The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The Perks of Being a Wallflower Review

Having written the screenplay to the popular musical film, Rent, it was no surprise that in 2012 Stephen Chbosky would come to direct the film adaptation of his 1999 novel. Perks is about Charlie, a teenager, going through the roller coaster that is high school and dealing with all the challenges that come with it such as dealing with drugs, sexuality, and just trying to fit in.

Considering the author of the bestselling novel wrote the screenplay, the film adaptation did not disillusion the lovers of the novel, which is usually a concern for such situations. Logan Lerman portrays the shy, soft-spoken Charlie to a tee along his co-stars Emma Watson (Sam) and Ezra Miller (Patrick).

The starting point of the movie has Charlie typing a letter to a “friend”. From what he writes to his “friend” one can instantly get the feeling that he has gone through some traumatic experience. Throughout the movie, the audience gets bits and pieces of what had happened through flashbacks and Charlie’s narration, but it all doesn’t really connect until the end. This technique along with the occasional intra-diegetic gaze puts the audience into Charlie’s head. I think this is important because it lets the audience relate and connect to the main character, and most of the story plot is happening through the eyes of Charlie, not so much through the external happenings. The soundscape of this film, from the soundtrack, to the blurred sound when a fight happens, helps move the story along because it’s how Charlie connects with his new friends at school; how he deals with his problem; later on we learn it plays an important role in Charlie’s past. Chbosky’s novel shows the life through a lonely wallflower’s eyes and the movie exemplifies exactly that.