Moonrise Kingdom Movie Review

9/10

My favourite Wes Anderson film to date.

Moonrise Kingdom not only sounds amazing as a title for a film but it’s one that also lives up to his name. The casting is great. The story is charming. And the directing is exceptional. Almost every aspect that makes up a film has been executing to near perfection and I love it when this happens in a movie. Because for me, examples like this set the standard for the next films that come out should aim towards and it raises the bar which shows what is possible.

But what I love most about this Moonrise Kingdom, is how cleverly charismatic the characters are to watch. This is of course thanks largely to the wonderful script, that sets up a sort of coming of age like tale but does it in a way that isn’t corny or unoriginal. It takes something very real and serious and turns it into a heartwarmingly interesting tale that’s never cheesy but always engaging. These are aspects that are so hard to do without the overemphasis of the dramatically emotional and Moonrise Kingdom balances this so well that it’s just a seamless transition to watch. I was never taken out of the movie at any particular scene nor was I questioning any motive a character had. I was simply along for the ride and that’s what great movies do.

But part of what makes the balance work is the array of great actors employed to do so. Every one of them worked cohesively as a supporting cast, to deliver intelligently written lines of dialogue, with a story that also compliments each of their backgrounds. It’s like an Avengers type scenario, except so more well done and about people based in real life and not of the superhero kind. That attention to detail to keep each character grounded in reality but also creativity to make them as charismatic as could be is why I love this movie so much.

And of course, when you have Wes Anderson directing all of this, with his perfectly timed lateral tracking shots and precisely placed frame of symmetry; how could I not enjoy this film at least from a visual standpoint. The effort being put into every scene to make it aesthetically pleasing as possible is just fantastic. It’s sort of why I could admire the way certain shots look in Zack Snyder films, even if I dislike the rest of story that it’s “trying” to tell. With Moonrise Kingdom you’re getting the best of both worlds.

If you’ve never heard of Wes Anderson before, I thoroughly deplore you to start getting into his work because he’s one of the best in the industry right now. He’s done other great films that we’ve reviewed along with Fantastic Mr. Fox and Isle of Dogs, both of which are also stop motion animation. So, if you think the visual eye candy that you’ll get from Moonrise Kingdom isn’t enough, just wait till you see those films. Moonrise Kingdom is out on Netflix in the United States, so check it out when you can. See it