Titanic on Ice

No...not a figure skating extravaganza (I could only hope to dream....) But this one's for you, Meg.

Portman's Out For Regency Blood

Natalie Portman's name is being bandied about in connection with the Pride & Prejudice and Zombies project.

Tyger! Tyger! Burning Bright

It looks like Yann Martel's survival tale, Life of Pi, is finally getting its sea legs...with no less than Ang Lee in talks to direct! Great pairing. (M. Night Shyamalan was previously attached.) Still don't know how they're gonna pull off Richard Parker. CGI animals never seem to work for me.

In the meantime, I still love watching the amateur versions on YouTube.

Source: Variety

Elton John Scores Zombie Austen Pic!

It just gets more and more intriguing...see the deets at Variety.

Okay...further, more careful perusing has brought to light that this is not in fact, the zombie film, but something else entirely: Austen and aliens. In my rush of excitement, I wrongly assumed this was the zombie one...which leads me to believe perhaps there are getting to be a few too many campy spin-offs of Jane? The first time around it's clever. The second time around it's "enough, already." -- Amy

Dickens Mania Commences!

We celebrated Amy's birthday in true Romancing the Tome style on Sunday by attending a Bollywood performance, dining exquisitely at Comme Ça, and watching the first episode of 2007's BBC production of Oliver Twist on Masterpiece Theatre. The casting is fantastic, although we both agreed that Tom Hardy (Heathcliff in Wuthering Heights) is almost too attractive as psychopathic scoundrel Bill Sikes (let's call it the Willoughby Effect). The little boy who plays Oliver is adorable and Timothy Spall as Fagin is utterly creepy. Unfortunately, the Artful Dodger's accent was so thick that we could barely understand a word he said. Following next week's conclusion of Oliver will be David Copperfield starring Daniel Radcliffe. Of course, I'm eagerly awaiting the five episodes of the brand new Little Dorrit, which begins on March 29. --Kim

More Unorthodox Austen...

...This time it involves time travel, with Sam Mendes directing. It's based on a Brit miniseries that starred Tess of the d'Urbervilles' Gemma Arterton and Jemima Rooper.

Source: Variety

Stiller & Cruise: Hardy Boys?

I have to grin at the idea of Tom Cruise and Ben Stiller starring as the boy detectives all grown up...who knows how it'll pan out. I found Tom Cruise slightly annoying in Tropic Thunder, but I give him credit, I guess, for making an ass out of himself for comedy's sake.

Source: Hollywood Reporter

How Did I Not Know About This?!

Pride & Prejudice and Zombies. Apparently there's a bidding war for the movie rights.

Brilliant.

Existentially Speaking

Albert Camus' The First Man gets its celluloid shot. Get the deets.

Pickpocket Alert!

Don't forget to set those DVRs to record Part I of Oliver Twist on Masterpiece Classics on Sunday. No DVR? Watch it online stating Monday, the 16th.

Whoever would have thought that Fagin might be a campy, Yiddish German Jew? His portrayer, for one. Watch Timothy Spall's interview about how he approached the iconic villain. (Where have you seen him before? He's Peter Pettigrew of Harry Potter fame, and he played Mr. Emerson in the 2007 adaptation of A Room With a View.)

Casting Upgrade

Sienna Miller's ousting as Maid Marian from Ridley Scott's Nottingham movie (allegedly because she was too young/thin to credibly star opposite a paunchy Russel Crowe) just took a turn for the intriguing.

The Telegraph is reporting (via Mark Strong) that the equally svelte Cate Blanchett is now taking up where Miller left off.

Crowe and Blanchett? I'd pony up some dough to see that Aussie pairing, fo sho'.

Shakespeare, Shaken

The Wall Street Journal today interviewed Christopher Moore, author of Fool, which retells "King Lear" through the eyes of Lear's quick-witted impudent sidekick. What an original twist! Can't wait to check it out. Speaking of Bard-inspired books, I'm halfway through The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, (David Wroblewski's canine-centric take on "Hamlet") which I'm enjoying immensely.

Sense & Sensibility

Mr. Bingley is swell and all, but when it comes to Pride & Prejudice, it's all about the Darcy. Sense & Sensibility, on the other hand, presents us with two very different (but equally worthy) gentlemen to root for. I, myself, am a "Colonel Brandon" girl. Who are you partial to? Vote here, and don't forget to catch Part II of Sense & Sensibility on Masterpiece Classics Sunday!

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Pacino to Play King Lear

Last year we reported that Anthony Hopkins, Gwyneth Paltrow, Naomi Watts, and Keira Knightley would be starring in Joshua Michael Stern's adaptation of King Lear (and it's still listed as in pre-production on IMDB). Meanwhile, Al Pacino is set to star as King Lear in an adaptation written and directed by Michael Radford who also worked with Pacino on Merchant of Venice. Variety reveals that "the film will be true to its period, very similar to the classical look of 'Merchant of Venice.'" --Kim

Whereabouts: Ioan Gruffudd

Our favorite sailor in the British navy, Horatio Hornblower (a.k.a. Ioan Gruffudd) will join Rupert Friend and Natascha McElhone in "The Kid," reports Variety. It's an adaptation of the true life story of Kevin Lewis, who grew up an abused child only to get mired in London's criminal underworld.