THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER (PG-13) Based on the novel of the same name by Stephen Chbosky (who also serves as director and screenwriter), The Perks of Being a Wallflower focuses on Charlie (Logan Lerman) as he charts a course through the turbulent waters of his freshman year at high school. The going is rough for the introspective young man, but his first year is even more difficult, considering that Charlie is also dealing with serious mental health problems beyond what your average teenager goes through. The previous year, Charlie’s best friend committed suicide, and he has also never fully recovered from the death of his Aunt Helen (Melanie Lynskey) when he was a child. Lonely and friendless, Charlie’s life takes a turn for the fruitful when he makes friends with two older students, Sam (Emma Watson) and her brother Patrick (Ezra Miller), who accept him into their fold. Charlie’s life blossoms for a time, but then his depression spreads, and Charlie must face his past if he wants a chance for a healthy future.
Never trust anyone who liked high school. And never trust a filmmaker who makes a coming-of-age movie failing to address the difficulties of growing up in some manner. Chbosky mostly gets it right and, thankfully, adheres to the above caveat even when it feels like the movie wants to steer into lighter John Hughes territory. It takes a few scenes for The Perks of Being a Wallflower to find its tonal footing, but once Charlie meets Sam and Patrick, the balance between laughs and melancholy is held to an almost perfect pitch. Miller, who made quite a chilly impact earlier in the year playing the sociopathic mass murderer in Lynne Ramsay’s horrific We Need to Talk About Kevin, displays warmth and wit as Patrick, a gay student who is romantically involved with a still closeted “straight” football star. He steals the movie. Watson continues to successfully move away from her Hermione persona, although her character strangely grows fainter as the movie proceeds, despite her heavy influence on the narrative. The real revelation, however, is Lerman, who plays his role with nuance and shadings of great pain, remarkably maintaining sympathy even when Charlie grows more emotionally distant. It’s not a great movie (Chbosky is a clumsy director and many of the scenes feel abruptly edited), but there are many spot on, understated moments in it.
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