Symbols In Moonrise Kingdom

I would argue Moonrise Kingdom (2012) is a film about children racing into adulthood because of societal pressures. This film shows a story about a young girl named Suzy Bishop (Kara Hayward) and about a young boy named Sam Shakusky (Jared Gilman). These two characters fall in love through their letters and plan to run away together. I would argue they ran away because children their age found them both weird. But both of them have secrets and stories they weren’t wanting to remember or dwell on. As it shows in the film Suzy watches her mother have an affair with the police officer. And no one besides Suzy in the family knows of this and is keeping this secret to herself. Sam also has a depressing backstory, because of the death of his parents and the hardship of orphanages. The setting and props in this film reinforce my interpretation of this film.

When Sam smoked the pipe while Suzy read, I would argue was an impactful instance in my interpretation of the film.

Because the pipe is symbol of old age and maturity because Sam is trying to mature faster. This pipe is not only impactful in the instance, but also is a motif because the pipe is seen multiple times and represents old age. These children are growing up too fast and there multiple motifs showing them acting as adults and making adult decisions.
I would argue another motif is alcohol because it is shown throughout the film. This motif turns into a prop at times, for example when Suzy’s father (Bill Murray) is upset so he is drinking. Also when Sam was told he wouldn’t be able to see Suzy again, so Captain Sharp (Bruce Willis) gives Sam some alcohol to ease the pain at dinner. This is an instance which also supports my interpretation of this film because it shows how growing up is difficult when you are young, and how society forcing him to grow

up.
Mailboxes are influential props and parts of the setting throughout the movie. In the very beginning of the film Suzy walks out to the mailboxes to receive a letter from Sam. At the time we are unaware, but it becomes one influential prop throughout the whole film. The mail makes it possible for this adventure to happen, so this instance becomes an important part of the film. Mailboxes are shown throughout the whole movie in the neighborhood settings and even in the switchboard office, they have mailboxes to sort mail. These also relate to the implicit meaning because their conversations through the mail were real and responsible conversations. This shows how they planned the events on their own, showing their responsibility and independence.
This is an Expressionist film because of the amount of abstract colors and the lighting was different in relation to other films. The setting for the backgrounds were abstract for Moonrise Kingdom, so it is very similar to Expressionist films. The backdrops for this film were depicted in a generalized ideal. So the office of the social worker was very industrial looking versus the house which was very colorful and eclectic. Everything in Moonrise Kingdom is exaggerated which was Expressionism’s approach of mise-en-scene.