Finite Thoughts, Infinite Feelings
The Perks of Being a Wallflower is the feel-good film about teenage misfits that teens and adults alike can relate to. With characters like lovable, innocent, Charlie (Logan Lerman), quirky, enticing Sam (Emma Watson), and extroverted, fun-loving Patrick (Ezra Miller), it’s hard to not fall in love with this movie. These characters combined with Chbosky’s brilliant writing make for a film to remember.
The Perks of Being a Wallflower opens with Charlie, a boy about to start his freshman year at high school. Quickly we see that Charlie is not a cool or popular kid, and struggles to fit in. He goes through similar struggles that most freshman do: trying to make friends, getting made fun of, and finding out that people change once they hit high school. The one high point in Charlie’s first day is meeting Patrick, a senior that is taking shop class after failing in the past. Patrick is unlike other seniors because he chooses not to make fun of the underclassmen and instead, makes fun of the shop class teacher. Later at a football game, Charlie is sitting alone and Patrick, recognizing him, invites Charlie to sit with him. It is an amazing moment for Charlie and he is more than happy to join Patrick for the game. This football game plays a huge role in Charlie’s life because it is also where he meets Sam, Patrick’s sister, with whom Charlie is instantly infatuated with. Throughout the film, Sam and Charlie take Patrick in and show him all sorts of different experiences, from parties to first kisses.
The story also focuses on Charlie’s mental health struggles which he is learning to handle now that his life is changing so much, and Patrick and Sam are an important part of that side of his life. The story begins soon after Charlie has been released from a mental health institution because of his struggles with depression and other mental health issues, but it isn’t until the end of the film when we find out why Charlie has these issues, those of which stem all the way back into his early childhood.
Steven Chbosky is the director and writer of both the novel and screenplay of The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Chbosky is best known for his screenplays of Rent, the 2017 rendition of Beauty and the Beast, and the upcoming film Wonder. Chbosky creates wonderful works of art for all four of these films, but the screenplay for the Perks of Being a Wallflower is my favorite by far. Because of his dedication to the story and his characters, his intented tone of the plot is able to come out through the film to reveal something truly magical. The script closely follows that of the book, staying true to the characters and their temperaments. The story follows twists and turns that pull at the audience’s heartstrings, an emotion that arises unexpectedly throughout the film.
I really fell for every aspect of this movie, but especially for Logan Lerman, the actor who plays Charlie. Logan Lerman is best known for his role in Stuck in Love and as Percy Jackson in the Percy Jackson & The Olympians series. This movie is the most accurate depiction of Lerman’s acting abilities. Emma Watson is also an irreplaceable actor in this story. This personality, fun-loving and independent, is unlike the most well known character that we’ve seen her as before. In Harry Potter, she played Hermonie Granger, a teacher’s pet with strict goals. The role of Sam in this film is most closely related to her role as Belle in Beauty and the Beast.
This film fits right in with other movies in the High School films genre. Movies such as Juno and The Spectacular Now have similar feelings and ideas behind them, and people who like these films would also love The Perks of Being a Wallflower. All of the previously listed films have a misfit main character that meets someone that changes their life forever, and include a family that doesn’t quite fit the societal mold.
Overall, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a great film, and one I would recommend for every adult, young or old.
