Moonrise Kingdom (2012)

 

Moonrise Kingdom is the charming story of how an island full of quirky, eccentric people reacts to a pair of 12-year-olds running away to be together. It’s almost impossible not to smile throughout this light romantic comedy, particularly if you’re familiar with the films of director Wes Anderson and even if you’ve seen it before—maybe especially if you’re watching it for a second or third or even fourth time. The couple at the heart of the film, Sam (played by Jared Gilman) and Suzy (Kara Hayward), meet backstage at a church’s performance of a Benjamin Britten opera, and their correspondence for the next year (most of which is shown on screen as well as narrated in voice-over) leads to their decision to go to a more secluded part of the fictional New Penzanze Island so that they can be together. Their disappearance puts everyone in the film on edge: the police chief (Bruce Willis), Suzy’s parents (Bill Murray and Frances McDormand), Sam’s Khaki Scoutmaster (Edward Norton), etc. Anderson is working with a top-notch cast here, and they all approach their roles with the sort of deadpan style typical of his films. Everyone and everything is so matter-of-fact in the way it is played that you become aware of how you become increasingly willing to accept ever more outlandish actions and behaviors as the movie progresses. The film also features Anderson’s usual close attention to detail, with the costumes and sets and props all being perfectly chosen. For example, a battery-powered record play serves such a vital role in the film that it almost becomes a character itself. By the time it gets used to play “Le temps de l’amour” by Francoise Hardy as accompaniment to a wild dance on the beach, you start to want one of these players for yourself. Overall, there’s a fine line here that the film gets close to crossing, perhaps, where an audience might feel uncomfortable about seeing such young performers acting so much in love, but this ersatz Romeo and Juliet with their almost monotone delivery and the more innocent time period of 1965 keep the emphasis on the simplicity and even naiveté of young people in love. They fall in love at first sight because they recognize a kindred spirit; both of them have been described as “emotionally disturbed” or “troubled,” after all, and there are similar pairings throughout this delightful film. You also get a lot of laughs here, such as the chase involving dozens of Khaki Scouts (played by a talented group of young actors) and brief performances by such powerhouse actors as Tilda Swinton and Harvey Keitel. It’s no wonder that Wes Anderson’s films have gotten increasingly more popular among the general population. They’re almost too precious—the British might call it “twee”—to ignore. 

Oscar Nomination: Best Original Screenplay