Moonrise KingdomPaul Francis Webster may have put it best: "Love is a many-splendored thing." And like the song, Moonrise Kingdom recalls an era almost forgot with wistful nostalgia, like the youthful recollection of the first blossom of love. Sam Shakusky (Jared Gilman) and Suzy Bishop (Kara Hayward) start their life-affirming journey of adolescent romance as devoted pen pals, and on the eve of the anniversary of their first encounter at a stage presentation of "Noye's Fludde", they begin the next phase of their relationship as star-crossed steadies, while danger lurks just off the coast of New Penzance Island.
|
|
Moonrise Kingdom opens with an introductory montage which plays out like a storybook or a peek into a series of dollhouses, where our players go about their daily routine, all while Suzy looks on through her binoculars, observing and--in turn--being observed by us. The sounds of an orchestrated musical selection plays on, each family of instruments a metaphor for the different "families" in Moonrise Kingdom; families like those of William Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet". For those acquainted with Wes Anderson's style of filmmaking, Moonrise Kingdom fits neatly into the auteur's body of work like one of Suzy's delinquent library books. Characters are colorful exaggerations; Suzy's parents--Walt Bishop (Bill Murray) and Laura Bishop (Frances McDormand)--are both lawyers, and speak to each other as though they were presenting a case, and Sam's troop master of the Khaki Scouts, Randy Ward (Edward Norton), is both the proverbial and literal "boy scout". From just shy of the start, dramatic irony is established in the form of our narrator (Bob Balaban), who elucidates that the story of Sam and Suzy is a part of a larger meteorological event, an impending hurricane on a collision course for the islands off of the New England coast. Set in 1965, Moonrise Kingdom wears the hallmarks of the time, between Suzy's portable record player to the operator-driven telephone service for "station to station" calls. On an island denied the incursion of roads, people are the foreign element in this rustic island inhabited by few, a fairy tale microcosm of nostalgia and rusticity. In keeping with Wes Anderson's history of paying homage to other classic films similar in theme and style, Moonrise Kingdom recalls films like Terrence Malick's Badlands as Sam and Suzy first venture forth into their "moonrise kingdom" to elope and be free from their respective trappings, just as Holly and Kit had done. The large expanses of meadows are reminiscent of Harold and Maude, another tale of misunderstood love by Hal Ashby, whose work frequently appears to influence and leave its mark on the filmography of Wes Anderson.
By and large, Moonrise Kingdom is a comedy, albeit one about romance; and yet the film never pokes fun at the feelings of the two protagonists. Their meeting may have been chance, but Sam and Suzy bond in the best of ways: by getting to know one another over time by trusting one another with secrets about their mutual sense of alienation--Sam from being bullied in foster homes and in the scouts, and Suzy by being constantly regarded as crazy by her parents. Interestingly enough, although many of the characters are portrayed in an exaggerated way, strictly speaking there is no real villain among the adults in Moonrise Kingdom. Perceptions of Suzy's parents reveal them as overbearing and aggressive, but this is a result of their overcompensation in their parenting skills. Even the never formally named "Social Services" representative (Tilda Swinton) appears as an unfeeling bureaucrat, but is upset as Sam is nowhere to be found on an island soon to be struck by a hurricane, only to have her mission obstructed by the good-intentioned Captain Duffy Sharp (Bruce Willis). Even most of the Khaki Scouts eventually come to their senses and aid Sam and Suzy in their attempt to escape the islands, following their initial encounter in the woods, where their troop shared the malevolent countenance of a junior biker gang. Moonrise Kingdom is sweet and charming, as Sam and Suzy have a genuine sense of affection for one another, dancing on the beach to Françoise Hardy in their skivvies, buying their symbolic marriage and egress from the islands from a scout procurement officer called "Cousin Ben" (Jason Schwartzman) with a can full of nickels. The narrator talks of the destructiveness of the hurricane in the aftermath, but also of the bounty of the harvest which followed. None can say for sure whether Sam and Suzy will always be together, but this message suggests that they will, because sometimes we must weather the storm to claim the greatest benefit in the end.
Recommended for: Fans of the fable-like films of Wes Anderson, which have a unique kind of charm not unlike the stories Suzy reads to Sam. It is a heart-warming, life-affirming tale of sweet romance, and a reminder that not all love stories about kids have to be exclusively for kids.
By and large, Moonrise Kingdom is a comedy, albeit one about romance; and yet the film never pokes fun at the feelings of the two protagonists. Their meeting may have been chance, but Sam and Suzy bond in the best of ways: by getting to know one another over time by trusting one another with secrets about their mutual sense of alienation--Sam from being bullied in foster homes and in the scouts, and Suzy by being constantly regarded as crazy by her parents. Interestingly enough, although many of the characters are portrayed in an exaggerated way, strictly speaking there is no real villain among the adults in Moonrise Kingdom. Perceptions of Suzy's parents reveal them as overbearing and aggressive, but this is a result of their overcompensation in their parenting skills. Even the never formally named "Social Services" representative (Tilda Swinton) appears as an unfeeling bureaucrat, but is upset as Sam is nowhere to be found on an island soon to be struck by a hurricane, only to have her mission obstructed by the good-intentioned Captain Duffy Sharp (Bruce Willis). Even most of the Khaki Scouts eventually come to their senses and aid Sam and Suzy in their attempt to escape the islands, following their initial encounter in the woods, where their troop shared the malevolent countenance of a junior biker gang. Moonrise Kingdom is sweet and charming, as Sam and Suzy have a genuine sense of affection for one another, dancing on the beach to Françoise Hardy in their skivvies, buying their symbolic marriage and egress from the islands from a scout procurement officer called "Cousin Ben" (Jason Schwartzman) with a can full of nickels. The narrator talks of the destructiveness of the hurricane in the aftermath, but also of the bounty of the harvest which followed. None can say for sure whether Sam and Suzy will always be together, but this message suggests that they will, because sometimes we must weather the storm to claim the greatest benefit in the end.
Recommended for: Fans of the fable-like films of Wes Anderson, which have a unique kind of charm not unlike the stories Suzy reads to Sam. It is a heart-warming, life-affirming tale of sweet romance, and a reminder that not all love stories about kids have to be exclusively for kids.