By: Henry J. Fromage –

The Expendables proved we’d watch geriatric men kick ass and deliver questionable one-liners, so why not The Expenda-Belles?  At least, that’s what Expendables II director Simon West figured when he first brought up the idea of a full female cast of action stars getting their own flick.  It doesn’t look like he’ll get a chance to make that happen, but the producer of The Grey, Adi Shankar, is moving forward with the concept, hiring a writer to get started on the script.  So, who do you think they should go after for the cast ?

Betty White looks like she knows how to handle a gun…

In slightly higher- brow news, Sean Penn’s returning to the director’s chair… and the Wild.  Crazy for the Storm will tell the true story of eleven year old Norman Ollstead, whose Cessna piloted by his father (to be played by Josh Brolin) crashed into the side of a mountain in the middle of a blizzard.  Suddenly alone, he must battle the elements and do what it takes to survive.

Hope he brought a Hatchet

Speaking of Mystic River actors getting back behind the camera, Tim Robbins is preparing his first directorial effort in more than a decade- City of Lies.  This one sounds like it’ll be a bit less political than Bob Roberts or Dead Man Walking, centering on the love affair between a CIA operative and a Czech agent near the end of the Cold War.  The original director of the project, Phillip Noyce of Salt fame, seems to indicate a more action-y type of flick, which would be a new direction for Robbins.

Or mebbe it’ll just be more of that Pinko propaganda