Caton-Jones

John Hurt Q&A

The acting legend discusses working on his controversial new film, 'Shooting Dogs'.

Mar 29 2006

John Hurt made his name in TV dramas 'The Naked Civil Servant' and 'I, Claudius' before breaking into movies in the likes of 'Alien', 'The Elephant Man' and 'Scandal'. This week sees the release of Hurt's latest effort, 'Shooting Dogs', a powerful drama about the Rwandan genocide of 1994. Chris Tilly recently caught up with him to discuss the film.

How did you become involved with 'Shooting Dogs'?

I got involved through Michael Caton-Jones who contacted me and said 'I'm not sure you're going to be pleased with me John, but I think it's about time we worked together again'. When I got into the subject matter I realised what he was saying, because it's not something that you take on with open arms. You've got to take a very responsible position when dealing with a subject of that nature. I think one's apprehensive of doing something like this because it's not going to be an easy ride, but it turned out so different. We were working with Rwandans who were so generous, so determined to have their story told, and so helpful in every possible way. And so admirable as well – it made it into an extraordinary happening really.

Did you feel an increased responsibility because survivors of the genocide were working on the film?

To the degree that I couldn't possibly imagine making it anywhere else. I can't tell you how incredible they were – extraordinary people who have been through things that we couldn’t even possibly imagine and coming out the other side somehow.

Do you think it was a catharsis for those locals working on the film?

Oh yes, definitely, and therapeutic. And there was a huge desire that the world should see what their plight was.

Did you know much about the situation before you started work on the film?

Well I knew, like everybody else, and said 'oh, how terrible', like everybody else, but I was in a fairly impotent position, kind of like the United Nations while they were there. I can remember having quite a bit to say about us doing more to help, but what more could you do at the time? It came up so out of the blue – until it happened you didn't know anything, and then when it happens it's almost gone before you've realised it's all blown up. Certainly when you are sitting in the West.

Did you feel like Father Christopher was a character you could play immediately?

Well I didn't have to research the business of being a priest – my father was a clergyman so I know about that – so that side of it was quite simple in a sense. But playing the part is like playing any other part really. I don't want to make it sound perfunctory in any way, but it's the same use of the imagination, whether it be fiction or fact.

Watching it I kept putting myself in the western characters' positions and wondering what I would do. Did you find yourself doing that throughout the shoot?

I think it's very important that you should do that, and that's one of the reasons we used a conduit, by using two white people at different ends of their lives, in order to be able to understand something of Africa and its wildness. It's much less sophisticated than we are, and its conditioning is very different from ours too. It would be very difficult to make a film about Africa, with Africans, for the West, because there would be no way in. By using two Europeans, you create a conduit through which it can flow to higher understanding, and you can indeed say 'what would I have done?' It's one of the major questions.

Did you find yourself doing that?

Constantly. Constantly. All the time asking those questions. It’s tough, and it's supposition, whichever way you look at it. But they are questions that need to be asked.

With 'The Proposition', 'V For Vendetta' and now this, you seem to have a lot of films coming out in a very short space of time – how did that happen?

It's completely ludicrous – everything comes out at once. But that work took place over two and a half years, though for some of them I didn't do a great deal. 'Manderlay' only took two days. 'V For Vendetta' was quite a decent amount of time in Berlin last year. That's a very interesting film – I'm very intrigued to see how that works out. That touches on all sorts of subjects that those sorts of films never normally do. If one can just feel that people will go away with the subject of terrorism in terms of their own debate, then the film will have succeeded. It's a much more populist film than, say 'Syriana', but it deals with the same sorts of things. It's not an intellectual film in that sense, but it does bring up today's issues. And it probably will cause debate. I'm intrigued – I've come across journalists who have said they are going to give it five stars, and others who say 'I think it failed on this level and that level'.

We've had that same debate at work – I liked it but others didn't.

Well you either respond to it or you don't, but those that do respond to it talk about in terms of five stars.

Have you watched 'Shooting Dogs' with an audience yet?

I've watched the film four times now with audiences, and it works in exactly the same way everywhere that I've seen it. What I have got from it, particularly, is how well directed it is. It's Michael at his very best. I think it's probably his best film. I've done two others with him – 'Scandal' and 'Rob Roy' – both of which were no mean films, but this is seamlessly directed. Absolutely beautifully directed. Never at any stage, and he could have done this many times, does he say 'look at me the director'. It's a remarkable piece of work, and on very little money.

It looks like it had a big budget.

When you think that I made 'The Skeleton Key' just previous to 'Shooting Dogs' – the discrepancy between the budgets was $50 million. 'Skeleton Key' was $50 million and this was $6 million. And I reckon if you put the two of them together you'd say that the Rwandan film was the more expensive one.

'Shooting Dogs' is released on Friday. To read Time Out's review, click here.