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Sienna Miller is in negotiations to star as Maid Marion in the Russell Crowe-toplined Nottingham, which Ridley Scott is directing for Universal. Imagine Entertainment's Brian Grazer is producing.

In the revisionist take on the Robin Hood legend, Crowe stars as the Sheriff of Nottingham in a scenario that sees him as of a more noble lawman than as an evil king's right-hand man and facing off with a more shadier Robin Hood in the Sherwood Forest.

Marion historically has been the object of Robin's affection, someone whom he steals from the evil King John. Details of how that is subverted in the current screenplay were not divulged.

Universal picked up Nottingham from Ethan Reiff and Cyrus Voris, creators of Showtime's Sleeper Cell. Brian Helgeland did a rewrite.

Miller, repped by Endeavor, recently wrapped production on Paramount's G.I. Joe, in which she plays the Baroness.

Brian Helgeland has been brought on board to rewrite "Nottingham", Universal Pictures' revisionist take on the legend of Robin Hood. Russell Crowe is starring, Ridley Scott is directing and Imagine Entertainment's Brian Grazer is producing.

Crowe stars as the Sheriff of Nottingham in a scenario that sees him more noble lawman than an evil king's right-hand man and facing off with a more shadier Robin Hood in the Sherwood Forest.

Universal picked up "Nottingham" from Ethan Reiff and Cyrus Voris, creators of Showtime's "Sleeper Cell", in a massive bidding war in the winter, paying a handsome seven figures (HR 2/1).

The studio is hoping to being production early next year.

Dylan Clark is overseeing for the studio. Karen Kahela-Sherwood and Jim Whitaker oversee for Imagine.

Helgeland was nominated for a best adapted screenplay Oscar for writing 2004's "Mystic River" and won one for "L.A. Confidential", which he wrote with Curtis Hanson. Helgeland also is a director, whose credits include "Payback" and "A Knight's Tale".

He is repped by Endeavor.

Peter Ellenshaw, the visual effects pioneer and matte artist who won an Oscar for Mary Poppins and worked his magic on other live-action Disney classics like 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and Treasure Island, died Monday at his home in Santa Barbara. He was 93.

Ellenshaw, a painter known for his dramatic seascapes and elegant Irish landscapes, was hand-picked by Walt Disney to serve on the studio's creative team. He painted the iconic first map of Disneyland that was featured on all the early postcards and souvenir booklets.

Ellenshaw began his association with Disney in 1947 when he was tapped to work on the studio's first live-action film, Treasure Island (1950), and he continued working there until his retirement in 1979 following The Black Hole. He came out of retirement to do several matte paintings for the 1990 film Dick Tracy.

Other Disney films on which Ellenshaw worked included "Darby O'Gill and the Little People" (1959), The Sword in the Rose (1953), "The Story of Robin Hood and his Merrie Men" (1952), The Love Bug (1968), The Island on Top of the World (1974) and Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971).

TORONTO -- Most Americans regard the illegal downloading and distributing of Hollywood movies as something on par with minor parking offenses, Canada's Solutions Research Group said Wednesday.

The Toronto-based consultancy, releasing its latest Digital Life America survey, said that only 40% of Americans polled agreed that downloading copyrighted movies on the Internet was a "very serious offense."

That compares with the 78% of respondents who said shoplifting a DVD from the local video store was a very serious offense.

"There is a Robin Hood effect. Most people perceive celebrities and studios to be rich already and as a result don't think of movie downloading as a big deal," said Kaan Yigit, study director at Solutions Research Group.

The Digital Life America survey found that 59% of Americans polled considered "parking in a fire lane" a more serious offense than movie downloading.

Yigit said that existing download-to-own movie services and new market entrants will need to be more flexible in first-run and catalog content offerings and pricing if they want to convince consumers to pay copyright holders for product.

This sequel to "The Blair Witch Project" boldly eschews nearly everything that made the original film a phenomenon. None of the original characters returns -- which makes sense because the first movie assumes their demise -- the no-budget, faux documentary conceit is completely dropped, and an entirely new story is created. In other words, "Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2" is a conventional horror flick.

It's better made than the original, and its writing contains subtlety and wit the original film lacked. However, these pluses may be minuses for "Blair Witch" fans. After all, what they liked about original film was its rule-breaking approach and crude production technique. This sequel seems almost perversely designed to be liked by those who hated the original.

"Shadows" is destined to win terrific opening-weekend numbers. But a movie that looks like a traditional horror film might well act like one at the boxoffice, with a sizable drop-off in the second week. Artisan will do fine once all the numbers are in from ancillary business, but "Blair Witch" fans might feel disappointment that an anticipated confrontation with the Witch never takes place.

One curiosity is that the film marks the feature directorial debut of documentary filmmaker Joe Berlinger, whose "Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills" tells the true story of teenage boys in a small Southern town accused of gruesome ritualistic murders.

The movie begins with an amusing mini-documentary about the first film and the impact it has had on the mythical small town of Burkittsville, Md. The story then picks up five characters who are obsessed with the first movie.

Jeff (Jeff Donovan), newly released from a mental institute (but of course), has turned "The Blair Witch Project" into a business. He sells memorabilia on the Internet and takes adventurers on a tour of the Witch's Black Hills sites.

His clients include grad students Tristen (Tristen Skyler), fretting over her unwanted pregnancy, and her anal boyfriend Stephen Stephen Barker Turner). The two are writing a book about the Witch but can't agree on a theme. Others include Erica (Erica Leerhsen), a practicing witch, and Kim Kim Director), a goth aficionado with psychic abilities.

The quintet is afflicted with a time-honored horror-movie disease, rampant stupidity. Spooky signs fail to dissuade them from camping for the night at one of the Witch's more sinister sites and, worse, getting loaded on pot and beer.

They wake up to the realization they cannot account for five hours during the night. All of their camera equipment has been trashed, but Kim the psychic immediately finds the tapes buried nearby. After a quick trip to the hospital so Tristen can take care of her miscarriage, they retreat to Jeff's home in an abandoned warehouse. Here they replay the tapes to recapture what happened.

Soon, the little group unravels. They are plagued by weird skin rashes, strange visions of bloodshed and images of the Witch herself. Vicious fights break out. Then the tapes reveal them to have participated in orgiastic rites. When the police discover that another group of Blair Witch tourists was gruesomely slaughtered in the woods, the quintet are immediate suspects.

Berlinger, working from his and Dick Beebe's well-structured script, turns the story into a nifty essay on mass hysteria.

The film is not without its stylish flourishes as Berlinger mixes in bits of digital video, Hi-8 video and computer graphics. In fact, without revealing too much, one can say that the key to the plot and its resolution revolves around the difference between video and film.

BOOK OF SHADOWS:

BLAIR WITCH 2

Artisan Entertainment

Artisan Entertainment

and Haxan Entertainment

Producer: Bill Carraro

Director: Joe Berlinger

Screenwriters: Dick Beebe, Joe Berlinger

Executive producers: Daniel Myrick,

Eduardo Sanchez

Director of photography: Nancy Schreiber

Production designer: Vince Peranio

Music: Carter Burwell

Costume designer: Melissa Toth

Editor: Sarah Flack

Color/stereo

Cast:

Jeff: Jeff Donovan

Tristen: Tristen Skyler

Stephen: Stephen Barker Turner

Erica: Erica Leerhsen

Kim: Kim Director

Sheriff Cravens: Lanny Flaherty

Running time - 90 minutes

MPAA rating: R...

"The General" is the affectionate moniker for the ringleader of a small-time gang of second-story men and hoods in one of Dublin, Ireland's worst slums. This neo-"Robin Hood" yarn from writer-director John Boorman is a cheeky portrait of a neighborhood hero.

It will have admirers in Great Britain, surely, as well as in blighted economic regions where its wrong-side-of-the-tracks sensibility will appeal. Despite its intermittent comedy and frisky narrative, however, "The General" is unlikely to heist much of anything at the U.S. boxoffice.

One of the more entertaining competition films, "The General" brims with quirky humor and lands some anti-establishment darts. The story marches best when on a light, comic course and founders when pretending to offer social insight or political commentary.

In general, "The General" is lightweight amusement few will likely confuse with solid sociology.

Brendan Gleeson stars as Martin Cahill, a teddy bear of a man who takes special pride in making fools of the police. Martin has enjoyed this since his boyhood, when he perfected his petty theft skills, later maturing to high-level jewelry store break-ins.

A burly, good-humored chap, Martin possesses superb leadership qualities. He addresses his ranks much like a military leader but, fittingly, his parade ground is a pool hall. His not-so-merry men are a hardscrabble lot unqualified to be much of anything but unskilled criminals. Better than Robin Hood, Martin has two merry maidens, bedding down not only with his wife Maria Doyle Kennedy) but also with his wife's comely sister (Angeline Ball).

Boorman shows a cruel, callous side to Martin, but his shortcomings are glossed over with the usual excuses -- poor childhood, no father figure. That Martin is shrewd enough to manipulate the law to jibe with his disadvantages further clues us to his darker innards. Still, "The General" is clever fun, especially in its Keystone Kops-like escapades as Martin duels with an intrepid police inspector (Jon Voight).

Shot in black and white, the film's keen color gradations make strong thematic points, a credit to cinematographer Seamus Deasy's psychologically sharp eye. Other technical contributions are high-ranking, particularly composer Richie Buckley's smudgy, withering sounds and editor Ron Davis' creative transitions.

Medals of honor to all the players, particularly Gleeson for his appealingly swarthy performance as the charismatic criminal and Voight for his wonderfully weary portrayal of the patient policeman. Both Kennedy and Ball conjure up the conflicted emotions of women who must share a man.

THE GENERAL

Merlin Films presents

a film by John Boorman

CREDITS:

Producer-screenwriter-director:John Boorman

Executive producer:Kieran Corrigan

Director of photography:Seamus Deasy

Production designer:Derek Wallace

Music:Richie Buckley

Editor:Ron Davis

Costume designer:Maeve Paterson

Casting director:Jina Jay

CAST:

Martin Cahill:Brendan Gleeson

Noel Curley:Adrian Dunbar

Gary:Sean McGinley

Frances:Maria Doyle Kennedy

Tina:Angeline Ball

Inspector Ned Kenny:Jon Voight

Jimmy:Eanna McLiam

Running Time: 125 minutes...

EXCESS BAGGAGE

Sony

Tone trouble seriously trips up "Excess Baggage", a sort of comedy, sort of caper, about an attention-starved teen (Alicia Silverstone) whose scheme to orchestrate her own kidnapping backfires when she finds herself being nabbed for real.

Despite some quirky asides and a promising start, the slight script leaves viewers with precious little to root for and even less to care about. As a result, "Excess Baggage" ends up going nowhere fast.

After a number of attention-getting stunts fail to get her billionaire daddy (Jack Thompson) to take notice of her, brazen Emily Hope (Silverstone) thinks she's got him this time by holding herself for ransom.

Unfortunately, her elaborate scheme -- involving electronically altering her voice when she phones in her demands and even doing her own self-binding, handcuffing and gagging before tossing herself into the trunk of her BMW -- goes horribly awry when professional car thief Vincent Benicio Del Toro) makes the fateful mistake of claiming said vehicle as his next parking lot heist.

Director Marco Brambilla ("Demolition Man") choreographs what little action there is with a sturdy but not particularly inventive touch (HR 8/29-31).

Michael Rechtshaffen

U-TURN

Sony

Oliver Stone has turned around with "U-Turn", a dicey noir that careens wild and tight like a good old-fashioned B movie. It's snub-nosed Stone, a raucous entertainment that doe not aim for the philosophical or political fences.

In tone and telling, "U-Turn" most akin to the filmmaking of Luis Bunuel, rife with undercurrents of degeneracy and human avarice and crested with outrageous humor.

Bobby (Sean Penn) has time to kill when his Mustang breaks down in a sleepy desert town. Trouble eventually comes in the beauteous form of the local femme fatale, Grace (Jennifer Lopez). She's a sizzler and it's downright obvious that her sexuality is her Trump Card, and she has her geezer of a hubby (Nick Nolte) whipped into a dither with paranoid jealousy. Right away, Bobby is in the thick of things.

Crackling with juicy dialogue and ambling up all the right, wrong roads, John Ridley's screenplay is a smartly lubricated blend of genre parts. It keeps us on our heels and more than a little on-edge in where it's going -- in short, it's darn good storytelling. What makes "U-Turn" special, though, is the characters, as sidewinding a bunch of varmints as you would ever want to encounter (HR 8/29-31).

Duane Byrge

HOODLUM

MGM

This gangster effort from director Bill Duke ("Deep Cover", "A Rage in Harlem") brings to light a little-known character and a fascinating chapter in black mobster lore. But the picture suffers from haphazard pacing and excessive length; not quite good enough to qualify as quality drama nor kinetic enough to satisfy thrill-seeking action-movie audiences, it faces an uphill road comercially.

The story follows the violent 1934 Harlem turf war between Dutch Schultz (Tim Roth) and Bumpy Johnson (Laurence Fishburne), a gangster who fought to maintain control of Harlem's numbers rackets. Bringing Johnson to life is the film's chief distinction. He is depicted as a tough-as-nails ex-con who is also a poet, chess player, ladies man and Robin Hood type. Whether this characterization is accurate is open to debate; there is not much documentation on Johnson.

But with the exception of a couple of scenes that approach a Tarantino level of humor, the screenplay never takes off. And with its 142-minute running time, "Hoodlum" is eventually more wearying than exciting.

Frank Scheck

Other reviews

Also reviewed last week were "Murmur of Youth" (HR 8/27) and "Trojan Eddie" (HR 8/28).

This gangster effort from director Bill Duke ("Deep Cover", "A Rage in Harlem") brings to light a little-known character and a fascinating chapter in black mobster lore. It also benefits from excellent performances and a superb visual evocation of the period. But the picture suffers from haphazard pacing and excessive length; not quite good enough to qualify as quality drama nor kinetic enough to satisfy thrill-seeking action-movie audiences, it faces an uphill road commercially.

Chris Brancato's screenplay details the story of the violent 1934 Harlem turf war between Dutch Schultz (Tim Roth) and Bumpy Johnson (Laurence Fishburne), a real-life gangster who fought to maintain control of Harlem's numbers rackets. Also figuring prominently in the plot are such real figures as Italian gangster Lucky Luciano (Andy Garcia); the exotic Stephanie St. Clair (Cicely Tyson), Bumpy's mentor and queen of the numbers; and Manhattan prosecutor Thomas Dewey (William Atherton), shown here as being in cahoots with the mob.

The film's chief distinction is bringing to life the unheralded Johnson, who is depicted as a tough-as-nails, hardened ex-con who was also a chess aficionado, an amateur poet, a gallant ladies' man and a Robin Hood who poured much of his illegal gains back into the community. Whether this characterization is true is open to debate -- there is not much documentation on Johnson.

He is nonetheless a highly intriguing central character, and Fishburne plays him with his usual brand of physical grace and restrained power.

As his nemesis, Roth invests his portrayal of Schultz with the same flair and humor that he brought to his Oscar-nominated turn in "Rob Roy", and he provides some of the film's most entertaining moments. In a smaller role, Garcia is much quieter as Luciano, while Tyson brings some real shadings to her St. Clair, balancing her portrayal with a canny mixture of toughness and tenderness.

Vanessa Williams, playing Johnson's fictional love interest, brings her classic beauty and poise to a confusingly written role.

The many supporting performers play their gangster roles with colorful abandon, with particularly sterling work coming from Chi McBride as Johnson's cousin and partner in crime; Loretta Devine as a devoted, good-hearted girlfriend; Clarence Williams III as Dutch's black enforcer; Richard Bradford as a crooked cop; and Paul Benjamin as the ominous-voiced Whispers.

Particularly fun are Mike Starr and Beau Starr as a pair of large-bodied, machete-wielding hit men whose mantra is, "Let's do some damage". Their scenes -- including an encounter with Schultz (hearing their price, the gangster laments about the inflationary cost of a hit) and a harrowing assassination attempt on Johnson -- are the highlights of the film.

Despite its superb production design (numerous locations in Chicago doubled for 1930s-era Harlem), evocative musical score by Elmer Bernstein and colorful cast of characters, the film never quite ignites, settling shortly after its beginning into a repetitive series of violent shootouts and profanity-laden verbal encounters.

With the exception of a couple of scenes that approach a Tarantino level of humor, the screenplay never takes off. And with its 142-minute running time -- far more than the story requires -- "Hoodlum" is eventually more wearying than exciting.

HOODLUM

MGM

A United Artists Pictures presentation

Director Bill Duke

Screenplay Chris Brancato

Producer Frank Mancuso Jr.

Executive producers Bill Duke,

Laurence Fishburne, Helen Sugland

Co-producers Paul Eckstein, Chris Brancato

Director of photography Frank Tidy

Editor Harry Keramidas

Music Elmer Bernstein

Color/stereo

Cast:

Bumpy Johnson Laurence Fishburne

Dutch Schultz Tim Roth

Francine Hughes Vanessa Williams

Lucky Luciano Andy Garcia

Stephanie St. Clair Cicely Tyson

Illinois Gordon Chi McBride

Bub Hewlett Clarence Williams III

Captain Foley Richard Bradford

Thomas Dewey William Atherton

Pigfoot Mary Loretta Devine

Running time -- 142 minutes

MPAA rating: R...