When Alfred Hitchcock made Psycho, he built a foundation for the movie—woman steals money and tries to get away—before kicking the legs out from under it to leads us into an entirely new and exciting picture.  Sacha Gervasi‘s Hitchcock sets up no such foundation as it leaps into the marital difficulties between the Master of Suspense and his wife/partner, Alma Reville.  We’re led into a relationship already at the brink, and in an attempt to humanize a legend like Hitchcock, he comes off as small and a bit cartoonish.  We see his quirks and his insecurities, but rarely taken to a thoughtful or dangerous place.  Despite the strong performances, especially from the always-reliable Helen Mirren, Hitchcock pushes us away from the eponymous filmmaker and into a sad, predictable marriage spat.

The long gestating adaptation of Stephen Rebello’s book Alfred Hitchcock and the Making of Psycho looks like it’s finally coming to fruition. Not only has Anthony Hopkins (The Silence of the Lambs) signed on to play the famous director, but Helen Mirren (The Queen) has joined the cast as Alma Reville, Hitchcock’s wife. With the behind-the-camera casting set, it’s now being reported that Scarlett Johansson (Lost in Translation) will step into the shoes of Psycho star, Janet Leigh. James D’Arcy (Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World) will co-star beside Johansson as Anthony Perkins/Norman Bates. Hit the jump for more.

Jason Statham, the man with the finest British growl in the business, is in talks to star in the new thriller Parker. Adapted from a popular series of novels by Donald E. Westlake (writing under the pseudonym Richard Stark), the film will cast the Crank star as an honorable thief (would Statham ever play any other kind of thief?). The character has inspired several solid cinematic outings before, so the source material definitely has a successful pedigree. The film will be directed by journeyman filmmaker Taylor Hackford for the production company trifecta of Sierra/Affinity, Incentive Filmed Entertainment and Sidney Kimmel Entertainment.

Hit the jump for more juicy details on this impending action flick.