I guess I just hate little boys as my main characters, especially those who are orphans. Last year, I reviewed HUGO, a film that was simply good, not great. Here today is MOONRISE KINGDOM, another film that is just good, not great. The major critics and audiences may prove to say otherwise, since the film is getting great notices and is a big sleeper hit. I don't think or believe that those people are incorrect at all in their own opinions, so I will just choose to sit elsewhere, far away from the cool kids table. Why join the herd when you personally feel something is wrong with the picture?
The comparison between MOONRISE and HUGO isn't finished though. Other than both having a lonely but self-sustaining little boy as the protagonist, they both have two key flaws that undermine their characterization. The first flaw is that they both have a truly lame life goal. For Hugo, it was repairing his late father's cockamamie robot that honestly did nothing to the plot that couldn't have been skipped over. For MOONRISE's Sam Shakusky (Jared Gilman), he wants to run off with a kindred spirit, his first childhood love, away from the rest of his island community and her goofball parents. Certainly a better goal but doomed to fail, since he is just a lowly boy scout and they have a walking deus ex machina/narrator in the form of Bob Balaban. The second flaw is that both boy protagonists have a far more engaging and compelling female character at their side. Suzy Bishop (Kara Hayward) is Sam's partner in crime, though she has the opposite personality of Chloë Grace Moretz's character in HUGO. They both have an affinity to books with globe traveling escapades, but Suzy is a dangerous product of low self-esteem and a turbulent family home where love is dead.
Outside of comparing it to another film with an auteur surrogate, MOONRISE KINGDOM doesn't have anything noteworthy about itself other than discovering new child actors and beautiful cinematography. Robert Yeoman has been a long time ally of director Wes Anderson, and also co-writer Roman Coppola, and he creates one of his best recent displays of artwork. Feeding off of Anderson's dream of crafting a moving children's storybook, he utilizes the dolly shot constantly and to its fullest, as scenes transform into expansive tapestries. As for the piles of child actors pulled and hired for the film, they are all good and have the potential for a great future in the business. Jared Gilman is fine as Sam though hampered at times by his mumbling and low key nature. Kara Hayward is a bit better, nearly a revelation, as her crooked eyes and deep emotional depths show off a dark but hurt individual.
The rest of the cast aren't so lucky. One of Anderson's best features as a film director is that he can make nearly every character memorable and have substantial material. Despite having another great cast listing, featuring Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Frances McDormand, and long time Anderson collaborator Bill Murray, none of them have much of a presence, especially since their scenes are drastically limited. A possible exception could go to Norton, as Sam's boy scout master, who does receive a nice little character arc but is often silent and standing behind the other adult actors in many scenes. However, Jason Schwartzman is the only true exception, since his funny cameo is tied into the plot with all of the kids.
MOONRISE KINGDOM is a film for cinematographers. Plot and direction wise, it is completely uneven. The movie can be labeled as Anderson's most middling output to date. His usual artistic flares and heavy flagrant art direction can't overcome and hide the problems in the foreground. The sheer non-threatening conflict is too much to bear, even with the hilarious sight of young kids with extremely violent weapons. You might always recall your first love and the feelings that overcame you at that age but that doesn't it would make an interesting story.
FINAL REVIEW: 3 / 5
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