Following a chance encounter during a church production of Noye’s Fludde in 1964, troubled pre-teens Sam (a scout with berserker tendencies) and Suzy fall in love and begin a pen pal correspondence. The following year, they decide to run away together prompting a hunt led by scoutmaster Randy Ward (Edward Norton), police Captain Sharp (Bruce Willis) and much consternation amongst Suzy’s eccentric parents (Bill Murray and Frances McDormand).
The three stars at the bottom of this review in some ways do not really do justice to this film. Like every Wes Anderson film it is incredibly original and not quite like any other film you have ever seen. Subject matter wise, it’s not even particularly like any other Wes Anderson film, despite being linked by the usual common themes highly intelligent adolescents, some literary allusions and with the notable exceptions of Bruce Willis and Harvey Keitel, a typical Wes Anderson cast.
But originality isn’t everything and like most Wes Anderson films this is slightly uninvolving despite the cute central love story. With the exception of Bill Murray’s eccentric Walt Bishop, it’s also generally not very funny.
Murray also proves good value on the one bonus feature here, which might more accurately be described as “Bill Murray hangs out on set. The actor is dry and funny thougout, explaining helpfully that he plays “a man in this film and claiming never to have seen Wes Anderson’s debut Bottle Rocket (perhaps because it’s the only one of Anderson’s films in which he does not himself appear).
To be fair to the film, however, everyone (Hayward, Gilman, Norton and a low key Willis) is great in this. But as often is the case with Wes Anderson, I admired this more than I actually liked it and though quite short, I was bored before the end.
Overall Verdict: As original, quirky and somewhat unsatisfying as every other Wes Anderson film seems to manage to be.
Special Features:
Set Tour with Bill Murray
Reviewer: Chris Hallam