The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a teen drama film written and directed by Stephen Chbosky based on his critically-acclaimed and beloved 1999 epistolary novel of the same name. It stars Logan Lerman (Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief), Emma Watson (the Harry Potter series), Ezra Miller (We Need to Talk About Kevin), Mae Whitman (Scott Pilgrim vs. the World), Nina Dobrev (Chloe), with Joan Cusack (School of Rock), and Paul Rudd (Forgetting Sarah Marshall).
It tells about Charlie (Logan Lerman), a 15-year old intelligent wallflower who is anxious to start high school and is already counting down his remaining days as a high school student. Charlie's life seems sad and mundane with his best friend committing suicide before freshman year started but it changes when seniors and step-siblings Patrick (Ezra Miller) and Sam (Emma Watson) enters his life and introduces him to a lot of things from The Rocky Horror Picture Show to having fun, being with friends, and stepping outside of his comfort zone.
I have read the novel first before I watched the film and I must say that it is an all-time favorite book of mine. I have read it five times and I still get moved by the characters and Charlie's ordeals so I have a lot of respect to the source material. When I read that there will be a film adaptation of this, I was both excited and nervous. Why excited and nervous? Excited because it is nice to see an adaptation of Wallflower to the big screen and nervous because novel-to-film adaptations are a bit risky and I'm also a bit nervous for Stephen Chbosky as director because he hasn't directed any films yet besides this. But boy, when I finally laid my eyes on the film, Chbosky totally surprised me. I'll enumerate the good points first.
First things first. Wallflower has a nostalgic feel to it. One of the reasons is the cinematography's hazy touch to the film. It's like you're watching a film from the late '80s to early '90s. The other reason is its setting which is in 1991. There are obviously no cell phones or social networking sites in sight. People really connect with each other personally and when you see these friends together, you can really tell that time is well spent. CD burning is not yet possible so they have to do it in mixtapes which is cooler than CD burning for me.
Next, the actors are really good in Wallflower and when I say they're good, they're pretty darn good or better yet, great. They stand out on their own because they really fit into their characters' shoes. After her stint as Hermione Granger in all the Harry Potter films, Emma Watson proved to us that there is more to her than just being Hermione because Sam is really really different from Hermione and Watson pulled it off with grace and awe. She sports an American accent for this one and she does it well. A lot of people say that Ezra Miller steals the scenes in this film. He really does and he nails it. His character Patrick has some of the wittiest lines on the movie and he managed to balance the humor and sympathy to his character so we can laugh with him and at the same time, we can cry with him. Mae Whitman perfectly embodies Mary Elizabeth with her energy.
But for me, the stand out is Logan Lerman for his portrayal of Charlie. I first saw him as Percy Jackson and obviously, Percy is different from Charlie. Lerman really surprised me with his dramatic performance as the wallflower of the film and he's also the perfect Charlie. I can't imagine anyone else playing as Charlie besides Lerman.
I have no problems with the story actually even though there were changes made and certain plot events were removed to accommodate for the film adaptation. I understand that because of time constraints since they must maintain a certain running time. It's fine with me because both the novel and the film are great but in their own way. They both stand out in their own way and both have what it takes to be a timeless classic in its form.
Lastly, the soundtrack matches the feel of the film. The songs are in the '90s or older and they are quirky, upbeat, and memorable. And the Smiths' song "Asleep" has its own special place in the film as if it's one of the characters. I really love how the film incorporated the song in Charlie's life.
You may think at first that this will be another typical high school movie just like the others but it isn't. Just like growing up, Wallflower is a fun, emotional, and memorable roller coaster ride to high school. Its nostalgia takes viewers back to their time of growing up. Characters are well-written and actors are perfectly cast. It packs a lot of humor, emotion, and memorable lines. And as the film progresses, you may think that you don't want this moment to end because the film can make you feel that you are infinite with Charlie, Sam, and Patrick.
RATING: 5/5
TRAILER:
(Trailer courtesy of YouTube)
