Back In Black (Again)

Back In BlackLynda La Plante's Widows set for big screen treatmentThe seemingly endless stream of Brit-gangster flicks is going to get an interesting facelift in the near future with the adaptation of Linda La Plante’s seminal crime novel Widows. Clearly it's an idea that Lynda can't get enough of - the story was given the TV mini-series treatment back in 1983, to widespread acclaim, and then remade in the states (featuring Rosie Perrez, Mercedes Ruehl and Brooke Sheilds) in 2002. Now La Plante is reteaming with Cougar Films partner Sophie Balhetchet to produce the feature film version. This tie, however, Lynda won't be penning the script herself - the pair are currently searching for a screenwriter.As the more perceptive would gather from the title, Widows differs from the usual testosterone-soaked world of crime in that the leads are all women. Still bereaved after their husbands are brutally killed whilst attempting an armed heist, instead of dwelling on their loss they decide to go out and complete the project that there husbands had botched.Balhetchet is pitching the adaptation as "A story of love and loss, not just about guns and greed". La Plante has been hoping for a long time that this would happen, especially because the mini-series broke new ground for female actors - "It proved that an all-woman show could draw in huge audiences".Hopefully they'll have been taking notes from Layer Cake rather than Rancid Aluminium and we think you're pretty safe in not seeing another Set It Off. In fact, quite the contrary; if this project is done right, it could push forward a genre that is ever in danger of becoming stagnant.There's been no announcement on casting yet, although given their previous association on the Pirme Suspect series, you'd be guessing that the role of the gang's matriarch is going to be offered to Helen Mirren first? We'll see.