Wes Anderson, the Texas, Houston born writer/director, and king of cinematic quirks, has been a little lost for the last few years or so. In 1996, Anderson wrote and directed the film, Bottle Rocket, which, while not unanimously praised, has enjoyed success as a cult film on VHS and DVD throughout the late 90s and early 2000s. Within the next four years, he would go on to make Rushmore and The Royal Tenenbaums, which were both highly praised as being quirky, aesthetically, but without losing focus on the story and characterisation. However, in the last few years his films have come across as a little too obtuse, self-knowingly hip and quirky to the point of being irksome. Nothing, it would seem, could bring Anderson back down to earth like directing and co-writing a story about nostalgia and young love; bringing us to 2012 and the release of Moonrise Kingdom, which deals with just those themes.
The year is 1965, and on the island of New Penzance, Sam (Jared Gilman) and Suzy (Kaya Heyward), both twelve-years-old, have hatched a plan to run away together. Sam, is an orphaned child who is attending a "Khaki Scout" summer camp, led by Scout Master Randy Ward (Edward Norton). Suzy and her dysfunctional parents, Walt and Laura (Bill Murray and Frances McDormand) are vacationing in a converted lighthouse and, despite their money, are both miserable. After both children run away, it is up to Scout Master Ward, his scouts, and the island's local law enforcement, Captain Sharp (Bruce Willis) to bring them back.
Okay, so first things first. This is a Wes Anderson movie, and that means, aesthetically, the film is bound to be stylised, and its humour is guaranteed to be bone dry. In fact, the opening shot tells you all you need to know about the film’s stylisation. We open inside Suzy's vacation house and the camera pans and tracks its way through it as if we are looking inside a very impressive dolls house; which is typical for Wes Anderson, whose shots have always been very mechanical. As it is set in the 1960s, the colour palette attempts to replicate the look and feel of small town Americana, but in a childlike way, like one might find as the illustration in a storybook. By which I mean, the colours are deliberately broad, with brown and yellow being predominant in the first half, and blue and orange in the latter half.
In terms of narrative, Anderson seems to be influenced by Francois Truffaut's The 400 Blows and John Cassavetes rambling, loose style of filmmaking. There is a warmth and delicacy to Moonrise Kingdom that has not been seen in any of Anderson’s film for quite a while and it is a welcome return to form. Of course, the children speak like no children on the planet and all the Khaki Scouts sound as if they have been possessed by hip, middle-aged, New York urbanites, but it still evokes a very childlike quality. I suppose that, once the two children run away into the woods, while the settings are still stylised, they are not nearly as precise. At several points it feels as if they could fall down a steep hill or drown, which means that Anderson has to work in a slightly different way to pull these scenes off.
Nevertheless, perhaps what is most impressive is that when tackling the subject of young love, neither Anderson as director and co-writer, or Roman Coppola as Anderson’s co-writer, shies away from its unpredictability. For example, after Suzy and Sam find a beach to pitch their camp, they decide to go swimming. Of course, they are only in their underwear and it is then when they decide to share their first kiss. Had this been handled poorly, this could have come across as strange or even slightly paedophiliac, but in reality that would be how they are dressed in the situation, so it never comes across as strange or even unnecessary. Despite the fact that the dialogue the children speak is not realistic, Anderson seems to understand how to direct children, to the point where he clearly trusts them more than most other filmmakers would.
I believe what makes this work better than some other Wes Anderson films is that he uses nostalgia well, which allows the controlled, stylised filmmaking to work thematically. By which I mean, as one looks back at their childhood, things do become rose-tinted and seem a little bit more golden, which allows Anderson to dip his brush into his quirkier sensibilities. Thematically, I imagine the easiest comparison would be to Anderson's film, Rushmore, which followed the life of Max Fischer, an unpopular boy attending private school. However, somewhat understandably, this is going to be deliberately sweeter, as it is dealing with younger children.
Something that Anderson has often been accused of throughout his career, is being someone who merely makes films around his compilation soundtracks, as if he is making an extended music video; often of classic rock songs from the 60s and 70s. Here, while there is a very eclectic soundtrack, it is all relevant to the film, whether that be thematically or because of the time period. For example, the church puts on an annual production of the opera, Noah's Fludde, which becomes relevant later when a storm threatens to flood the small island. Of course, they use the particular music in question, as it is relevant to the film and to that particular scene. There is also the fact that Suzy, who has stolen her brother's record player, is a fan of Francois Hardy, so when her song, Le Temps de l'Amour appears in the film, it is warranted.
In terms of performances, Kara Hayward and Jared Gilman excel as Suzy and Sam, and their performances feel natural, despite Anderson and Coppola's stylised dialogue. Although, as good as they are, the adult performers are just a little bit better. As Suzy's dysfunctional, overworked parents, Bill Murray and Frances MacDormand as Walt and Laura are excellent. What is best about their performances is, while they come across like clichés to begin with, further into the film we see what a burden it must be to be raising a problem child, love her though they must. Edward Norton is lovably clueless as the childlike, Scout Master Ward, and is given some of the dorkiest dialogue, such as: "Jiminy Cricket, he flew the coop!" Although, best of all, in my opinion, is Bruce Willis, showing a much gentler side to him that we do not often get to see.
In conclusion, this is a sweet, even delicate film, which finds Wes Anderson on his firmest foundations as a filmmaker in some time. A fine ensemble cast manage to sell the film's story of young love, while giving plenty of room to the two young leads. This is what happens when stylisation and a decent story with some depth combine.
8/10
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