I Heart Jake

AskMen.com Interview

4 June, 2010 Author: Connie Catagories: Interviews, Prince of Persia

Hollywood’s “sensitive” boy actor Jake Gyllenhaal is all manly and epic for Prince of Persia: Sands of Time. In the film, he’s a buff man’s man who’s able to leap tall buildings with a single bound as a noble-hearted royal avenger, the adopted son of the King of Persia. His adventures begin when his father is murdered and he is framed for the crime. Armed with the gorgeous Princess Tamina played by Britain’s Gemma Arterton and a steadfast horse, Dastan (Gyllenhaal) heads into the desert to undo the wrongs done to him and his family.

The movie’s an old-fashioned, ’50s special effects extravaganza — the way they used to make them with Errol Flynn, Cornel Wilde and Charlton Heston. But it’s based on a totally modern video game. It’s also a big-budget gambit for Jake Gyllenhaal. And this Jake is all new.

(more…)

No Comments

Jake Gyllenhaal's advice: Just 'have a great time'

3 June, 2010 Author: Connie Catagories: Interviews, Prince of Persia

Jake Gyllenhaal is one of the hottest A-Listers in Hollywood and it has nothing to do with his Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time beating out Sex and the City 2 from the second spot of the North American box office on Memorial Day weekend.

The 29-year-old actor’s winning attributes are talent, versatility, elegance and intelligence. Throw in good looks and innate charisma, and you have a superstar.

From the very dark Donnie Darko (2001) to the brilliant Brokeback Mountain (2005) to the gorgeously made Arabian Nights-styled fantasy, Prince of Persia, based on a video game and given the epic treatment for the big screen by movie mogul producer Jerry Bruckheimer and Walt Disney Studios, Gyllenhaal has proven that he’s got the chops to carry the weight of a major motion picture. That ability, in the multibillion-dollar movie industry, is no minor feat.

Special effects and CGIs aside, it doesn’t require a statistician to calculate that the reason why Prince of Persia grossed more than $37 million in the United States and Canada, based on published industry figures, is the obvious fact that Gyllenhaal, with the physique of an Olympian, drew the public like a magnet to the their local cineplexes.

On Sunday, lists of the leading moneymakers had the divas of Sex and the City 2 following the reigning king, Shrek Forever After, among the Top 5 highest ticket sellers. Then, on Monday, updated numbers showed Prince had topped Sex‘s intake, after all, despite mixed reviews that leaned toward the darker side of the star-rating system.

Before Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time opened after a strong publicity campaign, The Herald spoke with Gyllenhaal about his latest movie. Had Jarhead (2005) and the more recent Brothers (2009), both with Gyllenhaal, been as fun to watch as this one, they may have fared better in the mainstream marketplace. However, that was then, Prince is now, and it is better than what you may have heard: a movie whose sole purpose is to entertain and does.

(more…)

No Comments

'Sex And The City 2' And 'Prince Of Persia' Fall To 'Shrek' At The Memorial Day Holiday Box Office

31 May, 2010 Author: Connie Catagories: News & Headlines, Prince of Persia

1. “Shrek Forever After” ($55.7 million)
2. “Prince of Persia” ($37.8 million)
3. “Sex and the City 2” ($37.1 million)
4. “Iron Man 2” ($20.6 million)
5. “Robin Hood” ($13.6 million)

Carrie Bradshaw got off to a solid start at the weekend box office with a $13 million first place finish on Friday, but her success ended there as a refueled “Shrek Forever After” tapped into its inner ogre to beat “Sex and the City 2” and “Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time” at the Memorial Day weekend box office.

“Shrek Forever After” emerged as the winner on Monday with $55.7 million to its name, a 21.3 percent drop from its $70.8 million performance last weekend. The film’s success owes much to the increased price of 3-D ticket sales and the increased availability of a younger audience during the holiday weekend. “Shrek” has made $145.5 million at the domestic box office and $25.8 million from foreign locations, resulting in a budget-surpassing worldwide tally of $171.3 million.

While DreamWorks Animation celebrated the repeat victory for “Shrek,” the folks at Warner Bros. and New Line were left scratching their heads wondering what happened to “Sex and the City 2.” With $51.4 million earned from Thursday through Monday, the “Sex and the City” sequel’s five-day performance still fell short of its 2008 predecessor’s opening weekend by $5 million.

“Sex” also failed to beat out “Price of Persia: The Sands of Time,” the Jake Gyllenhaal-starring video game adaptation. But with a production budget of $200 million, “Prince of Persia” still disappointed with a modest a $37.8 million second place finish at the weekend box office. Despite this, “Persia” was a clear winner overseas with a strong $95.5 million showing for a $133.3 million worldwide opening.

Source

No Comments

Jake Gyllenhaal's Abs Didn't Come Easily, Says Trainer

30 May, 2010 Author: Connie Catagories: Interviews, Prince of Persia

Beefing up for a role definitely gets Hollywood talking — just ask Jake Gyllenhaal, who had to turn into a hulk-like warrior for his role in ‘Prince of Persia.’ In an interview with Moviefone, he admitted that putting on all that muscle wasn’t that big of a deal. “There was nothing hard about it, man, I was paid to get in shape,” he said. Easier said than done, Mr. Gyllenhaal.

But were rigorous training and a strict diet the only factors contributing to his new washboard abs? Gyllenhaal’s trainer, Simon Waterson, spoke with PopEater to reveal how the doe-eyed actor transformed his body in less than four months.

Gyllenhaal’s ‘Prince of Persia‘ trainer is a former Royal Marine who has helped other A-list actors — including Pierce Brosnan and Daniel Craig for the ‘James Bond‘ films — bulk up for movie roles. But turning Gyllenhaal into a hulking warrior took a lot of mental and physical stamina; Waterson admits the average person would have to be “extremely dedicated” to achieve similar results.

In the early morning, Gyllenhaal would put on a 20-pound flak jacket and run around a park and in the sand — simulating scenes he would be filming in Morocco for ‘Persia.’ He’d then head off to script readings and sword fight training before returning in the evening to start his second round of exercise, resistance training. The actor would eat six times a day — three meals and three snacks, each of which contained a lot of protein, electrolytes and carbohydrates.

(more…)

No Comments

"Sex" and "Persia" opens strong

29 May, 2010 Author: Connie Catagories: News & Headlines, Prince of Persia

Both Sex and the City 2 and Prince of Persia, the weekend’s two new releases, opened to solid numbers but it’s Shrek Forever After that’s likely to win the weekend. Carrie Bradshaw and Co. added an estimated $13 million to its coffers that already boasted $14 million from its Thursday shows. The R-rated comedic romp is now on track for a $50 million 4-day weekend, less than the $57 million earned by the original back in 2008.

Meanwhile, the Jerry Bruckheimer action epic Prince of Persia bowed Friday with approximately $10 million for a 4-day take that could translate into somewhere between $35-$40 million. Still, the movie that’s likely to dominate the weekend once all the numbers are in is Shrek Forever After. The PG-rated animated flick earned an estimated $11 million on Friday, a number that will likely grow to over $55 million for the four-day holiday frame. The rest of the top five will be rounded out by Iron Man 2 and Robin Hood. Robert Downey Jr. and crew took in another $4 million Friday, while Russell Crowe generated close to $3 million for his historic actioner.