The Perks of Being a Wallflower

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a teenage coming-of-age drama based on director Stephen Chbosky's critically-acclaimed novel and driven by three strong performances.

The talented central trio - Logan Lerman, Emma Watson and Ezra Miller - each successfully reinvent themselves and shed the roles for which they were previously better known. 

Lerman excels as the understated narrator of the film, Charlie, putting aside his action persona seen in Percy Jackson and The Three Musketeers, for an altogether more subtle and emotive performance. Watson is captivating as free spirit Sam, finally casting off the shackles of squeaky-clean Hermione Granger and making the most of the edgier, grown-up material. Lost in Translation made audiences fall in love with Scarlett Johansson and Wallflower will do the same for Emma Watson. Meanwhile, Miller is barely recognisable as the creepy actor who brought the psychopathic Kevin Katchadourian to life. Here, Miller plays the warm, charismatic and hilarious Patrick, offering both comic relief but also a big dosage of heart. 

All three deserve recognition for their performances.

The film successfully honours its source material, which is not surprising considering the producers hired author Stephen Chbosky himself to adapt his own novel for the big screen. Chbosky has therefore delivered a faithful script, packed with light-hearted observations of high-school but also addressing relevant issues faced by teenagers: falling in love, low self-esteem, homophobia and the rest. Despite the presence of the usual high-school motifs - SATs, prom, scraps in the canteen - Wallflower never feels anything less than original.

Wallflower is not afraid to go dark. The story of Sam's first kiss and the incident from Charlie's childhood are particularly chilling. But the feel-good moments are never far away: Secret Santa, Rocky Horror, Paul Rudd's fatherly teacher, a superb graduation prank aimed at Tom Savini's woodshop teacher and the stand-out use of David Bowie's Heroes. Indeed, some of the best scenes just feature the trio sitting around with their friends enjoying each other's company. As an audience member, you will feel part of the gang too.

It is no coincidence that Lost in Translation was mentioned earlier in this review. Wallflower shares much with Sofia Coppola's bittersweet surprise hit. Both are unlikely love stories with stunning soundtracks and a perfect balance of comedy and soul-searching. Equally, both manage to turn ordinary locations (hotel rooms, bedrooms, bars, house parties, tunnels) into glowing, magical places thanks to a lovingly-crafted mix of set design, lighting and direction. It is bizarre to think that Chbosky has never directed a film until now. He has a long career ahead of him.

And, like Lost in Translation, Wallflower deserves unexpected hype and Award Season attention. Above all else, it deserves to be seen, loved and remembered.

★★★★★