In order to establish my film reviewer cred (adjusts hipster glasses and plaid flannel shirt), I’ll be starting with a review of “Moonrise Kingdom,” the latest film from Wes Anderson. Below is the trailer:
First of all, the art direction and cinematography in this movie is fantastic. The film opens in the house of Suzy, the female protagonist, and the whole opening credits sequence feels very well put together. Each room of the house is shown, and each one gives the sense that the viewer is not looking at a set so much as the inside of a diorama of a refurbished lighthouse. When the film cuts to “Camp Ivanhoe,” the base camp of “Khaki Scout” troop 55, the site is shown with very few cuts (and even the cuts that do take place are for comedic effect). The depictions of the “Khaki Scouts” mirrors vintage prints of Boy Scouts, not solely in the costuming choices, but also in the lighting and surrounding, as though Ed Norton and his troop stepped straight out of Norman Rockwell pieces.
Anderson and his team do a great job with visual storytelling, too, wholeheartedly embracing the notion of “show, don’t tell.” Neither of the child leads (Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward) have any lines of dialogue until they finally come face to face, which is well into the film. Prior to that point, both of them get a lot of screen time, in which their behavior introduces them to the audience. The same thing goes for the rest of the cast. Ed Norton’s Scoutmaster Ward stands up straight, and he carries himself with purpose. Bill Murray and Frances McDormand, who play the parents of Suzy, the female protagonist, both trudge around their house looking beleaguered and half disoriented, a physical manifestation of the weariness they feel from dealing with their “very troubled child.”
On to the story. “Moonrise Kingdom” tells the tale of the romance between Sam, a discontented “Khaki Scout” (clear Boy Scout proxies), and Suzy, an angsty schoolgirl with a fondness for young adult sci-fi/fantasy novels. I found the courtship between the two to be very touching, with the couple going beyond being mere sweethearts, and instead each serves as the other’s sole friend and confidant. Despite the youth of the protagonists, their feelings are not presented as petty, silly, or fleeting, but are treated as valid and real. In fact, the relationship between Sam and Suzy, which Suzy summarizes to her mother as “We just want to be together. What’s wrong with that?” is bitingly juxtaposed against the relationships and lives of the adult authority figures around the two, who, despite claiming that they know more about life and love than a couple of twelve year-olds, can’t seem to get their own lives in order. The progression of the latter half of the film, in which the adult characters learn about love and priorities from the twelve year-old couple, should feel trite and cliché, but the film is so well made and the characters are so relatable and sympathetic that it manages to work.
All in all, I’d say that this is a great movie, and I heartily recommend it. I liked it so much that I watched it in theaters twice, which I almost never do. The script is delightful, the art direction and cinematography are excellent, and it features some great performances from some great actors. If you haven’t yet seen “Moonrise Kingdom,” go watch it!
Popkilt 