The Perks of Being a Wallflower

 

The same weekend I happened to see Fun Size, a very dumb and crass movie about teenagers, I also happened to see The Perks of Being a Wallflower, a very smart, insightful, and heartfelt film about teenagers.  The difference between them is like night and day, and the makers of the former movie (and pretty much most teen-targeted movies) could learn a lot from this one.

The movie present a rare case in which the author of the book the film was based on was allowed to not only write the screenplay, but direct it as well.  Stephen Chbosky, despite having only one other directing credit to his name, shows a great amount of skill of letting us into his characters, and adapting his work in such a way so that nothing major is lost, while at the same time not being slavishly faithful to his own source material.  While he probably would have been better off trimming a subplot or two that don't leave much of an impression in the film, the main plot of the titular wallflower, an introverted high school freshman named Charlie (Logan Lerman), is captivating and told with an emotional depth we seldom see in films marketed at youth audiences.

As Charlie enters the world of high school for the first time, he's already counting down the number of days until he graduates, and fantasizing what it will be like to be a senior, leaving the school for the last time.  Charlie becomes an immediate magnet for bullies - not just the ones he's had to face all through middle school, but also the older kids who like to pick on the newcomers.  At first it seems like his only friend is going to be Mr. Anderson (Paul Rudd), his English teacher who supports him, and introduces him to great works of literature during the course of the year.  But then, he also befriends step-siblings Patrick (Ezra Miller) and Sam (Emma Watson).  They're seniors, but they are different from everyone else.  They enjoy the same kind of music Charlie does, and even share his non-conformist views on student life.

Before long, the three are hanging out on a regular basis, and Charlie becomes accepted into Patrick and Sam's inner circle of friends.  This even leads to Charlie's first attempt at a romantic relationship,when his smart-mouthed new friend Mary Elizabeth (Mae Whitman) starts to show signs that she wants to be more than friends.  Charlie's heart, however, mainly is for Sam, but he is too afraid to say how he really feels, especially since she is dating someone else.  We expect the film to mainly follow Charlie coming out of his shell a little for the first time and connecting with his new friends, and while that does play a part, there is a much darker aspect to the plot as well.  This concerns Charlie's troubled personal past.  It's something he's done his best to suppress, but as his new life begins to unravel, he once again becomes overpowered by his personal demons.

The Perks of Being a Wallflower doesn't really break any new ground in terms of a high school drama, but it does go quite a few places I didn't expect, and appreciated it for that fact.   A lot of critics have been comparing the film to the best work of John Hughes from the 80s, but I personally found it a lot better and a lot more honest than that.  The movie taps so perfectly into the world of being a high school outsider that you just know that writer-direct Chbosky has more than a few of his own tales to tell about when he was Charlie's age.  Credit also has to be given to the lead performance by Logan Lerman, who if he doesn't have a deep understanding of what his character is going through, he does a very good job acting like he does.  It never actually feels like he is acting when he's up on the screen.  It's one of the best youth performances of the year.

But, of course, the big news is Emma Watson, in her first major role since the Harry Potter series ended.  She shows a great amount of range as Sam, a caring girl who takes Charlie under her wing and maybe wants to be more than friends with him, but can't.  I'm not sure, but I think there were some moments where she slips out of the American accent she uses for this character, but it's not a huge deal, and it's still a wonderful performance.  Also noteworthy is Ezra Miller as Patrick, who initially comes across as someone who doesn't care what other people think of him, but as he is slowly emotionally wounded during the course of the film, turns out that he cares a lot more than maybe he even thought.  The three young stars seem to create an actual bond up there on the screen that is very believable, and carries us through the story.

 

I walked into The Perks of Being a Wallflower hoping for a good teen movie, and I ended up getting much more.  This is a reflective, accurate, somewhat sad, but always hopeful look back at a time that just about everyone goes through in their life.  If you were an outsider back in those days, as the main characters are, it will resonate with you even more.  This is a great film, and only improves more as I think back on it.

See the movie times in your area or buy the DVD at Amazon.com!

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