The Perks of Being a Wallflower: Brilliant

Stephen Chbosky perfectly conveys the troubles of already troubled lives.

A powerful script, combined with perfect casting

Click to show spoilers

Despite of the predominantly teenage cast, this is most definitely not your usual "teenage movie". The Perks of Being a Wallflower has an extremely realistic take on adolescence, approaching problems that go far beyond the usual "love issues" most high school movies address, and does so by beautifully mixing a more "in your face" take on certain events with a powerfully subtil approach to others. [...]

It is a film you will most certainly enjoy, even though one might not actually catch what it really is about, such is the subtlety of the script. And despite the dense events throughout the movie, it can actually bring you a surprisingly good felling, even a sense of faith in humanity, if you will.

The most amazing thing about this film, is how much it says about something that is never explicitly mentioned, such is the subtlety of the script. One could easily miss that Charlie's great appreciation for his aunt Helen is in part due to her molesting him as a child, and the twisted sense of affection that inflicted on him. She was one of the few (only?) people to give him two gifts on the holidays (as it was also his birthday), as to excuse her actions and build an increased sense of trust and connection with Charlie.

After being abused by his aunt, feeling guilty for her death (as she died while getting his gift?), and having his only friend kill himself, it is certainly understandable how disturbed he is. With his resultant social ineptitude, he ends up finding friendship and understanding in those, who such as him, have had very troubled lives, with Patrick having great difficulty in dealing with his gay relationship, as his boyfriend was unable to admit to it, and Sam having been sexually abused as a child, similarly to his own experience.

The beautiful character developments, and great approach to visual storytelling with Chbosky's unique style, build to a very well rounded movie, that also displays fine cinematography and features a solid soundtrack.

In addition to the amazing script, this film enjoys the most perfect up-and-coming cast it could possibly have. It is comprised of Logan Lerman as main character Charlie, and supporting roles from Ezra Miller as Patrick and Emma Watson as Sam. Lerman splendidly portrays Charlie, beautifully expressing all his anguish towards life, as well as the wide range of emotions marvelously conveyed together with the supporting actors.

What did you think of Perks? Did you catch Charlie's history? Share your thoughts in the comments bellow! As soon as you watch The Perks of Being a Wallflower, share your thoughts in the comments bellow!