'The Perks of Being a Wallflower' - Touching, heartfelt, powerful performances!
First time director Stephen Chbosky adapts his own novel of teenage coming of age in the very powerful and well acted 'The Perks of Being a Wallflower'. It's the film almost no one has seen, but it is a film that everyone should see. You still have time to catch it at the bargain theaters as it will most assuredly land on my Top 10 list of films for 2012 as well as a plethora of others.
If you remember the hell that it was being a teenager (or maybe you were one of the lucky ones and had it easy), then you will totally relate to this film. Even IF you did not go through high school hell at any point during your high school career; you will relate and feel for this film. Write/Director Chbosky remembers well and translates it to film with uncanny accuracy and emotion; it also helps to have a stellar cast rounding out the characters. Logan Lerman (last seen in the forgettable 'Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief') plays Charlie, a young man starting his career in high school during what looks like the early 1990's. Charlie has difficulty fitting in, quiet and withdrawn he is unable to make friends or connect with his fellow students. There also lurks a far more darker secret other than shyness.
Enter senior Patrick (Ezra Miller) and his step sister Sam (Emma Watson, utterly fantastic here), also a senior, who lure Patrick from his shell taking him to parties and introducing him to wonderful music as well as the escape of drugs. Slowly they teach Patrick the meaning of friendship, love and openness; he begins to open up and live it up. Soon, Charlie begins to fall in love with Sam who, unfortunately, has a college age boyfriend.
What makes 'The Perks of Being a Wallflower' so wonderful is in the way the story is treated. Even though it is filled with every high school coming of age cliche, it is centered by the terrific dialogue and very heartfelt performances of the young cast. It is about fitting in, being accepted, love and discovery. It is about how we relate to our family, how we relate to our friends and more importantly, how we accept ourselves. It could have easily been a Lifetime movie, but instead Chbosky elevates it to a poetic character study that in the end, will still surprise you.
Chbosky adapts and directs his own novel and while this is really unusual, it works very well as he is emotionally connected to each aspect of the film. He is able to construct a film that goes beyond the 'movie watching' experience and instead creates an experience that you become totally immersed in; you feel for the characters the moment the emerge on-screen. The actors themselves become immersed as well. Lerman as Charlie is haunting and touching at the same time. You feel his isolation and cry for his loneliness; in the end you will cheer for his ability to overcome his shocking revelation. Watson as Sam proves that she is an actress that has far greater potential than her portrayal of Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter series. I can easily see that she has several Oscars in her not so distant future. Miller, as Patrick, is the emotional center and anchor of the group. Played with astounding strength, Patrick is the perfect shield for the slings and arrows of youth, only relaxing to the truth with his friends.
'The Perks of Being a Wallflower' is heartfelt, funny, sweet, romantic, brave and will take you back. It is one of the best films of 2012 and deserves a wider audience! For my local readers - it is at the Joliet Cinemark 10 for the low, low price of $1.50 - this 4 star charmer is well worth that and more!