Scott Cooper (Crazy Heart) is attached to direct a remake of the Argentine thriller Carancho from a script by Aaron Stockard (The Town).  Imagine Entertainment is readying their pitch with producer Roy Lee (How to Train Your Dragon) to shop out the rights out to studios this week.

The original thriller (loosely translated Vulture) centers on "an ambulance-chasing personal injury attorney (Ricardo Darin) who straddles the line between helping unfortunate accident victims and exploiting them by skimming the proceeds for his employer."  Carancho has been earning positive notices -- as evidenced by the Fantastic Fest awards bestowed on director Pablo Trapero and star Martina Gusman -- thus meriting its designation as Argentina's official Oscar submission for 2010.  Hit the jump for the official synopsis and trailer.

In Argentina, more than 8,000 people a year die in road accidents. All of these car wrecks bring the possibility of big insurance payouts, which attracts a certain type of ruthless amoral lawyer. Sosa—played by Ricardo Dar’n who starred in Juan José Campanella’s Academy Award winning film THE SECRET IN THEIR EYES—is one of this special breed. He hovers around car wrecks, funerals, and emergency rooms like a vulture who catches the scent of a dying animal.

During his nightly search for clients, Sosa meets Lujan (Martina Gusman), a young emergency room doctor who rides shotgun in an ambulance. After repeatedly running into each other— Sosa always seems to be waiting at the wrecks—they become romantically involved. The pairing of a dubious ambulance chaser and a young nurse with some serious personal problems makes for a dangerous and volatile love affair. [Fantastic Fest]

According to Deadline, Carancho is due for U.S. release early next year thanks to Strand Releasing.

A remake of Argentina's 2009 submission to the Best Foreign Language category, The Secret in Their Eyes, is likewise in the works following its glorious win at last year's Academy Awards.  So congratulations, Argentina -- your cinema will soon be ours!  One film at a time...