Famed director brings quirky romance to screen
In the cinematic world, there are two kinds of films: films that feel like any director could have directed them and films that present a style so unique that only one person could have directed them.
The latter come from the mind of directors like Wes Anderson, whose films often have an acquired taste.
His latest film, the delightful "Moonrise Kingdom," can best be described as typical Anderson. From "Rushmore" to "Fantastic Mr. Fox," Anderson always presents a vivid visual style with stories about broken characters while still finding hilarity with his dead-pan style humor.
Anderson fills the cast with many well-known faces, but he includes two young unknowns as the film's young leads. On a New England island, Sam (Jared Gilman) is a young orphan and scout who leaves his camp to run away with the lovely, emotionally disturbed Suzy (Kara Hayward). Together, they embark on a cross-island trek while seeking refuge from a society that sees them as strange and dangerous.
The courtship between these two quirky lead characters is sweet, ridiculous and wonderful. Their relationship develops into a scene of equal parts tenderness and awkwardness as they quickly experience the milestones of a romantic relationship — the first kiss, the first feeling and the first realization of arousal. In their eyes, this is a feeling of "love," but in reality, it's really their first experience with friendship.
Roughly half the film follows their misadventures, but their antics do not go without sparking an island-wide search for the two led by Scout Master Ward (Edward Norton), Suzy's parents (Bill Murray and Frances McDormand) and a kind police captain (Bruce Willis). Their concern is not just finding them, but finding them before a hurricane hits the island.
While the story mainly focuses on these troubled kids, the adults are not without their problems as well. Suzy's lawyer parents, for instance, are distant from each other, driving the mother to having an affair.
This story may not be fully centered on Sam and Suzy, but it plays out as if it's told through the eyes of an adolescent, expressing the film's theme of childhood innocence and demonstrating how in touch Anderson is with his inner young rebel.
Performance-wise, this movie doesn't deliver a single false note. Even Bruce Willis gives a great performance in his sensitive turn as a lonely police officer who forms a bond with Sam.
Other recognizable faces make smaller appearances. There's Tilda Swinton as the Cruella de Vil-like Social Services worker, Jason Schwartzman as a sleazy scout leader and Harvey Keitel as the tough commander of the scouts.
What makes "Moonrise Kingdom" a signature Anderson film is the presentation. Anderson's colorful visual style gives the world in this film a sort of diorama feel. Combine that with the beautifully conceived cinematography and you've got something more gorgeous to watch than anything flashy action effects can present.
Anderson pays brilliant attention to detail throughout the entire film, from the record player that Suzy carries around to the cover art of the fantasy books she reads.
But overall, "Moonrise Kingdom" is delightful in the way it expresses hopefulness in a story about kids and adults who feel disconnected from a certain someone or society in general and eventually connect with each other.
"Moonrise Kingdom" comes off as a compassionate, beautifully realized folk tale about the innocence of youth, life's disappointments and human connections. Whether or not the characters will live happily ever after is unknown. Warm, witty and whimsical, the movie is Anderson at his best.