Friday 24 February 2012

End of Watch screening is such a success, distributor Open Road snaps it up. Jake Gyllenhaal is executive producer

While sightings of Jake Gyllenhaal on trains and in restaurants suggest that Jake is back in the Big Smoke, no doubt trying to work off the apfelstrudel and croissant, End of Watch has taken a big leap forward on the road to release. On Wednesday a buyers screening of End of Watch took place at the Arclight in LA which clearly had the desired effect because by Thursday Open Road had snapped up the distribution rights. It sounds like Open Road will be investing a lot of resources behind End of Watch and putting it on a lot of screens. And in 2012 too.


Source for the picture

Of course, this deal wouldn't have happened if End of Watch hadn't wowed the Wednesday audience. People who were there have been posting their responses on the IMb boards. Here's the first:
It was a GREAT movie, it reminds me of the tv show Southland but on steroids. It had its funny, sad, happy, and oh crap moments. What the film is about is the life of two cops who decide to film/document their experiences while on the job, they encounter some pretty rough stuff while working in South Central. The movie had me on the edge of my seat literally from beginning to end. The ending was unexpected, i can hear alot of people around me gasping like "whoa" and "wtf". All in all, it was the best movie i have seen in months.

I also liked that the director of the movie David Ayer opened up the movie by saying the film isnt a finished product, he mentioned that a few minor deatil were gonna be cleaned up and that there would be more blood invloved, in my opinion the movie was perfect as is. i definitly recommend this movie to anyone wanting to watch an action movie that has its fair share of laughs and sad moments.

 And the second:
Hey I went to that screening too...film was great I loved it. The relationship between the cops was grreat really felt natural. And the slang words where spot on. Plus I live in south central and they passed by my house so it was fun seein familiar places. Got to speak to david ayers, michael pena who was a nice guy btw and anna kendrick......fun night hopefully I get to see the finished product in theaters....oh and.btw sum of the pov shots were awesome.

Deadline has more details from the screening and about the film itself:
“David [Ayer] has a unique voice as a filmmaker, he writes with authenticity and portrays real characters from the streets where he grew up,” said John Lesher, who produced through his Le Grisbi banner. “He moves you, but the film is very accessible and with these small cameras fabricated and fitted on characters and other places, it creates a 360-degree environment, like it was shot by the cops themselves and has changed the grammar of filmmaking somewhat. Jake and Mike trained five months to be police officers and it shows.”
Lesher said they decided to re-create a festival environment by showing the film in a recruited screening, which happened last night at the Arclight. They had several distribution options but were wowed by Open Road’s aggressiveness and distribution plans. “We wanted distributors to see it with an audience and it was standing-room only,” he said. “The film is gripping but there is also a lot of humor. It is better than a screening in an empty room with four executives; I’ve been through those. It’s a different experience watching with real moviegoers and buyers responded.”

Also, how good to read confirmation that Jake is Executive Producer!

Thanks to IHJ for the pictures and to BBMISwear for the big help with the links!

25 comments:

BBMISwear said...

Glad to hear you're feeling better WDW! I am very excited about all this End of Watch news...I hope they can finish up the little details and get it released soon. I am so looking forward to seeing it (even though it is not really my type of movie with the violence, blood, stressful situations, etc.). But it sounds very well done and the acting sounds great and, well, Jake! :-) It reminds me of how I felt the first few times I watched Zodiac - I was so scared at some parts I was hiding my eyes at times but once I got use to it I've been able to enjoy it over and over again. I gave Jake a hard time for making too many stressful movies at one point and he agreed!

Anyway, Yay for EoW and the many sightings in NYC! I wish we'd get news of him flying out to L.A. and being an Oscar presenter...it's getting tight time wise so maybe not.

Happy Weekend all!

:-)

Anonymous said...

does anyone know is @jake_gyllenhaal is really Jake's twitter account?

Anonymous said...

Jake has said before he doesn't have a twitter or facebook so I'm pretty sure it's fake. Whoever is running it should say they are a fan and not pretend to be him.

Anonymous said...

Thanks 20:29.

Wet Dark and Wild said...

Helli BBMISwear :-) it doesn't sound like my sort of movie either but I love what we hear here. It also makes me hope it will be shown in plenty of screens outside the US. I really doubt Jake will be at the Oscars but I suppose there's still time...

Hi 20:23 - that's a fake account and I agree with 20:29. There are so many fake Jake and Maggie accounts!

I hope you all are having a good Friday! I'm feeling much better now :) Just as well as a lot of miles to cover this weekend...

Anonymous said...

Glad you're feeling better Kate:) Have a nice weekend.

Susan said...

EOW news is fantastic! Loved the comment about a 'wtf' moment and an unexpected ending - that sounds like David Ayer has done something impressive once again. Can't wait to see it!

Anonymous said...

Great news about EOW I had no idea Jake was an Exec producer. It really shouldn't come as a surprise he wanted to up his game in the film making biz. He was instrumental on getting Duncan for director of SC so why not be on the producing team of EOW?

Now I hope to hear a release date soon

Lily

mermon said...

I am excited about EoW news as well. So far all the movie's comments are very positive. It is so fine the movie has distributor at last. Maybe it won't be too long now and promotion will start.
I was counting a bit on Jake's presence at Oscars, but time is running out. Too bad, my motivation to watch it all night long is weaker.

Daniela said...

Hi everyone!!
I'm enjoying it a lot of criticism about EOW not only by praising the movie but how they are being written, you can see people who really felt the movie was not just entertainment
Now, we only wait for the premiere date, OMG! : D

Anonymous said...

Good to hear you're feeling better, Kate. I hope your recovery continues.

Thanks for the nice post. Very good news about EOW. Can't wait for it's release.

Have a nice weekend everyone.
Christina

mayumintolor said...

Thanks to Kate for the great news! It sounds very exciting! I'm sure EOW will be a great success, because of these reviews.
So, I hope EOW will be released in my country without delay among the other countries.
Anyway I'm looking forward to seeing police officer Jake! :)

mermon said...

Oh, yes! @mayumintolor, usually you have Jake's movies released quite delayed. I hope not this time.

Anonymous said...

I will be watching the Oscars. Sure it would have been nice to have Jake be a part of it, but he already did the GG so he wouldn't be participating in the Oscars. Maybe he wants to stay in NY and watch it on TV like the rest of us. I will be watching it for Billy Crystal (we're having our own little Oscar party with snacks,etc)

Here is an article about Bear Grylls. We all know about his adventures with Jake in Iceland last year, they became friends. They hung out in London recently when Jake was there (had dinner) Did you know they also braved the 'dangers' of Santa Monica Bay together?

Bear mentions it in this article
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/26/fashion/reality-tv-star-bear-grylls-tries-khakis-on-for-size.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&adxnnlx=1330182228-UaHL4l5dUy4iXPBNHQXtyw

Anonymous said...

That last post was from me

sweetpea

Anonymous said...

I'm very happy that you're feeling better Kate! And, as usual, you made a great job with this post!!!Fantastic news! And "our" Jake an exectutive producer...he's growing up, not only as an actor!I'm very proud :) Anyway I'm looking forward to see End of Watch!!!
A wonderful weekend to everyone!
Hugs,
Carlotta
Ps Yesterday I saw "Hysteria"... a very faunny and smart movie...no words for Maggie, of course! :3

mermon said...

Thank you @Sweetpea for that link. So Jake fooled us all and paps and was able to have his fun with Bear without anyone knowing that. Shame on you Jake.
I saw Shame today, liked it.

Unknown said...

I'm getting so excited about "End of Watch", I hope that we don't have to wait too long to see it.

And of course I hope that promotion for the movie will bring him to Europe again too.

mayumintolor said...

Thank you @mermon! and Thanks to @sweetpea for the link!

Have a great weekend everyone!! :)

Wet Dark and Wild said...

Thanks for the link Sweetpea :) And hello everyone!

Just got back after a long drive from York. Beautiful city and a lovely time with friends but blimey I'm knackered. Off to have a nap...

Cazajuguetes said...

Great news about EOW. Exciting comments from the screenings. Thanks WDW and BBMISwear.

paulh said...

I'm glad that the initial screenings of "End of Watch" are getting positive reviews.

It sounds as though Jake has made another movie that really matters and won't be forgotten five minutes after the viewers leave the theater.

Did I ever mention that in the library I used to work in, "Rendition" circulated a great many times? It did badly at the box office, and has never really been a high-profile film, but people are more than willing to watch it on their DVD players.

I agree with, WDW, in that this is not ordinarily my kind of movie. However, I'm more than willing to see this one, as it seems to have a very thoughtful premise.

Plus, the setting in L.A. I used to love a TV show called "Emergency," about a pair of paramedics in L.A. It was wonderful to see the kinds of rescues that firemen paramedics could be called upon to make. A lot of people are curious as to what policemen and firemen do when on duty.

Wet Dark and Wild said...

Hi Eureka and Paul! I remember that about Rendition, Paul.

I've had to reinstate the anti-robot word verifications unfortunaty, because my email and old posts are being swamped with spam. Sorry about that.

York seems to have done me in, back ill in bed. Anyone who can watch the Oscars, I hope you enjoy it, although I think the awards are at their most predictable this year. Hope the winners aren't too gushy!

BBMISwear said...

Stopping by to say hello and wishing you well, WDW. You seem to be catching the many illness that are circulating around so hope you feel better soon and no more germs after this!!

A shout out to Paul - long time no see! I loved your referenced to Emergency - what a blast from the past - a very popular show in it's day!

I am always happy to watch the Oscars but also feel it's not as exciting this year. I loved Michelle's speech at the Independent Spirit Awards last night - hope there's at least some entertaining moments tonight.

Until next time...

:-)

mermon said...

Get well Kate!
We are watching OSCARS with LadyEkster!
No surprises so far.