Wes Anderson's Moonrise Kingdom, the seventh feature from the American auteur, has been the best reviewed film of the summer and in its limited first weekend release broke the record for non-animated per screen averages. As the film's been expanding to more venues, the ticket sales have not slowed and the quirky and idiosyncratic comedy about a couple of runaway, star-crossed tweens seems poised to follow the Midnight in Paris route all the way to the Oscars. Okay, wishful thinking but there is no reasons to think that Anderson, already a two time Academy Award nominee, couldn't sneak his beloved little gem into the big race just like Woody Allen did last year.
Of course, Allen never used "Funny or Die" as a platform to market his Original Screenplay winning film. Well, not intentionally anyway. Wes Anderson, however, has turned to the popular online comedy portal for a nice tie-in advertisement for Moonrise Kingdom. Written and directed by the filmmaker himself, the short features Jason Schwartzman reprising his role as Scoutmaster Cousin Ben as he holds a private screening for his troop of, you guess it, Moonrise Kingdom. So meta and yet, no spoilers. Enjoy! Admission is only 50 cents (or a bus token, but you'll have to sit in the back). And no late entries! Fine, get in there.
The spot does an amazing job showcasing the film's tone, color palette and signature Anderson dialogue without giving away any of the actual plot events. I also love the joke about the meaning behind the film's title. I wish more marketing material followed this formula where the writer and director (or in this case, writer-director) create something separate and special for the previews without using any material from the finished film. That would be a nice change of pace, especially with most trailers giving away the entire movie these days. Moonrise Kingdom is now in theaters in limited release. For more on the film, check out our Blend Film Database.
