I wanted to see The Perks of Being a Wallflower simply because Emma Watson is in it. I’ve followed all of the main Harry Potter kids to their other movie projects and this is Emma’s first outside of that universe. So with her casting getting my attention, I looked to see what attracted her to signing on this movie.

Perks started life as a young adult novel published in 1999 by author Stephen Chbosky. He wrote the screenplay and directed the film so he saw his baby right through from book shelf to big screen.

Charlie (Logan Lerman) is a high school freshman in the early 90’s who doesn’t have any friends. The tragic death of his aunt when he was 7 and then the recent suicide of his best friend have made Charlie keep to himself. He finds comfort in books and writing, his new English teacher is the first one to make a real connection with him in some time. Then he meets Sam (Emma Watson) and Patrick (Ezra Miller), seniors (and step siblings) who befriend him and change his life.

Perks is a great coming of age story that works so well because of its awesome cast. Emma is brilliant as Sam, who Charlie falls in love with the first time he sees her (easy to understand and relate to). I’ve never seen Ezra before (and half convinced myself that he is Paul Dinello’s son) but I love his work too. They have an immediate chemistry together and with their close friends Brad, Candice and Mary Elizabeth. It makes the story and interactions of characters seamless and believable. In the ways that The Breakfast Club became landmark roles for its young cast, I think Perks will have similar effects on this cast from a new generation of kids.

Charlie is at a tough spot in his life and as the movie goes, you see more of why the way he is. Events out of his control and understanding have molded him, but the support of his family (big props Nina Dobrev who plays his sister Candace. She reminded me of my sister which was kind of a trip). Even though Charlie has a lot on his shoulders and emotional problems because of it, I always felt for him. He was never annoying or obnoxious and Logan’s acting in the last act of the movie is exceptionally good.

A couple plot points from the book were wisely edited out of movie, which streamlines Charlie’s journey and keeps Perks from being way too dramatic and overbearing. There’s already a significant weight being pulled around by Charlie and I think any more would have just made it a hard movie to watch. Great editing, sound track, directing and cinematography made this a great surprise for me. It’s got a lot of what I look for in a movie.