(Updated update) Jake Gyllenhaal talks Damn Yankees and (in a hot wig) talks Top Gun, Prince of Persia death traps, Source Code and that 2% of Nailed

Updated update! Jake talks to MTV about Damn Yankees and his (sublime) singing ability.

Movie Trailers - Movies Blog

There is a great new interview tonight with Jake Gyllenhaal - not from WonderCon but from a day a few weeks ago when Jake had to don a wig (and full costume) to get back into character for a Prince of Persia press day. It's a fun phone interview (Jake has always been so good at these) and you can read the full interview at UGO. But here are some snippets of loveliness.


'Jordan Hoffman: So what do they have you doing right now? Are you in costume? Jake Gyllenhaal: I am. It’s strangely embarrassing. [I’m not 100% sure he was joking here.] They made me put my costume back on. Jordan Hoffman: Really? Are you in leather straps right now on the telephone? Jake Gyllenhaal: Leather straps, and this wig that’s very hot. But I never wore a wig in the movie; but since my hair is short they’re forcing me to wear a wig today.'


'Jordan Hoffman: What’s your favorite scene from Top Gun? Jake Gyllenhaal: When the dude [James Tolkan] is like, “You jokers are goin’ to Top Gun!” You know that scene where he’s like “Damn you Maverick!” Jordan Hoffman: You know what I love about that, is that he says the name of the movie in that scene. Jake Gyllenhaal: He does, it’s the best. He’s like...what does he say? What are the other names, the craziest names of the characters? Jordan Hoffman: Uh, you mean Ice Man? Or Goose? Jake Gyllenhaal: No, not them, but Goose and Ice Man are awesome. They’re like Green Leaf and Dirt Man, or something [Cougar and Merlin, actually.] Like, “Daisy fell off so you two jokers are goin’ to Top Gun!” That’s my favorite.'


'Jordan Hoffman: Sands of Time is pretty damned addictive and aggravating. Did you ever finish? Jake Gyllenhaal: No, I never finished it. But you know that section, the water section? Where you have to run from wall to wall, to get over the water? My God, that took me days and days and days. Jordan Hoffman: You could make a call, though, you can call them up and be like hey I’m going to be in this damn thing let’s give me some ways out; but you stuck with it, I like that. Jake Gyllenhaal: I stuck with it...but I would you know, bring in the stuntman to my trailer when I was playing and I’d be like, “guys can we do this? Can we figure out how to do this move?”'


'Jake Gyllenhaal: I trained with David Belle, the inventor of Parkour and a lot of different acrobats. I had a few doubles on the movie, one named is Mark Fichera. And he was extraordinary; and we did – I did training with acrobats in Los Angeles before I went to London for a month of preproduction and prep. And I learned all the basic moves of parkour, which surprisingly were much harder than I’d expected them to be; and since then I have not really applied those skills to the rooftops of the cities I live in but don['t] put it past me.'


And on Source Code: 'The movie is called Source Code. Duncan is directing it, and the character I play is a character named Coulter Stevens and he’s a helicopter pilot who flies helicopters for the Air Force in Afghanistan and all of a sudden – well you learn that, but he wakes up on a train in the middle of Chicago and he has no idea how he got there or where he is. And uhm, there’s a woman talking to him across from him who seems like she knows him but he doesn’t know who she is and when he sees his reflection in the mirror of the train – as another train passes the opposite way, he sees it’s not his face. And he doesn’t recognize this face.'


And some not so good news about Nailed: 'Jake Gyllenhaal: The financing for the movie, uh, we had one last scene to shoot of the movie. We were pretty much, I would say 98% done and uh, the financing fell through. So that movie is yet to be finished. Jordan Hoffman: So this is something that’s 98% done and we’re waiting for somebody’s uncle to put up some dough to finish this thing? Is that basically the story? Jake Gyllenhaal: Yeah, talk to the financer. Jordan Hoffman: Wow. Well, I hope it comes out. Jake Gyllenhaal: You never know. You never know. Jordan Hoffman: Would you ever endorse sort of an unfinished version or something? If your schedule and his schedule can’t get back together once the financing does come back through? Jake Gyllenhaal: Well my role is done. I shot all my roll in the movie but, uhm, yeah I would without a doubt. I think David is like, an extraordinary filmmaker and I always think there’s a way around it. It’s just, you know all those contracts you gotta get through.'


Great stuff! I never thought I'd hear Jake talk about Top Gun but here he has and so I am happy... One thing about a Jerry Bruckheimer movie - you know it'll come out and with a tidal wave of publicity behind it. And the more I learn about Source Code, the more I want to know.

I would like to update the post with this from GeekSugar...



Pictures from the Visual Guide to Prince of Persia, via IHJ.

Updated: New Jake Gyllenhaal interview ('Zelda was super dope') and Heroes will rise! New PoP TV spots

[Update:] Jake Gyllenhaal was interviewed by GeekSugar on Saturday and among the goodies we hear that 'I definitely have had my fun on the Wii' and 'Zelda was super dope'. I have no idea what they means but it's a phrase I will use with every opportunity from hereonin!


'On what drew him to Prince of Persia: There are a lot of things. One was the character, 'cause for me, whenever I choose a movie it's the character. I thought — at least as it was written — [Prince Dasdan] was wry and funny and had a good time, but at the same time kicked some ass. But then I also like the idea that it was based on a video game. I like to do things that people have tried their hand at and haven't succeeded. Maybe it's a riskier thing to do, but I like that. And I knew that there would be a huge audience of people that I would be trying to appease and that kinda turned me on too. And we're bringing it to younger kids, kids who have never played the video game before and never experienced it.'


'On whether he's played the original Prince of Persia, and if he's a gamer: I have played it, but I'm not a gamer in general. I definitely have had my fun on the Wii. Being an actor you have a lot of time on your hands in between set-ups and things so there's always the opportunity on set. A portable gaming device is always fun. I played a lot of video games when I was a kid. I really loved Metroid when I was a kid. I played that game all the time. Zelda was super dope and it may have been one of my favorites only because the casing was gold. I'm not really sure actually if it was the journey of it or that the casing was gold but I loved that game, and traditional things like the classic Super Mario Bros. and Mike Tyson's Punchout.'


'How he feels about 3D in the film industry: Well, I think it's all about intention. Like Jim Cameron made Avatar, and his intention was to use 3D. Subsequently I think people have tried to join the bandwagon without understanding the creative side of what 3D is. Whenever you have a tool, I think someone should become proficient in that tool. I don't think you just add it to your arsenal and be like "I know how to do this." Regardless, Avatar wouldn't be as amazing as Avatar is — although it's extraordinary on a visual level — without a great story. And I think storytelling has lasted thousands of years as a result of the fact that twists, and turns, and unexpected things happen in stories that blow people's minds, and that's what lasts. We want to tell a great story — 2D, 3D, a great story is a great story.'


'On if he's caught the action genre bug, and if he liked doing his own stunts: I kinda am, yeah. I kinda am. I was [excited to do my own stunts], I mean that's the reason to do it. You're making a movie based on a video game, It's gonna be physical, and if you don't do it, how lame is that? I really had to ask myself, "Are you ready for this? Would you learn how to do Parkour, would you learn how to sword fight for real?" And I tried to be game for everything. I really tried to be. And I was. I did it even though sometimes I didn't succeed at it all the time, I tried each one of the things.'


On with the post!

It never rains but it pours delights over here in Prince of Persia Gyllenland. Hot on the heels of Jake Gyllenhaal's triumphant debut at WonderCon, we have two new TV spots for Prince of Persia: Sands of Time. We have a little more accent, more snakes, more dagger and a lot more sand. The music stands out more here, too, and I like it. If this film doesn't rush headlong into the theatres soon, I swear I could...well, pop.




A couple of pictures here from the clips: Our world could end and Is that all you got?


All of the WonderCon panel is now available to watch in HD on YouTube thanks to The Network. You can see all of the six videos here, including the wonderful moment when Jake appears on the stage under the spotlight of 4,000 pairs of eyes. Here are the final four.






Jordan Mechner has described his rather unreal experience of attending WonderCon in the company of a movie star, a legendary film and TV producer and a much-respected director (I wonder if Jordan got an iPad like Jake...): 'I’ve been to Comic-Cons before, but this WonderCon was a new experience for me. Being flown in by the studio for one day to take part in a Prince of Persia movie panel felt a bit like visiting a parallel universe — one from which parking, waiting in line, negotiating crowds, showing ID, figuring out where to go next, and other ordinary aspects of flying and attending conventions have magically been eliminated.'


'Instead, I was whisked along with Jake Gyllenhaal, Jerry Bruckheimer, and Mike Newell from car to plane to car and from one place to another with such efficiency that all I saw of the show and conference center were underground parking garages, service elevators, corridors and backstage areas — only to suddenly emerge on stage in front of 4,000 people. Feeling the energy of that crowd was a rush I won’t soon forget.' Do visit Jordan's blog for his wonderful sketch of Jake on the plane on the way to WonderCon.



Jake has also been talking about the experience: '"It's so great to hear everybody cheering after the clips," Gyllenhaal told Moviefone. The 'Persia' star and first-time Con attendee was unintimidated by the raucous crowds. "That's the scary thing, people are seeing a little piece of this movie that's just been our own for so long. Granted, 2,000 people worked on it [laughs]. It's great to hear people get psyched, and see the sea of cameras and people."'

Outstanding.


Jake has been spotted last night returning to Canada. Source Code, or at least one unit of it, is leaving for Chicago on 7 April. However, the news that they wanted to hire doubles may suggest Jake may be continuing to film in Montreal for the week. We shall see!


Many thanks to IHJ for the new WonderCon pics - there are plenty more there!

[Updated] Jake Gyllenhaal's WonderCon triumph! And Source Code will 'blow your mind!'

No time for eating Easter Eggs or biting the heads off cute little chocolate bunnies this Easter Sunday, no way! And all because Jake Gyllenhaal has been doing what he does so well - taking centrestage to talk with charm and passion for his new movie while flirting the socks off the very receptive audience. 'We love you Jake!' cried some. 'I love you guys!' Jake replied. And with a beaming and proud Jerry Bruckheimer, Mike Newell and Jordan Mechner looking on, you could see brilliantly well why Jake Gyllenhaal was the perfect choice for Dastan, Prince of Persia.


Even though most of us are, unfortunately, a long way away from the streets of San Francisco, we're fortunate in that we can share in the excitement of WonderCon on Saturday 3 April thanks to a number of good people, including our Intrepid Roving Reporter! I'm glad to say that not only did she survive seeing Jake 'delicious' Gyllenhaal in person yesterday, she was also able to record some of the Prince of Persia panel - no mean feat I can tell you:



The Roving Reporter reports: 'I was worried I wouldn't get in (they have very strict Fire Marshall rules on capacity) - it was also almost pitch black and they were showing a preview of a new TV show. Couldn't find any seats so hung along a side wall with a bunch of other folk. Lights came up and they started a Q & A with the TV show folk. Moved further down near the front and managed to snag an end seat. As you'll see, I was quite far from the stage but they had two huge screens either side and I was right in front of one. Lots of signs and we were also told no video, photos etc. but nobody took a blind bit of notice and it wasn't enforced at all - I think they were more concerned about the bit of exclusive PoP being recorded rather than the rest of it.'


'Jerry and Mike were this first two out and they spoke about the film and Jake (boy, do they ever LOVE our boy!) They also mentioned that Jake was backstage...that's when I sent the I'm here message. They then showed the first clip which was almost ALL Jake - lights came up and then Jordan and Jake came on - The audience went mad, clapping, cheering and quite a few fangirls shouting out "I love you Jake", etc. and he says "I love you guys too"

To set the scene, here are some of her pictures from the event. How much do I want to look round those stalls...?




We're also lucky that friends HeyUGuys made the trip over from the UK and recorded videos of the press conference and the panel. They also made my evening with an exchange of emails which made me feel a part of it, so thanks to them! Here are their videos.




We have three more little clips from the panel here:





So... what have we learned! From the press conference we hear from Jake 'Now I wish that I was British as I feel that I'm proficient enough with the British accent' and 'Occasionally I would throw out the British accent at the dinner table'. Jake was, however, surrounded by so many British accents that the accent could move around England's counties a fair bit, until pulled back by Mike Newell, whose accent Jake clearly enjoys!


The press conference and the panel demonstrates that as Jake grew in confidence, and when the trainers were more confident with Jake's abilities to hurl himself around, the stunts and fights got more 'dicey'.

The panel witnessed a classic question (there was one word in it which I couldn't quite catch and so I was glad of Uli's help with the translation): 'I wanted to know how difficult it was getting into shape and getting all tanned because you started off like Bubble Boy, all adorable and bubbly and now you're like Unghhhhhhhhhhhhhh!' Jake: 'It was so much fun. What can you do when you get paid to get tanned, get in shape...' The questioner again: 'You're pretty, I just thought you should know that.'


There were some classic Jakisms that we have come to love and expect. 'I keep the dagger of time and will use it if this press conference has any weird questions.' 'We worked very closely with a guy named David Belle who invented Parkour. It took a long time to find him cos he has no email address or phone number. So we went over the streets of France in a helicopter looking for people jumping off of buildings and we snagged him and brought him over to Morocco.' Dastan 'also likes to jump off of things. He also likes to fight with his fist and with his sword and he also likes princesses.'


'That's how I trained for the movie too - it was just me and a baggy pair of pyjamas.'

We wanted 'to see if we can run over that donkey and then we would or we wouldn't successfully run over a donkey. No! Not like that! I didn't mean it like that!'

On working with Jerry Bruckheimer: 'It was a little louder, a little bigger, and a little more fun'.


After the panel, it was time for the WonderCon cocktail party... And a look at what everyone in San Francisco wanted to get their hands on yesterday (and the iPad's not bad either).



But it wasn't all Prince of Persia, Jake also took some time out to talk about Love and Other Drugs briefly ('which is awesome and I'm very proud of it') and Source Code: 'I'm shooting a movie right now with a guy named Duncan Jones who directed the movie Moon with Sam Rockwell, which is an amazing movie. We're having an amazing time and that movie, a scifi movie, will blow your mind.' The video is below.



Many thanks to everyone who brought us all into WonderCon with them and thanks to IHJ for the superb photographs (there are many, many more to enjoy there) and to the Intrepid Roving Reporter for sharing her adventure with us! Thanks too to HeyUGuys for the videos and pictures. I don't now about you, but I'm ready to see this film right now!

Happy Easter! PS - I'm not ruling out any updates... Talking of which:

Update: Another little video clip from the press conference:



And here, Jerry discusses the question of whether to use 3D or not...

Here is an interview with Jordan Mechner.

Updated update: WonderCon - the pics! Jake Gyllenhaal at the Prince of Persia panel and press conference

Updated Update! Here are some official pictures from this amazing WonderCon day of the whole Prince of Persia gang. Source.






Update: You can read a full account of the two Prince of Persia clips here at IGN. I like the conclusion: 'A montage was then shown of many moments from the film, including one where a large snake is attacking Dasten and he uses the dagger to get the better of the snake, and some huge action sequences, which included a structure collapsing and more impressive acts from Dasten - Gyllenhaal noted during the panel that he learned parkour for the film, and it shows.'



Jordan Mechner: 'Just did Prince of Persia WonderCon panel in front of 4,000 people. Finally sunk in on me: Jake is a movie star.'

Part 2 of WonderCon post: The Panel and the Prince of Persia screening

WonderCon was treated to a 5-minute clip from the Prince of Persia - the Battle of Alamut - and the audience went 'crazy' for Jake. As for the clip: 'Looks so good and the score is awesome!!' Jake is now taking questions... On working with Jerry Bruckheimer: '(The experience is) a little louder, a little bigger, and a little more fun'.


A second clip was also shown - this explained the dagger: 'Prince of Persia panel was excellent... 2nd clip was [Dastan] findout out what the dagger does.'




Part 1 - the Press Conference

And it begins! Jake Gyllenhaal, Jordan Mechner, Mike Newell and Jerry Bruckheimer are now taking part in the Prince of Persia press conference at WonderCon, San Francisco. We have our first pictures, with huge thanks to Content Now and Geek Girl on the Street, which shows the PoP gang being interviewed by every time of phone conceivable - no iPad though...


First quote from Jake: 'I keep the dagger of time and will use it if this press conference has any weird questions.' Jake also apparently wishes he were now British and he carries a sword at all times (Brits do that of course...). Updated to add an early report from the press conference. On working with Ben Kingsley: '“Of course it was a great honor,” Gyllenhaal smiled, “He is SIR Ben, after all. He was also a fierce competitor in the sword fight scenes.”'


And another tweet from the press conference: 'I'm pretty sure Jake Gyllenhaal literally broke my phone with his smile.' That is indeed a hazard of being in the same room as Jake.





I'm glad to say that WDW has a roving reporter at WonderCon today...


More to follow! Photos from links, here, Wondercast, here, Veronica and WDW Roving Reporter.

Jake Gyllenhaal covers SFX magazine and reveals he played the Prince of Persia spawn...

Jake Gyllenhaal is once again on the cover of a film magazine! The June edition of the British film magazine SFX is out on 7 April (is it just me or are magazines getting earlier and earlier...?) and Dastan is resplendent on the cover. At least on the clean version of the cover. Thanks to IHJ for the heads up!


A taster from SFX has Jake's answer to the question of whether he'd ever played the Prince of Persia games (Jake may grow tired of this question, I feel...): '“I played the original game. I then played The Sands Of Time and its subsequent spawn while I was preparing for the movie. With The Sands Of Time I would bring in the stuntmen sometimes and be like, ‘Check out this move! Can we figure out how we can duplicate this thing?’ They’d be like, ‘Sure,’ and it would get incorporated. So I played it then. I played a lot of videogames when I was a kid. I was stuck with the original Nintendo and all the games that went with it, like Metroid and Mike Tyson’s Punch Out.” [Laughs.]' And there was me with my MS-dos 3D Tetris...


We don't have to wait for May for Jake's next public appearance. Tomorrow, Jake and Jerry Bruckheimer take centrestage at WonderCon with Jake introducing a new clip from the film. You can see the full programme here and keep an eye on HeyUGuys for their fab reports from the event. San Francisco has Disney fever...


For any Brits who happen to see Clash of the Titans this holiday weekend, you may have a treat in store in the shape of a Prince of Persia trailer!

I think this can stand a repeat...



PS I hope this post will post - if it does, it's no thanks to Blogger! Pictures from SFX and links.

Jake Gyllenhaal answers fan question no 3 and Duncan Jones tweets 'Jake is fantastic!'

It's Thursday and you know what that means - Jake Gyllenhaal answers another fan question! This time it's a question asked by a bunch of fans: Has Jake played the Prince of Persia games? You can see the video here.


'I played the original Prince of Persia game when it first came out - first created by Jordan Mechner - when I was a kid. And then when I was researching for the movie, I obviously picked up and played a lot Prince of Persia: Sands of Time. And my experience was that it was pretty tough actually and I had a hard time with a lot of the levels. Maybe with a bit more practice I could do better. It was pretty cool.'


The fact that Jake knows that there are 'a lot of levels' suggests he did much better than me. I have sand monster issues and my sands of time appear to have a malfunction.

I Remain

We've been talking over the last couple of days about Alanis Morissette's theme to Prince of Persia - I Remain. You can enjoy it here.



And finally...

Duncan Jones, director of the Source Code, has tweeted in the last few hours that this is not a good day. However, taking solace on the SC set, he did reveal 'Jake is fantastic! Ridiculously in shape as well... I want to go on the Prince of Persia fitness regime after this film!'