WEIRDLAND

Sunday, June 06, 2010

Jake Gyllenhaal, Ben Stiller: American Way

Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal in New York Times portraits (7th Annual Great Performers in Film).


"The film of course is clearly buying into that “homosexual films for straight people” genre that was popularised first by Brokeback Mountain, and the casting highlights it; Lazarus is the blonde and brooding Australian, Tobey Maguire is the innocent-faced Jake Gyllenhaal lookalike"
Source: thefilmcricket.wordpress.com

"Stiller does a good job of spoofing all things Hollyweird. He stars as Tugg Speedman, a fading action star assigned to play the lead in the screen version of Vietnam vet 'Fourleaf' Tayback's (Nick Nolte) war memoirs.There are plenty of laughs at the excesses of Tinseltown, with the devil being in the detail: Lazarus' back story as a serious actor is highlighted by a wonderful trailer for Satan's Alley, a Brokeback Mountain for monks in which Tobey Maguire plays himself". Source: www.talktalk.co.uk

Interviewer: A year ago, Entertainment Weekly spoke to a lot of people for a piece about Heath Ledger. The screenwriter, producer and cinematographer of Brokeback Mountain all talked. You were conspicuously absent. Are you uncomfortable remembering him in public?
Jake Gyllenhaal: Yes. Brokeback was painful. Any time you go into pain, I don't think you necessarily want to go back. But the results of that film, and how the public responded to it so hugely, were worth it. Walking through any kind of pain is usually worth it. As close as we all became making that movie, for all those other people, it didn't extend much farther than [the movie itself], so that experience of work could be easily talked about for publications. The experience Heath and I had was also shared publicly with all the press and publicity we did. Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger attending Brokeback Mountain: Venice Film Festival Screening

But what we shared as friends, though I respect the interest so many people have in the mourning and grieving process and how it feels to other people, I feel like - and I don't mean this in an unkind way - but I don't think it's anybody's business but his and mine. So in that sense, to really respect him - and also the way he felt about his life and his private life and what he cared about, because he was a deeply caring and loving human being - every time anybody asks me any question about him, it would be like he is sitting next to me, and I know he would roll his eyes, because that's the way he was. It was between us.
Interviewer: Your former girlfriend, Kirsten Dunst, apparently said that you were the love of her life.Jake Gyllenhaal: Oh, really?Interviewer: That's what I read. Would you consider getting back together?
Jake Gyllenhaal: I'm going to leave that one for next time.
Source: www.americanwaymag.com

Jake Gyllenhaal in "American Way" magazine photoshoot, June 2010.

Leslie Mann in "American Way" magazine, July 2009

Leslie Mann and Judd Apatow with Ben Stiller and Christine Taylor at the L.A. premiere of 'Knocked Up' on May 21, 2007

"Judd has previously said that he can’t believe he landed you. Tell us -- how did he? At the time, we were both on our first big jobs, [the 1996 movie The Cable Guy]. I read with him [for the audition], and I don’t even remember it. When I walked out, he said to Ben Stiller, who directed the movie, “There goes the future Mrs. Apatow,” so I guess he knew. Then he stalked me for a couple of months, and then I went out with him. At first, I had a crush on Ben, which would have been a huge mistake. So, thank God".
Source: www.americanwaymag.com

Beginnings:
"The generation was traditionally begun at 1965, taking off from the birth-rate-based Baby Boom span of 1946-1964, but since many notable people who are normally thought of as clearly Gen-X, such as Courtney Love, Janeane Garofalo and Eddie Vedder, were born in 1964, this year is often preferred as the beginning of Generation X. In their book Generations William Strauss and Neil Howe called this generation the "13th Generation" because the tag, like this generation, is a little Halloweenish, and it is the thirteenth to know the flag of the United States (counting back to the peers of Benjamin Franklin) and set its birth years at 1961 to 1981".

Gen-X celebrities - Celebrities born 1961 through 1981 include:

Quentin Tarantino, filmmakerJeanne Tripplehorn, actorRobert Downey Jr, actorBen Stiller, actor/directorJohn Cusack, actorKurt Cobain, musician (died 1994)Patricia Arquette, actorMolly Ringwald, actorJennifer Aniston, actor
River Phoenix, actor (died 1993)Cameron Diaz, actorRose McGowan, actorLeonardo DiCaprio, actorDrew Barrymore, actor/producerAlicia Silverstone, actressReese Witherspoon, actressBrittany Murphy (died 2009)Jake Gyllenhaal, actor
Source: www.fact-index.com

Wynona Ryder and Ben Stiller in "Reality Bites" (1994)

"Ben Stiller's 1994 tribute to Generation X, Reality Bites, provides an excellent example of this second wave of Generation X media. Starring Winona Ryder, Ethan Hawke, Janeane Garofalo, and Stiller himself. Reality Bites is about a group of friends negotiating their ways through contemporary urban life after graduation from college. Getting this film takes more than merely being a member of the X-er age cohort, or even a member of the more specific X-er description I mentioned earlier. Stiller assumes an audience which has been well-trained by the media.
'Getting' Reality Bites represents a culmination of years of media training. Stillers audience is not only aware of Generation X signs and hails, but also the language of product placements, 'hip' consumerism, and music videos. Stiller can then use these tools first to engage the viewer, and then create an alternative consumerist ideology for Generation X.
We can see examples of fetishized products throughout the film, but one seems particularly fitting. 'The Big Gulp,' explains Lelaina in Reality Bites, 'was the most profound invention of my generation.' She then goes on to describe the mythic, almost magical, meaning of this 40 oz. drink: 'it provides all your essential nutrients', 'makes [her] happy', and represents her appreciation for simple, cheap commodities. In effect, she offers what we might call a Barthesian analysis of the myth of the Big Gulp. By including a self-aware and ironic explanation of a myth creation, Ben Stiller gives Roland Barthes take on ideology a curious challenge.Lelaina, Troy, and Vicki constitute a community of slackers who offer campy and cynical interpretations of commodities. Take Vicki's cynicism in the convenience market: Since the slackers lack the cash for a pizza, Lelaina suggests that they eat what she can acquire using her father's gas card. Vicki calls this 'eat[ing] gas.' Vicki's comment at once makes fun of the absurdity of this consumer transaction, as well as celebrates Lelaina's creativity in finding an ironic strategy for dealing with hunger. Lelaina's father, of course, had intended that the card be used only to buy gas.
As the happy, but knowingly ironic, consumers bring their hyper-commodified food to the register, Vicki quips 'Did you know that Evian is naive spelled backwards?' Here, Vicki undermines the myth of bottled water — i.e., that imported water is of a higher quality than domestic; bottled water is better for one than tap water — by pointing out the hidden message behind the consumer ideology of buying water. Although she still buys the water, she makes it clear that she is better than the supposed 'naive' consumer (later personified by Mike) who would believe the myth. Obviously a foil to Ethan Hawkes incessantly cynical Troy, Ben Stiller's Mike shows us consumerism without cynicism. Mike the yuppie is unable to understand the 'secret handshake' which would make him part of the group. He is the repulsive Other, the 'they' of Lelaina's angry valedictorian speech.Unable to perceive a life outside of consumerism, Stiller tries to show us the best kind of consumer to be. The film sends a message that life can be hard, but the best way to deal with it is by *embracing* consumerism with the awareness that the world is crumbling. As Troy puts it, 'Life is a series of chaotic tragedies and near-misses, so I take pleasure in the details. A quarter-pounder with cheese. Those are good.' Here, Troy explains the motivation of camp lite: addressing the problems of the world is futile, so one should simply enjoy little commodities. Troy, who is highly cynical about consumerism — advertising in particular — is positioned above consumerism in two ways: the cynical spectatorship mentioned in the earlier part of this essay and camp lite, a softening re-folding of cynicism back into not just consumerism, but consumer desire". Source: bad.eserver.org

Saturday, June 05, 2010

Jake Gyllenhaal leaving The Lamill Coffee Shop

Jake Gyllenhaal leaving The Lamill Coffee Shop in Silver Lake with singer Marcus Mumford of Mumford & Sons, in LA on 4th June 2010.

Jake Gyllenhaal - Interview with Peter Travers


Jake sings a family favorite for Peter Travers.


Jake Gyllenhaal tells Peter Travers about making "Prince of Persia", the joy of parkour and silly English accents.

Friday, June 04, 2010

Isabel Lucas: platonic relationship with Jake Gyllenhaal

Jake Gyllenhaal leaving a Gym In Studio City, California on 3rd June 2010. Pictures by Iheartjakemedia.comJake Gyllenhaal in Glamour magazine (Hungary)

"Isabel Lucas signs onto her laptop while waiting for her car outside a New York City hotel on Wednesday (June 2).

The 25-year-old Transformers actress was asked about her rumored relationship with Jake Gyllenhaal. “We’re just friends!” Isabel responded. “Our relationship is purely platonic.”
Source: justjared.buzznet.com

Thursday, June 03, 2010

Kristen Stewart at Seoul Fan Event in Korea

Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner at Seoul Fan Event in Korea on 3rd June 2010
Kristen wore a long-sleeved Prabal Gurung black dress and Jimmy Choo peep-toe heels.


Kristen Stewart & Taylor Lautner at Fan Event in Seul, Korea

Kristen Stewart at Twilight Eclipse press conference in Korea

"Eclipse" wall calendar, with Taylor Lautner, Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson.
Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner at Twilight Eclipse press conference in Korea, 3 June 2010

Eclipse Featurette - Introducing Bree Tanner


Eclipse Featurette - Introducing Bree Tanner (Jodelle Ferland), brought to you by http://www.edwardandbella.net

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World - TV Spot #1


Scott Pilgrim vs. The World - TV Spot #1 starring Michael Cera and Mary Elizabeth Winstead --- http://www.themoviebox.net/

Wednesday, June 02, 2010

Ben Stiller's movie scenes video



A video featuring some scenes starred by Ben Stiller in "Permanent Midnight" (with Maria Bello), "The Zero Effect" (with Angela Featherstone), "There is something about Mary" (with Cameron Diaz), "Zoolander" (with Christine Taylor), "The Heartbreak kid" (with Malin Akerman and Michelle Monaghan), "Meet the parents" (with Teri Polo), "Night at the museum" (with Carla Gugino), "Tropic Thunder" (with Robert Downey Jr.), "Greenberg" (with Greta Gerwig), etc.

Songs "The Tale Of The Horney Frog" by The Flaming Lips and "Take Em Or Leave Em" by Amy Venegas.

Gyllenhaal gets the last laugh in Prince of Persia

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time (2010) - 'The New Yorker' Artwork

"Gyllenhaal gets the last laugh in Prince of Persia: He’s having a great time, he knows he looks awesome and he gets to ride horses. Plus, in the end his character gets the girl, a stunner of a princess named Tamina (though I immediately forgot her name and could henceforth think of her only as Princess Hummina Hummina). If you think you’re above Prince of Persia — and until I saw it, I certainly did — then it’s time to come off your not-so-high horse.
Gyllenhaal’s character is Dastan — which some of the actors pronounce “Desitin”, conjuring some unusual imagery for an action hero, but never mind — and he’s not really a prince. As an orphan boy, he was rescued from the streets by the then-king of Persia, Sharaman (played by the British actor Ronald Pickup), who was impressed by the kid’s courage and pluck. King Sharaman raises Dastan as his own, along with his two sons (played by Richard Coyle and Toby Kebbel, also British actors). Meanwhile, Sharaman’s brother, Nizam (Ben Kingsley, yet another British actor, in case you don’t see the pattern emerging here), lurks ominously at the sidelines, wearing lots of eyeliner. A plot of deceit and intrigue unfolds, all stemming from Sharaman’s invasion of a peaceful nearby country: The princess of that country, the aforementioned Tamina, is played by Gemma Arterton (a British actress recently seen in another princessy role in Clash of the Titans). When she and Dastan meet, it is, of course, love at first sight, despite the fact that he and his brothers have just bullied their way into her poor, beleaguered country.

"The story, as you can surmise, is pure hokum. But what hokum!"
Prince of Persia has lots of action, and for the most part Newell handles it deftly. While there’s clearly some CGI afoot, he also showcases honest-to-God stuntwork — characters leap from one rooftop to another, or swing, Douglas Fairbanks-style, from lengths of rope. (There’s also an ostrich race presided over by a cackling Alfred Molina, who shows up for some comic relief.) Even Newell’s use of a mostly British cast is an affectionate nod to the days when classically trained (or just plain good) actors — James Mason, Alec Guinness, Christopher Plummer — would regularly show up in historical epics. I’m afraid people will giggle when they first hear Gyllenhaal’s affected English accent. Part of what makes Prince of Persia fun, and even sometimes affecting, is that the actors deliver even the hokiest lines here as if they were Shakespeare. “This is a matter for the gods, not man!” Tamina declares at a crucial moment and boy, you’d better believe it. The movie’s plot (the script is by Boaz Yakin, Doug Miro and Carlo Bernard, from a story by Jordan Mechner) becomes a little muddy in the second half; it’s as if the writers came up with some really cool doo-dads at the beginning — among them a mystical dagger with a jeweled button on the hilt, its powers so complicated it ought to come with a user’s manual — and then weren’t quite sure what to do with them.But Newell, with the help of cinematographer John Seale (The English Patient) and production designer Wolf Kroeger, certainly gives us plenty to look at. The movie opens with an old-timey map, rendered in a faded orangey tones, just so we’ll have absolutely no doubts about where this ancient Persia place was actually located. Too many filmmakers, striving for so-called historical accuracy, go for the mud-brown look. (Nothing says historical accuracy like mud.) Seale’s version of historical accuracy is, thank God, the fairy-tale kind. Everything in Prince of Persia looks luxe and burnished. A set of special wooden doors are so intricately carved they resemble metal filigree. Even simple clay houses are bathed in a golden glow. Seale scatters similar fairy-dust light around the actors: When Tamina and Dastan first lay eyes on each other, the molecules of air between them seem to shimmer and melt away before our very eyes.
Then there are the obvious physical charms of the actors. Arterton isn’t just a blandly pretty face. There’s something bold and sensuous about her, particularly in these costumes (designed by Penny Rose). In fact this, and not Sex and the City 2, is the movie for clothes lovers this weekend. Arterton’s Tamina is decked out in silky harem pants, jeweled headdresses and mini brocade vests that highlight her decolicious decolletage, outfits that are completely appropriate for the woman, the climate and the fantasy-historic setting, as opposed to just being a fashionista mish-mash. Prince of Persia may not be perfect, but this is at least filmmaking with a sense of grandeur. In a moviegoing climate where so many people — out of necessity or preference — end up watching movies at home on DVD, Prince of Persia begs for special consideration. It deserves to be seen on a hot Saturday afternoon in a theater (preferably an air-conditioned one) peopled with other people, the way many of us used to see movies as kids". Source: www.movieline.com


"Dagger Discovered" clip from "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time"

Jake Gyllenhaal in Mini (Russia) magazine.

Jake Gyllenhaal on "The Early Show" (CBS)



Maggie Rodriguez talks to Jake Gyllenhaal about his new film, "Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time."

Gyllenhaal lightheartedly joked back with talk about his biceps, triceps, and how life isn’t too bad being an actor.

"I thought it was time to not take myself so seriously and enjoy myself. I read the script and it was a character that was just having a great time and was full of action and he was witty the whole time and just not taking himself too seriously," Gyllenhaal told Rodriguez. Source: www.cbsnews.com

The Twilight girls: Vanity Fair video

For the August issue of Vanity Fair, Norman Jean Roy photographed the spooky beauties of The Twilight Saga: Eclipse—five vampires (Dakota Fanning, Nikki Reed, Ashley Greene, Elizabeth Reaser, Bryce Dallas Howard) and one lone lady werewolf (Julia Jones). Nancy Jo Sales was on set, where, between takes, the girls mused on the gothic romance that has everyone palpitating.Nikki Reed plays the disapproving Rosalie Cullen. Here’s her take on the story’s appeal: “Bella and Edward’s love is very taboo and forbidden,” says Reed, “and I think that kind of represents all youthful relationships, because that’s what all first loves feel like. … It’s sort of borderline, like, insane. Bryce Dallas Howard, a replacement actress playing vampire-with-a-vengeance Victoria, is a Twihard: “I had seen Twilight innumerable times. After I saw it for the fourth time, one of my best guy friends, for my birthday, made me Post-it notes with Robert Pattinson’s face that said, ‘Live Dangerously,’ because I was so obsessed. My husband actually said to me, ‘Do I need to be worried about this?’”
Ashley Greene, who plays psychic vampire Alice, anticipates success: “You don’t have to be psychic to know how this movie’s going to do,” she says. “Obviously, it’s going to be a hit.”
Vanityfair.com


Vanity Fair (July 2010 issue) video, featuring The Twilight girls: Nikki Reed, Dakota Fanning, Bryce Dallas Howard, Julia Jones, etc.

Twilight Eclipse: Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner interviews

Kristen Stewart - Elle magazine photoshoot outtakes.

Twilight Eclipse: Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner from Alicia Malone on Vimeo.

A sneak peek of Alicia Malone's Australian interview with Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner. Here she asks the question all girls want to know. On her "friends" behalf, of course. The full interview will be showing on Movie Extra's "Movie Juice" soon!


Twilight stars talk to Campbell Live with eclipse scenes and news. Kristen Stewart is Team Edward AGAIN (new interview)


7PM Project EXTENDED Interview with Kristen Stewart Taylor Lautner


Taylor Lautner and Kristen Stewart Chat 'Twilight Eclipse' To 'The Hot Hits'

Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner didn't have Robert Pattinson with them to promote Eclipse in Australia, but their costar came up in interviews about offscreen romance and competition. Kristen also looked like she was having a blast during a boat tour of the Harbor with Taylor.