Moonrise Kingdom (2012) Director: Wes Anderson
The plot takes place on the fictional New England island of “New Penzance.” It tells the story of a young romance – two lovers find their way together. The main character, Sam is at a boy scout at camp, but he runs away to meet his girlfriend, Suzy. They run away to a private beach which they name “Moonrise Kingdom.” They are caught and Sam is very nearly taken into the custody of Child Services. They escape in a dramatic scene during a hurricane to the rooftop of a church, and at the last moment the scout master decides to adopt Sam. In the end, both Sam and Suzy’s romance becomes normalized.
Anderson wrote the screenplay in collaboration with Roman Coppola, son of Francis Ford Coppola. It was shot primarily in the northeast, in Rhode Island and elsewhere. Several big names actors appear in the film, like Bill Murray, Bruce Willis, and Edward Norton.
Review
★★★★☆
The film is a delightful Wes Anderson movie, one of his best, perhaps second only to the Grand Budapest Hotel. However, the somewhat sexual relationship between the children in the film is inappropriate and a little shocking. Indeed, the kissing scene was one of the child actor’s first kiss, a scene that was entirely unrehearsed. At any rate, the scenery and cinematography is carefully, geometrically choreographed, as is standard-fare in the well-organized, highly stylized Wes Anderson film. It is a top-notch movie.
