Pictured
The film End of the Spear shows the relationship between Steve Saint and Mincayani, the man who killed Steve's Christian missionary father. While in Chicago, Steve ( who was actually traveling with Mincayani ) talked with Windy City Times about various aspects of the movie, including having an openly gay actor portray him, a heterosexual family man.
Windy City Times: This film isn't preachy at all.
Steve Saint: People's reactions have been like 'Whoo! This is a real movie.' I just watched it for the 22nd time and think that it's not only good but it's understated. I bet you'll appreciate seeing it a second time.
WCT: How concerned were you about accuracy?
SS: Extremely—but I was even more concerned about sensitivity. The Waodani tribe gave their permission after finding out that [ foreigners ] killed each other just as savagely as they used to.
I only agreed to help with the project only if they gave me veto power over anything that is patently untrue or insensitive. I couldn't tell them what story to tell, however. [ The filmmakers ] asked for input from me and from the tribe as well. They were extremely accurate.
WCT: What was the hardest scene for you to watch?
SS: I was there when they re-enacted the killing scene [ of the missionaries ] and that was hard. I never addressed the physical and emotional pain. I know, as a husband and father, that I would think about what [ my family ] would do. To see your friends and yourself being speared ( while not defending themselves ) had to be absolutely terrible.
WCT: I was pretty taken aback by the violence in this movie.
SS: And it's really downplayed. The homicide rate was about 60 percent. They were killed by their own people. Another 20 percent were killed by other people. The rest died of snakebites, falling out of trees and other things. One guy went spear-fishing and disappeared. About a week later, some people found a ball of hair and bones that an anaconda regurgitated; they figured it was him.
WCT: This movie is being marketed to Christian groups, among others. Are you concerned about a conservative backlash against the movie because an openly gay actor is playing the lead?
SS: [ Pauses. ] Sure. I hate for people to be disappointed by that, but they had already contracted with [ Chad ] . Someone came to me and said that the only possibility was for me to personally ask Chad to step down—and I thought about it. Everyone has to decide how to live their lives, but I realized that the whole basis of this story is concern for people. I realized that if I asked him to leave, I would be violating the heart of this very story. So, I chose not to—and I told him about [ the conflict ] , and we're now friends. The ultimate question isn't about sexual orientation; it was about who was going to write the story and whose trail we were going to follow. The story is the star. There is no question that Chad gave everything he had as an actor to accurately portray me and my father.