After Tuesday's screening of "Grace is Gone," in which he plays a father who must tell his daughters that their mom has been killed in Iraq, John Cusack was asked how much he related personally to the film's subtle anti-war message.
"There's some helplessness you feel about the events surrounding the war," he said. You feel like you're being lied to and events are being spun. And there's not a lot you can do. But if we can't stop this thing. . .at least we can try to explore what the human costs of the war are."
Perhaps mindful that his own well-known anti-Bush views could hurt the film's attempts at evenhandedness, or its box-office showing in red-state America, Cusack then cut himself short.
"The best thing I can do for this film is shut up, because I have very strong beliefs."
- Brandon Griggs