Absolutely beautiful! Moonrise Kingdom reminds us that film-making is an art.

Rating: 9/10 (24 June 2013)

I enjoyed Moonrise Kingdom. The only other Wes Anderson movie I've seen before is The Darjeeling Limited. I liked that one as well. His movies are very artistic and thought-provoking. They're just so rich visually and really inspire a series of emotions from the viewer. They're both funny and sad. I plan to watch more of them. I've heard the The Royal Tenenbaums is really good as well.
Anyways, Moonrise Kingdom... what can I say? I felt that the previews were slightly misleading in that they focused on the all-stars of the cast: Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Frances McDormand and Bill Murray. Though each of them played a key role in the story, and were brilliant in their roles, it really was about the children. Kara Hayward and Jared Gilman delivered brilliant performances as the troubled twelve- somethings, Suzy and Sam. They really captured the awkwardness of preteen-dom, having all the hormones and curiosities of a teenager while still stuck in a childish body. I see both Hayward and Gilman going far with their careers. They, along with the rest of the cast, were casted brilliantly in this film.
I think what I loved most about Moonrise Kingdom though was the beauty of the film. Every shot was just so darn beautiful. There was so much color and dimension. Wes Anderson really sticks to a specific color palette in this film which provides a wonderful sense of unity and harmony through the movie. I really loved all the yellows and golds. Bold colors for a bold film I think. The Director of Photography really pulled out all the stops as well with his choice of shots and angles. Every scene was an intricate painting. It's movies like Moonrise Kingdom that make me appreciate the art of making movies so much. I would definitely recommend this movie to anyone. Even without gushing over the artistic merit of it, there is something in it for everyone I think.