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Q: HIDALGO has sort an old-time adventure feel to it. Could you talk about that a little?
Johnston: Thats one of the things that appealed to me about it. Especially if you factor in that, you know, were going to go to Morocco and were going to take Viggo Mortensen and Omar Sharif to some of these locations where they shot Lawrence of Arabia, and 100 horses and all these& all this great wardrobe, and this great story. You know, it becomes something thats almost impossible to pass up. I wasnt anxious to go back to work after Jurassic Park 3. It has been about six months. I was still in recuperation. [laughs] Casey Silver sent me a copy of this, and he said, Ive got this great script I want you to read, and I said, I dont want to go back to work. He said, Im not going to pitch it to you, Im not even going to tell you what its about. Just read it. So it sat on my desk for about 3 weeks and I didnt want to look at it, because I was afraid Id like it. And I started reading it and I couldnt put it down. I called and I said, Damn you! [laughs] I didnt want to go back to work but I couldnt pass it up.
Q: Where did you add embellishments to the story? Like the kidnapped princess and all that.
Johnston: Well, there are fictionalized Hollywood elements we created to make the story more entertaining, but there is a basis in fact that Frank Hopkins, who was an endurance racer, a very well-known endurance racer in this country, was invited to take part in this race because he was billed as the worlds greatest horse and rider team. He and Hidalgo. And a sheikh who saw the show, or was told about the show, took offense to that and invited him to Saudi Arabia. He went and took part in the race, and won the race. Thats the basis in fact that the story was based on. And no, we never set out to make a documentary. We wanted to make it as entertaining as it could be, so there are elements that are fictionalized.
Q: What about the ending? Is the ending totally fictionalized? Beause I wondered, what happened to the horse did Frank let the horse go free?
Johnston: Frank was a proponent of the mustang for, for his entire life. Again here, were making a little bit of a leap of faith in the same way we are that he was& uh, we know that he was a dispatch rider, and we know that he did witness Wounded Knee. We dont know whether he delivered the orders. But its not a big leap, you know, to think that he, that given those two facts, it was possible that he was there, you know.
Q: Did you have an idea in your head about who you were making this movie for? If it was kids, or teens, or adults?
Johnston: You know, Ive found that if you start worrying about that too early and you think, I want to make a film for everyone, then sometimes you end up making a film for no one. You know? What I try to do is make a film for about 8 or 10 personal friends who all have different tastes.
Q: Where do you stand on the big historical debate thats going on in the equestrian community?
Johnston: Well, I stand, certainly, on the side of Frank Hopkins as I know him and as I believe him to be. I couldnt have taken this project on, knowing that I was going to say, This is based on a true story if I didnt believe it myself. I do know that the motivation for the critics who are saying that Frank Hopkins didnt do these things is based on the bloodline of Arabian horses. Thats whats driving this thing. Because Frank in one of his stories that he told after coming back, he said that Hidalgo was allowed to breed with a purebred Arab mare after he had won this race. I dont know if it was a sheikh, or someone who owned an Arabian horse was impressed with what he had done, that he wanted Hidalgo to breed with an Arab mare. And to someone who holds the purity of Arabian equestrian bloodlines as, almost as, a religion thats like saying this is blasphemy. The whole thing is based on the controversy and the criticism, is based on that one incident of Frank saying I allowed Hidalgo to breed with this mare. Thats where this is all coming from. And what this person is saying is that someone or an animal of mixed blood, cant& theres no way you could have done this. You know, what if you talked about people that way? Its completely bigoted. And, while you can say, Well, people arent horses, to me, its just strange.
Q: Thats the whole issue in this movie, is bigotry and the horse cultures of the Indian and the horse cultures of the Arabs. They are so much alike.
Johnston: Exactly.
Q: Is that what attracted you to this picture?
Johnston: There are a lot of things that are implied in the story and there are hidden things. I dont want to sort of pound people over the head with it because I want them to watch and, you know, discover these things. I think theyre much more effective, and people feel more rewarded when they, they interpret these things for themselves.
Q: Has the timing of the film affected that message in a way? I mean, people are talking about the fact its an American going to an Arab country, beating the Arabs, and&
Johnston: For me, theres absolutely no present-day political message in it. I mean it, I always wanted to place this film in its historical context. The story takes place in 1890. If people want to compare it to whats happening today in the world, I cant prevent them from doing that. But I think ultimately its the way Frank goes there as& he goes there in a very humble way. To say, Im here to race and go home. Hes not there to show them all about American superiority. In the end, he makes peace with everyone, even his biggest competitor, the prince, at the end of the race. He even gives Omar Sharif a gun at the end and goes home. I dont want it to be perceived like its any kind of allegory for whats going on today. Its an adventure story.
Q: Viggo has gone from actor to star in the course of the making of this film&
Johnston: Just dont call him a star.
Q: Not to his face.
Johnston: Youll insult him. [laughs]
Q: Was he the first person you thought of for the role?
Johnston: He was one of the first. It was a very short list. I saw this picture with Diane Lane called A Walk on the Moon. And there was something about his performance in that film that told me that this guy could be Frank Hopkins. I hadnt seen the first Lord of the Rings before we cast him, but I figured anybody that could sell blouses to Diane Lane out of a truck could do anything.
Q: Was there any concern about him not actually being Native American at all? Did you ever consider casting somebody who was half-Native American?
Johnston: Well, the important thing for me here was casting the movie right first. You know, with the right actors. But Frank Hopkins was half American and as I understand it, he was sort of blonde-haired, blue-eyed. His father was a Cavalry scout, as he tells us. But the primary consideration was casting the best actor in the role.
Q: Viggo has a reputation, especially on Lord of the Rings, for getting really lost in his role. How much did he do that on HIDALGO?
Johnston: He did it, I think, to the same degree. He went home in his wardrobe, you know, he camped in the desert with the horses and the wranglers. I was amazed when I did see the Lord of the Rings films that not only did it seem like& I mean, it was obviously a different character, but it seemed like a different person playing the different characters. He made a complete transformation. Now I know I him as Viggo Mortensen playing Frank T. Hopkins. When he takes on his next role, whatever that is, hell probably become unrecognizable to me. Hell make another transformation. But yeah, he really got into it. Hes also completely devoted to the project. He was always there. We worked him a lot more than we should have. He never complained, and he was there dawn to dusk and beyond. Hes largely responsible for making that whole aspect of this work. Hes really amazing.
Q: The insurance company never complained about him doing his own stunts?
Johnston: Well, I wont say they never complained, but once I saw him ride, I wasnt really too worried about it. He did things on the horse that the stunt man had difficulty doing. He fell off the horse, he rode bareback, he jumped on the horse at a gallop which is difficult to do, and he you know, he fell off a few times and he got knocked down and he got kicked a few times, but you know, he also got right back up and wanted to do it again. I think he knew that if there was anything that was really life-threatening, he would come forward and say, I dont feel comfortable doing this. But he never did.
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