OSCAR 2012: Pre-Fall films spark enduring interest

It's been a particularly dry patch at the theaters, given that it's been more than a month since wide release yielded any particular gems. The last new release I caught in theaters was "The Dark Knight Rises", and somehow that just didn't light a fire for the end of summer. Even a handful of my most anticipated films of this month are already falling from grace. "The Bourne Legacy" seems to be receiving a universal yawn from critics wondering how this story couldn't have booted up into an entirely new franchise. I caught a preview for "ParaNorman" recently that entirely doused my interest in the film, which seems to be trading heavily in hollow and substance-less wit rather than genuine magic.

So I've taken the time to revisit some rather positive cinematic revelations of the recent past, and it's beginning to show how much of a splash these films could make in the awards season conversation. We're bound to see one or two films not meet expectations, but on the most part the fall slate is seeming to have a pretty massive hold on the Academy's interest. "Argo", "Les Miserables", "Life of Pi", "Lincoln", and "The Master" remain prominent figures on the schedules, and we'll see rises and falls depending on how those play with audiences and critics. But there are more than a few films from this first half of the year that I suspect will figure into the conversation more than they have been.

Quick Takes: "Moonrise Kingdom", "Damsels in Distress", "La Luna", "Battleship"

"Moonrise Kingdom" (***)

Directed by Wes Anderson

For once I don't feel like Wes Anderson has lied to me again. Not that any of his previous films have claimed to be anything else, but it so often feels like his stories pitch notions that they have no intention of keeping. Wes is all about the innocent beauty of romance in the context of a not-so-innocent world, or at least that's how it often seems. I walked into "Moonrise Kingdom" like so many else did, expecting more of the quirky, entertaining, but still hollow and dishonest brand that Wes has been pushing across six previous features. What surprised and delighted me about the film is that it's still Wes, but he doesn't seem to faking sincerity this time around.

Taking a tweedy and knowingly ridiculous interpretation of a chaotic ex-military romance, Wes brings some actually true conflicts about adulthood, life, violence, and love to a much younger setting. In embracing the youth of his brand, rather than run off with adults who act like children, which serves ever so annoyingly in nearly all of his previous film, Wes taps something that doesn't feel dishonest. The amazing beauty that his team is often capable of constructing can finally be given the chance for the audience to drink it in. It's not a lie, and the emotions that the characters feel aren't an obvious facade. This is a fascinating debut for Kara Hayward, a place where Edward Norton can finally sink into something fresh again, a project for Tilda Swinton to wax ridiculous playing "Social Services", and honestly a career-best performance from Bruce Willis, if that means anything. It's a thing of true beauty, and one that Wes is sadly not likely to achieve again.

CANNES 2012 REACTIONS: "Moonrise Kingdom"

It looks like this year's Cannes opener, Wes Anderson's "Moonrise Kingdom", has managed to maintain the same general response as last year's "Midnight in Paris" did. The Cannes Film Festival can have a tendency to abound with some rather serious fare, so it's rather customary to kick off with something peppy, which is something that Wes Anderson is trademarked for. His return to live-action has been showered with positive reviews, mostly from people believing his quirky, twee aesthetic most well adapted towards children's issues and a 60s era setting. I remain skeptical, if only because I've heard that talk of Wes Anderson before, and am well prepared for something that feels somewhat halfhearted, but this will probably ring rather delightfully for most.

Drew McWeeny (HitFix): ""Moonrise Kingdom" is one of those films that seems slight on the surface, but there's so much emotion in it, so much genuine heartfelt observation, that I have a feeling it will grow the more I think about it, and that a second viewing will simply underline the feelings I have about it already.  Wes Anderson may have a distinct and easily recognized style, but his talent is genuine and his love of his characters rings loud and true in this film.  He may make it look easy because of how firmly his mannerisms are established at this point, but it takes a real artist to evoke the rocky emotional storms of adolescence and adulthood with such clear eyes and precise voice."

Quick Takes: "Fantastic Mr. Fox", "Sword in the Stone", "Dr. Strangelove"

"Fantastic Mr. Fox"

Directed by Wes Anderson

Wes Anderson is one of those directors who appeals to the quirkier side of film direction, which is an area that quite often feels rather stilted and passionless to me. All that said, there is something about that style that translates rather well to animation, and "Fantastic Mr. Fox" is such a pleasant surprise because of that. Filled to the brim with gleeful pointlessness, Anderson fills in the holes in the plot with some hilariously tucked human commentary. True, there are still scenes that ring not just utterly ridiculous, but have no purpose to actual film. That glaring fact that this is an artificial construct can be rather distracting at times, but Wes is just having so much fun with this new toy of stop-motion that you just get taken in with his exuberance about it.

"The Sword in the Stone"

Directed by Wolfgang Reitherman

It's rather dismaying to revisit childhood films and find that they're rather massively lacking in story, character, and style. My memories of this film had been fond, until I started watching it again, at which point it paled to playing out not just predictably, but with no passion whatsoever. From the first moment, it feels like everything's already happened. You're generally familiar with the story, know what's happening, and the film doesn't even create any tension in that respect. Neither does it create characters that are at all endearing. Merlin is rather pathetically silly and pointless, and Arthur is just plain, dull, and rather pathetic. The film's a catalyst to turn people into animals, and not in a particularly interesting way. It's all to easy, and there's really no joy there.

"Moonrise Kingdom" Trailer

It's becoming rather difficult not to look at these trailers for films that I'm interested in just enough to want to know if I should be interested in it. Wes Anderson's latest is enough reason to align one's interest, though I admit that the fullest extent of my knowledge of his work is "Fantastic Mr. Fox", and I'll probably change that in the weeks leading up to "Moonrise Kingdom". Anyway, comment below on your thoughts of the trailer. Is this something I should keep on my radar?