00:22:06
DISBELIEF SYSTEM __ “That proved to
be a fairly controversial scene here in the States,”
says McKay of a young Cheney (Christian Bale)
asking his new boss, Donald Rumsfeld (Steve
Carell), “What do we believe?” The response is a
howl of laughter. “If you look at Rumsfeld’s career,
God bless you if you can find any belief system.
It’s a pretty naive question to a guy like him.
That’s this movie’s perspective on Cheney’s rise.
00:22:41
THE BIG FISH __ For McKay, the key to his
film lies in a seemingly simple scene, overlooked
by most, where he stands in a river and teaches
his daughters about fishing. “He says, ‘It’s not
good or bad. It’s fishing.’ He says, ‘We trick the
fish, and our family gets to eat,’” explains McKay.
“That’s his explanation for his approach to
everything through the entire movie. It seems like
a throwaway scene but that’s very important.”00:47:44
THANKS FOR COMING __ Halfway through
the film, McKay appears to end the movie on a
scene of domestic idyll, even rolling some credits.
It’s a fake-out, but it fooled many. “I saw tons of
things from people online who left and didn’t come
back in. They think I made a movie just about Dick
Cheney’s younger years,” laughs McKay. The idea
came from “the research, and realising he could
have stopped here. It should have been over.”00:55:55
MACBETH 2 __ A scene where Cheney and his
wife Lynne (Amy Adams) discuss him returning to
politics didn’t have “the emotional beat” McKay
was after. So, ever eager to experiment, “I thought,
‘Fuck it, I’ll do it in Shakespearean language.’ And
that’s what it is: ‘I want it all.’” Writing the scene
was fun, but the director admits it yo-yoed its way
in and out of the edit. “I love parts of it. But I’m still
not 100 per cent sure on that one.”
00:59:57
BUSH WHACKED __ This scene, in which
Cheney subtly manipulates George W. Bush into
handing him huge power, seems too OTT to be true.
But McKay says, “The crazy exchange in the second
meeting, where Bush is eating chicken and says, ‘I’ll
just do mundane things like take care of the
bureaucracy, oversee the economy, foreign policy,’
is reported to be an actual exchange they had.
Cheney was very smart in the way he played it.”01:26:15
TRY THE GUANTANAMO BAY __ Alfred
Molina cameos as a waiter who outlines a series
of soulless options for Cheney and his cabal as
they seek to realign the Constitution under the
guise of a war on terror. Molina had been offered
the role of Henry Kissinger, but plumped for this.
“Nobody has ever looked at a script for a storied
figure like Henry Kissinger and come back and
said, ‘I want to play the waiter.’ But he was right.”01:47:05
HEARTLESS __ The movie is narrated by Kurt
(Jesse Plemons), a former soldier who seemingly
has nothing to do with Cheney. Until he’s hit by a
truck and is revealed to be the donor whose heart
now beats in Cheney’s chest. “That was one of the
first ideas I had,” says McKay. “I kept being struck
by how epic and Greek the story was, losing his old
heart, replacing it with a young heart. The narrator
symbolises America too. It’s kinda perfect.”
01:54:22
NO APOLOGY __ Having assiduously avoided
breaking the fourth wall, Cheney finally does it,
explaining his actions and declaring, “I will not
apologise.” The scene was Bale’s idea. “He said,
‘Look, I understand why you don’t have Cheney
address the camera. But if there was a moment
to do it, it would be where he’s being interviewed
by Martha Raddatz.’” The final version is a
mixture of McKay, Bale and actual Cheney lines.02:00:39
THAT STINGS __ Post-credits, a focus group
is shown talking about Vice. “The country is focus
grouped the whole time,” McKay says. “We wanted
to show how insane stuff has gotten.” An offhand
line about the Fast & Furious franchise caused
a stir. “People took it like I was holier than thou!
I’m not. I made Talladega Nights!” CHRIS HEWITTVICE IS OUT NOW ON DVD, BLU-RAY AND DOWNLOAD