It might seem strange to see Martin Scorsese's name in front of a film called Frankie Machine since, as far as we know, he's not attached. But according to Deadline Hollywood that's all changed, and apparently Scorsese will team up with his favorite Goodfella on yet another mob-related flick. But let's backtrack: Last year, Robert De Niro picked up the rights to adapt The Winter of Frankie Machine -- written by Don Winslow -- as a potential starring vehicle for himself. From there, the duo of David Levien and Brian Koppelman (Ocean's Thirteen, Rounders) were brought on to pen a screenplay, and not much has been heard about the project since aside from Latino Review calling the script "a masterpiece." Wonderful. Thrilling. Tell me more!

Well now, Nikki Finke says that Scorsese will direct Frankie Machine (the title has since been shortened so that it sounds like Goodfellas meets Robocop -- dare I ask why?) under his deal with Paramount and, furthermore, he'll do so right after he finishes up this Rolling Stones documentary. The film, in case you're wondering, centers on a retired mob hitman (De Niro) who now spends his days running a bait shop. But when the son of a mob boss asks for Frankie's help settling a dispute, and he agrees, our hero soon finds out that he's been set up. Not with a tall, beautiful blonde, mind you, but with a potential bullet to the head. If the deal goes through and things become official, Frankie Machine will become the ninth big-screen collaboration for Scorsese and De Niro, with the latter recently alluding to the fact that he'd like to shoot an even 10 films with Scorsese before both men retire for good. But is that 10 mob-related films, or just 10 films? And, most importantly, since there's an opening for the role of Mob Boss's Son, will we finally get to see Scorsese's two main men, De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio, go head to head in a Scorsese film? I'd certainly dig that.

Goodfella, Raging Bull, and Taxi Driver Robert DeNiro is reportedly attached to star in The Winter of Frankie Machine. Brian Koppelman and David Levien are writing the adaptation of Don Winslow's novel; they wrote the poker classic Rounders, as well as the upcoming Ocean's Thirteen. Frankie Machine is about a former mob hitman/Vietnam vet who has put his gangster days behind him and now spends his time surfing when he's not busy operating a linen service, a seafood company, and a bait shop. And for two hours, he sells worms to fishermen and his past never comes back to haunt him? Of course not! When the son of a mob boss asks for Frankie's help in settling a dispute with another mobster, Frankie agrees. But soon he finds he's been set up and is next on the hit list. The story is said to deal with both Frankie's current adventure and also with him trying to figure out what in his past got him into trouble.

The Latino Review has the story here and a script review here. The reviewer calls it "the leanest, tightest script I read so far this year," and "a masterpiece," adding a little something you never heard from Pauline Kael: "The shit is hot." This does sound like a really cool story, and the book has earned several comparisons to Elmore Leonard's stuff, which is really all I need to hear to get on board. Sounds like a blast, and here's hoping it's got a touch of black humor to it, all of the best mob stories do. I don't need to see DeNiro in a wet suit surfing while firing a machine gun, but with this premise, it sounds like there's a lot of potential for some dark laughs. Regardless of how it turns out, I think we can all agree that it's got a pretty badass title. Color me interested in this one!