Updated with new videos! Jake Gyllenhaal honoured by Monday's Hollywood Film Awards!

Update!

With thanks to Mermon for the heads up, here is a wonderful 30 minute interview with Jake:



Here is Jake's acceptance speech from the Hollywood Film Awards



There is more here on Jake's dramatic weight loss.

On with the post!
Last night, the 17th Hollywood Film Awards honoured Jake Gyllenhaal with its Supporting Actor Award for Prisoners, hopefully, the first in a long string of gongs that will adorn Jake's mantelpiece over the coming Silly Season. The award was presented to Jake by Viola Davis, one of Jake's Prisoners co-stars

Jake bedecks the cover of November's Australian GQ magazine and it's a great interview. For instance: 'I really, really love listening to really poppy music. I play a lot of intense characters and going the other way can help. Sometimes if you listen to something that’s the complete opposite of the feeling you’re having, you can dive even deeper. Somehow you’re not thinking so much. And then bam, you’re in it. I’m obsessed with food. I love eating in general, but if I’m somewhere on location, I tend to find one restaurant and weirdly will eat one or two things that I love. Then I’ll know I’m going there at the end of the day to eat that thing. It’s like a strange catharsis to me. I don’t know what it does… but it kind of breaks the boundaries of something that’s different to what my character would eat.'

And on how Donnie Darko, Brokeback Mountain and End of Watch changed his life: '"These movies are markers on my path and life. We all have them in different ways,” he says. “Mine are a little absurd and happen to be movies, but all I have is the experience of those movies and they’ve all been extraordinary in their own way.” It’s clear he loves what he does, but is under no illusions that he’s performing brain surgery. He likes a laugh, and tries to keep things light on set, even when the material is dark. “I’m devoted to what I do and I take it seriously,” he says, “but I have a sense of humour, too.”'

Here is Hugh Jackman's summary of Jake: '“Oh, Jake’s hilarious, he’s a cheeky bugger,” says Jackman. “We became good friends, and he’s a good mate to have.”' I like that.

Here are some videos from last night's red carpet at the Beverly Hilton Hotel.

Last week some rather intriguing images of Jake on the Nightcrawler set emerged.  Seeing the bottom image, I'm rather reminded of Bubble Boy. I rather like the top knot in the photo above...

Thanks so much to IHJ for the photos!

Meet the FIlmmakers

I am so happy to see this! Thanks very much to IHJ for showing us the London Apple Store Meet the Filmmakers, featuring Jake Gyllenhaal, Hugh Jackman and Denis Villeneuve. (I'm on the front row towards the right.)

Jake Gyllenhaal in the movies - Prisoners, Enemy, Nightcrawler and The Good Girl

Jake Gyllenhaal is a man of three films and in today's post there's a little bit from all three - and a fourth. Firstly, there are some new stills from Enemy, both in front of and behind the camera.

There are also some new images from Prisoners, including a wonderful on set photo of Jake with little Erin Gerasimovich, the talented young actress who plays Anna Dover. Incidentally, Prisoners topped the UK box office not only for the first weekend of its release but also its second!

Jake is currently filming Nightcrawler in LA with first-time director Dan Gilroy. Variety has this from its producer: “We really had no choice but to shoot this in Los Angeles, because it’s set in L.A and it’s a quintessentially Los Angeles kind of project in that the city is very much a character in the movie,” said producer David Lancaster. “It’s a similar situation to ‘Drive,’ where it’s essential to set the movie in L.A. And we also got the tax credit.” Thanks to a very fortunate spectator we have our first view of Jake (in pink) in character - a currently unnamed character.

I'm still waiting for the the podcast of Jake and Hugh's London Apple event but iPlayer has captured their interview with Edith Bowman for her BBC Radio 6 show. Their bit of the show begins at about the 2 hour and 37 minute mark. Jake and Hugh also appeared on Steve Wright in the Afternoon on BBC Radio 2 and you can listen to some of that here. They also appeared on the Lorraine Show and that is here.

Jake recorded an interview with Neil Fox and that's available to listen to in two parts here.

Apologies if any of the links don't work for you due to region. This is a most annoying irritation.

Thanks so much to IHJ for the wonderful photos. Do take a look at the gallery as it is overflowing with scans of recent interviews in the media.

And now for the fourth film. This wonderful interview from 2002 when Jake was promotion The Good Girl alongside one of my very favourite of Jake's co-stars, Jennifer Aniston, is now available to watch again. Marvellous.

Jake Gyllenhaal, Hugh Jackman, Prisoners catch up and a glimpse of Enemy

It's a week now since that glorious day in London and Jake Gyllenhaal is back in the States, possibly hard at work on Nightcrawlers. His visit to Europe lasted just a day but Hugh Jackman has been doing great things, whizzing around and making a lot of people very happy. Last Friday Prisoners opened in the UK, which meant that at least I was able to see it and read some of these articles about the film. I didn't want to be spoiled any more that I had to be. I was nervous about Prisoners, I'll be honest. I'm not good with films on that kind of theme but I was completely blown away by it! Its acting, photography and directing were second to none and I was riveted to it for a fast and speedy and thrilling two and a half hours. I know many people have yet to see it in Europe so I don't want to say much but what I can say is that I agree that Inspector Loki is a career-best performance by Jake. He is to be congratulated, along with Hugh and Denis and everyone else involved with the film. I am chuffed and proud!



So, here are a few more videos from the Prisoners promotion. There is a lot more out there and it'll take a while to catch up - at leisure which is a good thing. There is also this interview from Empire.







I loved seeing these snippets from the Apple event! They give you a bit of an idea of what it was like





And thinking ahead, here is a clip from Enemy.

Huge updates! Press conference, premiere and interviews - Prisoners - Jake Gyllenhaal at Toronto International Film Festival 2013

Update! Press conference and premiere

Watch the Prisoners Press conference:



There's a bit of a run through of some things from the conference here. And some photos from the conference - in which Jake admitted to the appeal of Maple syrup.

Hugh Jackman has posted some wonderful photos of himself and Jake at the premiere last night. Hugh described Jake as 'not only a great actor but a great mate'. Here are a couple:

From Warner Brothers:

TIFF always produces some great stories and here is a priceless one - being in a lift with Jake. IT could be awkward.... Not that Jake is phased at all.

These videos from the premiere bring back some big memories for me!





There are more interviews too, including the latest by old favourite Jake Hamilton.





Jake has confirmed to Variety that his next films are Nightcrawler and Everest.



That'll do for now so...

On with the original post

Tonight, Jake Gyllenhaal will walk the red carpet at the Elgin Theatre in Toronto for the festival premiere of Prisoners. It's been a while but at last a new Gyllenmovie is about to be unleashed on audiences amidst the glitz, exuberance and sheer fun of TIFF.

Incidentally, Brokeback Mountain was presented at the Elgin Theatre. It's a wonderful place (I saw Brad Pitt's hand there during my 2007 TIFF adventure) and the perfect setting for a film that is getting the most fantastic of reviews. We're used to good reviews from critics for Jake's work but this looks to be one of those films where the reviews could translate into bums on seats.

Of course, later in the festival, Jake will be presenting (An) Enemy but this post will focus on Prisoners and it will be updated.

The Prisoners press conference takes place on 7 September at 4pm (UK time). It will live stream on YouTube here. Thanks very much to BBMISwear for finding this!

Jake and Hugh Jackman have been doing a lot of publicity for Prisoners in Toronto already - on paper and on video (testified to by some excited journalist tweets), all coming on top of Jake's appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman earlier this week. I'll add interesting links and videos as I come across them over the next day or two but here are a few to keep us going. The new poster for Prisoners above is the UK quad poster - I like it (here via Total Film). Here is a selection of video interviews - some videos may take a while to load:

If the below video doesn't work for you, you can see it here at City News.



Thanks so much to IHJ for their amazing help with videos.



In this interview with the Montreal Gazette Denis Villeneuve discusses the film and his relationship with the actors. On Jake - who, of course, also features in another movie by the director this season - 'We very quickly bonded,” Villeneuve said. “We had a lot of things in common, as artists and men. We became, very quickly, close friends. Our relationship is born out of the will to see the truth and be authentic. We’re super straightforward (with each other), like brothers.'



In USA Today, Jake discusses 2013: "This year, for me personally, has been such an incredible journey," says Gyllenhaal. "What I've learned and taken away is just incredible. I don't think anybody expected anything. I was just so satisfied by this process. But I have to say, I do think it's probably too early to talk about that."



An onset interview and behind the scenes or promo spots





Trailer Addict has a whole host of clips and interviews from Prisoners. You can see those all here - again, thank you so much Stephanie.

Jake and Hugo will also appear together (at least I think it's together) on the Katie Show.

Some reviews:
Huffington Post
Film School Rejects
Maclean's

As for the US premiere, we hear in a tweet: 'Prisoners premieres at the Regency Village Theatre in Westwood on 9/12 at 6:30! Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, cast & filmmakers attending!' I'll post info on any UK and European premieres when I hear it. If you hear anything, do please let us know so that I can post it.

As mentioned, this post will be updated so do keep checking back! If you're fortunate enough to be in Toronto with the stars - have a fabulous time! I had the time of my life there and I can only wish you the same.

Trailer for Prisoners released - starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Hugh Jackman

Are you sitting comfortably? Then prepare to move to the edge of your seat and chew those nails - the trailer for Prisoners starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Hugh Jackman has been released and it is a thriller.



Things to note (obviously apart from the fine acting, cinematography and tension) - hair, tattoo, voice. A mix of Tommy and Robert? Interesting.... And did I say thrilling? What do you thing? Let me know in the comments.

Jake Gyllenhaal to stop traffic in Atlanta and Maggie's in good voice

As we head in to March, movie making season steps up a notch, leaving the dreak, bleak and dark award season behind to history. Jake Gyllenhaal is busy at work filming Prisoners, breaking off occasionally to eat and drink. The next big bout of filming has been announced and it looks like that from 19-22 March Jake will be doing something that comes entirely natural to him - stopping traffic. The Buzz reports that Prisoners is moving to the Atlanta Medical Center South Campus - tentatively.

This evening co-star Hugh Jackman tweeted: 'We are halfway done filming Prisoners in Atlanta.... Can't wait for you all to see it. Love working with our entire cast and crew.' Watching Hugh and Jake publicise this film together is going to be well worth the wait.

Of course, Jake can't be on set all the time and today came a tweet that made my ears stick up: 'Of course Jake Gyllenhaal recorded an audio book at my office yesterday when I wasn't there.' Just the idea of Jake recording an audiobook... the perfect accompaniment to long journeys, sleepless nights, even jogging. Let's just hope it's a book of at least the length of Moby Dick. Mind you, let's not rule out a kiddie book involving lots of farm animal noises. Any preferences?

It's normally Jake that we associate with singing and potential musicals but it was announced this week that sister Maggie will be performing 'songs from the new musical 'Fun Home' at the Sundance Institute Theatre Program Benefit in New York City on April 8'. I would put money on Jake being there to cheer Maggie along. At the moment, Maggie is hard at work filming Frank across the sea in southern Ireland, in a very beautiful part of the world. I hope she has a good set of wellies.

IHJ has been doing a brilliant job keeping us entertained in these quiet days with more new old pictures, including one below from when it all began - back in Knoxville in 1999 and the premiere of October Sky.

I hope you all have a  great rest of the week. I'm heading off away to Italy for a few days - Naples, Capri and fulfilling my lifelong ambition of visiting Pompeii and Herculaneum. There should be lots of wifi so I will be about and will no doubt bombard you with interlude photos on my return!

A catch up with Jake Gyllenhaal and Hugh Jackman in Atlanta and more on Prisoners

Oscars come, Oscars go and it was not to be in 2013. While Jake Gyllenhaal (and myself, come to think of it) gave the awards a miss, no doubt he was watching, cheering on his Prisoners co-star, the Well-Voiced Hugh Jackman, and cheering along with the rest of us as Anne Hathaway and Ang Lee won their Academy Awards. Many congratulations to Anne and Ang - Brokeback Mountain's representatives did very well indeed.

A few years ago it was very different and back in 2008, I headed over to LA to share in a little bit of the Oscar excitement, doing my best to gatecrash the biggest party of the year, The Night Before Party, at the the Beverly Hills Hotel. I won't forget it as long as I live. Here's the link for those who haven't seen it. More of that Oscars roadtrip is here.  Happy days!

Jake is, of course, hard at work making Prisoners in Georgia. You can find some more information and photos from the set here. Just a couple of days after singing on stage in LA, Hugh Jackman was back on set with Jake.

There is plenty of information here on the film itself and the team behind it. There are big names, not least cinematographer Roger Deakins. There is also more on the story and Detective Loki's part in it.

'How far would you go to protect your child? Keller Dover (Jackman) is facing every parent’s worst nightmare. His six-year-old daughter, Anna, is missing, together with her young friend, Joy, and as minutes turn to hours, panic sets in. The only lead is a dilapidated RV that had earlier been parked on their street. Heading the investigation, Detective Loki (Gyllenhaal) arrests its driver, Alex Jones (Paul Dano), but a lack of evidence forces the only suspect’s release.

Knowing his child’s life is at stake, the frantic Dover decides he has no choice but to take matters into his own hands. The desperate father will do whatever it takes to find the girls, but in doing so, he may lose himself, begging the question: When do you cross the line between seeking justice and becoming a vigilante?'

Thanks are due to IHJ for some new old photos of Jake, which do so much to us keep us going at these relatively quiet days. Rendition Jake is always a welcome bonus!

Keeping up to date with Jake Gyllenhaal - BAFTAs, Santa Monica, AIAF, Prisoners, Prince of Persia, This is Our Youth and more!

Last weekend, London was soaked in torrential rain and sleet - that can mean only one thing: BAFTAs. And while Jake Gyllenhaal was not in attendance this year (probably just as well because when I saw Jake on the famously soapy BAFTA red carpet back in 2007, it took a good week before I could rid myself of lingering hypothermia), his Prisoners co-star was, the Well-Voiced Hugh Jackman. Hugh might not have beaten Daniel Day Lewis in the race to the Best Actor Gong but he did provide a very pleasant distraction from Helen Mirren's new pink hairdo. I don't want to say anything too harsh about the pink do because I still feel a little bit of guilt for yelling at her to get out of the way back in 2007 when she chose to linger right in front of Jake. Obviously this is understandable but it did little for my view.

   

You can read about my experience of the 2007 BAFTAs in strictly unnecessary detail here. The shaky nature of some of my photos can be blamed on extremely localised seismic activity. With Well-Voiced Hugh busy in London, this no doubt left Jake with a bit of leisure time and so last weekend Jake was seen arriving at a hotel in Santa Monica. Was he in LA for the Mumford and Sons Grammy Victory, I wonder...? Many thanks to IHJ!

   

But while the filming seems remarkably low key, this week we got a very good look at Jake in character as Detective Loki when he was snapped being given the Heimlich Manoeuvre.

   

Filming, though, continues apace and very politely.

   

Otherwise, on the filming front, we have the little piece of news that the music is being recorded for An Enemy at the moment and it involves 'scary strings'.

Arts in the Armed Forces

Back in November, we were lucky to have our very own reporter, Lisa, at the Arts in the Armed Forces event in NYC, which Jake attended and gave a reading at. You can read Lisa's exclusive report here. This week, Lisa emailed me further photos from the event which not only show Jake but also Lisa and Ted! Jake is in full Face Pet disguise... It is well worth keeping an eye on the website for further photos. Thanks so much, Lisa!

  

 

King of Persia

The King of Persia has been speaking about the Prince of Persia. Richard Coyle reveals here that he and Jake are still good friends. With this brief interview, the happy memories come flooding back, a fair few of them involving ostriches. 'I did a play in the West End called 'Proof' with Gwyneth Paltrow, and then John Madden - the director - made a movie of it with Gwyneth Paltrow. And Jake played Hal [Harold Dobbs], my part. So Jake had been to see the play and we chatted. We sort of bonded over it. When we met again on 'Prince of Persia' there was a kind of dynamic of older brother, younger brother. Probably just because of that but also because I had played his part and he'd come and watch me do the original. I suppose there was a mutual respect and that already helped us together. And we have a lovely dynamic now, we still speak often.' Click and this pic shall be much embiggened.

  

And finally...

Stephanie has kindly uploaded new old pictures from a photoshoot for Jake's appearance in the West End production This is Our Youth back in 2002. There are lots more there, so thanks to IHJ.

 

Jake Gyllenhaal catch up as Jake goes undercover as Detective Loki

As we move into February, Jake Gyllenhaal has gone underground. Busy at work on Prisoners in Georgia, probably, he appears to have gone underground. Occasionally a twitter glimmer may sparkle but it's fair to say that there have been more sightings of the Tower of London's headless masked prisoner ghost over recent days than there has been of Jake Gyllenhaal. Obviously, if you spend all your time in Georgia's spin classes or whole food stores then you've almost certainly seen Jake every other day but, for the rest of us, Jake is as one with Detective Loki and has gone undercover.

Glimpses of Jake's co-star, the Tuneful Hugh Jackman, have been slightly more common. Jake has, though, been seen at 'Watershed's Uptown Martini with oysters, steak tartare, jambalaya, lamb ragout, coconut cake, sweet potato creme brûlée and hot milk cake'. I have only one thing to say to that - except for the fact that Jake has clearly not lost his appetite - but sweet potato in creme brulee?? The mind boggles. The one bit of news we do have is that the DVD and blu ray of End of Watch now has a release date in the UK and it's not too far off at all - 18 March. If you fancy it, you can get a pretty posh edition from Amazon. In the absence of news, it falls to my lot to post a couple of videos of Jake from bygone days. The first is from the Berlinale in 2012, almost a year ago now, followed by a little glimpse of an interview with a wee Jake from October Skies days. You will find more from this interview on these pages.

 

 I also wanted to post this wonderful photo of Naomi Foner and Dakota Fanning from Sundance as well as a photo of Peter Sarsgaard with the Lovelace cast, also from Sundance.

Thanks to IHJ and JustJared for the photos.

**Updated Update!** Gyllenhaal-Foner-Sarsgaard Sundance Takeover; meet Detective Loki and End of Watch out on DVD in US today

Update.... Again!

I wanted to post a couple of videos from Sundance - one of the Very Good Girls premiere and the other from Lovelace. I feel that posting the latter is my civic duty because, through this video, you can see for yourself the full horror of what can happen if a Face Pet is allowed to run free and fed too much. No wonder Jake shaved his off. And there was me thinking it had something to do with Prisoners.





A couple of the featurettes from the End of Watch DVD have also been released thanks to 411mania.com.  So here is Watch Your Six:


and Women on Watch



Update! Jake did indeed attention the premiere of Very Good Girls last night (sitting alongside Celebrity Godmother Jamie Lee Curtis) and how proud he looks! Many thanks to IHJ for these spectacular photos.

It's a big week for Jake Gyllenhaal and his family but I'd like to thank them for keeping it relatively low key while I had flu. Tonight, Naomi Foner's movie Very Good Girls - the film of the filmset that Jake frequently visited - has its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival. There had been doubts about whether Jake would manage to be there - reminding me of last year when so many thought that Jake was there when all the time he wasn't (or was he?). This time, though, a series of tweets from excited people at Atlanta Airport makes it look as if Jake has indeed made the trip. No doubt in return for doing extra tea duty on the set of Prisoners.

Naomi has spoken a little today about what directing, a shift in her life, means to her.

'Time is not on my side. I came late to directing, although I’ve been writing screenplays for most of my life, so I am in a hurry. In my case, it was, grandma directs a movie. And that meant literally, limiting the time I got to spend with my favorite people on earth, my grand daughter Ramona, and her new sister, Gloria who arrived weeks before we began to shoot. That was a big trade off, but I am hoping that they will get to see this film, and others one day. That they will tell their own stories in some form, because grandma (and mom) keep telling theirs. It’s a struggle to balance family and work for men and women, and filmmaking is especially challenging. But it lets us touch people we would never otherwise know, while still holding our dear ones close. That seems like having your cake and eating it too.'

Of course it never rains but it pours (at least in Britain), and tonight Sundance also sees the screening of Lovelace, a film which stars Peter Sarsgaard. What a day! A big family desert reunion could be on the cards.

Sundance has been a popular film festival for Jake over the last 13 years or so, as just a quick search of the WDW archives reveals. Jake even featured in a movie shot at the Festival. Brokeback Mountain premiered at Sundance (Jake talks about that here) and Donnie Darko and Good Girls also had fine days in the sun. 

And then there was this performance from 2004.

Detective Loki!

This week we got our first look at Jake's new Prisoners character Detective Loki. It's a look a little reminiscent of Nailed and Love and Other Drugs but has several things going for it, not least the well-shorn face. I want to take some scissors to that bouffant though... There are a set of photos over at PoPSugar, including this below of Jake and his relatively hairy co-star, the extremely well-voiced Hugh Jackman. Interestingly, this appears to be Jake's second film character with a neck tattoo! Maybe it would be easier if Jake just had one done.

End of Watch out on Blu Ray and DVD in the US

End of Watch is out in the US on disc today. While the rest of us have a while to wait at least this means we can hear something about the quality of the features. Unfortunately, as we knew, no Jake commentary (such a loss - who can't love Jake's commentaries to Bubble Boy, Donnie Darko, Moonlight Mile and Zodiac?).

Here are some comments from Flix66: 

'Feature Commentary with Writer/Director David Ayer: A deeply insightful commentary. Ayer goes into a lot of detail explaining his choices for END OF WATCH.
Deleted Scenes (46:41): Seventeen deleted, extended and alternate scenes that at a lot of depth to the characters and film. Although interesting, most of these were rightfully cut to maintain focus and proper pacing. However, I think a few of these would have been OK to keep in the final cut.
Featurettes (10:59): Five very short fluff featurettes about 2 minutes each that offer nothing of much substance – “Fate with a Badge,” “In the Streets,” “Women on Watch,” “Watch Your Six” and “Honors"'

There's a further assessment at CinemaBlend which makes good reading.

This, I believe, may be a DVD feature but it may not be...

Mission!

So, all of you out there in Atlanta and Utah - keep your eyes peeled and those cameras primed!

Thanks to IHJ and links for photos.

**Updated** Catching up with Jake - at play and at work. News on Prisoners, Grind and Face Pet

As the well-known expression goes, the proof is in the pudding and without doubt the latest pictures of Jake Gyllenhaal are a big, fat, luxurious blancmange of a pudding, proving beyond all reasonable doubt that the beard really has gone. It was not just wishful thinking brought on by a blurry photo, a magnifying glass and a Jake Gyllenhaal Identification Kit.

Last Sunday (13 January), Jake was courtside to watch (spoiler) the Brooklyn Nets beat the Indiana Pacers in Brooklyn, NYC. There is a brief video here of highlights so get that Jake Spotting Kit out again. Thanks to IHJ for the lovely photo of a very Renditiony like Jake.

There is another video, though, and so with thanks to Laure for the link...



And here's a photo from it. There are no words to describe Peter's beard. Suddenly the Face Pet seems like such an innocent creature.

Prisoners

Filming is due to start on Prisoners tomorrow (16 January) with no doubt a very happy and tuneful Hugh Jackman. More clues about the filming have emerged, such as reports of false snow (if they were filming in the UK they'd not have to worry about any such false snow nonsense - I believe that Oxford would make a fine movie city double). There has also been an additional casting of a Dark Knight villain David Dastmalchian.

The filmmakers are also extremely set in their ways about what sort of cars they want in Prisoners as can be seen in this bit of casting information:

'The first casting call I’ve seen for this one seeks men and women ages 18 to 55 with cars of various colors, but not red, white, really bright or with custom paint jobs.'

Why not red? Why not white or bright? My car is blue, if only I weren't so far away...

There is more information about the filming location here.

One thing is for sure, the attachment of  Hugh Jackman to Prisoners in this great year for Hugh can bring nothing but good to this exciting project.

Talking of Hugh Jackman, here is a shamefully blatant link to my review of Les Miserables (This link should now work!)

Grind

There is also more news about the project after Prisoners (probably), Mississippi Grind. Not only is Jake set to be one of the two male leads in this film but he he is also producing, doubling the potential significance of this film.

Variety reports that Ben Mendelsohn (Animal Kingom) is in talks to play the older of the two men - the 'a gambler in debt who sets off on a road trip through the Southern U.S. with a young gambling addict in an attempt to change his luck'.

'Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck will write and direct the pic. Besides Gyllenhaal, Lynette Howell, John Lesher and Jamie Patricof will also be producing through Electric City Entertainment.'

Further background information comes from Cinemablend.

All in all, exciting times! With no Face Pet!

Thanks again to IHJ for the beautiful old new photos from the Love and Other Drugs days of 2011.