This story though: The Perks of Being A Wallflower

This is probably the nth time I've watched, The Perks of Being A Wallflower movie, that's based on a young adult novel by Stephen Chbosky. The movie was also directed by the author. 

Every time I watch it, for some odd reason, I always, always, have to read the book afterwards. It seems that the film is never enough for me whenever I have the urge to reconnect with my old friend Charlie. I think it's the kind of story that one has to experience to understand. I may have gotten to know Charlie and his friends but I will never know exactly,  how it is to be like them. But having this unique relationship with the book as well as the film, helps in making their thoughts and feelings much closer to my heart.

Once I got a hold of a DVD copy, I explored its audio commentary option and found another more enjoyable and interesting way to experience Charlie's story. My experience of enjoyment has been enhanced😝 Watching the movie with Stephen Chbosky and the rest of the wonderful casts' voices in the background is SUCH A TREAT! It definitely added another dimension. 

The commentary is made-up of the main cast, Emma Watson (Sam), Ezra Miller (Patrick), Logan Lerman (Charlie), Mae Whitman (Mary Elizabeth), Johnny Simmons (Brad), and Erin Wilhelmi (Alice). The group also includes, of course, the screenwriter and director, Stephen Chbosky. It was so much fun hearing, not just their thoughts on scenes, lines, and their characters but also the memories that all of them made and shared with each other, while making the movie. Stephen Chbosky is probably the sweetest, and most down-to-earth of directors. In the commentary, he just cannot help but continuously praise each and every one of his cast members. He is in awe of them all and he has passed this attitude down to the cast themselves. They all have very appreciative words to offer each other whenever a great scene or line comes up in the movie. They all admire each other and most importantly they enjoyed each other's company during the summer of 2011, the period when they were making the film. They all stayed in one hotel and Stephen would take them around his beloved Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, his hometown. These circumstances has made a significant effect on their relationship as a group.  They developed a natural bond. Stephen emphasized in a lot of his interviews and in this commentary as well, that this was what he meant to do in the beginning. He wanted to create a certain camaraderie between these people that really did not know each; and make that more 'organic bond' translate on the screen. He was really after authenticity and I can truly say that he has achieved it. This film was the kind of book-to-movie adaptation that did not suck at all👌

The first time I have ever watched this in the cinema, I immediately went to the bookstore and bought the novel. I transferred to the nearest Starbucks, sat down with some English Breakfast tea and read like there is no tomorrow. The amazing thing when you compare the film to the novel is that the, even when the medium and approach was different in portraying the characters, Charlie, was always on-point. He was always Stephen's Charlie, the way he originally wrote him. Having, in a way, 2 Charlies just added meaningful layers to his whole character. The movie and the book did not divide him, they enriched him.

In the film, I was more focused on the ensemble of characters and their relationships,  especially Charlie and Sam's. While in the novel, it was more of Charlie and his world, his letters. I always transport back to the year 1991, where there were still such a thing as a mix tape; where high school kids were addicted to watching television; and they were still basking on the cult-culture that is The Rocky Horror Picture Show. It was 'the times,' the nostalgia that puts a tear in my eye. It was about the reflective letters and the entirety of Charlie, a freshman, who chooses not to experience things for himself, until that day on October 6th, where he went to a football game and met "Nothing."

The aim is to participate. Mr. Anderson said: "...sometimes people use thought to not participate in life."  I have read this book more times ever since that afternoon in Starbucks and I have always distanced myself from this line. But recently I had to stop reading for a while. As I did this, I gradually started feeling a little guilty and embarrassed. It is difficult seeing yourself on the page. It makes you not want to be the way you are. I imagine Charlie feeling this way all the time in the novel. I imagine him being utterly confused about love and trust and friendship when all of those were just ruined for him early on in his life. I really did not think I had anything in common with Charlie. I thought my initial empathy, on my earlier readings of the book, was enough to make-up for my understanding of his situation. It is only now that I realise how 'escapes' can be a bad thing too. I love books. Reading is one of my passions and I know that it always will be. I had always thought of it as an escape from the real world. It was my way of being the wallflower. I was just an observer, a witness in somebody else's fictional world. It was good for the brain and also for the soul. What I didn't realise until now is what it wasn't doing for me. I cannot overestimate an experience. I can't always choose to escape. I have to live it. When I read that line again, I was immediately Charlie, then and there. Books are the hiding place. It seems, I have to come out some time. I cannot spend my entire life preparing myself for things that I, myself, purposely choose to hide from. I have to get hurt because that's the only time that I can love. I have to be unhappy too, once in a while, because those are the only times that I can strike up the courage to turn my life around; hopefully for the better. I have to participate. 

I think I can safely say that The Perks of Being A Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, both the film and the novel are on my list of greatest hits. That great list, where all awesome conversations start. That list, where no matter what, I will always go back to. Charlie has never been kissed until that Christmas of '91. Sam, personally, made sure of that. It was important for her that this kiss is to be (and probably should always be) given by someone who truly loves him; and she did, and so did Charlie. This entire thing is my own love letter to Charlie and for Mr. Stephen Chbosky as well. I want to thank him for breathing life to this heartfelt story of a kid whose being a wallflower, was something that held him back at times but also developed in him that introspective voice that people sometimes need in their lives. I will now end with Charlie's words from the film, entitled, Charlie's Last Letter. This bit is fantastically included in the original soundtrack. Now, I will let him do all the talking. This is also a clip of the last scene in the movie. I hope you enjoyed reading about my thoughts on this and I wish you all the best in all your participations in the world. Cheers!

"I know these will all be stories one day...but right now these moments are not stories, this is happening...I can see it, this one moment when you know that you are not a sad story. You are alive. And you stand up and see the lights on the buildings and everything that makes you wonder; and you're listening to that song on that drive with the people you love most in this world; and in this moment, I swear...WE are infinite."

Love Always,