Moonrise Kingdom (2012)

Wes Anderson has now made seven feature films, all of which showcase his unique brand of storytelling and which have gained some form of a following. Moonrise Kingdom may be his best film, and I admit I may think that because it has arrived at a time when cinema is expected to stay in a box of rules and expectations. Anderson has not just thrown out the box, he ripped it to shreds first. I was fully prepared to witness the latest in a long line of "indie" comedies that began with the great movies Sideways, Little Miss Sunshine, and Juno, but which have recently started to run together. Aside from the minor fact that it can be described as quirky and different, Moonrise Kingdom simply cannot be compared to any other movie. It does not conform to a specific genre or style, besides its own. I couldn't even begin to describe what it is about, because the story only exists so that the movie can. And yet, there is definitely a story, a timeless one about the innocence of love that can be so easily found and lost again. I could go into more detail, but I won't. You have to see it for yourself.

It is almost an injustice to the movie to start mentioning its stars. We all know Bill Murray, Frances McDormand, Edward Norton, and Bruce Willis are great and likeable performers. What they all do here is unlike anything else on their resume. They adapt to a world that would exist beyond many actors' reach. They become a logical part of it, like the puzzle pieces that make the picture truly complete. Nobody brings entirety as much as the two child actors, Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward, now destined to be stars. They are so naturally child-like that any imperfections that pop up in their performances become endearing rather than distracting. Their characters, written with a genius eccentricity by Anderson and Roman Coppola, consider themselves awfully intelligent, as most children do, and are completely oblivious to the fact that they are symbols for the flaws of the adults, which are written somewhere slightly beyond eccentric. In other words, the movie is always smart and intelligent, but never aware of itself. This is not a parody or screwball comedy; the humor of the film, which is very funny, relies entirely on the assumption that the audience gets the understood joke to begin with. As admirable as its intelligence is, the movie's bravery to make no concessions for the sake of those who may not "get it," is its biggest triumph.

Unfortunately, there will be a great many people who don't get it. One elderly woman at my theater was shouting in the hallway afterwards that it was stupid and awful. On the other hand, there were other people, of all ages and both sexes, who laughed, enjoyed, and understood. This is a movie that is so perfectly molded, it rises above the standard rules of separate enjoyment. Anybody can love it, and will if seeing it with the right mindset. I saw it as one of the rare experiences that reaffirms faith in an art form, and makes me proud to have witnessed it first-hand. It is a truly beautiful thing, and probably the best movie of the year.

10/10