When speaking about Burn After Reading, their upcoming espionage-flavored comedy, the Coen brothers are, as always, reticent to do anything more than let the film speak for itself.

“Sometimes people think ‘Oh, the Coens are elusive,’ but sometimes you just don’t have anything else to say [about the film],” said Joel Coen during a press conference Saturday. “We think about things in such a narrow context. There isn’t any discussion about extrapolating any of it out of the context of the story. It’s simply not the way we think about it.”

Much of Coen brothers' press conferences feature awkward pauses, mumbled, one word answers, and even a fair share of dismissive sarcasm for the more contemptible questions. However, with some coaxing, the long-time filmmakers discuss the thought process behind the quirky Washington D.C. set dark comedy—starring an A-list cast featuring Brad Pitt, George Clooney, John Malkovich, Tilda Swinton and Frances McDormand—that is their follow-up to last year’s critically acclaimed, Academy Award winning masterpiece, No Country for Old Men.

“I guess we sort of wanted to do a spy movie and it didn’t really turn out that way – I don’t think it’s a spy movie,” said Ethan Coen.

“We wanted it not just to be about the people who are in the government in Washington, but the people who are angular to that community,” Joel continued, then added almost as an afterthought. “We had sort of an outline of people we were vaguely referencing for these characters: Linda Tripp. Donald Rumsfeld. But, no, we weren’t interested in lampooning anybody.”

“It’s not really meant to be a comment on Washington,” Ethan finished, perhaps providing some damage control to his brother’s potentially backlash-inspiring comments. “It’s really about these particular characters.”

While the Coens are well known for their often aloof and awkward relationship with the press, their relationship to the actors in their films is beyond reproach—and often a lot of fun.

“Lots of laughing,” Swinton related about the Burn After Reading set and working with the brothers. “I think that must be all in credit to...your sound guy, who wired the set in such a way that [Joel and Ethan] can be honking like donkeys and it’s not on the final soundtrack.”

Copping to their tendency to laugh during takes, Joel said, “There’s a scene in Fargo where Steve Buscemi is slugging through the snow and trying to burry this bag of money in the snow and he kept sinking up to his waist. I think even in the finished movie, you can hear me laughing.”

“We just left it in,” Ethan added. “We thought it kind of sounded like Steve breathing.”

Even through the film’s script, the brothers seemed to have a degree of good natured fun at their actors’ expense. Pitt’s character, Chad, in particular is a case in point. Written specifically with the heartthrob in mind, the character is a vacuous and histrionic gym rat with a penchant for dance music and protein shakes, who gets himself clumsily embroiled in an attempted blackmail of disastrous proportions. Pitt plays the character with a self-mocking glee.

“I had been knocking on the Coen brothers’ door for a few years, so I was obviously really happy when they called, until I read the script – then I was a little upset,” he joked before adding, “It’s much more fun to play the guys who make the wrong choices, have limited experience and make the wrong assumptions and then have to deal with them there.”

Despite all the good natured fun they have at their actors’ expense, the Coens also elicit a deep respect from the stars of their films.

“At times you can go days and days wondering if a director saw that take or any other take and did they have any kind of feeling about it whatsoever,” said Malkovich. “And, sadly, the answer could often appear to be ‘no.’ And that’s just not the case with this. Not many actors put on plays in the garage by themselves without an audience. It kind of presupposes that somebody needs to be watching. And [Joel and Ethan] are watching. That’s nice.”

What the Coens are not watching, is the somewhat negative early reviews of Burn After Reading or the press pointing out the expectations on the film’s shoulders after the success of No Country for Old Men.

“We don’t relate one movie to another,” said Joel of the perceived pressure. “Certainly the ambition is to change from movie to movie; you don’t want to repeat yourself.”

“Of course, we’d rather people like it than not,” said Ethan, then adding with typical Coen dryness, “Even critics.”

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