Ready for Jake on the red carpet? Rendition and films to make a difference

I don't know about you but I'm ready for another Jake Gyllenhaal red carpet experience and, thank heavens, we haven't long to wait. Only ten days to go until Friday 7th September and Rendition. Intriguingly, an online poll of Canadian filmgoers has been conducted by Sympatico/MSN Movies, which reveals the stars and films that most audiences are looking forward to seeing in Toronto.


We discover that 'most Canadians would rather bump into George Clooney (41%) over Matt Damon (33%) or Brad Pitt (26%) at this year's Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF)'. Unfortunately, I can't find figures for Jake. Canadians also 'believe that Reese Witherspoon (49%) will wow the crowds over Kiera Knightley (28%) and Cate Blanchett (23%). As for the films themselves, Canadians are most excited to see Brad Pitt's flick The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (53%) over Reese Witherspoon and Jake Gyllenhaal's Rendition (33%) or Sean Penn's directorial effort, Into The Wild (14%).' I've got to say 33% doesn't sound at all bad for a movie abour extraordinary rendition. Here is an interesting article, at the same site, about The Terrors of TIFF, which, apparently, unites the globe in a gluttony of films.



Rendition and War of the Movies

Rendition is beginning to gain more attention and has featured in a number of newsites today, including the Guardian, in their lists of films to look out for in the Autumn and Fall of 2007. It seems that the Oscar nominees are expected from this bunch and, if you look at the lists, you can see why. It's good to see Heath's I'm Not There and Ang's Lust, Caution also in the lists.


Rendition has drawn extra attention because of its subject matter which, on the surface, may seem like an unusual choice for a traditionally conservative Hollywood but, this year, is one of several films which shows the studios may be at odds with US foreign policy. I'm going to look at this in more detail again, but here are coupl of new articles that draw attention to this new move in Hollywood, which looks to be taking the debate into the theatres.


The New York Post, in Another Vietnam, suggests the reason maybe because 'directors out in Cali figured that if President Bush refuses to read a newspaper, he might at least see a movie.' Rendition is one of several films this year which is not afraid to tackle terrorism and the US' relationship with the Middle East. The Sunday Times last Sunday reported on Hollywood Going to War and argues that 'Hollywood is taking a huge gamble here. Apart from some propagandist films made during the second world war, the studios have never tried targeting war so directly while American troops were still on the ground, and have shied away from making films, in the middle of a war, that could be seen as even slightly critical of the conduct of serving American soldiers.' Will American audiences pay to see films about war and unsavoury practices applied by the government in its fight against terror?


As the Edmonton Sun says in its article Tug of War: 'After months of escapist razzle-dazzle, Hollywood is set to do a sudden about-face, tackling the U.S. war on terror and conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan with an A-list roster of dramas starring some of the world's biggest stars. Remarkable? More like unprecedented. Hollywood has gone to war before, of course, but never have filmmakers dealt so nakedly -- and in such numbers -- with a conflict before its cultural wounds have healed. After all, it took years after the Vietnam had ended before Coming Home, The Deer Hunter and Apocalypse Now appeared in theatres. Moreover, the new war-themed projects are pointedly anti-war and anti-Bush -- nothing like the propaganda you could have expected in decades past.'


But what does an actor like Jake Gyllenhaal, or Reese Witherspoon, or Meryl Streep think about this when they sign on the dotted line? They must want to be in films audiences want to see, but they must also believe that some films and messages are worth the risk and will stand the testament of time and establishment disapproval, as well as audience apathy.

Includes pictures from IHJ.