The role of CIA assassin Chris Carlisle is a juicy one and John Malkovich squeezes everything he can from it in the new movie Wild Horse Nine.

Malkovich has played some quirky people and this one is quirky, yes, but he is also damaged. He has terminal cancer and is also in the early stages of dementia. He writes notes to himself to help remember what he should do. He shoots morphine to deal with his discomfort.

Wild Horse Nine is a buddy movie. Carlisle’s partner is fellow CIA spook Lee Chesterfield (Sam Rockwell) whose concerns include a wife (Parker Posey) back in the states. She tells him when they speak by phone that she is cheating on him. And that she suspects she and her house are being watched.

The film’s story takes place in the early 70s as the US is about to help enable a coup in Chile. But the plot is secondary. This is a movie about its characters. And its setting, Easter Island—that’s the one with all the big stone heads.

The two men journey to the island, some 2200 miles west of Chile in the Pacific Ocean. In the Santiago airport and on the island they keep running into these two young women who may or may not be crucial to the developments that occur. The men watch each other and they watch out FOR one another.

Other characters include local CIA boss MJ (Steve Buscemi) and Chris’s estranged brother Jim (Tom Waits). With a cast like those folks, Wild Horse Nine is a film that generates curiosity even before the opening frame hits the screen. Add to that the fact that Wild Horse Nine is written and directed by Martin McDonagh whose resume includes slightly offbeat movies like The Banshees of Inisherin, Seven Psychopaths and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.

Does Wild Horse Nine live up to the expectation of eccentric wackiness? Yes, absolutely! There are dips and dives and surprises and laughs. And those exotic big stone head sculptures which have mystified the world for centuries. Is it a “must see?” Maybe not but it’s one to be savored and enjoyed.

In the weeks since Wild Horse Nine first screened at the Venice Film Festival, the awards buzz keeps getting stronger for Malkovich’s performance. He’s the front-runner for Best Actor. And the always compelling Rockwell is on the short list for a best supporting actor nomination.

Wild Horse Nine is rated R. Language and violence.