IMDB: 8.5/10
Rotten Tomatoes: 86%
Roger Ebert: 3.5/4
Stars: Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, Ezra Miller, Dylan McDermott, Nina Dobrev, Kate Walsh, Paul Rudd, Joan Cusack
Directed By: Stephen Chbosky
Written By: Stephen Chbosky (Novel & Screenplay)
Release Date: 28 September 2012
Described by IMDB as: "Based on the novel written by Stephen Chbosky, this is about 15-year-old Charlie (Logan Lerman), an endearing and naive outsider, coping with first love (Emma Watson), the suicide of his best friend, and his own mental illness while struggling to find a group of people with whom he belongs. The introvert freshman is taken under the wings of two seniors, Sam and Patrick, who welcome him to the real world."
Wow, just WOW. The only thing that I didn't like about this movie was that I hadn't perviously read the book. I think I can seriously add that to the list of regrets in my life. All I knew going into it was that some kid had no friends, but then did have friends. But there were so many moving parts to this movie I don't even know where to begin. Its about so many different things; suicide, depression, love, abuse, loneliness, mistakes, and just growing up in general.
In the beginning you see how Charlie(Logan Lerman) is alone, and wants nothing more to just have some friends. From the letters he's writing to an anonymous person you know he's had some problems in the past but its not until a little later that you start finding out what they are. Seeing him sit alone at lunch, is just so sad. When he finally meets Sam(Emma Watson) and Patrick(Ezra Miller) everything starts turning around (or so you think). I went into this thinking it was going to be an uplifting happy film about finally finding friends and all of your problems going away, but I quickly discovered this was not the case. It seems like everything starts coming out in that first party they go to together after the Homecoming dance. First when you find out about Charlie's(Lerman) best(and only) friend killing himself, and then about Patrick's(Miller) secret affair with the most popular jock in school, Brad(Johnny Simmons).
After this it starts being happy-go-lucky again for the most part. I mean there's that whole "I'm in love with this girl who's a year or two older then me and who happens to be dating jack-ass college guys" thing going on, but thats a manageable situation. Then when you find out that she was molested by her fathers boss at age 11, you have that moment of "wtf?" but it ultimately ends in Charlie having his first kiss with the girl he's in love with (Watson), even if it can't last longer then that night. Honestly, that whole "secret santa" night was just so sweet, it just showed how much he cared about all of them, and how they cared for him.
I loved the love of "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" in this film, the last time you see it its sort of like his final "coming out" into the school. Which leads me to that dreaded Mary Elizabeth(Mae Whitman) relationship. I felt so bad for him for that entire part of the movie because you know he's just too nice to have done anything about how much he didn't want to be there. I couldn't even watch when they were playing "truth or dare" and he kissed Sam(Watson) instead of Mary Elizabeth(Whitman). You just knew it was coming and couldn't bear it. When this basically (and understandably) ruins his relationships with his friends the movie goes back to being unbelievably sad for this poor kid.
Poor, poor Patrick. Honestly, you sort of get the feeling from the beginning that something bad is going to happen with him and Brad, because they say from the beginning that if Brad's dad ever finds out, he'll kill him, but the thought of a father ACTUALLY beating the shit out of his son is so unreal to me that I sort of forgot about it until it actually happened. Then to be torn down infront of the whole school while Brad stands by? Horrible, so, so sad. Thankfully Charlie redeems himself by saving Patrick from an insane fight of which he blacks out and remembers nothing.
Finally, Charlie and Sam have that one perfect night together, where they both know exactly how the other feels. Unfortunately this is EXTREMELY short lived by the fact that Sam is heading off to College the next morning. At this point Charlie completely breaks and ends up in a mental hospital for the summer.
Obviously the saddest part is when you finally realize everything thats happened with "Aunt Helen" throughout the whole film basically boils down to the fact that she molested Charlie when he was a kid. The only thing I didn't like about the movie was that I felt as if it wasn't really fully explained in the film. I mean, I dont think it was necessary to have exact details, but if you weren't paying enough attention you could have easily missed the part where you actually find out. In the end Charlie gets help, and figures how exactly what he needs to survive in life.
I loved every moment of this film. Its seriously the best movie I've seen in a very long time. I need to go buy the book tomorrow and just read. I will be a complete mess the whole time, but it will be a great experience. I want everyone in the world to watch this, because its so many different things that I think it has something for everyone.
PS. Who the heck is he writing all those darn letters to??? Follow @gilldawe
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