The Perks of Being a [Plucked] Wallflower

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~Thursday~ Tonight I stuffed my pockets with a handful of Bit•O•Honeys and two bags of Snackwell’s Caramel Popcorn, and “carried myself” (as we say in the south) to the Blue Ridge 14 Cinemas, where all movies are $2.00, and I attended the 7:30 screening of “The Perks of Being a Wallflower.”

Bit O Honey candies Snackwell's white fudge laced caramel popcorn

A funny and touching coming-of-age story based on the beloved best-selling novel by Stephen Chbosky, THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER is a modern classic that captures the dizzying highs and crushing lows of growing up. Starring Logan Lerman, Emma Watson and Ezra Miller, THE PERKS OF BEING A WALLFLOWER is a moving tale of love, loss, fear and hope—and the unforgettable friends that help us through life.


In one of those instances of learning about something one minute and then noticing it in the world the next, earlier today I read a Facebook posting from a friend that said, “Seriously, how does Paul Rudd look like he hasn’t aged???” and I had no idea who he was.

Well, lo and behold what name do I see as the actors names were rolling at the beginning of this film?

In this film as Bill, Charlie’s English teacher

As the character of Charlie's teacher in The Perks of Being a Wallflower
At his most adorable

With a beard
At his sexiest

With just a bedsheet partially draped over his nice hairy body


Thoughts and observations about this film:

  • Overall, I’d give it four out of five stars.
  • The one missing star would be due to the fact that I never really got any sense of what—specifically—the perks were of being a wallflower. A more appropriate title, in my humble (HA!) opinion would have been, “The Perks of Being a Plucked Wallflower.”
  • I like the various number of themes explored in this movie:
    • The desire to “fit in,” particularly in our high school years
    • Homosexuality (a gay main character, a likable gay character, gay-bashing and bullying, internalized homophobia)
    • How we choose the people we enter into relationships with
    • Mental illness
    • Child abuse
    • Family secrets
    • Coming of age
    • Drug use experimentation
    • First love
    • Teen suicide
  • I thought of Glee toward the end of the film when all of the seniors were moving on to college, and Charlie was left with three more years of high school
  • It was an acceptable compromise between: Hollywood endings (which I hate), and my-kinda-endings where someone dies in the end (which I prefer).

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