Robert Redford’s quest to get Bill Bryson’s wonderful memoir A Walk In The Woods on the screen has been going on for so long that it was originally envisioned as a way to get him to reteam with Paul Newman (and seeing as the screen legend died in 2008, it really has been a long time).

Now though Redford has managed it, starring alongside Nick Nolte, Mary Steenburgen, Kristen Schaal and Emma Thompson, with Ken Kwapis directing.

Here’s the synopsis: ‘In this new comedy adventure, celebrated travel writer, Bill Bryson (Redford), instead of retiring to enjoy his loving and beautiful wife (Emma Thompson), and large and happy family, challenges himself to hike the Appalachian Trail – 2,200 miles of America’s most unspoiled, spectacular and rugged countryside from Georgia to Maine. The peace and tranquility he hopes to find, though, is anything but, once he agrees to being accompanied by the only person he can find willing to join him on the trek – his long lost and former friend Katz (Nolte), a down-on-his-luck serial philanderer who, after a lifetime of relying on his charm and wits to keep one step ahead of the law – sees the trip as a way to sneak out of paying some debts and sneak into one last adventure before its too late. The trouble is, the two have a completely different definition of the word “adventure”. Now they’re about to find out that when you push yourself to the edge, the real fun begins. A Walk in the Woods also co-stars Nick Offerman (22 Jump Street), Kristen Schaal (“The Last Man on Earth”) and Mary Steenburgen (Last Vegas).’

It’s a great book and will hopefully make just as good a film.

The film’s due out in September. [Read more…]