Real characters for a change

Rating: 10/10 (27 July 2012)

I am so tired of comic book caricatures: strong villains, impossible heroes and dependent sheep. I'm not saying I didn't like Batman; it was well done. I especially liked the new Spiderman, and not just for the 3D; it was updated nicely and the actors and action were superb. They were fun, like comic books, but how much do they matter?
"Moonrise Kingdom" is also fun, and will matter. Not to everyone mind you, but to a lot of us who are less than perfect and still doing a pretty good job keeping the wheels rolling in this crazy world.
And to kids. Many, if not most kids know they are not pets to be trained by adults. They start early to shape their own space (you've heard of the "terrible two's I'm sure). If you know any scouts, you might know that they are still doing an amazing job building competence, respect for others and teamwork. That's almost as hard as teaching math. They can solve real problems. They have an important level of competence.
With that, the events here are energetic, strong, realistic and balanced, as well as engrossing, with a fast pace and sharp corners. It keeps you moving.
Quirky characters? Yes, but not so different than most of us. We are all pretty unique after all and manage to stay positive even though the world is not the way we'd like it. It makes you smile inside to see how entertaining real characters can be if you relax and let them be.
Most of all, there is a profound empathy going on here. That empathy is inside all of us. Lately, we have often set that aside in favor of angry divisiveness. Would it really be so bad for us to be more in contact with our innate empathy (not sympathy - that's different).
Some think our very futures will be largely determined by our ability to empathize. This film makes me think that they may be right. It energizes persistence, competence, manliness, femininity, love and hope. It even makes us more able to defend ourselves.
Thank you, Mr. Anderson and thanks to this amazing cast. Great movie.