The Perks of Being a Wallflower
School on film usually swings between fantasy and trauma; this one tries to stitch them together but doesn’t always hold the seam. The Perks of Being a Wallflower follows Charlie, an awkward new kid taken in by older misfits who offer music, friendship, and a fleeting sense of belonging. It wants to be raw and tender, but often feels a little too neat.
Logan Lerman gives Charlie a quiet fragility, and Emma Watson and Ezra Miller add spark, yet the script undercuts them with clumsy beats. The tone veers into Grange Hill earnestness, spelling out what the actors are already showing. There are moments of real poignancy, but just as many that land like a public-service announcement.
The silliest stretch? Pretending none of these kids had heard Bowie’s Heroes. Absolute nonsense. In the end, the film captures adolescence as both euphoric and bruising, but leans on clichés too often to feel truly infinite.
Logan Lerman gives Charlie a quiet fragility, and Emma Watson and Ezra Miller add spark, yet the script undercuts them with clumsy beats. The tone veers into Grange Hill earnestness, spelling out what the actors are already showing. There are moments of real poignancy, but just as many that land like a public-service announcement.
The silliest stretch? Pretending none of these kids had heard Bowie’s Heroes. Absolute nonsense. In the end, the film captures adolescence as both euphoric and bruising, but leans on clichés too often to feel truly infinite.
Mini Review: School films swing between fantasy and trauma; this one tries to stitch both but the seams show. The Perks of Being a Wallflower follows Charlie, an awkward new kid folded into a group of older misfits who offer music, friendship, and belonging. Logan Lerman is fragile, Watson and Miller add spark, but the script leans into clumsy earnestness. Moments of poignancy sit beside PSA-style beats. And pretending no teen knew Bowie’s Heroes? Nonsense.