Moonrise Kingdom – an almost review.

I should probably begin by saying that this post may be biased, and if it is I will not be apologising because I cannot praise Wes Anderson enough, he does incredible things with film.

Moonrise Kingdom is the new comedy-drama co-written and directed by Anderson (who it is fair to say is one of my favourite directors). The film stars an incredibly varied cast including Bruce Willis, Bill Murray, Edward Norton, Tilda Swinton, Harvey Keitel and Jason Schwartzman but the main stars are newcomers Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward who play teenagers in love (Sam and Suzy) on the run in a New England town. The story centres around that feeling of being young and foolish and falling for someone completely regardless of the circumstances.

The film is earmarked by Anderson’s dry sense of humour, the characters are interesting and flawed, the landscapes are all beautifully devised and it has such a sense of escapism that I’m struggling to recall my thoughts on any moments or scenes that grabbed me in particular. The enjoyment I got out of Moonrise Kingdom is mostly down to the relationship between Sam (Gilman) and Suzy (Hayward). The dynamic between the two perfectly displays that combination of being old enough to feel you can do adult things and yet at the same time holding on to those precious things from childhood that define you through. An example being the books that Suzy reads to Sam as they settle down each night round the coast of the island New Penzance. The attention to detail through out is exactly what is needed, and the film feels very personal, although somewhat elaborated upon, as though this is the feeling of a first love being captured forever.