For, it turns out, the actor believes in that least fashionable of causes: Do we think that the nuclear threat has gone, that the nuclear destruction of the planet is not imminent? It's a delusion to think it's gone away. He hopes the movie will not just be a history lesson, but a wake-up call for the present.
Does Costner support that? It's an unusual view, especially in America where the consensus holds that the existence of nuclear arsenals on both sides has kept the peace. We haven't always known when to swing - we had dumb interests in Vietnam - but I just wish that, when we swing, it isn't with a nuclear right arm.
To him it's all very obvious. I'd like to go to Israel or Beirut, or to Yugoslavia the way it used to be. Or Moscow, or the South Pacific. But it's not a safe world, it's a dangerous world. If Kevin Costner, peacenik, is a surprise, the rest of his world view should not be. For there is something in that soft voice, warm tan and freshly gelled hair that suggests a wide-eyed, almost Pollyanna-ish outlook on life. He is, after all, the star of Field of Dreams - the man who told the folk at the US embassy of his pride and heart-felt love of his country.
The Costner philosophy is influenced by California - he speaks about being an "evolved human being" - but it is quintessentially all-American.
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It is nostalgic for a simpler era, the days of baseball greats and noble presidents. But it is also, even naively, full of faith and optimism. So the actor refuses to accept that the Kennedy era might have been the golden age of political leadership. He does not believe what some might infer from his new film: You know, we've grown cynical.
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And look at what we do to all our heroes: Churchill, FDR, Kennedy, they all had affairs. But heroic things happen every day. I believe people who go into politics want to do the right thing. And then they hit a big wall of re-election and the pettiness of politics.
In the end, politics gets in the way of the business of people. But if the heroic era is not behind us, what about the new man in Kennedy's chair? If George W faced a Cuban missile crisis today, would he act like JFK, weighing all the advice before coming to the wisest, safest decision? We've had 43 presidents from all across the board.
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But a good president, a good leader, is not always the smartest man in the room. John [he refers to Kennedy by his first name] combined being a philosopher and a great leader. And George [Bush gets the first-name treatment too] he's leaning heavily on his ability to judge the character of the people in his cabinet.
He's going to be more of a delegator. But surely the lesson of Thirteen Days is that delegating is not good enough.
Kevin Costner on racism, Hollywood, and being an American hero
Ultimately the president must decide alone. I'm just hoping for the best. This Pollyanna-ism extends to his personal politics. Costner won't say how he voted in November, but he does admit to giving money to the campaigns of both Bush and Al Gore. I vote for the best person. If Costner is very California and very all-American, he is also very Hollywood.
The movie town has always had this attitude to politics: You can see it today in West Wing, with Martin Sheen playing Hollywood's dream president - a liberal, ethical good man. Perhaps that's the best description of Costner's world-view: He says he does not see himself as an actor, but as "a citizen of the world". Still, that need not be an obstacle.
If politics is showbusiness for ugly people, might Kevin Costner ever turn the maxim on his head - and trade movies for elected office? I want to move faster than that would allow. And the pettiness that has slipped into politics, the hour-a-day process of being re-elected, doesn't appeal to me. And the gridlock, that if something's a good idea for you then it must be a bad idea for the other side.
So, we shouldn't hold our breath for President Costner just yet. After all, he didn't even grab his chance at playing a president, ceding the Kennedy role in Thirteen Days to Greenwood. He was a better JFK than I would have been. Given all this - the apparent awareness of his own limitations, the apple pie idealism - why is it that Costner has eluded the affection ladled out to the father of Capra-ism, James Stewart, and his modern descendant, Tom Hanks? Why is it that the name Costner prompts as many sniggers as bouquets?
Kevin Costner - IMDb
Why does he seem to attract so much schadenfreude? Witness the clear pleasure that greeted the bellyflop that was Waterworld or the wave of ignominy currently descending on his latest US release, Miles to Graceland, a caper movie in which Costner teams with Kurt Russell as a pair of criminal Elvis impersonators. One critic wrote that " Miles is one of those movies that makes you want to throw up your hands in despair, disgust or maybe both".
The key to this lack of kindness may lie somewhere in the black-and-white sequences of In Bed with Madonna, the singer's fly-on-the-wall documentary about her world tour of One scene shows Costner, fresh from his multiple-Oscar winning triumph with Dances with Wolves, popping backstage after catching her show. He tells the star he thought it was "neat" - at which Madonna sticks a finger down her throat in a mock barf. Madonna tends to have a good instinct for popular feeling. Did she know that most of her audience would feel the same way as she did about Costner, that there is something about him just a little uncool?
Costner is not taking the bait. He refuses to ape the director of the new Russell Crowe-Meg Ryan vehicle and diss his own film. And I helped a young director get it made and I'm very proud of that. I'm proud of all the movies I've made. They're not sequels, they're not franchises. Prince of Thieves producer - uncredited. Prince of Thieves production consultant. Lockout Short special thanks.
Behind the Scenes Short special thanks. Deleted Scenes Short special thanks. The Creation of an Epic Video documentary special thanks. Walk with a Legend TV Movie documentary special thanks. The Odyssey of 'Waterworld' Video documentary Himself. Show all 7 episodes. Show all 33 episodes. Show all 6 episodes. Show all 8 episodes. Making Black or White Video documentary short Himself. McG's Method Video short Himself. The Untold Story Documentary Himself. Show all 11 episodes. Playing from the Heart Outlaw of the Forest TV Series Himself - Wetten, dass..? David Foster and Friends Himself - Celebrity traveller.
Making Waves Video short Himself. All About Winning Documentary Narrator. Passing Along the Pastime Video documentary short Himself. Himself - Actor segment "Kevin Costner". The Creation of an Epic Video documentary Himself. Licence to Thrill Prince of Thieves' Video short Himself. Truth or Dare Documentary Himself uncredited. The Men Video documentary short Himself. Show all 20 episodes. Himself - Black or White. Eric Pleskow und Sohyi Kim Part 2 Video documentary Himself. Production Stories Video documentary short Himself. Re-Inventing the Genre Video documentary short Himself.
The Script, the Cast Video documentary short Himself. Things They Shouldn't Say.
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