Late last week, Nathan graced us with a story about MGM’s supposed short list for the lead role in Kimberly Peirce‘s remake of Carrie, a list that included Chloe Moretz and Haley Bennett at the top, with other names like Dakota Fanning, Lily Collins, and Emily Browning rounding out the apparent second-string picks. It was a relatively odd list – a mix of ages, looks, and star power, with only one name really sticking out as the actress most likely to get as gritty and desperate as Sissy Spacek so memorably did in Brian DePalma’s original film (based on the 1974 Stephen King novel). That actress is of course 15-year-old Moretz, who has already turned in her share of gritty and desperate work before even hitting legal driving age (see: Kick-Ass, Let Me In, and Hick). Thankfully, it looks like MGM and Peirce agree with my assertion, as Deadline Fulton reports that the studio and the director have now made a formal offer to Moretz. The outlet adds that, despite last week’s short list, “Peirce and the studio had an eye on Moretz. The studio denied it at the time, but what actually happened is, Moretz didn’t meet with Peirce until last weekend. She got the job immediately.”

We’ve all heard the grumblings and complaints over the prospect of a new remake of Brian De Palma‘s adaptation of Carrie. What’s to care about with this remake? We’ve already got a pretty perfect adaptation. But now some of us can care, with the news that Kimberly Peirce could possibly be at the helm. Peirce is both an odd and kind of perfect choice for this project. Her acclaimed Boys Don’t Cry and lesser acclaimed but still pretty good Stop-Loss are both what one could call psychological horror movies, and Carrie very much is that. Peirce seems adept crafting films that chronicle young people going through a tough time, so she makes for an oddly suitable fit, really. MGM and Screen Gems are supposedly interested in a “gritty” take, despite the story involving a girl using psychic powers. Peirce, clearly being a lover of making all things gritty and realistic, could probably give them the realism they (oddly) want. Deadline Hermon is currently reporting she’s “in talks” to direct, and I certainly hope that deal goes through.

Big news out of Cannes, a bunch of people are getting together and they’re going to make a movie. Very Good Girls is noteworthy for a couple reasons. Mostly people will probably be interested in it because it’s starring Elizabeth Olsen and Dakota Fanning, who are cute young girls. But also, some other folks might be interested to hear that a pretty substantial crew of talent is supporting the two PYTs. Peter Sarsgaard, Dustin Hoffman, and Sissy Spacek are also signed on. You know who they are I’m sure. And most people have caught wind of who Fanning is by now, especially since she’s been in those gigantic Twilight movies. But what about Olsen? She’s become kind of an it girl recently, as she appeared in Martha Marcy May Marlene and Silent House, which both debuted this year at Sundance. In the past few months I’ve gone from having no clue that there was a third Olsen sister, to hearing Elizabeth’s name mentioned all over the place, so I’d say that she’s one to watch.

It’s never clear how an actor turned director will fair on the other side of the camera, but Sissy Spacek has to have learned a few things during her outstanding career. According to 24 Frames, Spacek will soon make that transition when she directs Sweet Tea. The script was written by Blood Diamond scribe C. Gaby Mitchell, and it based off of a novel by Julia Oliver called “Goodbye to the Buttermilk Sky.” According to the publisher, the 1994 novel “portrays a young wife’s increasingly dangerous infidelity with cinematic precision and palpable suspense. Soon, with only her housekeeper as a confidant, Callie breaks society’s rules about race and class as well as her marriage vows. The result is a chain of events that will lead to tragedy and a woman’s stunning decision about love, passion, and the future of her life.” It’s always encouraging when a printer throws in the word “cinematic” to describe a book about to be turned into a movie. The story also has an element of the supernatural, which is most likely part and parcel with the magical realism of the Southern tradition. Plus, there’s something great about seeing Spacek tackle a southern story that takes place during the Depression. Hopefully she’ll be able to translate her talents to the opposite end of the lens. Also, hopefully no one pours a bucket of pig’s blood on her when she’s about to call “Action!”

What is Movie News After Dark? It too slays vampires and zombies. Not in a top hat, mind you, but it slays them nonetheless. It also believes strongly that it will be assassinated (by /Film’s Page 2) while attending a revival of Our American Cousin at Ford’s Theatre in Washington D.C. “There’s something in the American psyche, we want our presidents to be warriors. We’re giving that to Abraham Lincoln, sort of posthumously in this case.” That’s what Seth Grahame-Smith had to say A in an interview with The New York Times. It’s part of NYT giving the world its first look at Benjamin Walker as Abe Lincoln, the ax-wielding, vampire slaying 16th President of the United States. It’s a neat article that gives away a lot of details about the project, but nothing that you wouldn’t get having read the book.

With the ninth annual Tribeca Film Festival under way in New York, Robert Levin chimes in with some reviews. First: Robert Duvall and Bill Murray in ‘Get Low.’

Join Robert Duvall, Bill Murray, Sissy Spacek, director Aaron Schneider, and producer Dean Zanuck for lunch as they discuss Get Low.

It’s difficult to find the words to express in reaction to Get Low, mainly because the film doesn’t say much in and of itself. This is not to say that the film is either terrible or magnificent; when one watches Get Low it’s hard to get the sense that it is good or bad as much as it is simply a non-event.