Journey through troubled youth and discovery in Perks of Being A Wallflower

Rating: 10/10 (13 March 2013)

Perks of Being a Wallflower has been getting rave reviews and lots of buzz since its release. The genre of youth trying to find themselves is tricky as it can be pretty generic, horribly bad or something great, but it depends on a great story and a cast to carry it in the right direction. This film sports a great cast with Logan Lerman of the Percy Jackson films, Ezra Miller of We Need To Talk About Kevin, and Emma Watson from the Harry Potter franchise, but does it live up to the hype?
The Perks of Being A Wallflower follows a young man coping with mental illness, first love, and personal tragedy while trying to step out of the shadows to find a group he can belong too. When he is taken under the wing two seniors his life makes a dramatic turn into the real world. Not only does this film live up to the hype it goes above and beyond it. Unlike most coming of age films, this one has depth to it that was really unexpected. This young cast delivers brilliant performances and has great chemistry together creating a memorable and emotionally charged film about real life instead of the normal up beat imaginary world of Hollywood. Watson steps out of the shadows of the Harry Potter films as not only a beautiful woman, but as a great actress that is sure to continue to light the industry on fire. Lerman and Miller take on their characters with the tortured personalities that push them to the forefront of this film giving it that dark yet sometime light tone that it needs. At first this film feels like your average teen drama, but takes some pretty unexpected dark twists and turns through these characters lives that will surely tug at your emotions on every level. In addition to the great story and brilliant performances all around, the visual style of this film adds to the overall ambiance of the characters themselves and the journey they are on.
Besides the great leads, this film also sports a great supporting cast including Paul Rudd, Tom Savini, Dylan McDermott, and Kate Walsh. This is one of those films that while it garnered well deserved praise, still didn't get the credit it deserved. This is one that should have gotten a wider release and recognition for everyone involved. If you haven't seen this film you need to check it out as soon as you can. There is something for every person here and a message of growth and struggle that needs to be heard.