Wes Anderson's films are steadfastly in a world of their own. Their style may be divisive, distancing some as it charms others, but that's something to be cherished. Whether you like his films or not, he has the conviction to keep pushing own style further and further. Perhaps buoyed by his last feature, the stop-motion animation Fantastic Mr Fox, the cartoony aspects of his films are even more pronounced here with this picture feeling like a live-action version of a Sylvain Chomet animation.

Like animation the characters here are broadly drawn. It's 1965 and Scout Master Randy (Edward Norton) inspects his camp on a corner of a New England island, only to discover that one of his troops has escaped (leaving behind a letter of resignation). The escapee is Sam Shakusky (Jared Gilman) and he has arranged to meet his penpal Suzy Bishop (Kara Hayward) and go off on their own adventure.

Concerned, Randy calls the local police chief Captain Sharp (Bruce Willis), who informs Suzy's parents Walt (Bill Murray) and Laura (Frances McDormand). As Sam and Suzy enjoy the sights of the island they are pursued by both the adults and Sam's fellow scouts, who have never liked him and make sure they're heavily armed for the task!

Anderson, along with co-writer Roman Coppola, does a wonderful job of capturing the sense of childhood exploration, both of nature and of romance, the relationship between Sam and Suzy is handled with an exquisite degree of awkwardness and sweetness, typical of young love and it's contrasted brillantly with the adults and their neurotic, strained and peculiar relationships.

As always the acting is as mannered as the cinematography and set design, with Edward Norton on particularly fine form as a scout master struggling to keep his troops under control and Bruce Willis delivering one of his increasingly all too rare good performances. Primarily though it's Sam and Suzy who are the heart of the film, and the young actors are marvellously believable as these two outsiders. Their relationship isn't a twee fantasy of friendship, it's as peppered with anxiety and self-doubt as the grown-ups are, and both the young actors are perfectly cast.

The film jaunts along, peppered with frequently hilarious set-pieces and arch lines of dialogue, all wrapped up in Robert Yeoman's beautiful cinematography and with a marvellous soundtrack of scout marches, 60s French pop and Leonard Bernstein.

Whilst it feels a little more disposable than some of Anderson's other films, it is nonetheless an utterly wonderful and peculiar coming-of-age movie filled with surprises and memorable moments.

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