Del Toro is At the Mountains of Madness

Yes, the renowned creator of some rather excellent movies, including Pan's Labyrinth and The Devil's Backbone, is now helming (as they say) an adaptation of HP Lovecraft's Antarctic adventure. Del Toro is directing, with James Cameron as producer. So I think we can expect a lavish production, with cutting, bleeding and oozing-edge special effects.

I have mixed feelings about 3D - I couldn't be bothered with Avatar, because Big Dumb Over-long Action Movies are for kids. But if 3D has one obvious advantage it's the way it might make you jump out of your seat when a tentacled horror from the dawn of time seizes some hapless explorer.

That said, if you know Lovecraft's story, it raises serious questions about how closely they'll stick to the plot. Because most of the action in the novel takes place 'offstage'. The discovery of the mysterious entities frozen in the ice, the storm that cuts off the forward base, the arrival of the rescue party to find... Well, let's not spoil it for anyone who hasn't read it. It's a superb example of what might be termed the coyly gruesome school of horror - lots of bloody incidents, but the description is not detailed. Suggestion is all.