Friendship is infinite

Rating: 10/10 (13 March 2020)

"The Perks Of Being A Wallflower" is a 2012 drama directed by Steven Chbosky starring Logan Lerman and Emma Watson. In modern Hollywood, there are countless films that belong to the high school sub-genre and in most cases they are nothing but an entertaining mish-mash of stereotypical characters and generic love stories. In most cases though, they are still a great pleasure to watch, but something inside of me is still unsatisfied with it, as it yearns for a specific type of originality that just hasn't been there in most films I've watched so far. I knew I was in for something special when I felt that already within the first minutes of this romantic drama this feeling hasn't accompanied me in the slightest. Based on his own novel, writer-director Chbosky helmed the movie adaptation of his drama himself and who else but the one who invented the characters and their story around them is capable of bringing it to the big screen magnificently? That's probably a huge advantage, as he knows what's the core of his narration and how it needs to be brought to life. To be honest, he's done an impressive job. First of all, the cast is absolutely well chosen and it was a great decision to let newcomers play the protagonists (well, except for Ms. Watson, of course). The main trio consisting of Charlie, Sam and Patrick are some of the most well conceptualised characters I've seen recently and Lerman, Watson and Miller didn't just portray them magnificently - the made them come alive. They all are extremely likable with their weird natures and way of getting along in society. It felt like I knew them for my whole life as I followed them through the depicted ups and downs of being a teenager on the verge of graduation. The film's basically a coming of age story centered around the friendship of high school students, but even though it has a pinch of stereotypes in it, it manages to distance itself from them and immediately create something more outstanding and takes an absolutely original direction instead. What impressed me the most is how the film's characters are far away from being perfect and also have problems they struggle with. Although it's never named directly all of them obviously suffer from some sort of mental illness and/or trauma and I think that's a brave decision, as it's not just the bright side of school life, but the shadow side as well. In an equally insightful manner it also doesn't hesitate to depict the benefits and problems of sexuality. I take my hat off to the decision to make Ezra Miller's Patrick an openly gay character and I think it's an outstanding move to thus give people struggling with their sexual orientation a voice and telling them that it's all but a bad thing. Cause it simply isn't. Furthermore, it teaches an important message about growing up and the importance of friendship in general. The chemistry between the characters is simply genuine and thus the approach to say that good friends is all you need works out so well and shows outcasts, loners and wallflowers that there are others like them and that they are never alone in this world. Next to this, the film has a wonderful and sensitive pace that allows the viewer to experience all the emotions in a never boring way that could not have been any better. The film grabbed me from start to finish and I never lost my curiosity for it in any way. It's tremendously touching and heartwarming and heartbreaking all the same. Also, the twist in the end came out of nowhere and was as heartbreaking as it was beautifully elaborated, as it thus has given Charlie even more depth to his already struggling and troubled character. All in all, this romantic drama is equally heartwarming and heartbreaking and combines so many particular aspects that make it reach perfection. From outstanding character development to a fitting soundtrack it has it all. It's a magnificent drama that gives those a voice who struggle, who don't know how to deal with their lives and who go through so much and think they are alone and teaches them that whatever they go through, that they always have friends and that they are never really alone with it. It's a perfect drama. The final scene when they drive through the tunnel, with David Bowie's "Heroes" playing over the stereo during Charlie's monologue, with this incredibly touching camera work and inspiring words - that's when I knew that this film deserves nothing but a full score, as it has given me goosebumps and made me cry for it's sheer beauty. This film is one of a kind and one of the best of the last decade. Perfection!