If you like Wes Anderson, then you are going to like this movie. Similarly, if you don't like him, then Moonrise Kingdom isn't going to change your mind. Just watch 5 minutes of MK, without looking at the credits, you could have guess this is a Wes Anderson film.

Moonrise Kingdom's humor is dry, the characters are very precocious, but yet I can't help but smile throughout the film. I don't think it's Anderson's intention to make a heart-warming film, because there is a detachment to the characters, even with the two leads, the teenage star-cross lovers. But it works. It's a fantasy/fable, only exists in its own little world.

Despite the big names in the cast, the kids are the lead here. Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward is being asked to do something pretty difficult but succeeds for the most part. I like Ed Norton's head master scout, and the rest of the cast is fine though Tilda Swinton is criminally underused though.

Moonrise Kingdom isn't Anderson's best work, but it's light years better than The Life Aquatic and Darjeeling Limited. I think that's because beside the Wes Anderson's usual quirks, Moonrise Kingdom actually has a plot and characters that I care about.