After all these years of Margaret being stuck in legal and release limbo, it wouldn’t have been surprising if Kenneth Lonergan‘s (subtle) post-9/11 film turned out to be a misfire. All the turmoil made it doubtful that we’d ever get the masterpiece that Scorsese and many others claimed Lonergan’s film to be. The final, two-and-a-half-hour cut — which is unfortunately being dumped on a few screens — actually features hints of that masterpiece. Those hints, ultimately, make for a messy-yet-poignant dramatic opera about the power of regret, loss, and worst of all, being a teenager. Lonergan aims high in a way that, even if Margaret was a disaster, it’d still be an admirable (but failed) passion project. This isn’t that film, though. The playwright’s tremendous You Can Count on Me was small-scale, but full of power. His follow-up attempts to operate on a grand-scale, and it contains most of the power exhibited in his directorial debut.

It seems like somebody working for the upcoming NU Image/Millenium production Straight A’s has been burning up the phone today trying to get word out about the project. So far Variety has come out with not one, but two casting reports for the film. First, a little bit about what the movie is. James Cox, who has not done much, but is probably best known for his last film, 2003’s Wonderland, is set to direct. The script, from writer Dave Cole, is about a man who has been in and out of rehab for a decade, and who is haunted by the ghost of his dead mother. This pesky old ghost continually gripes at him that he needs to seek out his family and make amends with the people that he turned his back on long ago. Armed with a cache of pills and weed, this man makes his way back to his hometown of Shreveport to spend some time with his brother and his brother’s wife, who still pines after our main character, as he was her first love. Oh what a tangled web we weave.

Russell Edgington is a prime example of a great villain. Not only was he smart and calculated, but he also had the power and strength to get things done on his own. And when Edgington got down and bloody, he looked cool doing it. The vampire king was one of the few vamps on True Blood that seemed interested in actually having fun. He always looked as if he was going to a party and simply looking for a good time, especially with the help of his slick 70s style wardrobe. Sadly, Edgington isn’t around this season, but don’t fret. As actor Denis O’Hare says below, the plan is for him to return. Things didn’t end well for Edgington last season, but the King of Mississippi had persistence and ambition, so there was no real reason for us to be doubting his return. While Denis O’Hare isn’t on this season, the actor was still kind enough to make the time to discuss his role on the show. Throughout my whole chat with O’Hare he wore his love for Edgington on his sleeve. From discussing the character’s past to his childlike wonder, the actor remained enthusiastic.

This year, movies like Battle: Los Angeles, I Am Number Four, Hoodwinked 2 (did anyone even see the first one?), another Tyler Perry movie, Red Riding Hood, and the Justin Bieber documentary all easily made their way into theaters. Know what hasn’t come out this year (or the past couple) while films like Something Borrowed get their big studio pushes?  Margaret. Kenneth Lonergan‘s follow-up to his brilliant debut, You Can Count on Me, has had a notoriously rough time making it to theaters, both due to legal issues and a dispute over final cut. The film was shot almost six years ago. The editing process has been called a nightmare. Lonergan has a three-hour cut that Fox Searchlight isn’t too keen on releasing. Why? Because they won’t release a version over two hours long. Lonergan has final cut, which hasn’t made the situation any easier. Great talents such as Thelma Schoonmaker, Martin Scorsese, Scott Rudin, and Sydney Pollack did passes on the film to get it down to a shorter length. And right now, Scorsese is doing another edit of the film with Lonergan.

All this Summer, Movies We Love is transforming itself (by getting into a bikini) to celebrate the movies we love that came out in the hottest months. This week, we fall in love all over again with X2. “Have you ever tried…not being a mutant?” Synopsis After a solitary mutant who can teleport attacks the President, a secret military squad led by a man named Stryker (Brian Cox) is given carte blanche to find and capture the students and teachers at Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters. But the mutants, especially Wolverine (Hugh Jackman), recently returned from his trip to the North, aren’t going to go quietly. Instead, the team made up of Storm (Halle Berry), Jean Gray (Famke Janssen), Rogue (Anna Paquin), Iceman (Shawn Ashmore), and Pyro (Aaron Stanford) work to seek out the squad’s base where they are holding the captured Professor X (Patrick Stewart). But the X-Men aren’t alone. Joining in the hunt is the telaporting assassin, Nightcrawler (Alan Cumming), Magneto (Ian McKellan) and Mystique (Rebecca Romijn), who have called a truce with the team in what may be an inevitable war with the human race.

Earlier this evening, we posted up a second trailer for Scream 4, which hits theaters the very same day that your taxes are due. Scary. Now, we’ve gotten our hands on 5 new images that show off the cast a bit better, especially those that haven’t seen much screen time in the trailers so far: namely Kristen Bell, Anna Paquin, the new high school crew, and Alison Brie. Plus, there are some stabby good shots of Neve Campbell too. Check them out for yourself:

This week, on a very special episode of Reject Radio, co-director of the Oxford Film Festival Melanie Addington joins fan favorite Luke “Fat Albert” Mullen to discuss the prospect of being sued by Bill Cosby, the prospect of “just doing it,” and the prospect of stealing David Slade’s agent. Plus! We find some spare time to review The Last Exorcism and Make Out With Violence without devolving into a fist fight.

This whole Scream 4 thing is getting exciting. The original was such a fresh take at the slasher genre, and the third film was such a tired retread of Wes Craven borrowing way too much from Wes Craven. This new entry and this new decade hold a lot of promise, and without knowing much beyond blind optimism, it’s the cast that seems poised to impress. Neve Campbell, and the Arquette-Cox family returning is a big deal, but adding Emma Roberts, Adam Brody, Alison Brie, Marley Shelton, Hayden Panetierre, Rory Culkin, and Anthony Anderson to that list was a slash of genius. Now, the production is announcing that True Blood star Anna Paquin and Being Kristen Bell star Kristen Bell will have roles to play in the multiple murder spree.

There’s a chance I may be reading a bit too much into the trailer below… The Romantics stars Katie Holmes as a young woman who reunites with six college friends the night before two of them are to be married. The bride (Anna Paquin) has been her best friend for years, and the groom (Josh Duhamel) is the man they’ve both loved. Over the course of this final evening relationships will be tested, hidden truths will be revealed, and someone may just be out a big deposit on a reception hall. And if we’re lucky Holmes and Paquin will send fists flying and clothes ripping while fighting in the wet ocean surf. The film is written and directed by Galt Niederhoffer from her own novel, and it also stars Malin Akerman, Elijah Wood, Adam Brody, and Candice Bergen. We won’t fully understand the casting of Bergen as a thirty-something until we see the film, but the smart money is on a science fiction twist in the third act. Check after the jump for the new trailer…

Episode: “Night on the Sun” (Season 3, Episode 8) Synopsis: Sookie reevaluates her relationship with Bill while Jason takes the next step forward with Crystal. King Russell makes a move on Sookie while Alcide is away and Eric plays two gambits with bloody results. Review: Finally! A fantastic episode. While season 3 has been good, it was far from great in my opinion, until tonight. Sure the werewolves are still pussies (I have to say that every review, contractually) but there was a lot going on this week that was very engaging.

If you were Andrew Paquin and your sister, along with her husband, were currently starring in one of the most popular and sexy shows currently on television, what would you do? If “write a script and get them to guest in it so that a studio could put their faces prominently on the box art” then you should get a drink with him. Because you think alike. So perhaps that is a bit harsh. I mean, really, who wouldn’t take advantage of something like that? Regardless, Open House is a thriller currently available on DVD that stars Brian Geraghty and Tricia Helfer as a pair of sadistic squatters with a thirst for blood. Not thirsting for blood this go around is Stephen Moyer, who guests stars along with his wife, Anna Paquin, who is in the film for a few minutes.

The sexed up, violent and ever-unpredictable world of True Blood is back in business. And we’re back in Bon Temps with all the supernatural citizens of Louisiana and we’d like you to come along. We promise plenty of nudity and a smattering of werewolves.

Trick ‘r Treat has some good, albeit predictable, scares and is a fun way to get into the Halloween spirit.

A school principle explores his dark side, a young girl seeks to lose her virginity, a group of children plan a macabre tribute to the town’s scariest myth, a hermit sits bitterly in his home, and a couple debate the merits of the rules of Halloween. How are these stories connected? Are they connected? Who the hell is that creepy little bastard in the burlap sack?

Our friends over at Rope of Silicon have posted — over the past few weeks — a few awesome updates in advance of this summer’s second season of the HBO series True Blood, which as you know is a favorite around the FSR offices.

From the look of ten new preview images, it looks like the next season explores more implications of a world with vampires and the depths of how dramatic an actor’s face can look.

The relationship between Sam Merlotte and that damn dog is finally revealed. Elsewhere, Bill must answer to the vampire hierarchy over his bloody defense of Sookie, who finds herself in a place where trusting anyone is difficult.

Bill (Stephen Moyer) breaks a vampire taboo in protecting Sookie (Anna Paquin) – and must pay a steep price as a result.

The vampire drama continues to unfold in episode eight of HBO’s addictive “True Blood” as the fourth victim of the fire is revealed.

True Blood kicks it up a notch again this week, turning out what may be the best episode of the season. Be sure to check in with Sookie and her vampire beau Bill and watch as Jason spins even further out of control in search for his fix of V-Juice.