Jake on Jarhead: I loved being able to get into that kind of shape

In the runup to Toronto, Rendition is one of the films getting attention for its controversial subject matter and the fact that its one of a spate of Autumn movies that are either about the war in Iraq or related to it in some way. But let's not forget that movies on war are nothing new and that Jake's already got one under his belt - Jarhead, of course. Last weekend, I rewatched and rediscovered October Sky after several years, last night it was the turn to catch up with a far more recent favourite, Swoff.



Here is a link to an interview (hosted by a man with one of the deepest voices I've heard) in which Jake discusses what it was like to have had that fabulous marine body and how it was such a fun shoot - 'It's the result of an experience'. There's a fun anecdote in here which shows that Jake can have hungover Monday mornings just like the rest of us - although admittedly our hangovers and lack of sleep are not the result of celebrating a colleague's Oscar win the night before. It seems that the night Jamie Foxx won his Oscar for his portrayal of Ray Charles, Jake was 'super-excited' for Jamie and so only had an hour of sleep. The next day his legs were so wobbly he could hardly walk, but it 'looked like really good acting'. The pictures below are from these Oscars in 2005 and this is a video to go with it.



But as for what it was like to immerse himself in that role, Jake says: 'I remember putting on the flak jacket and the helmet for the first time and feeling all of the energy in my body turning inwards. I remember that feeling of being sucked in.'

It's well know that Jake had some difficulties getting the part - that he felt Sam Mendes wasn't keeping him informed about what was going on behind the scenes. It's interesting to hear Sam's point of view on the misery that he caused Jake, albeit temporarily. 'I realised when Jake read it aloud to me that the part didn’t really exist yet, he didn’t really have a personality; it was a kind of cipher and there was always this great danger in the middle of the film that Swoff was the observer but he didn’t engage that much because the war didn’t force him to engage. During that time when I wasn’t calling Jake back, Bill Broyles, the screenwriter, and I were trying to work out who the character was – whether it was Jake or someone else because I didn’t know what the requirements of the role were yet. We always had him in our mind and at the end of the day we came back to the first person I thought of and the first person I gave the script to who was Jake.'


Although Jake has worked with Peter Sarsgaard on Rendition (at the moment I have no idea if they have scenes together or not), in Jarhead they would have been in each other's pockets, and Jake reveals with touching honesty - for someone talking about dishonesty - one of those golden nuggets of treasure about himself and how he interacts with the world and people around him. 'I have very few close friends and I feel that even though we do insult each other in private and in public, for some reason I think it was a blessing. Speaking for myself, I spend a lot of time throwing tricks that I consider to be honest but which aren’t necessarily honest but they work with people that don’t know you that well. What I noticed from working with my sister just a little bit and in working with Peter is that no matter what I threw that was dishonest, they just kind of know.'


For a closing quote: 'If you knew me at all you would understand that there is not a lot of preparation involved in asking me to get naked!' Good to know... (take note directors).

Includes pictures from IHJ.