Like gets h. Youve changed. Its changed the king. And the land will live in. Now as it comes to a site some of us might not see the sunset but that is the true nature of war. To this. Now. Your eyes. Tell to. Each. Other or so if you just give it a blood i just touched the. Skids. Scott. Is that what. I just moved to waited to be joined with. The firm robert the bruce playing on screen your dad won for the World Health Organization so you traveled a lot so you know youre very scotties senator judd lots of International Experience is there as a boy moved around. For my entire childhood but every every summer or winter we would come back to visit my grandparents who originally were from head moved to callington so we would go to for elliot road and stay for a couple of months every year when i came to. Edinburgh university i came from strasburg read on a year of law discovered to the pollie on it the code was not to my liking and came to. International relations because i thought ill go into politics. And a sort of one day had a voice which sort of stopped me in the middle of the road about 6 weeks in its just said dont do that dont do that it was a sort of tend to listen to these instincts you know and i changed my course and went into english and French Literature and language and i was doing the bedlam theatre here which is i did 35 plays and 5 for festivals. And i never really us was of wire done until 2003 when because id have probably become a labor guy i think this was the eightys. And i discovered that id have probably gone into the labor party in some sort of as a politician somehow and have been can have been faced with this dilemma in 2003 im going to resign because of this illegal invasion this is the invasion of iraq or iraq for many labor supporters it was a seminal moment it was because people either they either lost their soul lost their jobs or very many and lost their souls i believe at that moment and so i sort of had this sort of illumination because it was that was what that voice was telling me to take a different path here so you were saved from becoming a leave of paul because a major interest in politics and you did some hard glass of the in the theatre and then you go a huge break in the International Blockbuster of braveheart and you played robert the bruce was asked to come in for the english prince in it and i said the casting director pats pollock said no no you want to go and play with the bruce but you cant because its been offered to a movie star so forget about that come in to meet mel and talk about this role so what did i do i went in i had no work for 9 months. And i and he said so you want to talk about this role of the englishman i said no im not here to talk about that here to talk about robert the bruce you told me you could be dead with the 2nd yes as opposed to squares here a case thats correct and i was in there for an hour and a half and it was like look at me go and look at the casting director like why is he talking about this and he said so ok well it was great to meet you you know want to talk about the other guy i said no im good good luck with the movie and i left and kicked myself for days afterwards thing i hadnt worked for 9 months women doing but i got a phone call 10 days later and i was asked to come back to see him i was a crisis of a down. Now done something wrong you know and turned out that the actor whod been offered the role was trying to get. A role in the other scottish from which would be made at the time the robbery one which was considered theres all the near script so busy everybody wanted to be in the other one this one was like the cheesy hollywood think right. Got invited back and it turned out that this other actor had let the go the day go by by which he shouldve accepted the offer so they withdrew it and gave it to me so theres a sort of element of destiny in that in such a successful for that brief that youre not going to different position assigned to the be able to pick and choose roles or as a struggle for ever its a rollercoaster the business and if youre up for a moment youre in a film with 5 oscars and its got 11 nominations and you think well thats thats me set for the rest of the novel you know bring on the next one and then you have like a couple of films i did a film called titus which had hopkins and Jessica Lange and this incredible cast of people julie taymor directing shakespeare i did a film with tim robbins with just a stellar cast including Vanessa Redgrave bill murray Susan SarandonJohn Turturro and i was this was 1998 and i was like im writing high i did the rat pack with ray liotta from goodfellas and i was like i had these 3 fantastic films in a year and 2 of them basically bombed at the box office and. Suddenly the phone goes silent because. You know youre you no longer in favor and so you know youre youre spend a year with nobody calling you and youve got to find other things to do writing or direct directing or painting whatever it is that keeps the the wolf from the door as it were or youve been in terms of pursuing it leaving youve been pursuing a dream for of for. Me years youve heard this the side deal of firsts the script to tell the the. Robert reduce story subordinate to an audience pool who have think what a way to be looking for for something more because its a fundamentally interesting story so wheres ive been driven from i guess was a problem from your child to the aunt of him from the well the success of the portrayal of scott to his student play for peoples interest in them and were with us this come right from the gut just a fantastic idea from a script i was i was love the experience of braveheart but i was slightly disappointed because the film ended. Of a well we dont need to know the rest of the story and say well hang on weve got a guy who became king afterwards and so i wanted to make a more intimate film and also film student glorify war which was more of a you know natty war the rubble of bruce has broken with Edward Brooke in the kings pieces as the king of ignored edward plantagenet as ruthless man in christendom and hes made his bed from the throne so youve set at that point of his life why. I think it goes back to wanting to always tell a story which which strips bare the pomposity and tells the story of a man im far more interested in exploring the characters weaknesses or or him at the lowest point of his life you know with thats where you weigh discover the true character of somebody at that point as to whether they lie down and die or why did he what was that compelled him. Out of that cave and that was really the story came back to being told the story of the the spider and it never been told and i kept on wondering what is that story what happens in that cave because you know the spider cycle psychology symbolizes schizophrenia so when robert the bruce goes into that. Cave to to die because he wants to just give up its not its not death that he meets its its its this voice which starts to talk to him because not just bruce at that stage is the lock him and has his brothers are getting knocked off all over the place as a way for suspended like the age of mike castle the throne of the who have a new im. Getting a i love the capital you dont ruin that states you must feel huge sense of guilt its not just him being sacrificed its everybodys of a lovely yes and he seemed he seemed so much death and hes hes witnessed the death because you know you had young boys fighting at the time so everything turns against him its sort of like the story of bonnie prince charlie as well as when he went really got within 100 miles of of london and then turned around for what reason we still dont really know but those people who support of them all the way down were jeering and throwing eggs and cabbage at him all the way back and it just sort of kind of all fell apart from there but you said something of a few members who you Service Almost 90 war film how america can the story of scotlands huell king subdue takes on the the might of the plantagenet empire and winds through it through battle through warfare how can that be an anti war story well i think because i was was gone for a more intimate story in this in this in this telling of it that its just i just didnt i want to avoid all of the glorification of war scenes and really explore. The loneliness of a guy who realized that really was what it was worth it at the end and and funnily enough. Hey actually even once hes healed again it doesnt want to go back to war its though its the widow in the house who says term you know all of those men died for you would have died for nothing if you dont go back and finish this even at the end he still pushed by external forces to wards his destiny and i really like that because its like when you look at when you look at the world in use you watch people who were sent to power and there are so many modern examples right now. You know its in the in the pursuit of it itself you see the lies the seed of corruption you see these people and you almost have to be sociopathic to rise to these great positions because the so much. The i mean theres so many you know theres they do. One side i think they do very bad things but we do very bad things here too you know its that whole concept of you dont even know whats going on behind the scene. In the lead a showdown between washington and tehran there is no regional ally to restrain the us is worse tendencies with parts treated and sanctions imposed what can stop the us from sliding into yet another middle east or. This hard to take some from somebody if you know have some to replace. The want to. Take me. There. Area. So im going to tell you stop selling drugs if well hire someone to put the money in a box. They just mean all the way to life its almost been basically a color speech for us. To you as it was to get any security positions open. David jack me again. You see people get all their cars and ill see you coming in the herd and it seems like theyll hurry up and run into the house like they dont want to they dont want to talk to your get your mail or anything like that. I just want to go. And do it. Just try reading a. Chance to give me. Little. Welcome back alex is interviewing scott to star 1000 who almost 25 years after the blockbuster braveheart has reprise his pretrial of robert the bruce but in a very different film however well the new film topping the bill at this years edinburgh Film Festival has the wider political impact which is being quaids for a brief part scottish was of independence well actually fought against a backlog of a whole european struggle that was going on to involve the papacy of all the plantagenet involved the bruces who could or who hadnt the state didnt allow activities to scotlands but you see the same sort of political but glowed at the present moment wolf blitzer the whole european argument the argument as Scottish Independence is not very interlinked with that european dimension and the impact of of westminster the new plan tied to some westminster with a very domineering isolation empire. As you seek and direct analogy between the 14th century scotland and the nearly 21st century present i see i see it well right now because. I think that we still live in Medieval Times we live under the perpetual state of feudalism and and i think that this independence struggle is a struggle to. Take free from ancient concepts and move into a progressive future and i think this is through this is the story of of really a 1st one of the 1st progressive kings so i am hopeful that this film will have some kind of a Cultural Impact your films having the cinemas yeah and then a vest of the bustle about it but no was that deliberate or was happenstance the anniversary you know i think it was definitely not a deliberate thing i was i was kind of. Surprised that the 23rd wait a minute what is that something that turned out that we were opening the film on the anniversary of bannockburn which i thought was just a wonderful touch again by some kind of invisible hand and you know i just want to say that you know its an incredibly important award me in the director myself and the director we we actually that was our 1st thing was we wanted to open the phone in scotland in edinburgh because we wanted the scots to see the film 1st this is a film for scotland considering the events which are going on. Dont forget that. A couple of years ago which we were nowhere near the mess which we are right now with this whole briggs it thing is just an raveling further and further your someone as a an artist who has a very active position and terms of social media bugle you dont hide your or your clothes at all weve been over. With your your views not just on plates of westminster but Scottish Independence how does you know enough to. Reconcile when you think its entirely legitimate give us a a so we have a nominee or do you think luke. Must have a purpose i think are does i think all out is political whether its if its if its been completely apolitical it thats the. Political if you mean an incredibly violent movie youre youre making a movie which glorifies violence so youre making a political statement one way or the other so you know i you know im more active on twitter right now because you know i do have a film coming out and it happens to be about the subject matter which seems to be consuming very many peoples minds at the moment in this country so ive waded into the middle of it usually i keep used to a little bit more private but you know im a im a bit of a blunt talker and i like to say what i think. As i said i was going to be a politician but i dont think i would have been able to do very well in the Diplomacy Department of you know scottish psyche. Be reasonable see that William Wallace was loved and robert the bruce miles. I guess it comes down i see it as some kind of a we you know william was almost sort of seemed to be much more of a working class hero and i think that was something which mel definitely played on in his movie with a little dash of catholicism in there. And the bruce you know being a noble. You know there was a certain distance a certain royalty you shouldnt get too close to it so you know that kind of thing i suppose and what was it because wallace died and this was a winner i suppose there is that this is that you. You have yes you have the it was it was cut into little pieces wasnt the. Is the spartacus effect. And the. Why would it be that. For a new suit understand scottish istream for those who knew about it and hopefully your firm will reintroduce the to many more people but even those who know quite a bit of the story was that the studio blues or other many aspects is closest if you said the name belle of the winter and then you know 99. 9 percent of the population wouldnt know the name of the person who actually wrote the deck. Why you think this. Well that sort of like asking why nobody actually knows about the diary or jungle and what happened there because theres another project that actually taught in schools what weve been taught and. I want to know what you were taught when you were a kid but. I found i find things out over time which id never heard of before i will be like that as you did the story from my in my case my grandfathers knee i got taken alone the insurance calistoga lived to and on my grandfathers i got explain to me what actually happened as of last week or last month or the year before or not and and when i have the stories of abuse in my in my minds eye i thought that maybe it hum or maybe just before the same little warmer or Something Like that it was it was recent it was a meteor it wasnt something which was long lost in history. Or your firm of us and me just think i will offer people yeah i think i think thats definitely if you can make a good film which reaches in and grabs people by the heart of the balls or whatever it is its not an intellectual experience it is an immediate experience and any good film i think. Does that it sort of takes you inside these peoples lives and you you see in the human condition and its not youre not sort of divided at that point youre not going well this is the i dont care about this guy because hes you know hes. Bad guy but you actually kind of become interested you get caught in into these characters lives. Immediacy is the word so i use were. You doing with the success of this film of knocking on good king robert must boost was called of the for the runtime for the chronicles and then one of the darien scheme one of the one of the great disasters in Scottish History in a fascinating story some people say it is what ended Scottish Independence back in the in the early 18th century and where else where else isnt the midget perspective where are you bumming to do who well you know i mean the there is that and ive got that script ready to shoot in panama and scotland and ive also you know i dont think ive quite finished with this 1st of the the other section of robert the bruce i havent quite finished the cave i dont think and i think im going to play which have been writing about this the spider and the bruce and the cave being the actual theater the spider being the voice of modern the you know the modern world of living almost Afghan Security like a cockroach except its a spider. Skin everything and this sort of old world this guy in the cave and theyre having this debate about about the world and i just want to finish that and when you bring it to their face where you got your teeth all these years ago thats right itll be here hopefully somewhere like the trash or lyceum was something i should probably the bedroom where i started so robert the bruce opens in scotland to model the 28th of june in the cinemas and then what are you hoping for the film after that launch in the launch a new old country. Well. Its slightly out of my hands but. Im hoping for some interest from europe we were opening the c. N. N. Film festival in september perhaps the logano film. Festival and other places we were talking to and then you know also that the states and i i feel like this film is would do quite well in Middle America its sort of that you know there are so many scots and irish there but also is universal appeal as a film overcoming the crisis of conscience yet uncertainty the doubts yes i mean set back on the road in that sense its like its really nothing to do with nationalism because it does actually cross all boundaries and it is a lot of things that are over that matters about people getting back on to whatever the best name is going to be. Freedom is sort of like the tide coming in and going out theres no there is no line really this is the been invented by man hes a man made symbols the tide comes in and out and fish swim free every day and you go up the little protection on this the end game of the new struggle with in terms of Scottish Independence against the european back wall well you know ive got my hopes and dreams as you do and i have a few questions for you after the show about where its all going but during the 2nd interview you interview me yes that will be the one youve got to do the groundwork in order to be ready is the readiness or sound that says well i just prefer to do my own play or Police Rather bruce was a lord or they also he knew a quick who was a gallic for loving cup whisky liquid holy scotch row your pals thank you very much but where is the whiskey that would cost the ones. Thank you. Braveheart was once described as a war cry of a movie this new film by Angus Macfadyen is more of a clue to cooler for make 5 gin the legend of robert bruce in the spider holds the key a tale told to scottish children down the generations hunted alone lost coding in the cave the scottish seas a spy the attempts 7 times to spend his web before final success and take that as a sign to try once again and claim the clone in the country in that sense the story is deeply personal and universal but a human being overcoming a crisis of confidence to find a true path in the film the bruce also as a sucker the support of the simple patriotism of the scottish families the bedrock on which the nation has been built thats less of a legend than the spider robert the bruce may like the holywood glitz and glamour of braveheart but the heart rending story beautifully shot by people who know the business and the subject having tried for 13 years to make this movie i would not discuss the ability of pick fudge and to complete the trilogy and take the bruce trail to do new more nor would under the weight of more than the impact of this magnificent story well told. Next we move from the medieval power plays to the politics of protest over the last century we contrast working class glasgow taking to the streets a 100 years ago with middle class london taking to the theatrical boards to day protest against h s 2. Joining us to find out who won that new bottle and i sometimes the media and all the shows could buy for now. Kind of financial survival john today was all about Money Laundering 1st to visit this cash industry different. Oh good this is a good start well we have our 3 banks all set up here maybe something in your something in america something overseas in the Cayman Islands or do all these banks are complicit in the kleptocracy you just have to give my call and say hey im ready to do some serious Money Laundering ok lets see how we did while weve got a nice luxury watch for max and for stacy oh beautiful jewelry and how about. Luxury automobile again for max they know what Money Laundering is highly illegal. Much guys of course. Descriptions zoned up even for the owners so how to choose the pet Food Industry is telling us what to feed our pets is really more based on what they want to sell us than was necessarily good for the pet turns out and may not be associated people believe we have animals that have you know diabetes in arthritis and they have auto immune disorders the cat allergies we are actually creating these problems its a huge epidemic of problems all of them i believe can be linked to very simple problem of diet and some dog owners so heartbreaking stories about their pets less treats the larger corporations are not very interested in proving or disproving the value of their food because theyre already making it a 1000000000. 00 on it and theres no reason to do that research. That. President putin gives his views on trade wars that the military escalation in the persian gulf and Global Threats in an interview with the financial. Zoopla used to put it bluntly the situation is definite become more dramatic and explosive in the sense the world has become more fragmented and less predictable which is the most important regrettable thing. The japanese city of osaka gears up for the g 20 summit with all eyes on some crucial one on one meetings between world leaders. And the u. N. Special report on the torture defends wiki leaks founder Julian Assange calling him the victim of a relentless smear campaign