An Enchanting Work From Wes Anderson

Rating: 10/10 (22 October 2012)

Moonrise Kingdom is a romantic comedy drama that is about the story of two 12-year-olds who fall in love, make a secret pact, and run away together into the wilderness.It stars an ensemble cast that includes Jared Gilman,Kara Hayward,Bruce Willis,Edward Norton,Bill Murray,Frances McDormand,Tilda Swinton and Jason Schwartzman.The film written by Anderson and Roman Coppola; and it is directed by Wes Anderson.
The story is set in 1965, on an idyllic New England island called New Penzance. Twelve-year-old Sam Shakusky is an orphan who is attending a "Khaki Scout" summer camp, Camp Ivanhoe, led by Scout Master Ward. Suzy Bishop lives on the island with her attorney parents,Walt and Laura, and three younger brothers in a house called Summer's End. Sam and Suzy met the previous summer during a church performance of Noye's Fludde by Benjamin Britten, and they remained pen pals over the following year. They made a secret pact to reunite the following summer and run away together. Sam brings camping equipment, and Suzy brings six books, her cat, and a record player. They spend several days hiking and camping together in the wilderness with the goal of reaching a secluded cove on the island, which they name Moonrise Kingdom. They dance on the beach and their young romance blossoms. Suzy's parents, the police, and the Scout master eventually find them at the cove.
Suzy returns with her parents and is forbidden from seeing Sam again. Sam stays with police Captain Sharp while they await Social Services, who will place him in a "juvenile refuge" because his foster parents no longer wish to house him. The Scouts, who previously were not kind to Sam, later decide it is their duty to help the young lovers run away again. Suzy, Sam, and the other Scouts seek out the help of Cousin Ben, an older relative of one of the Scouts who works at the larger Khaki Scout summer camp, Fort Lebanon, run by Commander Pierce. After many twists and turns, Sam and Suzy eventually are apprehended on a church steeple during a violent hurricane and flash flood, evoking the earlier references to Noah. The church steeple is destroyed by lightning, but everyone survives.
Warm, whimsical, and poignant, the immaculately framed and beautifully acted Moonrise Kingdom presents writer/director Wes Anderson at his idiosyncratic best.It is still a fascinating experience due to his ability to offer unique cinematic composition and compelling characters.Aside from that,the director and the cast are able to convey more genuine feeling through these devices than most filmmakers can with more-traditional means.Finally,it is enchanting and warm like fond memories of your first love but with a self-awareness that sees the hilarity in the eccentrics that abound.