Moonrise Kingdom is a 2012 drama about a pair of young lovers who flee their New England town, which causes a local search party to fan out to find them.
Few do quirky like Wes Anderson, a director whose career has seen him basically create, define, and expand a whole genre of film. Know for their distinctive visual and narrative style, his movie are fable-like with ensemble casts and lots of eccentric characters. With Moonrise Kingdom, we meet 12-year-old orphan Sam Shakusky (Jared Gilman) on a New England island in 1965. He doesn’t quite fit in with his fellow Khaki Scout summer campers and decides to run away. Meanwhile, Suzy Bishop (Kara Hayward), also 12, a disillusioned girl who lives on the island, goes with him, thinking they can build their own lives away from the rest of the world. What follows is the search for two by the local Captain (Bruce Willis), the scout leader (Edward Norton) and various family members, including Suzy’s oddball parents (Bill Murray and Frances McDormand). Delightfully left of center and filled with funny performances, at its heart is a charming and often moving tale of two children, decidedly mature for their age, coming of age. Read more about Moonrise Kingdom here.
THE LAST WORD
A deeply satisfying film, if you’re a fan of the director, this is one of his best. Visually striking and contemplative, it’s a terrific little journey with two bright young stars in the lead.
Wes Anderson films are not always easy to jump into, his approach highly unorthodox and if you’re not familiar, this could be a big step.