BBC - Movies -news article - High Noon

		Blunt Crowned Queen If you want to get ahead, play a head of state. It worked for Helen Mirren, Judi Dench, Cate Blanchett and lots of other actresses we haven't got the energy to look up. Now Emily Blunt, Britain's latest bright young thing, is stepping up to the throne. Blunt will play a young Queen Victoria in the imaginatively titled period drama The Young Victoria, which will centre on Queen Vic's hot'n'sultry romance with Prince Albert. Well, more likely lukewarm and reserved, but you never know. Script is by Julian "Variety" Fellows, according to The Hollywood Reporter , with Jean-Marc Vallee behind the camera.

		X-Box Movie Gets In Gear More war, this time of the videogame variety: New Line Cinema has bought up the movie rights to Gears Of War, the massively popular X-Box 360 shooty-bang-bang game. Set on an Earth-like planet overrrun by a nasty alien race called The Locust, the game follows the adventures of Marcus Fennix, a man so muscly and monosyllabic that he makes Bruce Willis look like Steve Buscemi. According to Variety Stuart Beattie, who wrote Collateral, is working on the script.

		Hornet Stings Sony After many a year banging against the dusty window of Hollywood, superhero franchise The Green Hornet has finally got the go-ahead from Sony, the makers of the Spider-Man franchise. What is it with these comicbook guys and creepy-crawlies? What next, Captain Bluebottle? Earwig Girl? The Beige Centipede? Aaaanyway, The Green Hornet is the story of Brit Reid, a millionaire playboy who turns masked crimefighter by night. Sounds original. The movie has been buzzing around for yonks, with Jake Gyllenhaal, Jet Li, George Clooney and Kevin Smith all linked to it at one stage or another.

		Wachowskis Up To Speed And finally, a rare titbit from the world of the Wachowski Brothers, who have been awfully quiet since they demonstrated with the Matrix franchise just how easy it is to turn a silk purse into a sow's ear. The Wachys are finally returning to directing with Speed Racer, a movie based on a 1960s Japanese cartoon. Judd Hirsch has been cast as the title character, a young racing car driver. Due in May 2008. Joel "Action Trousers" Silver is producing, so expect plenty of bang and crash.