SUBMITTED BY Timbo

January 8, 2004 — Brian De Palma will direct Mark Wahlberg and Josh Hartnett in a big-screen adaptation of James Ellroy's crime novel "Black Dahlia", based on the true story of a grisly L.A. murder.

Ellroy's late '40s-set book delved into the gritty themes of L.A. cops and corruption that he later explored in his novel "L.A. Confidential." Wahlberg and Hartnett will play ex-boxers who become L.A. cops and become involved in a massive manhunt for the killer who tortured and mutilated Short, whose brutal demise shocked the city. The killer was never found, and numerous other books have been written claiming to reveal the culprit.

Like Ellroy's novel, the movie will use the famous murder as a backdrop. The core of the film is the relationship between the partners as they are exposed to corruption and deceit. They also become rivals for the affection of a woman who's a dead ringer for the murdered girl.