Top 100 Most Anticipated Films of 2011: Kenneth Lonergan’s Margaret

#93. Margaret

Director/Writer: Kenneth Lonergan
Producers: Gary Gilbert, the late Sydney Pollack and Scott Rudin
Distributor: Fox Searchlight

The Gist: The story revolves around 17-year-old Lisa (Paquin), who may have contributed to a bus accident in Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Lisa’s mother, Joan (J. Smith-Cameron), is a single mom grappling with parenting and her acting career. A sexually active teen, Lisa inappropriately flirts with one of her teachers (Damon) while arguing with her classmates about the Middle East. Lisa ultimately becomes involved in a legal action against the bus operator (Ruffalo). ….(more)

Cast: Matt Damon, Anna Paquin, Mark Ruffalo, Matthew Broderick, Krysten Ritter, Jean Reno, Kieran Culkin, Olivia Thirlby, Allison Janney and Rosemarie DeWitt

List Worthy Reasons…: I look forward to the 6-page Vanity Fair article that goes into the turmoil and the cause for the film’s delay, but I look forward in seeing the film from a cinephile/film historian/archaeological stance. It’s been a long, very long six years since shooting has been completed on Kenneth Lonergan’s sophomore film. Producers (Pollack and Minghella) have passed on, actors in the film have aged, not sure when Lonergan gets to upload this monkey off his back, but I imagine Fox Searchlight have festival plans for this aged item from the vault. 

Release Date/Status?: Fox Searchlight will release this one most likely in the context of a film festival.