In 2009, American student, Amanda Knox, and her Italian boyfriend, Raffalele Sollecito, were convicted for murdering their British housemate, Meredith Kercher. Since that time, the story has been made into a Lifetime movie and the original conviction has been overturned. Now, the ordeal is going to be made into a film starring Kate Beckinsale.

Based on the book Angel Face: Sex, Murder and the Inside Story of Amanda Knox, by Barbie Latza Nadeau, the movie, entitled The Face of an Angel, will focus on the media portrayal of the events as they unfolded. The movie will not be a direct retelling of the Amanda Knox story, but rather will create a storyline very similar to the events that transpired in Italy in 2007.

Beckinsale has been cast as a journalist trying to get to the bottom of a murder case. The Underworld star will be working alongside Cara Delevingne, who will play the role of the suspect in the murder case (Amanda Knox), and Daniel Bruhl, a documentary film-maker following the case.

Michael Winterbottom, probably best known for his 2002 film 24 Hour Party People, will be directing the movie. (Winterbottom’s biggest career gaffe is perhaps his decision to turn down directing Good Will Hunting for $1.5 million dollars.) BBC Films will be backing the production.

Beckinsale will also be appearing in Eliza Graves soon, alongside such stars as Ben Kingsley, Jim Sturgess, and Michael Caine. One doesn’t want to assume too much, but it’s probably a safe bet that Eliza Graves will fare better for Beckinsale than The Face of an Angel.

To get a feel for what the movie will be about, here is the description of Angel Face, the book the film is adapted from:

Despite all the airtime devoted to Amanda Knox, it’s still hard to reconcile the fresh-faced honor student from Seattle with the sexually rapacious killer convicted of the November 2007 murder of her British roommate. Few Americans have heard all of the powerful evidence that convinced a jury that Knox was one of three people to sexually assault Meredith Kercher, brutalize her body, and cut her throat. In Angel Face, Rome-based Daily Beast senior writer Barbie Latza Nadeau – who cultivated personal relationships with the key figures in both the prosecution and the defense – describes how the Knox family’s heavy-handed efforts to control media coverage distorted the facts, inflamed an American audience, and painted an offensive, inaccurate picture of Italy’s justice system. An eye-opener for any parent considering sending a child away to study, Angel Face reveals what really went on in this incomprehensible crime.

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