Satellite of love

News always breaks overnight. It's a conspiracy to keep me from sleeping, and it's working. Variety reports that Jake Gyllenhaal has signed on to star in a DreamWorks project about colonization of the moon. Sigh.

They call it an "actioner." I cringed. Okay, I admit a love-hate relationship with The Day After Tomorrow, which I re-watched many times before realizing Jake was my ultimate goal in life. The effects, minus those awful wolves, were spectacular, and the tornadoes in Los Angeles always got me. But let's face it, the film took lots of liberties with science. Not just the climate stuff, either. I remember laughing the first time I saw a trailer for it, and they showed that big wave crashing into the NYC high-rises...and flowing around them. Huh?? I know water is fluid, but, uh, whatever.

This as-yet untitled moon project may not be the cerebral comedy I still hope Jake will find, but it does have potential. Action flicks have heroes. Sam Hall was a terrific teenage geeky genius lovestruck hero, even if he did start by burning the books instead of the furniture (I never understood that). What kind of role will Jake have in this thing? One of the colonists? He's obviously the lead, as he's the only one cast so far. I can't object to Jake wanting to do another blockbuster, if that's what this will be. He's got to cut loose once in a while and just do something that makes him jump up in the screening room and yell, "This movie rocks!" But we don't know enough yet to say that this is that. What we know is that Jake has gone from nothing (officially) in the works to busiest man in the world again. Obviously that nice summer vacation did the trick.

Incidentally, I love little convergences like this. Mark Bowden is better known as the guy who wrote Black Hawk Down, who exchanged this correspondence with Anthony Swofford.

That brings me back to my other concern, and this is a big one. It stems from the comment that Bowden "did a complete reconception of the story and will pen the screenplay." Stories that have to be completely re-written don't inspire much confidence in me. But of course I must reserve judgment. Jake thought it was good enough to attach his name to it, and that's encouraging. Plus if it ends up as total shit, we know Jake will not hold back in telling them so.

All photos: IHJ.

Idol speculation

It's always wonderful to be reminded that Jake is on the minds of entertainment types other than the gossip mongers and paparazzi scum. This morning I found a blip by Liz Smith of the Baltimore Sun in which she speaks of a rumored movie-version of the musical-version of Sunset Boulevard:

I spoke with a top movie producer the other day, and he dismissed the latest round of interest in the movie. "Oh, please. Forget the musical....

"I say update the Billy Wilder original. Make Norma a washed-up star from the disco era. Cast Halle Berry and Jake Gyllenhaal."

Thanks, unknown top movie producer. Your random selection of Jake for the role once played by the iconic William Holden brightened my morning. Many of us Gyllenhaalics like to toss around ideas for future parts, especially remakes as they provide known characters from which to select. While I must sadly confess it has been many years since I saw the film, Joe Gillis does seem like an absolutely perfect fit for our man. But unlike the greedy and visionless studio types, I don't believe every movie needs to be remade. Modern remakes have gotten completely out of hand, to the point that Hollywood is revisiting films made in the mid-80s. Fortunately, Jake has so far demonstrated superior judgment in most of his choices, and I'm never really worried that he'll participate in something of such poor quality as to damage his impressive reputation.

Then there was the suggestion by the writers at IGN that the newly released BioShock game might make a great movie starring Jake. Okay, they mentioned several potential leads, including Jake's Brokeback Mountain costar Heath Ledger. But the fact that Jake popped up on their list along with Mr. Forbes' Ultimate Star Payback himself, Matt Damon is definitely not a bad sign. Their comment: "Is Gyllenhaal ready to carry a big budget flick like BioShock? We think so." I guess this impressed me most because IGN is, well, a network for gamers, and my impression is that, like their audience, its contributors are largely male. This is a vote of hetero confidence that confirms my belief in Jake's universal appeal. No, I would not be particularly thrilled at the prospect of Jake's appearance in a video game movie, but again, I trust his judgment; he'd do it only if it was worth his time.

While neither of these remarks holds any real implications for Jake, and we remain in a lazy summer limbo wondering what his next project will be, at least I am reassured that he has not been forgotten by all but the tabloids (and of course, we, the Gyllenhaalics).

Photos: IHJ.