Could this movie have been made with more subtlety?

JC: I think if you had a lot of time and money, and...what else, besides time and money? Those are the really big things that you don't get. Maybe you could have sold things differently, with that kind of space. But then I think it's a different movie. I think the whole idea of satire is taking it over the top, and the incongruousness of ideas. It all comes down to ideas in a political satire. With a lot of money, and a lot of time, you can be a little more articulate, perhaps; but if you don't have a lot of money and don't have a lot of time, maybe you just have to make sure you have the ideas and the spirit there.

Was there a sense while you were making this that you were working under constraints?

JC: Yeah -- we were in Bulgaria! (Laughs)

Right, "Turaqistan." What's Bulgaria like?

JC: Bulgaria is fascinating. Because it had been a Communist country until the mid-80s, so it had just recently transitioned. And there were still the police towers on the street corners, where they look down -- they were still there, although no one was in them. And if you talked to the older people that lived there, they were like, "Communism was bad -- but it was really safe." And they had money to buy things; you could leave your car door open on the street, and run in and get the things you needed. Everyone was taken care of. Now they have mafia, money and drugs, alcohol and gambling!

The sets are covered with images of corporate-sponsored militarism -- GoldenPalace.com is displayed on tanks. Did the locals understand or agree with what War, Inc. was trying to say?

JC: Yeah. I think America has a bad rap right now... and hopefully Obama will change that. I just went right to him being president, did you see that? I think everyone with a brain, and a heart [would agree] -- well, I understand the Hillary thing, but just to a certain degree (laughs).

Dan Akroyd is in War, Inc. (as a Dick Cheney-like former Vice President with ties to military profiteering), which makes this a three-way Grosse Point Blank reunion with you and John...

JC: I think, in a way, it was a Grosse Point Blank 2.

Is it? Perhaps an unofficial sequel?

JC: I think so.

Do you think John was very cognizant of that while developing this, and the fact that it might be seen as a sequel -- sort of like Martin Q. Blank's midlife crisis?

JC: Right. Or, you know what, if that's fun to talk about or think about, then that's great.

When you were kids growing up, did you ever think your brother would make such a good existential hitman?

JC: I think this business is so unhealthy, and if you weren't a manic depressive before you got into this business -- if you could even get into this business -- then you would wind up one. Like most businesses where the stakes are high and people are very competitive, there's a lot of ugliness. The downside of being a celebrity, or being "handled" or being the next big thing -- or not being the next big thing after being the next big thing -- even just having people like you for your swimming pool, that kind of thing, it's all not good for your mental health. Because at the end of the day, it's just telling stories. And nobody's better than anyone else. People have achieved things, but hopefully they've achieved making good kids, or making good people that are enjoying their lives or caring about the world. They're just stories, which are important -- people need a break, they need a good story, or a laugh sometimes. Or something that's going to be insightful, or literature, or whatever it is that is going to be stimulating about how you're going to live your life on the planet.

Obviously you had to go to Bulgaria for this movie, but you've gone on record about living in Chicago and taking work that allows you to stay with your family. Is that still the case?

JC: I take parenting incredibly seriously. I want to be there for my kids and help them navigate the world, and develop skills, emotional intelligence, to enjoy life, and I'm lucky to be able to do that and have two healthy, normal boys. It's nice to be able to work; I'd love to be able to do another TV show I could do in Chicago so I could live and work in the same place. It's hard being a parent and being in a good marriage, and it all takes a lot of work, but if you're not there you can't do any of it.

War, Inc. opens this Friday in limited release. Joan Cusack also appears in the upcoming Kit Kittredge: An American Girl Mystery, Hoodwinked 2, and Toy Story 3, in which she reprises her Annie winning role as Jessie.