Moonrise Kingdom, the new Wes Anderson movie starring Bruce Willis, Edward Norton, Bill Murray, Francis McDormand, Tilda Swinton, and Jason Schwartzman has a trailer out, and I don’t know what else a person could possibly need to know about it other than that cast. But in case you were worried, it appears to have everything we demand from a Wes Anderson project, including:

• Yellow text
• Center-framed shots
• Matter-of-fact line readings
• French music
• Vintage film stock
• Earth tones
• Quirky childhood romance

And of course, enough whimsy to power a thousand ukulele farms. Holy crap I’m excited.

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As talented an actress and as cool a lady as Tilda Swinton is, I always thought she looked a bit like an alien baby. In the latest issue of W, she’s traded that in for the Lex Luthor-looking thing you see above. I didn’t read the full profile, probably because the headline was “When it comes to acting – and dressing – Tilda Swinton is literally out of this world” (Really? who wrote this, Pete Hammond?). But the look seems to suit her.  Hey, is that a hand vagina?  That’s funny, I’ve been known to rock a little handgina myself, though I usually make mine with one hand. Ha, stars. They’re just like us.

Note: That is not Bruce Willis

Wes Anderson, whom I love, because I ride my bike around San Francisco hopping from coffee shop to coffee shop writing arch blog posts, has a new film going into production, but even the most virulent anti-hipster would have to concede that this sounds pretty awesome.  Focus Features has acquired the US distribution rights to Moonlight Kingdom, according to the latest press release (with plans to sell the international rights at Cannes), and get a load of this cast:

Set on an island off the coast of New England in the 1960s, Moonrise Kingdom follows a young boy and girl falling in love. When they are moved to run away together, various factions of the town mobilize to search for them and the town is turned upside down – which might not be such a bad thing. Bruce Willis plays the town sheriff; two-time Academy Award nominee Edward Norton is cast as a camp leader; Academy Award nominee Bill Murray and Academy Award winner Frances McDormand portray the young girl’s parents; the cast also includes Academy Award winner Tilda Swinton and Jason Schwartzman. The young boy and girl are played by Jared Gilman and Kara Hayward.

If there isn’t a slow-motion running away sequence set to a Rolling Stones song and title cards with big yellow text, I will choke myself with Wes Anderson’s ascot.  I’m interested to see how Bill Murray plays “concerned parent”, though.  The role would seem to rob Bill Murray of his most appealing quality, being pleasantly aloof and not giving a f*ck. When it comes to f*ck giving, Bill Murray is the stingiest.

Swingers: Brooklyn Heights

Today we’ve got an update on Moonrise Kingdom, the next project for yellow text-loving ascot enthusiast Wes Anderson and his cabal of quip-spewing indie rock glibsters.  Not surprisingly, it’s set to star Anderson BFFs Bill Murray and Jason Schwartzman, who, although he’s way too effeminate to be playing Jonathan Ames on Bored to Death, is the perfect muse for a dapper intellectual with a fondness for vintage suits.  Here’s the rest of the rundown:

The local Rhode Island casting agency LDI Casting has revealed that “Ed Norton, Frances McDormand and Jason Schwartzman will join Bruce Willis, Tilda Swinton and Bill Murray.”

The screenplay was written by Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola (who also co-wrote The Darjeeling Limited).

[The film] is set in the 60s. Two young adults fall in love and run away. Leaders in their New England town are sticking the idea that they’ve disappeared and go in search of them. Norton will play a scout leader who brings his charges on a search. Willis is in talks to play the town sheriff who’s also looking, and who is having an affair with the missing girl’s mother, the role McDormand is in talks to play. Murray, a regular in Anderson films, will play the girl’s father, who has his own issues. [/Film]

Now that is a cast.  It’s like Valentine’s Day for non-idiots. Anyway, it’s always tempting to bash Wes Anderson for his Fauntleroy-esque looks and popularity among obnoxious hipsters, but the truth is that he’s made some amazing movies, including his last one (Fantastic Mr. Fox).  He’s always a brilliant production designer, but the X-factor seems to be the writing.  He’s credited on all his movies as co-writer with a rotating partner — Owen Wilson on Bottle Rocket, Rushmore, and Royal Tenenbaums, Noah Baumbach on Life Aquatic and Fantastic Mr. Fox, and Roman Coppola on Darjeeling Limited.  I’m not thrilled that he went back to the writer of his worst movie, or that he’s doing his first period piece, since you know those two are going to spend 90% of their pre-production time picking out skinny ties.  But based on the cast, I’ve got my fingers crossed. Over the sleeve of my soy chai.

Hipster visionary Wes Anderson is back at work on another of his delightfully quirky comedies, as he once again has the greatest man alive, Bill Murray, headlining his latest project, Moon Rise Kingdom. The film is about a love-crazed teenage couple that runs off together, leaving the town’s adults in a state of frantic unrest as they think the worst has happened to them. It’s like that time that I eloped with Diora Baird and then everyone got all crazy as soon as terms like “chloroform” and “duct tape” were thrown around.

Murray is tentatively set to be joined by another all-star cast, as Anderson is known for, with Edward Norton, Frances McDormand, Tilda Swinton and Bruce Willis currently in talks. Norton, I assume, will also take over writing and directing duties, single-handedly edit the film using only scissors and his saliva and then package the movie for release in 72.6 million theaters in New York City alone. He’s the most versatile man in show business, folks.

Tell us a little bit about this next quirk-filled Anderson project, Moviefone:

Written by Anderson and Roman Coppola, the film will be a sixties-set story about two kids who fall in love and run away. Obviously, none of the above players are the kids. Rather, after the lovers flee, the leaders of their New England hometown stick with the idea that they’ve disappeared instead, and try to search for them. Should everyone sign on the dotted line: Norton gets to play a scout leader who brings his scouts on the search, Willis is the town sheriff who is having an affair with the missing girl’s mom (McDormand) and leading his own searches, and Murray will play the girl’s father. That leaves Swinton, without a role mentioned — perhaps she’s the mother of the boy?

Call him a hipster visionary all you want – because I already did – but Anderson makes a damn entertaining film. I didn’t care for The Darjeeling Limited when I first saw it at my local cinema and arthouse, but after I watched it again on DVD, I enjoyed it plenty more. And I don’t care what anyone says, Life Aquatic was a masterpiece. You know what else is a masterpiece?

*points to crotch, flips scarf, rides away on women’s beach cruiser*