THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER1
PRODUCTION: USA 2012
DIRECTOR: Stephen Chbosky
STARRING: Logan Lerman (Charlie), Emma Watson (Sam), Ezra Miller (Patrick), Johnny Simmons (Brad), Mae Whitman (Mary Elizabeth), Paul Rudd (Mr. Anderson), Joan Cusack (Dr. Burton).
SYNOPSIS
Charlie is worried about beginning his freshman year of high school; he is shy and finds it difficult to make friends, but he connects with his English teacher, Mr. Anderson.
At a football game, Charlie sits with two older students, Sam and her stepbrother Patrick, and they invite him to join them. At a party, Charlie tells Sam that the year before his best friend committed suicide. He also sees Patrick and Brad, a popular athlete, kissing.
Sam gives Charlie a typewriter to help his aspirations of being a writer. The two discuss relationships, and when Charlie reveals that he has never been kissed, Sam kisses him. Charlie becomes Mary Elizabeth’s boyfriend but finally, during a party game, when Charlie is asked to kiss the most beautiful girl in the room, he chooses Sam, upsetting both her and Mary Elizabeth. Patrick advises Charlie to stay away from the group for a while, and the isolation causes him to sink back into depression.
Brad’s friends begin bullying Patrick for being gay so Charlie intervenes and Sam and Patrick express their gratitude to him, and the three become friends again.
Sam is accepted into university and breaks up with her boyfriend Craig. The night before she leaves, she brings Charlie to her room and they confide in each other and kiss. After she leaves for college, Charlie’s emotional state deteriorates. Charlie is taken to hospital, where psychiatrist Dr. Burton manages to bring out Charlie’s repressed memories.
After Charlie goes home again, Sam and Patrick visit him. They drive into a tunnel, Charlie climbs into the back of the truck and thinks about his life as a whole. He kisses Sam, stands up and screams as they exit the tunnel.
BEFORE VIEWING
10 Answer these questions.
1. The film is based on a book, find information about it on the Internet.
2. What difficulties do you think teenagers may have when they start high school?
3. Have you ever had friends who have suffered from some form of depression? How have you helped them?
(1) Letteralmente: I vantaggi del “fare tappezzeria” (essere presente ad una festa ma non venir coinvolto: il titolo italiano è “Noi siamo infinito”).