Before the lineup for this year’s Cannes Film Festival was announced, many were hoping that Terrence Malick’s romantic drama starring Ben Affleck and Rachel McAdams (previously referred to as The Burial) would be among the films set to premiere. Given that he just released The Tree of Life last year, it would have been an unprecedented move; the average time between the release of Malick films is 7.6 years (yes, I did the math). However, the director has become surprisingly prolific as of late, lining up two new films to shoot this year. He filmed the romantic drama in 2010, but he famously spends years shaping his films in the editing room.

The Cannes lineup announcement came and went with no mention of Malick, but today we’ve got some news that provides hope for those wishing to see the film sometime this year. Not only does the film now have a set title of To the Wonder, it has an official rating of R. Hit the jump for more, including story details.

The official Classifications & Ratings Administration has revealed (via The Film Stage) that To the Wonder is rated R for “some sexuality/nudity.” This rating falls in line with the synopsis that was revealed late last year:

“It concerns a philanderer (Affleck) who, feeling at loose ends, travels to Paris, where he enters a hot-and-heavy affair with a European woman (Olga Kurylenko). Said Lothario returns home to Oklahoma, where he marries the European woman (in part for visa reasons). When the relationship flounders, he rekindles a romance with a hometown girl (McAdams) with whom he’s had a long history.”

Mr. “gorgeous photography” Malick is taking on the world of s-e-x. I’ve been looking forward to this one for quite some time, in part because Malick has assembled a top notch cast. In addition to Affleck, McAdams, and Kurylenko, the film also stars Javier Bardem, Rachel Weisz, Barry Pepper, and a possible brief appearance by Jessica Chastain and/or Michael Sheen. This rating and title mean that the director has finally put the finishing touches on the project, and once he secures distribution we could hopefully see the film in theaters later this year. Producers will most likely be shopping the film at the Cannes Film Festival, so we hopefully we'll have distribution news to report in the next two weeks. Stay tuned.