The Uncomfortable Scenes of Sex and Violence Ruined This For Me

Rating: 6/10 (30 December 2012)

I only came across the title of this movie when the list of nominees for the Golden Globes came out. "Moonrise Kingdom" is among the nominees for Best Motion Picture - Comedy or Musical. I decided I would watch it, and maybe, since the initial scenes involved kids, maybe get my kids interested to see it too.
Not so. Even if the lead characters were young tween kids, there were several scenes that were very uncomfortable even for someone my age with kids that age. It is not because the film dealt about two kids running away from lonely homes. However, with scenes involving violence with scissors and arrows with an actual victim killed, or worse, French kissing and inappropriate touching while dressed only in underwear, clearly this is NOT for kids at all.
The film had the old-time feel of "The Fantastic Mr. Fox" which I liked, innocent, nostalgic. No wonder, since this film was also directed by Wes Anderson. The setting of rural America in 1965 is recreated so well with the amazingly detailed production design. The scouting scenes were also very charming, mostly that is. The veterans in the supporting cast which included Bruce Willis, Bill Murray, Edward Norton, Frances McDormand and Tilda Swinton all did very well.
For me, I was disappointed that Wes Anderson had to go too far with his depiction of teenage aggression and sexual experimentation. While I know these things do happen in real life, this film could have been a more precious piece without those disturbing scenes. They could have been executed with less graphic details. Too bad, I cannot allow my tween kids to see scenes like those yet. The rest of the film would have been perfectly nice to watch with them.