By Ribal Husein (Germany)
An Emotional Roller Coaster
The Perks of being a Wallflower is a drama movie from 2012 and based on the Novel written by Stephen Chbosky. The movie is about a teenage boy named Charlie (Logan Lerman), who is trying to make friends and survive high school.
Story: The story starts with Charlie, an introverted and shy boy, who is writing to a “friend”. He is finally starting high school and tries to fit in and make friends, which is relatable. He then meets Sam and Patrick and finally feels included. As the story progresses it slowly reveals, that the main part of the Story is not about Charlie himself. It’s more about Charlie, who enjoys the life of others more than his own, which is why the movie is called “Wallflower”. Soon enough we manage to see more about Sam and Patrick’s character. We get to know their interests, their problems and secrets they bear but also bit by bit about Charlie throughout the story. The movie takes us on an incredible journey of feelings. It tackles themes like trauma, anxiety, depression, suicide and many other themes that many teenagers can understand and relate to.
Actor: Logan Lerman played the main role of Charlie and he was outstanding! I really could feel that he was Charlie. He wasn’t trying to play Charlie, no, he was Charlie. Sometimes he was a little off during emotional scenes, but no actor is perfect. Even so he felt real! Props to him! Amazing job! While Logan played the shy Charlie so good I was disappointed in Emma Watson’s performance as Sam. Sam was supposed to be that beautiful, spontaneous and heartwarming character, but I didn’t feel that at all. Many moments didn’t feel natural and were out of place. Another actress would have been a better fit in my opinion. Ezra Miller played the funny Patrick relatively average. It wasn’t bad but it wasn’t outstanding either.
Music: The music choices throughout the story were great! And the infamous song “We are infinite” from The Tunnels made the movie so memorable. Playing it while Charlie and his friends were driving gave me the feeling of freedom.
Message and Opinion: The message of the movie is not that easy to understand. It can mean that everyone who looks fine doesn’t have to be fine or everyone has been through something, but I think the movie is trying to tell us that we are not alone in this world. We feel alone and hurt but this will eventually be over. Time can only heal if you allow it to. In my opinion The Perks of being a Wallflower is a moving, emotional and amazing movie. I recommend watching this movie to everyone who is 14+. I don’t say this that often, but this is one of my favorite movies. The book is a little better though, because it shows more about Charlie, but either way you should watch it.
Rating: 4/5