Moonrise Kingdom is enchanting

'Moonrise Kingdom' can best be described as a dream you wouldn't want to wake up from. Though the setting may look like it was plucked straight from the pages of an Enid Blyton novel, its subject and handling couldn't be more adult. Magical forces are at work here, making the movie part whimsical and all wonderful.

What's it about?
Sam (Jared Gilman) and Suzy (Kara Hayward ) are twelve-year-olds who attempt to escape their dreary existences by eloping. He's a Khakhi Scout, whose foster parents don't want him back home. She's a trouble child with a bad temper, flying off into rages at the slightest provocation. After they meet at a play, they become pen pals and make a pact to run away. Soon after their decampment is discovered, a number of parties set off on their tails - Scout Master Ward (Edward Norton), local cop Captain Sharp (Bruce willis), Suzy's parents (Bill Murray and Frances McDormand) and the other boisterous scouts.

Wes Anderson's universe (and it indeed is, since everything from the map of the island to Suzy's books were created exclusively for the film) feels surreal, but never plastic. Sam and Suzy make for loveable oddballs - their chemistry seeming of the Tom Sawyer-Huckelberry Finn kind at times, to Romeo-Juliet at others. Call this reviewer prudish, but the intimate scenes between the leads did make her cringe a bit, but for the most, Sam and Suzy's relationship evokes indulgent smiles and the urge to reach out and ruffle their hair. The supporting cast (adults and children) is brilliant and the soundtrack also deserves mention.

What to do?
'Moonrise Kingdom' might not be everyone's cup of tea, but it certainly is worth a watch if you're tired of cookie-cutter fare.

Alisha Coelho

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