Would you like that shaken or stirred, Leo? Writing in Los Angeles Times, Jay A. Fernandez reports that Leonardo DiCaprio's Appian Way company recently came on board to produce a biopic about Ian Fleming, the creator of James Bond, based on an original script by Damian Stevenson. Fernandez speculates that DiCaprio might play Fleming: "During the writers' strike, DiCaprio showed interest in Fleming and his world, but he's looking to take the script in a different direction with a new writer."

Leo has produced other films in which he did not appear (The Assassination of Richard Nixon, Gardener of Eden) and already has a very full plate of upcoming projects. Still, it's fun to speculate because Fleming was such a fascinating character.
According to Wikipedia, Fleming was a journalist first, including time in Moscow in 1933, then a stockbroker, before working in Naval Intelligence for Britain during World War II. He personally directed an intelligence-gathering unit that employed "lock-picking, safe-cracking, forms of unarmed combat, and other techniques and skills." He published his first Bond novel, Casino Royale, in 1953. Stevenson's script started on the eve of Fleming's wedding in 1952 before flashing back to his years as a journalist, playboy and spy planner.

Fleming sounds like it could be a good, thrilling drama. What do you think? Could Leo pull off the part? If not, who would you like to see as Ian Fleming?

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.

My personal pick is the powerful, haunting There Will Be Blood, but there are other intriguing titles to explore. Manda Bala (Send a Bullet) won the inaugural Cinema Eye Award for Best Feature; according to one synopsis, the documentary examines the "cycles of violence that plague Brazil's upper and lower economic classes in fits of rampant corruption and violent kidnappings." The DVD from City Lights includes an audio commentary by the director and producers, as well as several additional scenes.

Linda Hattendorf first met the subject of her documentary, The Cats of Mirikitani, on the streets of New York. He was homeless; she bought one of his drawings. "Thus began a strange, intimate relationship," Martha Fischer wrote in her review. She called the doc "a treasure of personal filmmaking, created on a shoe-string budget and completely devoid of pretensions or aspirations beyond simple, intimate, storytelling." The DVD from Arts Alliance America includes 20 minutes of bonus footage, deleted scenes and Mirikitani art gallery images.

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.

Try as I might, I cannot find a video of the press conference for Leatherheads, and it seems the only one who noticed this story was Jeremy Smith from CHUD. I pass it on to you, because everyone likes a little George Clooney story on the weekend.

Farragut North, Beau Willimon's play (and hot Hollywood property) has been attached to Clooney (he's supposed to direct) since last fall, and it sounds like it might be going forward at last. However, Clooney denied he would be appearing in the film, saying, "I think there are a lot better actors for that than me." Oh, George. Such modesty. He doesn't expect to start production until next year, and there's no word as to whether Leonardo DiCaprio is still attached to star.

As the movie revolves around a young idealist on a presidential campaign, some may feel Clooney missed the boat on the timing. But I don't think so -- next year will give audiences a chance to catch their breath after this year's election. How many people want to go watch a film about a presidential campaign, and then come home to the real thing on CNN? Willimon's play is also set to debut on Broadway this summer, and the film might be hinging on its reception.

No one does classy political drama like Clooney. If Willimon's play is all that it is rumored to be, audiences can expect a brilliant movie -- and Clooney more gold statuettes. . .

No, Leonardo DiCaprio isn't joining a sequel of that crappy Codename flick. He is, however, looking to star in a Korean thriller remake -- but it won't be in the vein of those many supernatural thriller re-dos. The Hollywood Reporter has posted that right after Warner Brothers picked up the remake rights to The Chaser for mid-six figures, Leo started looking at the lead, presumably because The Departed helmer William Monahan is in talks to direct.

Should he sign on, Leo will play an "ex-cop who goes on the warpath trying to find a missing girl. The girl, who may or may not be alive, is being used by a serial killer to taunt the police." That whole "may or may not" thing, mixed with taunting, is filling my head with visions of kid digits and horror, but hopefully the taunting is just with some carefully-lettered ransoms or "nyah nyah" taunts.

Not surprisingly, the original is a hit in Korea, which sparked the attention of many, including Vertigo Entertainment's Roy Lee and Doug Davison, who, I quote: "specialize in bringing Asian fare to American audiences." Just as I imagine Michael Clayton gets sick of clean-ups, you gotta wonder how tiring it is to have your whole job revolve around redoing films. They must hate rants about remakes.

Mid-strike, filmmaker Peter Berg and Mark Wahlberg signed on for Cocaine Cowboys, a feature adaptation of that cocaine trafficking documentary that came out back in 2006. Mr. Wahlberg was set to play Jon Roberts, a Miami drug dealer who distributed billions of dollars worth of cocaine. Now Page Six says that he'll be joined by Departed co-star Leonardo DiCaprio for all of the retro drug shenanigans.

A movie insider told the site that this film "will blow Blow out of the water," and that Leo "is excited about the opportunity to play the airplane pilot who travels with Mark's character to obtain kilos of cocaine from Pablo Escobar." Correct me if I'm wrong, but I assume that means Leo will be Mickey Munday? (Get more info on the story through the above doc link, or in an old interview here.)

Considering how schnazzy the documentary about Roberts is, I would hope that this isn't just a straight-out drama, but something with a Basketball Diaries sort of life to it -- the film that first brought Marky Mark and Leo together. I like Leo best when he gets to be a little crazy -- a poetic, struggling Jim Carroll, or a wacky Howard Hughes, and would love to see him with a little flair in this. But what do you think? Are you ready for Leo and Marky Part 3?

Hours after Warner Bros and Leo DiCaprio grabbed Akira, we have the lead casting courtesy of Ain't It Cool News.

If your first thought upon hearing that DiCaprio was producing was "I bet he stars in it, too," well, you would be right. DiCaprio will reportedly be playing the lead character, Kaneda.

Set to star opposite him as Tetsuo is Joseph Gordon-Levitt, who is well on his way to the A-List these days -- and will probably be the next a geek hero in the Christian Bale mold after G.I. Joe.

Again, I'm completely unfamiliar with the book, so you'll have to tell me whether this is casting perfection or a complete disaster. Both are fine young actors, so I can't imagine it is the latter, but I know how bitter a pill it can be to see a beloved character miscast. I'd also like to hear who else you would like to see added to the roster.

Variety reports that Warner Bros has reclaimed the rights to Katsuhiro Otomo's six-volume graphic novel Akira after a spirited bidding war, and is planning to adapt the book into two live action films. The project is being put on the fast track, with the first film due to be released in summer 2009. Ruairi Robinson is set to direct a script by Gary Whitta, and Leonardo DiCaprio's Appian Way will produce with Andrew Lazar's Mad Chance (with a chance DiCaprio could star). The project was brought in by executive vice president Greg Silverman, who also supervised 300 and Batman Begins -- clearly, he has recognized that graphic novels equal box office gold.

The studio is hyping this as a cross between Blade Runner and City of God which is pretty amusing to me, and I only know the bare details of the story. Every sci-fi film is sold as a cross between something and Blade Runner. The setting has been changed from a post-apocalyptic New Toyko to a New Manhattan, which is not surprising, and probably not too disappointing. But what is bound to worry fans (besides the implication that it is about neo-noir street gangs) is that this will be Robinson's feature debut, having helmed only commercials and short films thus far. Is he up to the task? Sometimes having a newcomer for this sort of property is ideal, other times it suggests the newbie is just there as a studio puppet.

And is it possible to compress six novels into two films? I have never read the graphic and have seen very little of the 1988 anime, so you'll have to tell me. All I know is, it has absolutely nothing in common with Blade Runner.

If you had to pick one of the break-out stars in 2007, chances are Ben Foster would be one of the names at the top of the list. Between his performances in 3:10 To Yuma and 30 Days of Night there is no question that this young actor has earned the right to get his own starring roles. Besides, anyone that can make me laugh or scare the crap out of me in equal amounts deserves a little respect. The Hollywood Reporter has announced that Foster has signed to star in the military drama, The Messenger.

The story centers on an army man (Foster) who has been given the unpleasant assignment of informing families that a loved one has died in combat (talk about being the bearer of bad news). Forced to work with a partner he can't stand, things become even more complicated when he begins to fall in love with a soldier's widow. So far, only Foster has been officially attached to the film, so there is still plenty of time to fill out the rest of the cast.

The film marks the directorial debut of Oren Moverman, who is probably most famous for co-writing Todd Haynes' Dylan 'biopic' I'm Not There. Alessandro Camon co-wrote the script for The Messenger and is already hard at work on the Leonardo DiCaprio thriller, The Chancellor Manuscript. Foster has also lined up a role in the dysfunctional family comedy Birds of America, but for that role it looks like it's going to be another ensemble piece. Luckily for Foster, he's not the type of actor who fades into the background. The Messenger is scheduled to start shooting in April.

Like most people, I'll go see a Martin Scorsese movie no matter what they call it. Empire reports (via The Boston Herald) that Scorsese's latest, Shutter Island, will now be known as Ashecliffe -- and while I wasn't all that attached to the first title, it's not like this one is a vast improvement. The film is based on Dennis Lehane's novel about an investigation at an asylum for the criminally insane. The new title is taken from the name of the mental institution.

DiCaprio stars as Teddy Daniels, a US Marshall sent to investigate the disappearance of a multiple murderer on the remote and fictional location of Shutter Island. Michelle Williams also stars as Dolores Chanal, the wife of DiCaprio's character who is communing with him from beyond the grave (it sounds weird, I know, but the book was pretty 'Gothic' to begin with). Williams has recently halted production on her latest film Blue Valentine due to Heath Ledger's sudden and tragic death. However, there was no mention of whether she is still planning on staying on for Ashecliffe.

Shutter ... I mean Ashcliffe, also stars Mark Ruffalo as DiCaprio's partner, Ben Kingsley, and Patricia Clarkson. Clarkson has always had the uncanny knack of portraying either the kindest or most hateful person you have ever met, so my money is on her portraying the murderess, Rachel Solando. Production is set to begin this March, and Scorsese has already been scouting locations in Nova Scotia, Massachusetts, and Connecticut as the stand in for the island. Ashecliffe is scheduled for release in 2009.

An article over at Cinema Blend reminds me that today marks the tenth anniversary of the opening of the biggest film in history, Titanic. Movie studios are still scratching their heads over that one -- how did a downer, a period piece, a movie with unknowns and a runtime of over three hours smash the box-office records so profoundly that even today's globular, 'one-size fits all so bring the entire family' movies like Shrek and Harry Potter haven't even come close to touching its title? When you look at the all-time list, you see that the number two film, Star Wars, is way, way behind the champ, with only a paltry $460 million domestic compared to Titanic's $600 million. Shrek 2, massive, massive hit that it was, and bringing in every possible demographic no doubt, couldn't come anywhere close to touching Titanic. The best it could do was hit the number three slot. The Spider-Man and Harry Potter films aren't even contenders.

When it comes to international box-office, Titanic also still reigns supreme, although Lord of the Rings: Return of the King gave it a run for its money, raking in $1.1 billion to Titanic's $1.8 billion. Still, the champ remains untouched. Stop and think about that -- even globally, its numbers can't be touched. So, I'm seriously asking -- what was it about that movie that so profoundly moved audiences and demanded multiple viewings on an unprecedented scale. And that's what did it, by the way -- common sense dictates that Titanic's demographic base was statistically narrow, meaning the fans basically went time after time after time. Five times, ten times, or more. Were you one of those people?

The casting news just keeps piling up for Shutter Island, Martin Scorsese's upcoming adaptation of the Dennis Lehane novel. (Films of Lehane's books have a pretty damn good track record -- see Mystic River and Gone Baby Gone.) Scott told you that Scorsese will be teaming (yet again) with Leonardo DiCaprio, who will play the lead role of U.S. Marshall Teddy Daniels. I told you that Mark Ruffalo signed on to play DiCaprio's partner, U.S. Marshall Chuck Aule. Christopher told you that Ben Kingsley is on board as Dr. Cawley, "the chief physician at a Massachusetts hospital for the criminally insane." And now I shall tell you that Michelle Williams is playing DiCaprio's wife in the film.

Variety reports that the drama "revolves around the trip made by Daniels to a remote New England island in 1954 to figure out how a multiple murderess escaped from a hospital for the criminally insane. He is grieving over the recent death of his wife, who was killed in a fire by one of the inhabitants of the facility." I'm about a hundred pages into Shutter Island, and have not yet been made aware of this wife/patient connection, but I do wonder how large a role Williams will have in the film. The only involvement her character has had in the novel so far has been brief flashbacks. I realize I'm setting myself up for meanie readers to spoil the book's secrets in the comments, but please don't! I'm just speculating. Regardless, I'm loving the novel and can't wait for the film...

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.

He's always a great actor, but Ben Kingsley has a habit lately of working with undeserving directors (e.g. Uwe Boll) and appearing in undeserving movies (e.g. A Sound of Thunder). Give him a great director (Spielberg, Glazer) or even a good one (Attenborough, Levinson) and he shines. So, it's an enormous treat to learn he's finally working with Martin Scorsese, appearing in the newly Oscar-winning director's next film, Shutter Island. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Kingsley (or Sir Ben, as he's typically referred to on set) will play Dr. Cawley, the chief physician at a Massachusetts hospital for the criminally insane who must play host to two U.S. marshals played by Leonardo DiCaprio and Mark Ruffalo. Based on the novel by Dennis Lehane (Mystic River, Gone Baby Gone), the plot follows the marshals as they investigate the disappearance of a mental patient/inmate. While on the case, they experience a hurricane, get stuck on the eponymous island thanks to a riot and of course, "encounter a web of deceit."

Best known for being the fourth collaboration between Scorsese and DiCaprio, Shutter Island will also hopefully be known as the movie in which Sir Ben has a Massachusetts accent. As a cranky "enigmatic" doctor, though, he could be from anywhere (and with Kingsley, I truly mean that literally). Actually, this could be a rare Lehane adaptation where none of the main characters have that Boston-area intonation. Regardless, it should be entertaining to watch Kingsley as a slightly villainous physician who performs illegal brain surgery. Picture a cross between Don Logan, his character from Sexy Beast, Cosmo, his character from Sneakers, and Xavier Fitch, from Species. I would add in his loony psychiatrist character from the upcoming The Wackness, but I've only seen one scene and you likely aren't familiar with any of it. Of course, under the masterful direction of Scorsese, Kingsley will probably give us something fresh, like no character of his we've encountered before. I see a fifth Oscar nomination on the horizon.