The Monkey Wrench Gang novel by Edward Abbey is set to become a film directed by Catherine Hardwicke and adapted by William Goldman and Christian Forte. The story sees a group of environmentalists who turn saboteurs and attack strip miners, clear-cutters, large scale developers, etc. It sounds an interesting tale from Production Weekly through Cinema Blend.

...follows George Hayduke, an ex-Green Beret and Vietnam vet, who returns to the Southwestern desert after the war to find his beloved canyons and rivers threatened by industrial development...Hayduke joins forces with...feminist saboteur and Bronx exile Bonnie Abzug, wilderness guide and outcast Mormon Seldom Seen Smith, and libertarian billboard torcher Doc Sarvis, M.D. Together they venture off to become eco-raiders, waging war on the strip miners, clear-cutters, and the highway, dam, and bridge builders who are turning their natural habitat into a wasteland. The misadventures of this motley group make for an uproarious blend of chaos, conflict, and comedy.

You know it sounded quite interesting until I hit that last sentance in the quote. Chaos, conflict and comedy, how they all fall naturally together. For me I can't get the Steven Seagal film out of my head where he's fighting Michael Caine in Alaska, On Deadly Ground.

Elsewhere Will Smith is working hard on production duties with his latest film about the legendary black tennis player Arthur Ashe. Nick Cannon has been brought on board for the role according to Starpulse News Blog. He says of the film:

"Not only is he a sports icon in the game of tennis but he's also a civil rights activist who did so much for our culture... and just stood for so much as a philanthropist and humanitarian. It's a thrill for me that I get to play somebody of that stature."

Sounds a great project, and one of the few serious tennis films I should think. Could it help mark s resurgence in the sport?