Mamet: 'Spartan' plot isn't that far-fetched

Writer-director David Mamet, right, chose Val Kilmer for the lead in 'Spartan,' despite Kilmer's reputation for rewriting his lines. WARNER BROS. PICTURES

By Chris Garcia
American-Statesman Film Writer

Posted: March 12, 2004

"Write it down, Oct. 17," says David Mamet, when asked to defend the presumption of his riveting new thriller, "Spartan," which is that the American public is blissfully unaware of how its government really operates.

"That's the day they (meaning the Bush administration) announce that they have found bin Laden," says Mamet. "If I'm wrong, it will only be because its hand has been forced by a reporter with no one's water to carry or a turncoat. This is a vicious game and it always has been, and most of the time the public would just rather not know."

Mamet may be one of the few show-business figures worth taking seriously on such subjects, and not just because he can claim among his writing credits the all-too-prescient satire "Wag the Dog," about an administration that invents a war to distract the public from a sexual scandal.

For one thing, Mamet has never been burdened by a liberal agenda. For another, he immersed himself in the history of the military and espionage before writing "Spartan," which is not about a Michigan State athlete.

"I read reams," says Mamet, rattling off a long list of tomes, from books on the CIA and military defense to international political histories, investigations and memoirs. His conclusion is that anyone who doesn't acknowledge the existence of government-approved or -assisted conspiracies and off-the-books missions is either hopelessly or purposely naive.

Not that all conspiracies are created equal, Mamet allows: There's far more evidence, for example, of an agreement to prevent the release of the American hostages in Iran until after Ronald Reagan's inauguration in 1981 than there is of any involvement by Lyndon Johnson and the CIA in the assassination of John F. Kennedy.

Mamet bows to no one in his explorations of men and power, but "Spartan" is first and foremost a thriller. It bears a far greater resemblance to the intricate macho manipulations of his "Glengarry Glen Ross" and "House of Games" in content and style than to recent plays like "Boston Marriage," a period piece about a lesbian relationship, and semisweet confections like the film "State and Main."

"Spartan" stars Val Kilmer as a special operations officer called to duty when "the girl" goes missing. Her identity is kept a mystery for some time, but from the presence of high-level government officials at every level of the investigation, we can assume it is not the niece of an agriculture secretary.

With its machine-gun dialogue, unabashed masculinity and moral dilemmas, "Spartan" will almost certainly be compared to the work that made Mamet a brand name. He views it, not surprisingly, as completely contemporary, a reflection of the present, though one viewed through a cracked mirror.

"To run for office in this climate, one has to either join or accept the reality of secret societies and make constant decisions about secret knowledge. Not that the movie business or the real estate business isn't similar, it's just that the stakes aren't as high when you're using currency as opposed to human beings as your game pieces," Mamet says.

Mamet wrote "Spartan" at the suggestion of producer and fellow Chicagoan Art Linson, who shares Mamet's fascination with power and moral corruption (his credits include "Fight Club" and "Heat"). He has teamed with Mamet on projects including "The Untouchables" and the con-man caper "Heist."

It was Linson who suggested Val Kilmer for the role of the secret ops agent who ends up a target of the people he supposedly works for, and if Mamet knew about Kilmer's reputation as a problem child, he didn't care.

"I had an absolute blast working with Val," says Mamet. "One of the most pleasurable experiences with an actor I've ever had."

Though Kilmer is notorious for rewriting the dialogue of his characters, Mamet's rhythmic, percussive approach to writing and directing (he does both here) does not lend itself to too much interpretation, which is one reason he tends to use the same actors — including William H. Macy, who has a pivotal role in "Spartan" — over and over.

Kilmer says he had no reason to want to rewrite a word.

"Come on, this guy's the best at what he does, and he has something most writers and directors don't these days, which is backbone," says Kilmer.

"When you're dealing with somebody who is actually in charge, and who knows what he's talking about, you can have a real collaboration without having to go to the mat."

While Mamet was putting the finishing touches on "Spartan," he was also in preproduction on his version of "Dr. Faustus," which opened in San Francisco last month to mixed reviews.

Meanwhile, he is at work on his next film script, which he says tells the story of Joan of Arc's dog, Fluffy, "the dog who saved France." Assuring the writer he is not pulling his leg, he says the film has already been shopped to, and rejected by, most of the Hollywood studios.

"When they can't understand it, I figure I'm on the right track, so, so far, so good."