The Perks of Being a Wallflower ~ Film Summary and Analysis
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
Film Summary
Meet Charlie, a smart, quiet, and often anxious adolescent, about to begin his first year in high school. From the beginning of the film featuring Charlie as the main character, the viewer becomes aware of a peculiar history that impacts Charlie’s everyday life. However, through almost the entire duration of the film, the nature of this history is left unknown. Charlie is very concerned about how his freshmen year of high school will go since he does not have any friends and is quite concerned about being able to connect with others. Thankfully, after some rejection from upperclassmen and past friends, Charlie finds a really great group of high school “misfits” like himself called the “Wallflowers” with whom he can now share his early high school journey.
Together with the Wallflowers, Charlie gets high for the first time, learns about new music, and for the first time in his life - feels like he belongs. We see an example of how close and supportive Charlie’s new friend group is during the holiday season when they share gifts and are very sad to bid each other farewell for the winter break. Although Charlie is now in a pretty good space overall, memories from his dark past still manage to persist. To cope with his inner turmoil associated with the new year, Charlie reverts to drug use with his friends and we end up finding him in the hospital trying to explain to his family why he had drugs in his system and was found passed out in the snow.
As in most friend groups, the Wallflowers go through different stages and struggles, sometimes causing breaks or strife between group members. A defining moment in the group dynamic is when Charlie steps in to stop his friend Patrick from continuing to get beaten up by a group of bullies. While closeness and clarity continue to be fostered in the group and Charlie and Sam finally acknowledge their love for each other, the prospect of the majority of the group moving on to college while Charlie remains in high alone begins to set in. After saying goodbye to Sam as she leaves for Penn State, Charlie breaks down, finds himself in a psychiatric hospital, and is forced to finally confront the memories of sexual abuse from his favorite aunt Helen that haunted him his entire life. Charlie gets the help he needs and finds a way to emerge from his tumultuous past as a more hopeful and healthy person.
Film Analysis
Oftentimes in movies, the viewer is not privy to the thoughts or history of a given character. In a movie where tapping into underlying thoughts and emotions is crucial for grasping the full narrative, portraying these subtle internal elements appropriately can be difficult. I think that a significant aspect of what gives The Perks of Being a Wallflower its multiple layers of depth is the way the narration throughout the movie is presented. There are frequent excerpts from Charlie’s diary/letter to his “friend out there” that are disclosed to the viewer incrementally. These intimate passages from Charlie’s writing allow us - the viewer to dig deeper into Charlie’s experiences as a freshman in high school. It also occurred to me that this narration style may have purposely been designed as a conversation between Charlie’s thoughts and the viewer in order to give us a sense of the intensity of Charlie’s loneliness, especially before he succeeded in making friends.
Early in the film, we see that there are multiple variables or “systems” that are continuously influencing Charlie’s adolescent experience. Within Charlie’s microsystem (following Bronfenbrenner’s bioecological systems theory), he does not have a great relationship with his parents. This is evident when he talks about lying to his parents about how things are going in school because he feels that “they wouldn’t understand…” It is not clear from the film why this is the case, but this may be a representation of the typical conflict that often exists between teens and their parents as they work toward establishing their independence. This is one of many examples where I think the film portrays adolescent life accurately.
Another part of the microsystem is peer relationships. We initially see Charlie struggle to fit into the high school culture and find a friend group, but in an amazing turn of events, Charlie succeeds in finding what appears to be just the right group for him. In my estimation, the period in the movie when Charlie is alone and struggles to acclimate is more reality-based than the way that he finds the Wallflower group - especially when taking into account how quickly he musters the courage to approach others and gets accepted into their circle. Regardless, we see that while Charlie expresses not feeling comfortable around his parents, he finds great comfort in his friend group. I think this part of the film is rather accurate in the sense that through adolescence, teens find themselves increasingly preoccupied with things related to their peer groups and less connected to their parents.
An accumulation of good experiences and finding common ground with his friends leads Charlie to places that he might not have gone to on his own. Some of the things are more benign, like sharing music and going to sports or dance events together. However, Charlie also (at first unknowingly) tries drugs for the first time and ends up in a hospital after using too much at a new years party. I would posit that drug use is something that extends beyond the micro or even exosystems in the bioecological systems theory. When it comes to the question of how, if, and when to use drugs, cultural attitudes (macrosystem) continue to differ and evolve over time. Since danger and rule-breaking are often part of teen development and illicit drugs are generally forbidden in the US, it seems plausible to say that the restrictive culture around drugs in the US played a role in Charlie’s use of drugs through his friends.
Despite Charlie’s lack of popularity among his classmates outside of the Wallflower group, Charlie’s academic excellence gives helps him gain the admiration of his advanced English instructor Mr. Anderson. Over time, Charlie cultivates a trusting relationship with his teacher. Finding a teacher to look up to and seek support and guidance from is a common phenomenon among adolescents. I would go as far as to say that sometimes, teachers serve as a replacement of sorts when a child or teen does not connect with their own parent/caregiver. We see an example of this when Charlie is having a hard time processing and addressing the relationship dynamics he is witnessing in his life.
Charlie’s sister has been dating a physically abusive guy for quite a while. Similarly, Charlie’s friend Sam is with a guy who has been cheating on her repeatedly. Unable to wrap his head around this painful and awkward reality, Charlie asks Mr. Anderson, “Why is it that nice people choose the wrong people to date?” Mr. Anderson’s wise response is concise and to the point, “we accept the love that we think we deserve.” Perhaps more important than Mr. Anderson’s answer, is the fact that Charlie had who to turn to when he felt troubled. By speaking to his teacher, Charlie’s concerns were validated and he now felt better able to manage what he was dealing with at that moment.
According to Erikson’s stages of development, the developmental task/crisis for teens (13-21) is to establish a healthy sense of identity. I think one of the ways the film alludes to this is by establishing and reiterating multiple times that Mary Elizabeth is a Buddhist who also listens to punk rock. This is a clear statement about Mary Elizabeth being in the process of developing her own unique identity. As for Charlie, his identity seems to fluctuate quite a lot throughout the film. Like many adolescents, Charlie’s identity appears to be very dependent on his friends and general environment.
Erikson also notes that successfully moving on to the next developmental stage of intimacy (21-39) is significantly dependent on the extent to which a healthy sense of identity is achieved. This may explain why Charlie struggles with getting close to his peers and communicating his feelings openly. For example, although Charlie develops feelings for Sam not long after they meet, he only opens up about his feelings for her after she brings it up in a conversation toward the end of the movie. Erikson would explain Charlie’s behavior by noting that since Charlie’s identity is still developing, true intimacy would only be possible to maintain after completing the prior stage of identity formation.
Aside from the issue of identity, Charlie was also dealing with what seemed could never be spoken of or resolved. When Charlie finally confesses his love for Sam, there is a distinct moment where we get a glimpse into just how hard dealing with flashbacks of sexual abuse can be. While Charlie and Sam are kissing, Charlie steps back for a moment and leaves Sam bewildered. His intimate interaction with Sam brought back unwanted memories from abuse during his childhood. Charlie does his best to navigate these painful flashbacks as they present themselves but when it comes time for his best friend and ally to leave town for college, it all comes rushing back and he can’t stop it. Luckily, Charlie is brought to the hospital before he does anything to hurt himself.
Albeit its dark undertones and ending, the film ends on a positive and hopeful note. Charlie commits to getting better and we see the beginnings of Charlie really pulling himself back together and working through his painful past. One of my favorite quotes from the end of the movie is a message that Dr. Burton imparts to Charlie. Simple but true Charlie’s doctor says, “we can’t choose where we come from, but we can choose where we go from there…” Charlie internalizes this message and carries it with him. After Charlie gets out of the hospital we get to see him one last time flying through the iconic tunnel, to the sweet sound of his favorite tune, with his most beloved friends. He reminds us that regardless of our past, we can find joy, truly allow ourselves to feel alive, and we can cultivate hope for a better future.