Warm fuzzies

Happy birthday to Jake's big sister, Maggie Gyllenhaal! Maggie turns 30 today.


This makes me happy. Esquire calls Jake Gyllenhaal's performance in Rendition one of six Performances of the Year in their December issue.


Looks like Jeff Wells at Hollywood Elsewhere would have gone with option number three in my poll at right.

It's not that Gyllenhaal plays his Egypt-based CIA guy badly or ineffectively, but that Egypt-based CIA guy is written as such a revoltingly passive wuss....For me, Gyllenhaal's inactivity is infuriating. He's not just a guy doing nothing, but an emblem of do-nothing types the world over.

He sounds like he's blaming Jake for Douglas's actions, or inaction, as the case may be, which misses the point entirely. If you found him infuriating or revolting, Jeff, then he kicked ass, because you were supposed to feel all those things. And Wells's statement about what Douglas's character lacks expresses precisely why Jake's was an incredibly difficult role, and why his performance was that much more worthy of praise. I'm glad the editors of Esquire recognized that, even if Wells doesn't.

Something else that makes me happy: seeing Jake happy. IHJ has posted those photos from Jake and Reese's recent Napa Valley visit, and while the level of paparazzi interest in this relationship still bothers me, seeing Jake so obviously at ease and happy literally brought me to tears. Even Reese smiled at the camera this time. That's the way I like to see them.

Meanwhile, it looks like Jake's about to become the subject of a sniping showdown. Slash writer (it's amazing the things you can learn while browsing around Jake's fandom) royandronnie's opening bid remains the only one so far, and the auction ends at 6 pm EST. At least, I'm sorta hoping it will be sniped. Well, I mean, I totally will understand if no one can afford to bid $5,500, because I can't, but I guess I'd like to see the promise of his company bring in more than the bare minimum for the charity of his choice. Plus it would be fun to watch and see just how crazy Jake can make people.

Update: Well, here's another nice treat I hadn't seen before. This transcript, which the source claims to be from the Los Angeles Rendition press conference, has lots of priceless Jakeisms. I don't understand why I'm just now finding this. This stuff is gold and should have been all over the 'net by now. Some examples:

Reporter: You and Peter shaved your heads in Jarhead. Now, you both have beards.
Jake: Peter and I are dating (laughter). I can see the headlines now.
~~~
Reporter: What qualities do you admire in Reese, as a person and an actress?
Jake: She can grow a mean beard, that's for sure (laughter)! I don’t know if you’ve seen her beard--it's amazing!
~~~
Reporter: Will you comment on rumors that you are dating Reese?
Jake: No. Apparently, I am dating a lot of people, not only of the opposite sex (laughter)--it's very interesting and amusing.
Reporter: The first time we interviewed you, you talked about not having enough sex...
Jake: Are you offering or what? (Laughter)
Reporter: You talked freely during that interview. You have become a star since. So, has your sex life changed?
Jake: I've become an ascetic--I live in a cave now. That's why I am growing a beard. I have no sex, so I’m much more interesting!

Damn, Jake. Could you be any more lovable?

Photo of Maggie thumbnailed from The Internet Movie Database; all others from IHJ.

Laundry list

I never imagined I could be so at home in a completely new place as I was this past weekend with my beloved friend, Charlene. She made me feel welcome, in her home and in her town, and it was the most I've relaxed in a good many years. Thank you, my separated-at-birth other sister, for the vacation I so desperately needed.

Charlene, me, and Powder

From the moment Charlene approached me at the airport, and I burst into tears, I knew the trip was more than worth the effort. It wasn't the last time I wept on her, either, poor woman. Such relief at finally meeting my friend was not something I had expected, but I'm an emotional basket case anyway. Together we laughed, we cried, we squeeed. It was everything I wanted it to be.

Naturally, while I've been escaping from my escapism, events have continued to unfold in Jakedom. He's very inconsiderate sometimes.

Okay, I admit: the foremost development on this front isn't of Jake's doing. Jake Watch have officially announced their impending departure from the blogosphere. And this I had to read while in a hotel lobby, because contrary to what the hotel's online profile stated, there was not, in fact, wireless internet in every room. So there I sat, leaking from the eyes and sucking back snot as I read the kind well-wishings of JW loyalists whose names hadn't been seen around in many months. Jake Watch has been more than a destination; it is an institution, one that Jake and his "people" would have done well to appreciate while they had the chance. But hey, britpopbaby and Prophecy Girl weren't doing it for Jake, they were doing it for themselves and us. Nothing good lasts forever. I salute them.

Someone at San Francisco online alternative zine BeyondChron managed to echo all the frustration that has followed me since the first mainstream Rendition reviews appeared. Marc Norton, a hotel bellman by profession, writes

[T]hat is the point of this movie -- to make you think. That is exactly what all the luke-warm and negative reviewers don't want to do, and don't want you to do.

Yes, I said I felt somewhat unsatisfied by the film myself, but I can now confirm, having seen it a third time, that it does indeed get better with every viewing. It probably should embarrass me to confess this, but I still get a chill every time Isabella El-Ibrahimi shrieks at Corrine Whitman to just tell her that her husband is okay. True, some people get a similar chill when they hear fingernails scraped down a chalkboard, but the moment works for me, and I didn't think it would. Anyway, even if you skip Norton's review, please check out his link to an article from the New York Times about a real-life "war on terror" whistleblower whose efforts prove that perhaps Douglas Freeman's actions were not so far-fetched after all.

Let's see, then we had Jake and Reese attending a Halloween party in the most pathetic non-costumes imaginable. These are people with money. The lack of any effort on their part strongly suggests that either the invitation or the choice to attend came at the last second. That's always the way I want my party guests to be represented to the public at large. Hooray for Hollywood.

What else? Jake's getting down to work on Brothers, and now there's a whisper from Variety linking him to something called Nailed that would also star Jessica Biel. That title connotes such potential, I'm afraid to scoff. It's almost a wet dream unto itself.

Oh, then my internet provider irritated the hell out of me by failing to pick up the new DNS record for IHeartJakeMedia following their domain expiration a few days ago. I'm way behind on downloading Jake images, and that didn't help matters. Things are finally in place as they should be, but it will take me a whole weekend to catch up.

Jake hung out with Robert Downey, Jr. one night. Then he and Reese got video papped on a beach somewhere. Reese appears at one point to be picking something from Jake's teeth. Very romantic. In the past, such intrusive video would have set off my fiercest protective instinct, but the fact that they've probably been together for several months and managed to avoid such paparazzi run-ins for as long as suited their needs leaves me feeling somewhat less sympathetic. And I hate that I feel that way.

I want to continue to love Jake in the way I always have. More than want, I need it; it's something to occupy a dangerously obsessive mind, one that will turn to far less benign thoughts in the absence of this diversion. Most of all, I don't want to come here sounding like a bitter rejected fifteen-year-old, and I'm afraid that's exactly how I sound.


I can't swear off Jake right now. I fear it would literally kill me. Especially when photos like this one make my heart ache.

Photos: Peggy Mitchell, IHJ.

Be nice to me

Yes, I'm going to talk about what I thought of Rendition.

First, go read this interview with Jake from the Telegraph, done while he was in London. On the one hand, it has terrific elements than any good interview should: description of Jake's posture, clothing (guess which well-worn, big-necked ensemble?) and oh god, voice ("gentle with dark undercurrents"--can I cut that phrase out and put it under my pillow?), evidence that the writer has actually done some research, and questions pertinent to the reason they're both there: Rendition. On the other, it's full of extraneous stuff; recycled facts from that research I just mentioned, and a completely unnecessary probing into Jake's sexuality that proves the interviewer is one of those people who...well, he's one of those people. Plus either transatlantic flight made Jake two inches taller, or this guy just guessed it wrong. Everyone does says he seems taller than they imagined.

So, Rendition.

I wish I could rave about it, say that it was unequivocally the best movie I've seen since Zodiac, but this isn't that kind of movie. I attended a Friday night showing and left the theater somewhat unsatisfied. Thinking it was probably due to all the pent up expectation, and the vaguely arctic temperature in the theater that made it hard to focus, I decided to see it again this afternoon. Besides, I really wanted another, undistracted look at Douglas Freeman. Hey, I'm nothing if not honest.

On second viewing, I did feel more involved in the story, but not as much as I thought I should have been. Maybe that's because I wanted it to be something it couldn't: a revelation. Unlike the majority of the intended audience, I have already read enough about the policy of extraordinary rendition and its purported place in the defense of national security. Rendition didn't tell me anything I didn't already know. At least this time, I did feel moved by several scenes, and my overall impression is that this is a movie that will grow on me with each additional viewing, much like Jarhead.

What I can enthusiastically endorse is Jake's performance. My bias notwithstanding, it's a Hollywood irony that while few critics seem to know what the film's motives were, the role of Douglas Freeman struck me as typical Oscar fodder. WDW was right in that this really is Jake's movie, despite its trying to be so much more. His is the character that makes the biggest connection, who reveals multiple dimensions to the audience. All the performances were excellent, but for me no one shone like Jake with his flimsy professional facade after the bombing and barely-contained self-loathing during the events that follow. More than anything else, what I walked out of that theater feeling this afternoon was an intense pride. As with most of his movies, the box office numbers will be irrelevant; Jake Gyllenhaal has proved again that he is a phenomenal actor, and he'll have work in Hollywood for as long as he wants it.

All photos: IHJ.

Gray matter

This is the stuff I've been waiting for. With each new interview, we never know if Jake will be articulate and intellectual, or full of baffling circular phrases and self-interruptions that suggest confusion or avoidance of a subject. Clearly Jake was at the top of his game when he sat down with CNN's Showbiz Tonight and faced the toughest question with lucid fluidity.

Oddly enough, the transcript for the September 12 show is the only one unavailable on CNN's transcript page as I write this. It's a damn good thing I took the time to transcribe the first part of it myself before I left for work this morning.

Jake: I believe that governments, and I think, presidents, should act as parents to a country, you know? And I think that there are things that that country needs to know, and there are things that it doesn't. But I think that honesty is first and foremost, and I think people know when someone's honest or not, really deeply inside them.

AJ Hammer: So in some ways, it can be justifiable, if the ends are proper?

Jake: Yes. I think that's the debate in the movie. I think that's the extraordinary scene between Peter Sarsgaard and Meryl Streep, when they meet and Peter says, 'You're torturing somebody,' and she says, 'But we're keeping five thousand people alive by torturing one person.' So I think the debate is what it's about, I think the debate is what it's always about. I think that that's what makes, you know, that, you can come to a resolution that way, some interesting resolution, whereas, you know, one person takes a stance, just demands that that's how it goes, and then, like, imposes it on the rest of the world.

Already, his fans have begun to debate whether Jake was saying Yes, I believe in torture or Yes, you've asked what the movie asks. I'm thrilled because it's a far more engaging and important topic to discuss than whom Jake is or isn't sleeping with this week. As an amateur psychologist and sociologist, I'm fascinated by the concessions that some folks have made regarding Jake's comments. Why exactly is it more acceptable to believe that Jake thinks the value of torture is open to debate than that he thinks it may have its place? Doesn't the first imply the second? It seems to be all about the morality we personally wish to ascribe to Jake, and for some people there is enough ambiguity in the first interpretation to make it sound like an expression of neutrality on the subject.

For the record, I believe Jake meant exactly what he said: torture can be justifiable. He did not elaborate on under what circumstances he thinks this true; he wasn't asked to do so.

I've spent the last hour trying to figure out how I feel about this answer, and I keep coming back to a single thought: to say that torture is never justifiable would be as arrogant and unconsidered as it would be to say that it is always justifiable. In that sense, Jake has given the only answer that an intelligent man could give.

As if the contemplation of the validity of torture weren't ugly enough in itself, I found a couple of reactions to Jake's comments that disturbed me even further. Someone suggested that because of his answer, "Jake Gyllenhaal might be cool." (Sadly, this blogger appears to have missed the irony behind Fight Club.) Another strangely complimentary post proclaims "Jake Gyllenhaal Talks Like a Hetero Man." With points of view like these, it's easy to understand why a woman like me has a hard time finding a compatible man. How exactly does an acknowledgment that torture is not a black-and-white issue translate into a social perception of masculinity and heterosexuality? I may just die alone, after all.

Photos: Rendition official website, via IHJ.

Ruminating and anticipating

Additional photos of Jake on the Rendition set in March have appeared on IHJ. That hair is killing me. Reminder to self: put spare underwear in purse for this movie.

There is no doubt I'll be physically attracted to Douglas Freeman (I already am), but will I like him? He promises to be a departure for Jake: conservative, ambitious, buttoned-down, perhaps even suave. How different will he be from the likes of Donnie Darko or Tony Swofford? One of the many reasons I'm a Gyllenhaalic is Jake's ability to imbue every character with a tremendous dose of humanity. No matter what questionable situation the character may find himself in, I'm moved because I actually care about a person Jake has made real.

With someone as visually striking as Jake is, it might be reasonable to think audiences would have a tough time embracing his Robert Graysmith or Harold Dobbs; what socially backward obsessive cartoonist or lovesick mediocre mathematician has ever looked like that? But Jake pulls it off expertly every time. He's so believable that he is that character as I watch.

So, will Doug Freeman, CIA operative, win my heart? I know he will.

Maybe I've lost all objectivity. I watched October Sky followed by Zodiac yesterday, and while there was arguably more subtlety and nuance required for the part of Robert Graysmith, 18-year-old Jake's Homer Hickam is more than credible sharing the screen with Chris Cooper as John Hickam. Some things you can learn with experience; some things are just about talent. I'm inclined to believe that Jake's incredible work is the result of both, but especially talent.

Photos: IHJ.

Rendition trailer!

Better late than never.

So, yesterday while I was at work, innocently doing actual work for the first time in about a week, the rest of the world was ooh-ing and aah-ing over the full Rendition trailer, which must have magically appeared as I slept. Bastards. I would have posted these captures and the trailer much sooner, but I sort of couldn't stop myself watching it over and over...and over....

This is going to be one intense role for Jake, from all appearances. Jake has died in a few films, but to see him almost getting blown up in that last bit was strangely exciting to me. Go figure. It looks like Douglas Freeman is a rather locked-down, caged-animal kind of guy. Not just that...Jake looks somehow bigger here; he has a large physical presence, more intimidating than his Jarhead bulk, in my opinion. He's powerful and mesmerizing, and that's with a grand total of about 10 seconds' worth of action. I could not anticipate this release with any more excitement unless Jake were coming over to escort me to a premiere himself. Or maybe to bring me back to a private screening at his home. Ahh, dreams.

I included that last cap because it just makes me all giddy. No less than three Academy Award winners are credited here, but Jake is billed first, at least in the trailer. That's gotta be a good sign, right? I tried to access the movie's advertised home page again, but it still isn't in place as of this morning. Oh well.

My one fear about this film right now is that it will in some way try to justify the process of extraordinary rendition by portraying it as having a desirable outcome. While there is no reason to suspect this, I know that it would be a very effective form of audience manipulation, and in fact to avoid being considered yet another liberal attack on foreign policy, it would be essential. I don't consider myself liberal nor conservative; my interest is justice and human rights, and I wish the leaders of my country were more interested in representing me than themselves.

All captures by me.

E.T., for what it's worth

Just a brief note: I am currently downloading last night's Entertainment Tonight from my mom's TiVo. Unfortunately it is moving at a snail's pace. Maybe if I'm lucky the download will be completed by the time I get home from the gym tonight. What they showed wasn't really a full trailer, and it was completely chopped up with their inane commentary, but hey, right now it's all we've got.

Another workout revelation

How do they get these photos? IHJ has just posted a new set of shots which appear to be from The Guardian Weekend article promoting Zodiac's UK release. Okay, so they aren't new new, but damn, there are a lot more than we've already seen.

This is, I believe, the look of Douglas Freeman, whom we will meet in Rendition. As if I weren't already excited enough about that upcoming release. I also suspect someone else has dressed him for this shoot, as I didn't realize it before, but Jake is missing the trademark white undershirt.

On a related (not really, but it is if I say it is) note, Jake's Rendition co-star, Reese Witherspoon, was just announced yesterday to be Avon's first ever Global Ambassador. Chalk up another learning experience for me--I had no idea of the existence of the Avon Foundation, but apparently I'm the only one. All I know is, there I was at the gym, once again looking up momentarily from my book during a rest between sets, and I saw Reese in some kind of press conference, followed by a blurb about a first look at her new movie Rendition tomorrow night. Which would now be tonight. For those who are desperate enough to sit through one of these so-called entertainment shows to possibly get a peek at some clips, it was either Entertainment Tonight or Insider (because sometimes they talk on ET about stuff they want you to watch on Insider, and I couldn't hear a word that was said, and I was too excited to read the captioning). I tried to verify this info for you, but according to TV Guide, neither show has anything about Reese, Rendition, or Jake. So don't blame me if you sit down with a bowl of popcorn and end up watching 30 minutes of crap. We're all taking a chance here. But I think it's worth it.


All photos: IHJ.

I'd do it for free

This vision, so graphic
growing more vivid with each visitation
until I am there, in her place
smelling your skin
tasting your breath
feeling the heat of your hands on my body
Dangerous, my reverie
threatens to supplant reality
but I
can't
stop




(Inspiration: this comment, which I think we've all heard about by now.)


Photo: IHJ.