Baker Street Boys (And Girls)

The Wall Street Journal today had an article about Holmes-and-Watson geeks, a.k.a. The Baker Street Irregulars, and a mention of forthcoming Sherlock flicks.

Stormin' Normans

Crack open your history books: A film called "1066" is in the works to offer an account of the Battle of Hastings. The movie will focus on the rivalry between King Harold and William the Conquerer. Gladiator scribe William Nicholson is penning the screenplay.

Source: Variety

New Emma Adaption Coming from the BBC!

Good news: The new adaptation of Emma will be four episodes long and will air in the fall, according to a BBC press release. It was last adapted in 1996, as a less-than-stellar film starring Gwyneth Paltrow and an ITV miniseries with Kate Beckinsale. Good thinking, BBC! Drop your cast picks in the comments. (via Fellow-ette)

Wuthering Depths

I'm not really in the position to turn my nose up at even a half-rate installment of Masterpiece Classics, but after watching my TiVo'd Part I of Emily Bronte's Wuthering Heights last night with Kim, I have to confess we were underwhelmed.

1) Where the heck was Mr. Lockwood? The best part about the novel is how eerily it begins, with this traveler showing up at W.H. on a cold dark night and discovering both the motley crew residing within as well as the curious graffiti marks on the bed panels in Cathy's former room. Instead of that intriguing start, we got to meet the second-generation upstarts in some random supplemental scenes...an immediate snooze.

2) Tom Hardy was not my Heathcliff. Sorry, he just wasn't sexy-swarthy enough. Granted, we DID start to warm up to him once he returned with the spiffy haircut and the raging dose of 'tude, but that doesn't make up for the fifty-or-so minutes we spent feeling weirded-out by him and wondering why Cathy was even attracted to him in the first place.

3) Cathy could have been a bit more of a spitfire, but all-told, Charlotte Riley was acceptable, albeit a little too modern-looking. (Especially in the one scene where she was lying on the ground with him wearing a knit cap that made her look like a hipster Brooklynite circa 2006.)

I could continue my list of gripes, but I'm not even inspired enough to do so. Let us know what you loved (or loathed) about it.

Once More With Feeling: East of Eden

Happy news!

Let me start with a story. I loved, loved, LOVED John Steinbeck's East of Eden when I first read it about three years ago. Loved it so much that I immediately rented the film classic with James Dean a la Elia Kazan...which horribly disappointed me. (I guess I'm in the minority on that, but so be it. As adaptations go, it stunk.)

Now comes the fantastic news that the duo behind the incredible John Adams series on HBO are doing their own take on the Steinbeck classic! Can't wait to see who they cast!

Source: Variety

My Big Fat Nottingham Debacle?

The Guardian's got rumors as to why Sienna Miller has been dropped from Ridley Scott's Nottingham movie. Here's a hint: Too many Twinkies for the film's Robin Hood, Russell Crowe?

First Look: The Young Victoria

Watch the trailer

Adaptation Hotties

The Egalitarian Bookworm lists her Top Five Period Literary Adaptation Hotties. I applaud her choice of Greg Wise for the #2 spot. I fell in love with him in The Buccaneers and he IS the perfect Willoughby! Can you guess who takes the #1 spot? --Kim

"Desire. Passion. Scandal." Thorn Birds, the Musical

I'm trying really hard to wrap my brain around this and am failing. The Thorn Birds is reportedly being adapted as a musical. Imagine the possible numbers: You Can't Make Love for Toffee (You Complacent, Conceited, Self-Centered Bastard!"); Girl, You'll be a Woman Soon; Son of a Preacher Man; Father de Bricassart's Lament; Livin' In Dragheda; Ashes of Rose; I Love You (But I Love God More)... --Kim

"There Is a Time to Embrace and a Time to Refrain from Embracing"

Our favorite scene from the first episode of Tess of the d'Urbervilles had to be when Angel Clare carries each of the besotted milk maids across a gigantic puddle. Finally, sweeping up an embarrassed Tess, whom he compares to gossamer, he confesses "I didn't expect an event like this today." Lovely. You can watch the scene again here. --Kim

Tess of the D'Urbervilles: A Limerick

Kim and I greatly enjoyed watching Masterpiece Theater on Sunday. We are now longing for a minor flooding situation that will require some hot dude to carry us each across a marsh.

I've written a limerick summing up Part I:

There was a poor girl named Tess
Her life was a tragic hot mess.
Her "cuz" did assault her (Will Angel now fault her?)
Stay tuned, and bring Kleenex, I guess.

Part II continues Sunday.

Set Pix from Tim Burton's ALICE IN WONDERLAND

More pix, including some of Helena Bonham Carter en déshabillé, here. --Kim