Moonrise Kingdom

Directed by: Wes Anderson

Written by: Wes Anderson, Roman Coppola









I've been a huge fan of Wes Anderson for years (though, considering I've never covered a film of his here, you probably wouldn't know it).  I find his work to be complex, intelligent, and visually stunning. His films can be a bit abrasive if you don't know what you're getting in to, but require an open mind to understand what he's trying to convey.

"Moonrise Kingdom" tells the story of of Suzy (Hayward) and Sam (Gilman) - two young teenagers who decide to join their miseries together and run away into the wilderness.  Being stuck on an island, the children are easily tracked down by the local police force (Willis) and Suzy's parents (Murray, McDormand), but with a little help from some friends Suzy and Sam decide to try one more daring escape.

There's so much to say about this film, I don't know where to start.

I'm amazed at how Wes Anderson was able to pull fantastic performances out of each of his actors.  Even Bruce Willis, who has been phoning it in lately ("Cop Out," anybody?), is stellar as the sweet-but-not-smart police captain.  Some of the supporting performances, such as Jason Schwartzman, Edward Norton, and Harvey Keitel, were great and could have stolen the show if the stars hadn't been perfect.  Hayward and Gilman, with no previous experience in film, give the performances of a lifetime as the young couple at the heart of the story.

There is so much else I could talk about, but I'll cut it as short as I can: Wes Anderson knows how to make good movies.  He understands how to create a fictional world which effectively mirrors reality, both in content (Suzy's science fiction books) and emotion (the love story).  He uses all the tools of the filmmaking medium - set design, camera movement, coloring, musical cues - to enhance his film both as story and as art.  I could point to almost any scene in the film as an example of how much depth the movie has.

I could go on and on, but I'd rather just encourage you to go see "Moonrise Kingdom" and enjoy it for yourself.

Rounders

Directed by: John Dahl

Written by: David Levein, Brian Koppelman










There was a point - namely, the late 1990s - when Matt Damon could basically do whatever he wanted and still be king of the hill.  "Rounders" comes out of that time period.

Mike (Damon) has traded in his poker chips for a girlfriend (Mol) and law school.  But when his best friend Worm (Norton) gets out of prison, the allure of the high stakes table draws him back in to the game.  But things go suddenly wrong, and the stakes become even higher, until he has to lay it all on the line and go all-in against notorious underground poker champ Teddy KGB (Malkovich).

(If anyone can fit in any more cliches into that summary, I'll be happy to add it in!)

There's not a whole lot wrong with this movie.  I'm not saying it's great, but it definitely wears its flaws well and plays to its strengths.  And its strengths are in its principle actors - Matt Damon and Edward Norton.  Damon gives his standard performance as the lovable sinner-with-the-heart-of-gold.  Norton shines as the aptly named Worm; he exudes his character's sliminess.  Even Malkovich does a fantastic job.  (The less we say about Gretchen Mol in this film, the better.  Her part was so small that it was almost negligible.  I'm not quite sure how she ended up on the poster.)

The movie had a few pacing issues, mostly occurring when the story turned back to Damon's personal life.  Those scenes just didn't have quite the tension or drama of the poker story line, nor did they really add to Damon's character in any meaningful way.  Also, the final poker game was a bit anti-climactic.  If you don't know how that game is going to turn out, you really haven't been watching the movie at all.

"Rounders" is entertaining, and a bit of a time piece.  It shows Matt Damon before he became a caricature of himself, Edward Norton at the top of his game, and poker when it was still a bit of underground novelty outside the Vegas city line.