The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a coming-of-age drama film based on the book written by Stephen Chbosky. Released in 2012, it made 33.4 million dollars and received many awards for screenplay, breakthrough performances, and best kiss. The three main actors, Logan Lerman, Ezra Miller, and Emma Watson won several nominations for their performances. The movie can now be found for rent on Amazon Video, On Demand, Youtube, Vudu, Google Play, iTunes, and in DVD form. Renting price ranges from $2.99 to $5.99, while buying falls around $12.99.

This drama film tells a story about Charlie Kelmeckis (Logan Lerman), a shy and lonely boy who is entering his freshman year of high school. While most upperclassmen and even some students his own age make him feel unwelcome, two step-siblings accept him into their group of “misfit toys”. Sam (Emma Watson) and Patrick (Ezra Miller) take Charlie under their wing, introduce him to their friends, their music, and their way of life. While Charlie has some influence from his English teacher to become a writer, it is his friends that really push him, and once they leave for college, he is left alone with his constant depression and PTSD which slowly grows over time.

I would recommend this movie to friends, family, and anyone old enough to understand the adult content. There are some sexual encounters, drug use, and explicit language, which would be too graphic for some young children. In addition, the movie has a runtime of an hour and forty five minutes, which can be difficult for some children as they may have a shorter attention span. While I first watched the film when I was 11 years old, it proved confusing as I was too young to understand much of what was going on. The Perks of Being a Wallflower is deemed as a dramatic comedy and is targeted at older audiences who can laugh off the relatable matters and understand the daily dramas. Not only that, but even when one can grasp such adult content, the storyline is a bit confusing if one hasn’t read the book alongside the movie. While there are flashbacks and subtle hints towards what ultimately led Charlie to his mental disorders, it is not clearly stated within the movie. Because this is such an important part of the story, viewers may have to look up what happened if they cannot connect the events or want to read the book.

Although the movie is confusing in some aspects, it’s accurate to the book and highly relatable. As being a person who has read Stephen Chbosky’s work and watched the film several times, the movie leaves out only the minor details and proves itself incredibly loyal to the book, unlike many other novel-based films. In addition, the film is extremely relatable for teenagers watching, and those adults who still remember their high school years. While it shows first encounters with parties, upperclassmen, football games, and drugs, it also presents the struggles of being a teenager, having such common mental disorders such as anxiety and depression, and the amazing feeling of going to prom, joining activities, and having a first girlfriend/boyfriend. In addition, there are many pop culture references such as The Rocky Horror Picture Show involvement and the Sadie Hawkins dance. The movie also presents an idea of feeling “infinite”, such as times when you finally pass that class you swore you were going to fail, graduating, getting into college, or even minor things like listening to a good song on a car ride home. Truly, everyone has had to feel “infinite” at one point or another in their life.

This movie has inspired me in many ways, from creating an “infinite” playlist to listen to on car rides home (mostly consisting of songs from the soundtrack of the movie because they’re awesome), to looking at life from a new perspective. I encourage everyone to be inspired, even if it’s just a little, by The Perks of Being a Wallflower too.