Thanks to Bourne, the spy-fi genre is alive and well and every studio is on the lookout for a franchise of their own -- even Disney. Variety reports that super-producer Jerry Bruckheimer (along with the Mouse) has purchased the screen rights to David Ignatius' spy thriller, The Increment. Ignatius is an associate editor for The Washington Post and Increment will be his seventh novel. An adaptation of his 2007 book, Body of Lies, has already finished shooting with Ridley Scott at the helm, and Leonardo DiCaprio starring as a CIA agent hot on the tail of a terrorist.

The Increment centers on a "shadowy, elite group of British undercover intelligence operatives who are conscripted by a CIA agent to help a weapons scientist defect from Iran." Early reviews of the manuscript praised the story, citing the wealth of facts about the CIA and the international intelligence community. But insiders were shocked that Disney would want the property considering the amount of 'hot button' issues in the book, like Islamic politics and an invasion of Iran.

Ignatius' novel has not even been published yet, so it's very early days for the adaptation -- and leaving plenty of time for Disney to water down the story. In the meantime, look for Body of Lies to arrive in theaters on October 8th, 2008.

Having pioneered tech-noir with Blade Runner, Ridley Scott is trying his hand at classical noir with The Kind One. Variety reports that Scott will direct and produce an adaptation of the Tom Epperson book, with Epperson himself writing the screenplay. The novel is about an amnesiac in 1930s Los Angeles who is informed that before he lost his memory, he was a ruthless gangster named "Two-Gun Danny," and that he works for a fearsome gangland boss. Epperson is a screenwriter by trade, best known for co-writing The Gift with Billy Bob Thornton; The Kind One is his first novel.

The other person to sign on to the project is Casey Affleck, who is clearly enjoying his new lease on life following The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford and Gone Baby Gone. He's really the perfect noir hero, scrappy, jaded and intelligent; we saw some of that on display in his brother's film, where he practically disappeared into the tough working-class Boston milieu. He and Scott should be able to hit this one out of the park, if the source material is any good. As always, I'd love to hear from commenters who are familiar with the book.

Last year, a screenwriter making his directorial debut -- Tony Gilroy -- went and got himself a Best Director Oscar nomination. William Monahan already has an honest-to-goodness Oscar on his mantel for writing The Departed, but it looks like he'll soon get a chance to broaden his horizons. He's picked up the rights to a 2002 novel by Ken Bruen called London Boulevard, and plans to direct the film himself. It's a crime story about an ex-con who gets a job as a handyman for a rich actress but soon gets embroiled in the violent underworld he used to call home.

Single men of the world who are sick of seeing shocked faces on their dates when they say that they live at home -- this news bit is for you. Variety reports that Relativity Media outbid a collection of studios for a screenplay called The Low Dweller, by a new screenwriter, Brad Ingelsby. The 27-year-old is a grad from AFI who lives with his parents in Pennsylvania and works for his father's insurance business. Or, at least, he did. I imagine he quit once his script was picked up for $650,000 against $1.1 million.

That's not all! This seems to be such a hot script that there are already plans for Ridley Scott to direct and Leonardo DiCaprio to star -- possibly really soon. The film is said to need a brief 35-day shoot, so there is a chance that Ridley and Leo can squeeze it in somewhere.

The story focuses on a man named Slim (who DiCaprio would play). After serving a number of years in prison for murder, his lone goal upon release: to fulfill a promise and marry his "long-suffering girlfriend." However, he finds out that his brother has been murdered in some sort of gambling kerfuffle and feels that he must avenge his brother's death. The script is being compared to No Country for Old Men, so I'm betting you can expect something somber and gritty, with an underlying layer of humor.

Looks like Ridley Scott and Leonardo DiCaprio are quite fond of one another, as both men have decided to team up once again on a new thriller called The Low Dweller. This script is being touted as a cross between The History of Violence and No Country for Old Men, and when the latter flick wins an Oscar for best picture -- well, you bet your you know what this is gonna be a hot property. And indeed it is; apparently, the script comes from some "twentysomething working as an insurance salesman in Pennsylvania," so says The Hollywood Reporter. Dude was just a random guy, plugging away on a spec script, and, whaddya know, it sparked up a huge bidding war between Warner Bros. and Sony before Relativity Media came in and swiped it up for a crisp $650,000 against $1 million.

Not bad for an insurance salesman from Pennsylvania.

According to HR, the film is set in Indiana during the mid-1980s, and it "centers on a man (DiCaprio) trying to assimilate into society after he's released from jail, only to find someone from his past pursuing him to settle a score." They add that another male character and a female love interest are also involved in some way. Sounds like it could be good, but then again that description doesn't give you all that much. Scott and DiCaprio just wrapped up Body of Lies, and each will now head to another project (Leo on Shutter Island and Scott on Nottingham) before returning for this one.

Last summer, representatives from Scott Free Productions went to Iceland to scout possible locals for a still-untitled film about the 1986 Reykjavik Summit between Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev. While many months have passed, The Hollywood Reporter has posted that Ridley Scott is still looking to make the feature film, which could even get released in early 2009. He says this even though the project is still in the script stage, which seems a bit optimistic, but apparently, it will only need a short shoot.

The 1986 summit brought together Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev to discuss arms control, but fell apart with no agreement (one did, however, come the next year, in 1987). Scott says: "These are fascinating historical characters, larger-than-life figures, but I want to show who they were and why they did what they did. Their actions helped shape history, paving the way for the end of the Cold War."

Now considering that, and how recognizable their images are, one would think that they'd be on the hunt for talented actors who can not only embody these men, but look like them. Surprisingly, Scott says that "resemblance is secondary. It's less about visible appearance, more about the acting." Sure, the talent is important, but I'm not sure how easy it would be to buy this film if we can't buy the actors in their roles. We're not talking about names that are much bigger than their images, but men from our recent past who are highly recognizable. A group of "entertainment and political veterans" have been brought together for the project, so we should hear more soon.

It seemed completely strange to me when I heard that Ridley Scott wanted to make Monopoly into a movie. I mean, it's no Clue. There's no crazy characters to bring to life (no, an iron is not a crazy character), and a less novel-like gameplay. Yet I'm still intrigued, and will have to be for a while longer. While talking with Empire, Scott said that the project is still in development and that he doesn't know "where we're going to go with that." That doesn't sound good.

He did discuss, however, what draws him to it. It "underscores the mean side of people. Monopoly changes people, the nicest person becomes a monster -- as soon as they buy Park Lane, that's it, they've all changed. I'm trying to figure out what tone of comedy it could be. It could be a really big film." First, does this mean we'll have Monopoly UK-style? Either way, a group of people are going to get confused over the names. Secondly, what's with this monster thing? I've had some lively Monopoly games, like the time my little cousin wiped the floor with me, or when conglomerations were made to try to take down the big guys, but in my experience, it's been whoever is losing that gets a little mean or snarky. How about your Monopoly experiences?

In other news, Scott discussed the upcoming Nottingham picture, which he calls Robin Hood -- I don't know if that's just his name for it, or if the title was changed. Whatever the case, once Leo and Russell are done with Body of Lies, and all the strikes are settled, Scott will kick the film into gear. He says Crowe is still tapped for the lead, and he's scouted some locations. Now I'm not sure if Scott said something else about the project that wasn't posted, but Empire says that the Sheriff twist previously reported "appears to have either fallen by the wayside or Crowe fancies reprising his conflicted bad guy schtick again." Such confusion!

It looks like everything is up in the air, so we'll have to continue to wait and see what Scott has in store.

Oh, this latest bit of news gives me a bit of a fangirl jump. Variety reports that Jake Scott and Jordan Scott -- offspring of Ridley -- are both gearing up for new feature films. Why do I care? Jake's not only the guy behind a lot of memorable videos like "Fake Plastic Trees," "Disarm," and "Everybody Hurts," but also Plunkett and Macleane. If you haven't seen it, it's a terrible, great movie starring Jonny Lee Miller and Robert Carlyle (plus Liv Tyler and Alan Cumming) that has disappeared from shelves. So, not only could the film be good, but maybe Macleane will get a new DVD release. At least, I hope!

While the previous flick dealt with robbers in the 18th century, this new feature, Welcome to the Rileys, is a bit softer. The film will star James Gandolfini and Kristen Stewart, focuses on "a man and a woman who have been driven apart by grief after losing their daughter, and are brought back together when they meet a troubled young woman." Somehow, there's "unexpected love" and "catharsis" in there -- perhaps between the stars listed? That would be, um, interesting. While production should begin in New Orleans this April for the above film, Jordan is looking to make her debut with Cracks overseas. A period drama set in a British boarding school, Scott describes it as a film "about misguided love and obsession, as told through the eyes of a group of elite girls in this boarding school." She'll start scouting locations next week.

Why are these features being lumped together? Handmade Films International is handling worldwide sales and will present the films as a package to potential buyers at Berlinale.

Best Director

Nominees:

Tim Burton -- Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Ethan and Joel Coen -- No Country for Old Men

Julian Schnabel -- The Diving Bell and the Butterfly

Ridley Scott -- American Gangster

Joe Wright -- Atonement

Predicted Winner: Ethan and Joel Coen

No Country for Old Men could go on to win Best Director at the Oscars, but unlike the Academy, the Hollywood Foreign Press will actually recognize both of the Coen Brothers. Everyone knows that Ethan and Joel co-direct their films, but due to Director's Guild and Academy rules, only Joel is allowed credit for them. Therefore their win of the Golden Globe for Best Director will be the better honor. And boy do they deserve it! With No Country, they've delivered a stunning film that exemplifies the two major dimensions of the craft: visual storytelling and management of the acting performances.

Now it's your turn to vote ...

'Tis the season to get away from your family, bundle up with a gallon of moonshine (preferably one with "XXX" written on the label), and watch endless hours of movies! What follows is not a comprehensive or "Best Of" list. These are simply seven DVD box sets that any film buff would be thrilled to find in his or her stocking this Christmas. Most of them were released in the past few months, and a couple have been out a while but just got amazingly cheap. Have a few gifts left to buy? Consider picking one of these up. You don't even have to get off your fat ass, if you click on the titles you'll be taken to the links on Amazon. I've included items to suit every budget, and they've been arranged in order of price. Naturally, the more expensive the set you purchase, the more you love the person you're buying it for. That's just the way it works.

The Alien Quadrilogy ($33.99)

Pretty much the gold standard for DVD box sets. This collection's price recently took an incredible drop. It was worth every penny of the $80 bucks I paid for mine years ago, so you can better believe it's worth $34. The set gives you several versions of each film in the beloved Alien series -- Alien (one of the best suspense movies ever made), Aliens (one of the best action movies ever made), Alien 3 (David Fincher's misunderstood take is a stronger movie with each viewing), and Alien: Resurrection (Nobody's perfect). An unprecedented amount of extra goodies that includes the amazing Director's Cut of Aliens, extremely cool fold-out packaging, and the absence of Alien Vs. Predator make this set a must-own. I've owned it for four years, and still haven't seen everything in there. Plus, don't you just love the word "Quadrilogy?"

He's been fighting his young look for years, but it looks like Leonardo DiCaprio has finally gotten to a place where he looks older and more experienced. Perhaps that's due to the furrowed brow he's sporting in the picture above. The image is from his current film, Ridley Scott's Body of Lies, and it leads me to wonder if he practiced that furrowed look to age him, and how long it will be before he and Josh Brolin play brothers. (See the bearded resemblance?)

The film is based on David Ignatius' novel about a CIA agent sent to Amman to collaborate with Jordan's special intelligence and track down an Al Qaeda bad guy who is scheming an attack on America. DiCaprio plays the agent, Russell Crowe plays his boss, and Carice van Houten plays his ex-wife. No release date has been set for the film, but it shouldn't take too long to hit screens.

[via Empire Online]

So while I wouldn't necessarily pair the rough and tumble director Ridley Scott with the world of high fashion, Fox must see something in the pairing that I don't. Variety reports that Fox 2000 is putting together a vehicle for Scott to direct that is based on the life and murder of Maurizio Gucci (head of the famous Gucci fashion house). The project had been wasting away at Paramount before Fox finally picked it up through The Devil Wears Prada producer, Carla Hacken.

The famous house of Gucci was founded by Guccio Gucci back in 1906. By the time the 70's had rolled around, the company was in serious financial trouble and there was infighting and bad blood running rampant in the family. Maurizio was the grandson of founder Guccio and had managed to retain 50% of the business after the death of his father. He allied with his cousin Paulo, and the two finally turned the company around. It was Maurizio who had hired a relatively new designer at the time, Tom Ford, to help revive the label in the 90's. On the eve of his big debut though, Maurizio was gunned down outside his apartment building. In 1998, Maurizio's ex-wife was convicted of the murder (she was later retried but her conviction was upheld with a reduced sentence).

Fox has already lined up Charles Randolph (The Interpreter) to begin working on the script as soon as the writer's strike is over. According to Variety, the story "chronicles the wild and glamorous story of the Gucci family in the 1970s and '80s". Scott is currently shooting the drama Body of Lies with Leonardo DiCaprio and Russell Crowe on location in Morocco, before heading off to work on the revisionist Robin Hood flick, Nottingham. So since Scott has plenty of work left to do and a script has yet to be written, it could be awhile before Scott and company can get this project underway.

I have a favor to ask of Ridley Scott: please, sir, can you stop announcing movie projects until you're in the middle of shooting Monopoly? That's the only one I really want to see you committed to right now. So, just finish up with Body of Lies, then begin production on Monopoly, and then you may announce other gigs, including this new project, Stones, which The Hollywood Reporter now tells us you're set to direct. Sure, the film sounds really interesting -- its a supernatural thriller that deals with ancient landmarks like Stonehenge and the Great Pyramids -- but how can you be thinking about mystical places when you need to be concentrating on Rich Uncle Pennybags and how you might integrate the thimble and scotty dog into your board game adaptation.

Yes, the American Gangster director has too many films in the pipeline. And Monopoly isn't even one of the projects listed on the IMDb, which shows only the Robin Hood-based Nottingham and the Cormac McCarthy adaptation Blood Merdian as being lined up after Body of Lies. Other Scott-attached projects we've written about in the past include Child 44 and Gladiator 2, but those were both a long time ago. We know Scott has confirmed involvement in Monopoly, so where's the greenlight? Doesn't Hollywood know how huge this thing will be? Oh well, I guess we can take a little peak at what this Stones thing is all about. Scripted by Matthew Cirulnick (Paid in Full), the movie features the destruction of ancient religious structures throughout the world and the revelation that they are all tied together, with Stonehenge being the central site, and that they all retain supernatural powers meant for a specific purpose.

The Hollywood Reporter confirms that following Body of Lies, Scott will head straight into Nottingham, while Stones will have to await the end of the Writers Guild strike, because Cirulnick has not finished writing it. The trade also mentions another mythical project written by Cirulnick titled Elysium, which deals with Greek mythology, and going by the title, I presume it focuses on the afterlife.

Last week I went to see American Gangster and had a terrible problem figuring out where certain scenes were supposed to be taking place. Basically, I kept seeing familiar Brooklyn locations and assuming the scenes took place in Brooklyn. But in reality these scenes were supposed to be accepted as being in New Jersey. So, throughout the first half of the movie, I didn't get that Richie Roberts (Russell Crowe) lived and worked in the Garden State. Instead, I kept associating him with McCarren Park and other Williamsburg locales. The main confusion, though, stemmed from one early scene in particular, which features the Williamsburg Bridge prominently in the background. Where in New Jersey could this be intended to be? Sure, I can understand filming in Brooklyn and pretending it's elsewhere, but to use such a glaring landmark seems strange. Had the scene been shot from the opposite direction, the bridge wouldn't have been there. And this is a film that apparently used a computer to digitally add in the World Trade Center. So, there had to be some seriousness when it came to the film's locations.

Many of us have watched movies where we know the exact filming location of a particular scene. Often, we notice the movie has taken liberties with the location, such as when a character leaves a familiar building and then appears to walk across the street, yet the other side of the street is (known to us to be) actually somewhere across town. Whatever, that's the magic of the movies. But it's different when the movie is substituting one location for another yet includes a well-known structure such as a bridge. On an elevated level, it'd be like filming in San Franciso and calling it Seattle, yet clearly featuring the Golden Gate Bridge in a number of shots. Okay, that is obviously a too extreme case, as everyone recognizes the Golden Gate and maybe only us New Yorkers recognize the Williamsburg. In any event, I ask you: when have a movie's filming locations been so off that they disrupted your whole sense of setting?

The Hollywood Reporter has announced that Josh Lucas will star in Tell-Tale, a psychological thriller directed by Michael Cuesta. Cuesta directed two very good indies -- L.I.E. and Twelve and Holding, and has helmed episodes of two of my favorite shows -- Six Feet Under and Dexter. The film's producers include big-time directors/brothers Tony Scott (Top Gun) and Ridley Scott -- who is currently tearing up the box office with the terrific American Gangster. The script was written by Dave Callaham, who also penned the video game adaptation Doom. (Had to look that up because THR managed to mention every aspect of the film but the screenwriter -- see why writers feel under-appreciated?)

Tell-Tale is a contemporary adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe's classic story "The Tell-Tale Heart," (which was also reimagined as a hilarious Simpsons episode -- "Lisa's Rival"). Lucas will play a "single father whose recently transplanted heart leads him on a frantic search to find the donor's killer before a similar fate befalls him." I love the Poe story, so I'm up for this new take. Lucas was rumored to be playing Captain Pike in the upcoming Star Trek film, but we learned this morning that's not the case. What I really think Lucas should be doing is a movie where he, Matthew McConaughey, and Bradley Cooper try to tell each other apart for two hours.