Director: Wes Anderson
Year Released: 2012
Rating: 3.5
A mischievous orphan (Jared Gilman) manages to flee summer camp with his book-loving, equally misunderstood girlfriend (Kara Hayward), which causes a throng of people to go searching for both of them, including the lad's Scout Master (Edward Norton), the local cop (Bruce Willis) and the girl's parents (Frances McDormand and Bill Murray). While sometimes Anderson's hyper-stylized, aggravatingly symmetrical compositions manage to overshadow anything else in his pictures (one of my issues with the coy Life Aquatic), here he's in top form: not only is the 'romance' between Gilman and Hayward beautifully awkward and unforgettable, but he also shows a genuine love for all of his characters and his sight-gags are often very clever and amusing (not to mention the impeccable attire and lovely East Coast scenery - much of it was shot in Rhode Island). Between this and Rushmore, Anderson seems strongest when dealing with the obstacles to true affection among the quite young....
