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The actress stars in 'Secrets of State', a political thriller about the scandal that revealed the weavings of the US and the Government of Tony Blair

In 2003, Katharine Gun, a translator at the service of the British government, leaked to the press a memorandum calling from the US to spy on the members of the UN Security Council to know their position and thus justify the use of force in the War against Iraq Gun was accused of violating the Law of Official Secrets and dismissed from his post. In 2004, after pleading "not guilty" to the charges by arguing that the leak "was justified because it demonstrated the illegality committed by the US," the protagonist of this great scandal saw how, surprisingly, the charges against her were dropped .

Although he has tried his luck in almost every genre, Keira Knightley (Teddington, Middlesex, England, 1985) is known for participating in vintage films and projects based on real events. Now, after Domino , A Dangerous Method , Deciphering Enigma or Colette , Knightley returns to biographical films with Secrets of State . The film, directed by Gavin Hood ( X-Men Origins: Wolverine , Spies from the sky ), is a political thriller in which Ralph Fiennes, Rhys Ifans, Matthew Goode and Matt Smith also participate.

'State Secrets' Trailer

What attracted you most to this project? I was fascinated by the story and the fact that I had no idea of ​​this case. When the invasion of Iraq happened, I would be 18 years old and I was not very interested in politics. Although I remember a lot about that conflict, I don't think he read anything about Katharine Gun. When I learned about her, I thought it was an interesting story that deserved to be told. But he also encouraged me that I love political thrillers. I think they make us question the world around us, our politics, how we see whistleblowers or how rulers should act. Did you get to know Katharine Gun? Yes, I could talk to her during the preparation of the film. We had lunch together and then one day he came with his family to the shoot. It was fascinating, because it is the first time that I speak with someone who cannot answer any question for legal reasons. And it is still tied to the Law of Official Secrets of the United Kingdom. Luckily, I got a lot of information with the articles Gavin Hood, the director, gave me to prepare. And what did you talk to her about then? We talked about her feelings at that time and her opinion of everything that happened. That is, I did not obtain any information that was not public. He never said to whom he gave the report that triggers the action. There were issues we couldn't talk about, but about his family history and how he felt then. What opinion do you deserve the role of complainants? It is what makes this project interesting. My answer is that I don't know. As an audience, watching or reading a story like this, I can think about it from various points of view. I see that something was done wrong and must be paid for it. I also believe that we have laws for a reason and, if we live in a democratic society, then our governments must apply them. Also to the secret services. I read a book that talked about how, on many occasions, the secret services of many countries often skip the laws. As citizens, we want to be protected by secret services. Does that mean then that we can be satisfied if they break the laws to achieve their ends? I do not know. And, for that very reason, I think a movie like State Secrets is fascinating. I don't think things are black and white. I love that, when you talk to Katharine Gun, it is for her. She thinks that everything she discovered was something illegal that resulted in the death of hundreds of thousands of people. For what? I still don't know why we went to war. Nobody knows.

Raph Fiennes plays the lawyer Ben Emmerson.

Who do you think would enter the definition of “person with courage?” Katharine Gun would be one of them. I think courage means the step you take when you have something important to lose. And that, despite everything, is something you are willing to do. Be for or against whistleblowers who filter information, I don't think we can say they had no courage in doing what they did. Katharine understood the risks. And maybe he regretted it later because of the consequences, but he understood what he was going to do because he believed in it. Do you fit into that category of "people with courage"? I do not know. We would all like to think that we would be capable, but I am not sure that I could. I think I'm more of a survivor. It is the sadness of the human condition: today we do not value those who tell us the truth. Whistleblowers, whether from government acts or large companies, do not have an easy life after having revealed the truth. And yet, we teach our children that they must always tell the truth and that good always surpasses evil. However, as a society, it is not the same. It is a complicated reality. Is it true that this project left you exhausted by having to combine it with your role as a mother in real life? Yes. In fact, in my performance there is a certain tiredness that is completely real. On this occasion I learned that it is not convenient to spend a three-year-old girl sleeping in the crib to do it in bed shortly before starring in a film in which there is a lot of dialogue. And it was my fault, because I decided to make that change no less than the night before I started filming State Secrets . Luckily the director, Gavin Hood, understood me, having been the father of twins and having gotten into a shoot when they were only a couple of months old. What would you say is the main message of the film? Probably, there are still many questions that have not been answered and should be at some point. Also that, as a society, we need to trust our government. The correct question would be: "And how do we get it?"

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