Headscratchers / Moonrise Kingdom

• What's with the lightning strike scene? First Sam is just barely keeping ahead of a swarm of antagonistic Scouts, so he grabs a makeshift lightning rod and gets himself struck by lightning. Then...all the "bad" Scouts are gone, and his own troop is standing over him along with Suzy. The only explanation I have is that he was knocked out by the lightning, the other Scouts ran away, and his troop reached him a minute later. But that's not really reflected by the editing, which makes it seem like he's twitching his feet and opening his eyes just moments after the strike.
  • The pursuing scouts are shown stopping in shock after the lightning strike, and Sam's troop was likely the second group he saw running at him right before mounting the rock. The 'bad' scouts probably assumed the second group was from their camp and didn't resume pursuit until they ran off with Sam
• Why's there so much make up on Suzy's face? To accentuate her "bad girl" status?
  • I think it's supposed to accent her inability to be normal. She's wearing makeup because that's what she's supposed to do to be "normal," but she doesn't really get it, so she puts on too much.
  • It could be her attempting to do a certain look she'd seen in a magazine or on a book cover — she's just a kid, so her technique is a little lacking. The blue eyeshadow in particular is very 60s.
  • Knowing her personality, she's probably trying to look more adult.
• Were Suzy's parents okay with them seeing each other at the end? If not, why did he leave the painting out? If so, why did he leave through the window?
  • Rule of Cool.
  • Alternatively, it could be inferred that while okay with Sam being on the island/seeing Suzy around at school and such. Suzy's parents don't actually want him in their home/have very strict visitation rules on the kid that their daughter had preferred to, first, runaway with twice, and second, die with than to be with them any longer. So maybe he wasn't there with their knowledge THAT time, and Suzy's brothers being with her and saying nothing could show she's on better terms with them and they won't tattle, with Sam leaving the painting there because he is allowed in. Or Suzy knows she can hide it later.
  • It would fit with Sam being picked up by the police guy who likes to lurk/hang around the Bishop household anyway due to is feelings for Mrs. Bishop.
• Of all the "birds" backstage doing their makeup and costumes before going on stage in 1964 as part of the performance of "Noye's Fludde," why did Sam pick Suzy? This obviously wasn't a random decision on his part, and it made me think he might've seen her before this play, and fell for her back then.

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