Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Screen and stage

Updated with more from the WSG on JG:


What did you observe firsthand about the way cops are regarded?

When you see two people entering a situation as first responders that they will have very little jurisdiction over after they leave that area, and then also they have no idea what they’re encountering before they even get there, I think you start to understand why, out of context, police officers at times have been given a bad rap. That’s not to say everybody’s always behaved well, I’m not saying that. But I am saying that in general, many of the police officers we worked with always joked that everybody loves firemen, and everybody dislikes the police. My opinion of it is that there is a huge stigma that comes with that uniform, whether you are watching it come towards you or whether you’re wearing it. I’ve had the privilege and opportunity of wearing it, and what I tried to do was spend five months on the street to try and take that stigma out of putting it on and having it feel like a batsuit. Every time I look into a cop car at this point, I see two beating hearts. Two human beings with a history.


They got the theme of our post!

Another Jake interview a bit of different flavor. The interview was done for MBC.net, "the first privately owned and independent Arabic satellite TV station in Saudi Arabia."

Update2: Ben Lyons interviewing Jake backstage:




The Wall Street Journal interviews Jake Gyllenhaal about going from movies to the stage:

How has the first month of your first New York stage show gone?

I feel like every night it's not only been a lesson creatively for me, but somehow, some way, just in my life. It's an interaction with an audience which always has a different personality every night, so there are the nights where you get lots of laughter, and there are nights where there's nothing. It becomes a lot less about reactions than really trying to tell the story as truthfully as possible. As a film actor, that's not always your job. Your job is to help the director and give him or her the best possible performance and interpretation, so that they can then tell the story. But in terms of a live performance, it's up to you and the rest of your cast to tell that story every night.


There's a lot of profanity in "End of Watch" and in the play. Do you find yourself dropping more curse words in your personal life?

I have found that at times. Sometimes, weirdly, particularly when you're doing a play, people say a line that sounds like a line you said in a play, and your response will be strangely similar, or the rhythm will be. I've done a lot of interviews recently and sometimes in those interviews, someone will use the same type of phrasing, or words that are connected in the same way that another character speaks to me in the play, and because I do it every night, so often, I'll throw in some curse words by mistake.


More End of Watch goodies. First up, Jake's arranged marriage:



More here, including some behind-the-scenes shots I hadn't seen before:


Stop me if you've heard this before, but Jake went on ridealongs :)








68 comments:

Anonymous said...

President Obama won! Yay!!!!:)

bobbyanna said...

You're right UV, It was a very good night!!! The President won, and so did the Detroit Tigers!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Public Enemy’s Harder than You Think is one of the first tracks heard in David Ayer’s police drama, End of Watch and, as per the title, LA’s finest in the ‘thin blue line’ really do turn out to be just that.
In fact to label this movie a drama is to hardly give the picture [a finalist in the London Film Festival’s Official Competition] the justice it deserves. By turns gripping, stomach churning, tension filled, joyful and touching, End of Watch is a roller coaster ride not unlike a shift in one of LAPD’s police interceptors.

And that’s as it should be, because here the audience finds itself on duty alongside cops Brian Taylor [total:spec fave’ Jake Gyllenhaal] and Mike Zavala [Michael Pena] as they patrol the streets of South Central LA. It would have been easy, just then, to fall back on a well-worn phrase to describe these as ‘mean streets’, but they go way beyond that. These byways are populated with gangsters toting the latest in automatic weapons and prepared to do anything in pursuit of their trade and their pleasures. People are treated as human chattel, are tortured and worse. South Central is awash with drugs and suffering, sudden death, guns and money for those mad or bad enough to chase it, and in consequently End of Watch makes Grand Theft Auto look like an episode of Tracey Beaker.

http://www.totalspecapps.co.uk/2012/10/17/movie-review-end-of-watch-15/

Anonymous said...

There's very little in the way of real surprises in End of Watch, one grisly house-raid sequence aside, and the bullet-spattered conclusion verges perilously close to cliché. But you believe so absolutely in the central relationship by this point that its impact becomes blunt and devastating, once Ayer allows us to forget the irritating found-footage device. Very few of the supporting cast get much of a look in, although Anna Kendrick is on spunky form as Brian's love interest, but you get the sense that this isn't accidental.

It's those scenes with Gyllenhaal and Peña shooting the s**t in their squad car, unfolding in talky slices alongside the more conventionally built central plot, that really matter. Smart, spontaneous, packed with brio, bravado and warmth, it's these scenes that you'll remember days and weeks after you leave the cinema.

http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/movies/review/a430064/end-of-watch-review-bfi-london-film-festival-2012.html

bobbyanna said...

I must be getting used to Jake's beard & the longer hair bcz He looks extremely sexy in these video interviews. Extremely. : )

Looks like EoW is got great reception at the LIFF.

Hagen said...

I like the British poster of EoW best so far: Michael Peña carries a regular, not a gold-plated gun, the slogan makes sense ("On the streets of Los Angeles no cop survives alone.") and there are references to the great reviews and to the success at the US box office.

And I like those fan pics with 'Mountain Jake' wearing a beanie. :)

Anonymous said...

What really drives END OF WATCH however is not the action or subversive take on the genre, but the core relationship at the centre of the story. Once again things are not as they appear to be – Taylor and Zavala begin the story as difficult and largely unlikable. They’re brash, cocky, and apparently revel in the violence their job entails. But Ayer pulls back the layers slowly, allowing Gyllenhaal and Peña to develop two very real characters – cocky for sure, but decent human beings hiding beneath the veneer. Their exchanges are both funny and touching, and it would take a heart of stone to not be moved by their relationship.

There may be many things that END OF WATCH isn’t, but there are also many that it is – tender and hard hitting, original yet familiar – all of which can be summarized as a sublime piece of filmmaking.

http://www.thehollywoodnews.com/2012/10/17/lff-review-end-of-watch/

Anonymous said...

Pioneering dynamic cinematic techniques has always been a way of sparking new life into tired, well-trodden genres. The current obsession with the ‘found footage’ format has seen a spate of decent genre splicing films in REC, Cloverfield and Chronicle. So what separates the men from the boys in this sporadic new wave of cinema? Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome into the ring End of Watch.

Was it mentioned that Taylor and Zavala are also the bestest of friends? Their cheeky playful banter is the main crux of the film, providing much-needed relief between each suspense-filled stakeout. Of which there are many. The now shiny-headed Gyllenhaal has been trying his hand at becoming a regular action hero of late with a worthy performance in the underrated Source Code (lets choose to ignore a certain Persian prince, shall we?). But it is with Taylor that the baby-faced actor truly showcases his versatility. His light, casual witticisms in the squad car are balanced out by gritty, regimented barks when on the streets representing his badge. The same can be said of Pena, proving he has the acting chops for the more dramatic sequences of the film all-the-while maintaining his reputation for comic timing bearing the majority of the punch lines.

http://popcornramblings.wordpress.com/2012/10/17/end-of-watch-review/

Anonymous said...

Maybe the Brits and their awards will continue to show Jake the respect and love he deserves. America's critics and its awards are becoming more and more like the reality tv shows Americans love to watch these days, fake and without substance.

Viv said...


I don't konw why the whole world treated POP as the worst movie in the human history.....XD


and I don't see how Pena recieved more praise than Jake.They are both fantastic and being praised by critics and audience a lot.:)


Anonymous said...

Ben Lyons ‏@iamBenLyons
Tonight on @extratv my exclusive interview with Jake Gyllenhaal from backstage at his new Off Broadway show. Check your local listings!

Wow Ben Lyons really like Jake:)

Hagen said...

Awardscircuit.com thinks that Michael Peña is one of the five favorites to be nominated for an Oscar as best supporting actor.

Anonymous said...

I think that it is a good sign, because word is that the extraordinary thing of the film is the chemistry among the two actors.So how they can ignore the halves of the couple? If it is worth for Hoffman / Phoneyx should be worth for Jake / Michael too. Or I'm wrong?

Mary said...

I dont think Michael got more praise then Jake all the reviews I read or heard praised both of them I only remeber one where they said Micheal out shined Jake.

UltraViolet said...

I wouldn't be surprised to see only Michael get the nomination, for a variety of reasons. But I think it's a longshot for either one.

The Wall Street Journal has more with Jake today, including this sort of troubling answer:

Are you signed on to play a detective in Villeneuve’s next film, “Prisoners”?

I don’t know exactly. We’re talking about it, yeah. I hope so and I loved working with him and if I get to work with him again, it’ll be really exciting. It would be an evolution because my character [in “End of Watch”] does say, “I want to be a detective.”


I hope that's just Gyllenbabble, and he really is signed.

I just saw a notice for crewmembers on FB, so that thing is getting geared up.

UltraViolet said...

I agree about PoP, Viv!

It's great to see more great reviews for EoW. I won't be home for Extra, but it will be online soon enough, I'm sure. It's fun that Jake is getting more PR for the play.

Anonymous said...

If Jake and Michael and the film won some festivals, I think that to that point it would be difficult ignor them foe the American awards

Viv said...


I will be happy if Pena can get some attention on supporting actor category.Supporting actors section this year is not as crowded as Leading actor, and EOW can be promoted again to help the box office.

UV,

yeah, people see POP as if it is the biggest failure in the world and keep emphasizing it every time when Jake's new movie coming out.It makes me sick.Actually I enjoy POP A LOT.:)

Scott said...

I watched POP again today during a very long work break. I thought to myself, this was a really good performance from the 3 leads. POP is creating fans on its own thru cable. Just like Donnie Darko!

Tomorrow's break is another classic Bubble Boy, I love that movie.

Scott said...

Also (IMO) POP is how Jake became more international which movie people in America ignore.

Viv said...

Also (IMO) POP is how Jake became more international which movie people in America ignore.

--------------------

So true.
Poeple just despise POP but go to see awful Resident Evil series every time.XD

Viv said...



Oh, and Jake, please be a clean shaved detective!!!


Anonymous said...

David Graham ‏@ThatDavidGraham
Met #jakegyllenhaal tonight after his play with @keenancahill44 @ Broadway on Broadway http://instagr.am/p/Q5-ev-Kch5/

Anonymous said...

deana.s. ‏@factorygirld
Why I love #NYC. Doing homework on a casual wednesday, when you get invited to a #Q&A event with Jake Gyllenhaal. I could get used to this.

Anonymous said...

http://instagr.am/p/Q5-ev-Kch5/


Aaw

bobbyanna said...

Guess Jake's doing a Q&A:

Just hangin with Jake Gyllenhaal at the movies #EndofWatch #dateme #please @ AMC Empire 25 http://instagr.am/p/Q6DgutqXLH/

Anonymous said...

http://instagr.am/p/Q6DgutqXLH/

Oh wow he looks so hot!!!! Sexy laid back style. Like it.

Monica said...

Bob, it was with Scott Feinberg:

Scott Feinberg ‏@ScottFeinberg
Just wrapped long post-END OF WATCH Q&A w/ Jake Gyllenhaal, who was a lot of fun, as always. If you haven't yet seen it/his perf, get on it!

UltraViolet said...

The fact that they are still dong Q&As makes me thing Open Road has some kind of plan for this film. Or else Jake just can't let go of Taylor.

Officer Brian Taylor, I mean!

Scott Feinberg ‏@ScottFeinberg
Just wrapped long post-END OF WATCH Q&A w/ Jake Gyllenhaal, who was a lot of fun, as always. If you haven't yet seen it/his perf, get on it!

"End of watch" is a MUST see!!! Movie was incredible!!! Just left a q&a with Jake Gyllenhaal. What a interesting and genuine guy!

Monica said...

Officer Brian Taylor, I mean!
hahahaha

bobbyanna said...

Great! Feinberg seems to really like Jake, too.: )

UltraViolet said...

Feinberg also tweeted this:

LOL: Jake Gyllenhaal says the cops that he rode around with to prep for END OF WATCH busted his chops about "certain other" films he's made.

Loved this answer from Michael Pena in an interview:

Luis: Do you feel like "End of Watch" is your biggest role?

Michael: It's weird to say that. I've starred in other movies: "Shooter" and "World Trade Center." But ("World Trade Center") was multiple storylines at one time. I'm in almost every scene and frame (in "End of Watch"). I have just as much screen time as Jake Gyllenhaal. He's a huge star. I have to thank Jake for that. It's crazy to share screen time with someone like that and not be a huge star. My hat goes off to him."

UltraViolet said...

Stephanie posted the Extra interview, clearly taped weeks ago when they did the EoW spot. Brief but cute. I added it to the post.

Monica said...

ID ‏@IDTweeps
Really great #EndOfWatch Q&A, with Jake Gyllenhaal and @ScottFeinberg! Thanks Scott! pic.twitter.com/wC9pNIlh

Anonymous said...


deana.s. deana.s. ‏@factorygirld

#q&a with #jakegyllenhaal everybody pic.twitter.com/3WerOZvG

Chica said...

I was thinking the same thing UV about Jake still doing Q&A's for EOW. It does sound like Open Road may be pushing the film, Jake and Michael for an Oscar push.

Hagen said...

Jake's comment on "An Enemy" is intriguing. The movie seems to have a somewhat clearer message than the book which is fun to read, but ultimately pointless. As Jake describes the movie it still can turn out to be a mess. ;)

Hagen said...

EoW is a hit in Iceland (#3, $15,624), but it's not exactly the biggest overseas market.

Scott said...

"As Jake describes the movie it still can turn out to be a mess"

I don't Denis or Melissa Leo would attach themselves to a mess. I think Denis is a good storyteller, a good script / plot is a very good thing to have but it's the storyteller (director) that's a key to a good story. He/she I would think have say over everything,script, actors, set and so on.

I also believe Hugh is a pretty good actor who probably has not had alot of good movie materal or directors, box office success yes. But according to people who have already seen the film, Hugh gets both in Les Mis.

Scott said...

Oh forgot, just to throw out in the universe, I want a movie or play in which Jake sings. He almost had one with the baseball movie with Jim Carey.

I will not even think about what a role in Les Mis would have meant for Jake

LOL :) said...

Matt Karp ‏@Dr_I_Dont_Know
@thewhitetanktop @KHillPhilly @desperatelyred I prefer a future without Joseph Gordon-Levitt to a future without Jake Gyllenhaal's legs

Hagen said...

Scott, Jake commented on "An Enemy", not "Prisoners". "An Enemy" is a low budget arthouse movie which is Villeneuve's 'personal project' and he's taking a lot of risks with that movie as he's put it himself. I agree though that Villeneuve is rather meticulous than chaotic.

And I'd love to see Jake singing in a movie, too (but better not in "A Star is Born").

Anonymous said...

Ed Salvato ‏@edsalvato

Jake Gyllenhaal in A Show in New York City Show http://wp.me/pGdW4-GI

bobbyanna said...

OT: I just read that a Conservative judge at the federal Court of Appeals has struck down the Defense of Marriage Act as unconstitutional.

Anonymous said...

(T-Swift fan...I come in peace)
Taylor's album leaked. If you were wondering, there's a lot of Jake songs. But there aren't any "Jake bashing" songs, if you were worried. They're really sweet, actually.

Scott said...

SOrry T Swift fan but it's a shame and telling that an artist's music is well known for who the song is about instead of the music itelf.

TSwift's music is just another form of gossip as far as I am concerned made up of lies. She really needs help, let's just say fatal attraction 2.0 would be a perfect role for her, no acting involved.

Sorry Uv but i just can't stand anymore.

UltraViolet said...

This is going to be an irritating few weeks as a Jake fan. But the good news is that all the nonsense about TS lyrics and which song bashes whom and how much will fade away.

Jake's work in EoW and on stage will endure. As for TS songs, who knows how long they'll last artistically. She has her very loyal fans and she is enjoying her moment now. I'm just glad she won't be able to drown out Jake's.

TS Fan: I think "sweet" is the last word many of us would use when it comes to Taylor's treatment of Jake in the press or in song. It's all very calculated, some might even say crass. It works for her, so I'm afraid she won't stop anytime soon. But I'm glad you like the album.

It's clear she wants people to think she's singing about Jake. It's clear that people do. Annoyingly, many reviews even mention Jake. The thing is: the Jake she's writing about doesn't match the version ofJake her people sold to the press after the break-up and probably doesn't match whatever really happened.

Her evil genius is that she gets the last word, and millions buy it.

I'm hoping Jake doesn't care. And I'm trying not to, either.

Bobbyanna, that was great news.

Anonymous said...

Jake's fanbase is different than the "country" singer although some of his fans were put off by the country singer to begin with but we gyllenhalics are fiercely loyal and protective but not psycho.

Anonymous said...

In point of fact, every single fanbase has "psychos", Jake's is no exception to that. But not here on GB. :-)

Scott said...

Let's never ever ever never ever never mention it again. Sure Jake doesn't. I sound like a 5 year old.

Anonymous said...

Jenn Richard ‏@NY165

Gotta say, I kind of love working in Tribeca. Celeb spotting of the day? Jake Gyllenhaal! Yum!
lol! Yup! He was starring @ me which is why he even caught my attention, he's got a full beard & shaggy hair & is still delicious!
we were on Canal street, which is always busy, heading in opposite directions, there wasn't time to say much


Monica said...

I read the lyrics yesterday and, well, it was hilarious, but I share the same thought the UV, it is all a lie and there is nothing related to what happened.
She sells the idea that Jake wanted to return to her, but I remember that episode at the party of Vanity Fair and there are other things said in songs that seem fantasies.
And no, she is not being nice to him. She said in an interview that one of the songs is to annoy Jake. It's so childish.
And one more thing, this girl does not know what love is.

Anonymous said...

But surely knows what business is.

Scott said...

I hope you're right Bobbyana about Open Road and Eow. I just wished they would have spent more on promotions after the movie opened. The theater count is rather low now, pretty soon it will be dvd release talk.

Crossing fingers for EOW for this weekend's London Film Festival. Does anyone know how that works in regard to how films are placed? 1st, 2nd and so?

Anonymous said...

Scott I read a rev that said EOW is one of the films finalists at the London Film Festial, however I don't know how it works.

Monica said...

Kristopher Tapley ‏@kristapley
Sat down with Jake Gyllenhaal back stage at his play for a while today. Fascinating talk of rhythm/syntax in that and End of Watch.

Monica said...

Kristopher Tapley ‏@kristapley
Also about the litany of talented filmmakers he's worked with: Fincher, Lee, Russell, Zwick, Mendes, Sheridan, etc.


excited to read this interview!

Anonymous said...

Kristopher Tapley ‏@kristapley
Sat down with Jake Gyllenhaal back stage at his play for a while today. Fascinating talk of rhythm/syntax in that and End of Watch.

6:51 PM said...

Oops I'm sorry alredy posted:)

UltraViolet said...

No prob, anon. Sounds like a good interview. I'm with Monica; can't wait to read it.

I deleted the comment directed at Taylor's fans. There's no need to insult them.

Anonymous said...

Matthew Stasoff ‏@matthewstasoff
Awesome film. Want to see JG get an Oscar nod http://is.gd/hoCQDa

: ) said...

GYLLENCRAZY ‏@GYLLENCRAZY
Can't believe I said 2 Jake Gyllenhaal 'Don't u ever shave' while he was signing my autograph. pic.twitter.com/kYcLd3t3

Anonymous said...

"Can't believe I said 2 Jake Gyllenhaal 'Don't u ever shave'"


I bet he giggled. That is so cute.

bobbyanna said...

Awww!! Gyllencrazy is in NYC to see the play!!! That's so cool!

bobbyanna said...

Sorry for the double post. : )

In other news, The Detroit Tigers will be going to the World Series after defeating the New York Yankees in a clean sweep!!!!! YAAAAAY!

LOL! said...

Alyssa Ramirez ‏@little_lyssa_
Taylor Swift should have just called her new album Jake Gyllenhaal.

Anonymous said...


GYLLENCRAZY GYLLENCRAZY ‏@GYLLENCRAZY

But witnesses confirmed that indeed yes, I did say that to him. And he smiled (I'm not in any of these pics) pic.twitter.com/DIWPHxRE

UltraViolet said...

LOL. And yay for Gyllencrazy. Great shots. Jake looks very smiley.