DVD REVIEW: ‘Moonrise Kingdom,’ Andersen’s best
Ah, young love: That moment in a person’s life when a chance meeting with a stranger gradually blossoms into a sweet and tender romance regardless of the obstacles and hurdles in place. Many experience this, and some of those stories range from heartfelt to intriguing to sad, sometimes all at once. In what is arguably his greatest cinematic achievement, director Wes Anderson takes all of the right ingredients for a genuinely moving love story and combines them with a quirky, surreal foundation to create a film that is simply sublime.
“Moonrise Kingdom” isn’t simply good. It’s outstandingly good. From its opening sequence of panning through a plainly decorated, perfectly symmetrical house to the final reel, this film will pleasantly whisk you away and keep you in its magical grip.
Disillusioned Khaki Scout Sam Shakusky (Jared Gilman) is an orphan. Having lost his parents at a young age, his fellow Khaki Scouts widely regard him as emotionally disturbed and have all but written him off. Sam also isn’t helped much by Scoutmaster Ward (Edward Norton), who clandestinely notes in his daily tape log that Sam is the least popular Scout by a significant margin.
Having had enough of the seclusion, Sam leaves a letter of resignation on his cot and flees camp to rendezvous with his love, Suzy Bishop (Kara Hayward).
Upon the news that their daughter has run away from home, Walt and Laura Bishop (Bill Murray and Frances McDormand) go into a small panic and enlist the help of the somewhat-detached and enigmatic police Captain Sharp (Bruce Willis), who may have a deeper connection to Laura than previously thought.
They comb the island of New Penzance by means of station wagon and boat, all of which is cleverly filmed from a first-person angle to add to the sense of urgency. Sharp contacts Sam’s foster parents, but they insist they can’t take him back if he is found because it just wouldn’t be fair to the other children in the orphanage. Poor kid.
Amidst the chaos on the main island, Sam and Suzy hike through the wilderness while avoiding the band of Khaki Scouts sent to bring them back and pitch camp in a cove. It is here that their romance can finally take shape and mold them into the adults they will eventually become. Now it’s a matter of whether the community will let them be together.
“Moonrise Kingdom” succeeds as much as it does because of its astute and abundantly clever script, penned by Wes Anderson and co-written by Roman Coppola. Common themes in Anderson’s films include redemption and growing up, and while they are accounted for here, the predominant idea of children acting like adults and adults acting like children takes center stage this time around to great effect.
The kids are entirely aware of what the big picture is and know how to function accordingly whereas the adults panic and breakdown at inopportune times, perhaps showing that kids aren’t as naïve and uninformed as we often think they are. At one point, Walt belligerently asks Ward why he can’t control his scouts and refers to them as “beige lunatics.” He then promptly throws his shoe at him in a tantrum.
Even later, Captain Sharp admits that Sam is more intelligent than he is after Sam explains the details of his actions and what they signify. Sharp then poignantly and hilariously responds: “It’s very eloquent. I can’t argue against anything you’re saying. Then again, I don’t have to because you’re 12 years old.”
The visual style helps everything collectively mesh and even helps the story along. The background shots are busy and never devoid of personality. Some of the sets even look like models built to scale, and on a tiny island, it adds to the already quaint charm of the film.
Perhaps most importantly of all, the performances in “Moonrise Kingdom” are terrific, and they lift the film heads and shoulders above the average Hollywood fare. Everybody is excellent, but Bruce Willis in particular shows his endearing and gentle side in a low-key fashion, a welcome break from his grizzled, tough guy roles.
Bill Murray perfectly captures the feeling of a helpless and tempestuous parent who struggles to stay relevant in his daughter’s life and Frances McDormand plays the concerned mother nicely. Newcomers Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward also impress, and I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised to see these young kids develop illustrious and successful careers.
Needless to say, “Moonrise Kingdom” is a superlative and highly enjoyable effort from Wes Anderson. He has taken the mainstays of his style and perfected them here. With nary a blemish anywhere to be found, it comes with my highest recommendation.
‘Moonrise Kingdom’ is now Available on DVD and Blu-ray