Mel Gibson to Star as Saddam Hussein in Iraq to the Future
Jan 1, 2007, 16:05
MALIBU - Mel Gibson is set to star as Saddam Hussein in Iraq to the Future, a small-budget indie film about life in Iraq as it might have been if "the United States had pursued a course of diplomacy instead of destruction." Mr. Gibson will also write, produce, and direct this film.
Best known for his violence-filled, larger-than-death epics such as The Passion of the Christ, Apocalypto, and Braveheart, Mr. Gibson will focus this time on "the little, intimate details that convey the human tragedy of war just as awesomely as a severed head does.
"With God-only-knows how many Iraqis slaughtered already," Mr. Gibson continued, "there's no shortage of compelling stories that illustrate the toll and the insanity of this war."
Although Iraq to the Future differs from recent Gibson efforts in its "Sundance vibe" and indie production values, Mr. Gibson once again will use nonprofessional actors and English subtitles throughout. The self-described Mayor of Malibu revealed that Iraq to the Future will tell the story of an Iraqi family that lost a son, three-quarters of their house, their well, and uninterrupted electric service because of the war.
Mr. Gibson's multilevel movie begins with the funeral of its principal, Sadeq Muhammed al-Janabi, the eighteen-year-old son of an Iraqi farmer. Through a series of complex flashbacks and fastforwards, we learn what the life of Muhammed al-Janabi, who was a civilian casualty of the war, and the lives of his elderly parents and handicapped wife would have been like if UN sanctions, weapons inspections, and diplomatic pressure on Saddam Hussein had been allowed to take their course. The movie ends with the second funeral of Sadeq Muhammed al-Janabi, age seventy-three, a prosperous merchant survived by his second wife, four children, and five grandchildren.
As for the role of Mr. Hussein in Iraq to the Future, "that's for me to know and for you to find out," said Mr. Gibson, whose barely kempt beard and manic expression are eerily reminiscent of the late dictator.
In related news, a White House spokesperson said that although President George W. Bush does not comment on American war casualties, "so as not to send the wrong message to our enemies," he believes the execution of Saddam Hussein "already guarantees that no matter how many Americans die in Iraq or how much the war costs, their sacrifice will not have been in vain."
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