Moonrise Kingdom Review - 3.5 Stars

Fans of Wes Anderson know what to expect—deadpan acting, quirky sets, a camera generally set with the action happening within the frame, or swinging around from character to character to character and back again.  I’m a fan since the days of “Rushmore” and “The Royal Tenenbaums.”   Now comes “Moonrise Kingdom” a small story put in the hands of unknown child actors Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward.   They play twelve year old “troubled” children who meet one bizarre evening and vow to run away into the wilderness.  And they do—to the consternation of the adults in this story including Bruce Willis as the island Police Chief, Bill Murray as Kara’s father, Frances McDorman as Kara’s mother (whose affair with Willis comes to light) and Edward Norton as the straight laced leader of a group of young boy scouts.  Young love and adult disapproval comes together during the storm of the century in a wild but playfully engrossing plot.  Everyone calls Wes Anderson quirky, and so do I.  But his quirky sets and odd stories give you and I plenty to think when we leave the theater.  Does it deliver what it promises?  Playful, fun and weird.  Is it entertaining?  I’ll say.  Is it worth the price of admission?  A joy.