Brothers appears on the horizon for December 2008

Well, we said it couldn't be true - and we were right! What am I talking about? IMDb has shifted the release date of Brothers forward a year to 4 December 2008, which means we will (at least in the US) see Jake Gyllenhaal on the big screen in 2008 after all and, not only that, it opens up all sorts of opportunities for publicity and screenings during the film festival season this Autumn. I'm not surprised by the change in date at IMDb - after all, this is a film presumably without spaceships, vast crowd scenes, superheroes, or many other CGI delights - but it is good to see the shift from 2009 to 2008. It also gives me an opportunity to repost these tantalising tasters of Brother Jake.




Zodiac screening and Q&A with James Vanderbilt

The other good news - again if you're in the US and specifically in Jake's neck of the woods (Beverly Hills) - Paramount Studios continue to try to make amends for their earlier Zodiac disdain. This time the studio is hosting a free screening of Zodiac at the Writers Guild Theater (135 South Doheny Drive, Beverly Hills) on 19 January at 7.30pm. The screening is followed by a Q&A with the film's writer and DVD commentator James Vanderbilt. I really enjoy James' voice and accent on the commentary. More details here.


Talking of James Vanderbilt, here is an interview that James did with the WGA in which he talks about Zodiac. I love James' concept of what being a writer is all about: 'I honestly think part of being a writer is that you deal in dark shit so you don't bring it out in your real life. I'm a pretty happy-go-lucky guy because I can deal with dark shit and get it out on the page and not have it follow me home.'


Farragut... again

Meanwhile, on the Jake front, another site made mention of the infamous Farragut North production. I think we may spend much of this year wondering whether Jake is to take to the Broadway stage during 2008's electoral fall or not. Clearly, it's an idea that does arouse interest and I don't think we should rule it out at this stage. Politico has this to say:


'Just read the screenplay for “Farragut North,” a project ostensibly based on the 2004 Howard Dean campaign that has George Clooney attached as a director and possible actor along with Leonardo DiCaprio. There’s no “Yee-hah!!” Dean scream and, in fact, the candidate himself (named Gov. Jim Morris here) barely appears in the story line, which concerns dirty backroom tricks, robocalls, direct mailings, ad buys, get-out-the-vote drives and snagging the support of black leaders before the Iowa caucus — all too familiar for anyone following the 2008 race. The film probably won’t start shooting until later this year and may even hit Broadway first, with Jake Gyllenhaal in the lead role. Joe Trippi, are you ready for your close-up?'


And finally...

Ang Lee continues his publicity rounds for Lust, Caution, a film that is still blazing a trail, albeit in all too few theatres. Here, Ang reflects on the extra lives that each of his films has given him or unleashed from within him. It's good to hear Ang talk about the experience of filming Brokeback Mountain.


The paper says: 'After diving deep into heavy territory with Crouching Tiger and the much-derided Hulk with Eric Bana, Lee used Brokeback to "recover from the past two movies". "It was very relaxed," he says. "Perhaps that's the best state of making a movie. That movie was very simple, honest, and I did my best effort as usual, but I was very relaxed... Lust, Caution, I went deep again... I don't know if I should still keep pushing the envelope or do something like Brokeback, you know, take it like a breeze. Sometimes I think the material demands me -- we're the slaves to filmmaking, not the masters. Brokeback had so much love in it, it just required me to be in such a state, so maybe that's why I did that at that time."'


Includes pictures from IHJ.