The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a 2012 American coming-of-age romantic drama film written and directed by Stephen Chbosky, and based on his 1999 novel. Logan Lerman stars as a teenager named Charlie who writes to an unnamed friend, and these epistles chronicle his trials, tribulations, and triumphs as he goes through his freshman year of high school. The film depicts his struggles with his, unbeknownst to him, post-traumatic stress disorder, as he goes through his journey in high school making new friends, portrayed by Emma Watson and Ezra Miller. The film's ensemble cast also includes Mae Whitman, Kate Walsh, Dylan McDermott, Joan Cusack, Nina Dobrev, and Paul Rudd in supporting roles. Chbosky had always intended to adapt the novel to film, but did not rush to do so. He was hesitant to sell the rights to the film to anyone, but eventually sold them to Mr. Mudd Productions as long as they let him write and direct the film. Principal photography began in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in May 2011 and lasted approximately fifty days. The Perks of Being a Wallflower had its world premiere at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival on September 8, 2012, to a standing ovation. It was released theatrically in the United States on September 21, 2012, by Summit Entertainment. The film was well received by critics, who praised Chbosky's screenplay and direction, the performances of Lerman, Watson and Miller, soundtrack, execution of its topics, and emotional weight. It was also a box office success, grossing $33.3 million on a budget of $13 million, and received several accolades, including the Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature, two Critics' Choice Movie Awards nominations, and the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Film – Wide Release. The film has since become a cult classic, especially among Zillennials, and helped define the "Tumblr era" in the early 2010s.
Plot In 1991, Charlie, who has suffered from clinical depression since childhood, has been discharged from a psychiatric hospital. Uneasy about beginning his freshman year of high school, he is painfully shy and only manages to make friends with his English teacher. Charlie meets two seniors, stepsiblings Patrick and Sam. After the homecoming dance, the two invite him to a party with their group of friends. There, Charlie walks in on Patrick and Brad, the high school quarterback, kissing. Patrick tells Charlie that Brad is closeted, so he agrees to keep it a secret. Charlie discloses to Sam that his best friend committed suicide the previous year, making her realize that he has no other friends, so she and Patrick bring him into their group. On their way home, the three hear an unknown song on the radio. Sam instructs Patrick to drive through the Fort Pitt Tunnel so she can stand up in the back of the pickup while the music blasts. Sam needs to improve her SAT scores to have a better chance of being accepted into Penn State University, so Charlie offers to tutor her. This improves her scores, and at Christmas, she gives him a vintage typewriter as a thank you. They discuss relationships, and Charlie reveals he has never been kissed. Sam reveals that her first kiss was at age 11 by her father's boss. Charlie shares that his Aunt Helen was sexually assaulted as a child, but she learned to deal with it and move on. Sam tells Charlie she wants his first kiss to be with someone who loves him, despite her crush on Craig, so they kiss. At a New Year's Eve party, Charlie trips on LSD. He cannot control his flashbacks of Aunt Helen, who died in a car crash on her way to buy him his 7th birthday gift. He ends up in the hospital after passing out in the snow. At a regular The Rocky Horror Picture Show performance, Sam asks Charlie to fill in for Craig, who she is now dating. Their friend Mary Elizabeth is impressed and asks him to the Sadie Hawkins dance, and they enter an unsatisfactory relationship. At a party, when Charlie is dared to kiss the prettiest girl in the room, he chooses Sam, upsetting both Sam and Mary Elizabeth. Patrick tells Charlie to stay away from the group for a while, so he sinks into depression. Brad shows up to school with bruises on his face after his father caught him and Patrick together, but he claims he was jumped and beaten up. When Brad's friends bully Patrick during lunch, Brad does not stand up for him and calls him a "faggot". Patrick angrily punches Brad, who retaliates. Brad's friends beat Patrick and prevent Sam from intervening. When Charlie does, he blacks out. Upon recovering, he finds that he has incapacitated Brad's friends. Brad thanks Charlie in private, while Sam and Patrick forgive Charlie, and the three become friends again. Charlie's mental state worsens. Patrick tries to cope with what happened with Brad and kisses Charlie before immediately apologizing. Sam is accepted into Penn State, and she breaks up with Craig on prom night, after learning he has been cheating on her. The night before Sam departs, Charlie helps her pack. They confide in each other and kiss, but when Sam touches Charlie's thigh, he experiences a flashback of his Aunt Helen, which he brushes off. After Sam leaves for college, Charlie's emotional state and flashbacks worsen. Charlie calls his older sister Candace, blaming himself for Helen's death, and admits he may have wanted it to happen. Candace realizes he is in distress and calls the police. He is eyeing a kitchen knife as they burst through the door. Charlie then awakens in a hospital where psychiatrist Dr. Burton brings out his repressed memories, revealing that his aunt sexually abused him as a child. The night Charlie is released from the hospital, he is visited by Sam and Patrick. The three revisit the tunnel, having identified the song ("'Heroes'" by David Bowie), and Charlie and Sam kiss. Charlie stands up in the back of the truck. He acknowledges that he feels alive and that, at the moment, "we are infinite".
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