Perks of Being a Balls-Flower (Perks of Being a Wallflower Review)

*TW: MENTIONS OF SUICIDE. USA NATIONAL SUICIDE HOTLINE: Text/Chat/Call 988*

TW: Suicide, SA, homophobia | Kat and Ryley review the coming of age film "Perks of Being a Wallflower" (based on the novel of the same name.) CORRECTION: Ezra Miller uses they/them pronouns.

Review Overview: As teens, this movie provided us with some of the most annoying hipster qualities that we would adopt for most of our time in high school. This movie made us feel seen and heard.
As adults, we look back and see the lost kids we were. Charlie's story resonates, and the magnitude of what he, as a 15-year-old, carried around with him is much more apparent. At times it seems cheesy but really, who wasn't a little cringe as a teen?
It perfectly portrays the feeling of loneliness that can come with mental illness, even with friends and family rallying around you. Especially in adolescence, it can be hard to see how many people are on your side. Accepting help can be such a hard step in healing, you have to bypass every thought in your mind to see that you deserve to be better.
There's something relatable for everyone.
It leaves you with a realistic idea of healing. The job is never done, and sometimes you have setbacks, and that's ok. We were left with hope for our journeys.
The soundtrack is lovely and nostalgic.
Kat: 5/5
Ryley: 5/5

kat 0:07

Hello and welcome to Easy Bake Takes the podcast where we review the one star reviews of your favorite movies and more. My name is Kat.

ryley 0:16

And I'm Ryley.

kat 0:17

This week we watched one of my favorite movies, Perks of Being a Wallflower, you know, just to take a break between the entire Twilight saga and surprise next we're doing the Hunger Games trilogy. We just got to take a brief break before we get back into those ya film adaptations. A trigger warning before we start because this film deals with mental health, suicide, SA and homophobia and some some of these topics are going to be mentioned throughout and they are mentioned throughout the film itself. So if you're sensitive to that, maybe just skip this one. The plot of this movie is socially awkward teen Charlie is a wallflower. Always watching Life from the sidelines until two charismatic students become his mentors free spirited Sam and her stepbrother Patrick help Charlie discover the joys of Friendship first love, music, and more. While a teacher sparks Charlie's dreams of becoming a writer. However, as his new friends prepare to leave for college, Charlie's inner sadness threatens to shatter his newfound confidence. This film is based on a novel again, we're doing book adaptations. I guess that's just our thing right now. But this is based on a novel by Stephen Chbosky, who actually wrote the script and directed the film. It's one of the few books that I've actually like read and finished. The story is kind of based on like some some of the ideas in it are fictional and some of it are from his own personal experiences growing up. It's set in the 1980s. Right, it's the 1980s right? Not 90s?

ryley 0:17

Yeah, it’s the 80s

kat 1:46

yeah, set in the set of the 1980s. And just another thing that it would have been a fun fact, but we're talking about him specifically, the Rocky Horror scenes are filmed at the Hollywood theater in Dormont, where Chbosky actually saw Rocky Horror Picture Show for the first time when he was younger, which I think is really cute. So I'm assuming that he grew up in like Pennsylvania, because that's where this film is set. But it was produced by Mr. Mudd productions, which is actually John Malkovich, his production company, and which I'm noticing kind of a trend because I'm pretty he produced Judo as well, right? Yeah, he was one of the producers on that movie. I feel like he might just have a thing for like, young adult coming of age films, which I think is really cool.

ryley 2:29

Oh, yeah, he's got good taste. Definitely.

kat 2:31

Yeah, he's got great taste, obviously, like Juno is one of your favorite movies.

ryley 2:35

Oh, yeah.

kat 2:35

Perks of being a wallflower is one of my favorite movies. Like it just it makes sense.

ryley 2:39

Yeah.

kat 2:39

This movie came out in 2012. I saw it in theaters when it came out. I think I was like an eighth grade or something. The cast of this movie, Logan Lerman plays Charlie who is the main character, another movie he was in. That's my one of my favorite roles that he's ever played is when he was in the movie Fury. But you might know him better for being like Percy Jackson or whatever. A series that I did not read the books for. I just kind of watched the movies and I never read those books. Did you read the Percy Jackson books?

ryley 3:04

No, I never read them. And I remember only getting a few minutes into Percy Jackson, before turning it off.

kat 3:11

I liked I liked it. I don't think it's the best of like those kinds of movies.

ryley 3:17

I just couldn't get into them.

kat 3:18

Yeah, that's fair. I just love Greek mythology. So I was like, I'm on board. But Emma Watson plays Sam, I tried to find something that wasn't Harry Potter on her IMDB page. But she was in Little Women. It's just like, it's wild that there's two two people from young adult book adaptations films series.

ryley 3:36

Did you see her in Sleeping Beauty? Oh, wait, we saw that together? Didn't we? Literally.

kat 3:39

No, it wasn't sleeping beauty, it's beauty and the beast.

ryley 3:42

Oh, yeah.

kat 3:42

Yeah, we saw that together. And they did her an injustice by auto tuning her and not letting someone else just sing.

ryley 3:42

oh my god.

kat 3:42

Yeah, it was really bad. If you liked that movie, that's fine. But like, we were not fans of it. But Ezra Miller plays Patrick and I refuse to list a movie from him because he did choke a fan on video. And that's something people forget a lot.

ryley 4:09

Well, they forget because it was wiped from the internet.

kat 4:13

Yeah, he must have a really good PR team because that video gets taken out anytime that it's

ryley 4:19

yeah, that's it's an insane it's an insane thing where that video is just absolutely take nobody talked about it.

kat 4:25

I think it's up right now because Variety magazine covered it like they covered it in 2020. They were like hey, remember this?

ryley 4:32

Yeah

kat 4:32

Yeah, he like lost his temper and after she jokingly challenged him to a fight and he chokes slammed her to the ground.

ryley 4:40

Oh, my God.

kat 4:42

So, he does not get a favorite movie pick from me. And we won't be really focusing on him as an actor during this just mentioned that he's in it and then Mae Whitman plays Mary Elizabeth and I honestly I think she's a phenomenal actress. She's been acting for a really long time she was actually in arrested development but she does a really good job in that. She also voices a character in American Dragon Jake Long. Another actor of like importance is Paul Rudd playing Mr. Anderson. He's not in the movie a whole lot, but like he's a very important character so you're not going to not mention Paul Rudd being in this movie. Are you kidding?

ryley 5:18

Yeah, you gotta mention him.

kat 5:18

Have you see him in clueless?

ryley 5:20

Yeah, no kidding.

kat 5:21

He’s a cutie. And he doesn't age.

ryley 5:23

I saw a size a side by side picture of like, there was like a Polaroid of him from clueless. And then like a picture of him today. He looks better today than he did in that Polaroid. I don't know what it is.

kat 5:35

He just is aging like fine wine. He probably is a vampire.

ryley 5:39

I have a list of people who I think are vampires.

kat 5:42

There are other notable actors in this film but those are just the ones I'm going to mention for now. So we can move on to thoughts and feelings and opinions about this movie. So go ahead. Tell me what you thought.

ryley 5:53

I love this movie. I'm pretty sure I saw in theaters I think with my mom. But, it was really, I loved it. We watched his movie a ton in high school. As much as it is, like, awesome and warm and funny. It is also a very heavy movie. It definitely shaped my personality as a young child.

kat 6:15

It made us unbearable.

ryley 6:17

Yeah, the music tastes

kat 6:19

Yeah, like that soundtrack was all I would listen to for a while.

ryley 6:23

Oh, yeah, I got that's how I got introduced to the Smiths.

kat 6:26

Oh, same here.

ryley 6:27

I had no idea who the Smiths were before my mom hates the Smith, so.

kat 6:31

Fairly so because Morrissey sucks.

ryley 6:35

Oh, yeah. The second those allegations or like those, like the stuff that that came out about him my mom was like, I knew it. I was the person that always said it. Even back in the 80s she was saying it. I hate that. She always hated him. And it just proved her right.

kat 6:52

Yeah, she was like I've been right this whole time.

ryley 6:54

I mean, right this whole time. She was she was

kat 6:56

she was it breeded some some very unbearable hipster children. And we were we were part of that group.

ryley 7:03

Oh, yes.

kat 7:04

Like, I feel like if you look at me now, I look like I went through that phase. You know? It's very clear that this movie had a big effect on me. It's

ryley 7:14

You look like Perks of Being a Wallflower.

kat 7:16

You look like you stole half of your personality from Perks.

ryley 7:21

definitely.

kat 7:22

What else did you think of it? Anything stand out any silly moments

ryley 7:26

Love the Rocky Horror Picture Show moment. I love that. I think it's really fun scene

kat 7:31

Patrick as a character. It's just like.

ryley 7:33

Okay, not to talk about him like the actor, but like the character itself is a wonderful character. I love that character. I think he's hilarious. Yeah, C average. I love it.

kat 7:44

Yes. Yeah, that's in my, in my that's in my list too. Anything else? I'm sure you'll think of something. When I get into mine.

ryley 7:50

I probably will

kat 7:51

Some quotes that stood out to me and some that I remember from watching this growing up this one. This first one is after something shitty happens. It's after ponytail Derek like slaps Charlie's sister. When his sister says, Charlie, this is ponytail Derek I can handle him.

ryley 8:10

He's still being put down even after

kat 8:14

you call your boyfriend ponytail, Derek.

ryley 8:16

Yeah,

kat 8:17

I mean, he deserves it after doing that to you. But like, so funny for like, just a very serious moment for her to be like, it's Ch-. It's it's ponytail Derek.

ryley 8:25

It also just shows her self esteem too, like knowing she's dating ponytail Derek . Like she's not unaware of those jokes made about him.

kat 8:35

Oh, yeah. Because something I realized now is when she goes to college, she immediately like, joins a sorority and is like a different person. And like

ryley 8:43

she dumps them too.

kat 8:44

Yeah, so it's like, it's one of those things where she probably was like, you know, shaping her personality.

ryley 8:51

Oh, yeah,.

kat 8:52

After the person she's dating and like.

ryley 8:53

That’s what high school is. And like, I think they show that very well. Because like, you know, she dated a shitty dude, and then dumped them after.

kat 9:02

And then she was like, Oh, that's not what I'm about. I don't want to be like that guy. The other the other quote, I wanted to point out that like Sam as a character has some of the cheesiest fucking lines like she gets like the worst stupid lines like her saying, I'm not bulimic I'm not a bulimic, Charlie. I'm a bulimist. And she's like, I just really believe in bulimia. It's like the the that line? Yes, it sounds like something silly little high school student would say, but it's so random in that scene, because they're literally talking about what music they all listened to.

ryley 9:38

I'm so confused by that.

kat 9:40

Yeah, yeah, I was like you could have maybe we should have just taken that line out.

ryley 9:44

So cringy.

kat 9:46

It is it's very cringy. Oh something. Something I forgot to mention before I thought I put it in my notes but it didn't I don't think my brain fully processed what happened like I knew that he got molested by his aunt but I think it's so like underlied like it's so in the background of everything, like it's just kind of processing that it's just kind of happening in the background. So it's like, I don't think I really got the magnitude of it when I was watching it in high school, but like watching it this time, I was like, Holy shit, like, this kid is dealing with his best friend killing himself. And that happening to him as a kid. And those memories probably are popping back up and shit. And it's just like he is going through it. And still having to pretend like he's okay, all the time.

ryley 10:32

For me. It's like, it's when I was watching. It's like a slow reveal, because he said his aunt was his favorite person. And I think it's just because of like, she probably was and but dealing with that trauma that happened to him.

kat 10:44

Yeah

ryley 10:44

From her too, because she died horrifically

kat 10:48

she died going to get his Christmas present.

ryley 10:50

Yeah.

kat 10:50

That’s, that was like the whole thing. Like she, there's so much of his like trauma in this is related to her. And it says a lot that like he is so drawn to Sam. And like, Sam reminds him of his aunt, like it that has its own implications too. But something I liked about it being more in the background, and it just like slowly being revealed, is like when you're that age, you don't know how to work through that kind of stuff. So you're just, it's just kind of like happening in your mind. And either some people put it all outward, and they act out and they do things that they like might not normally do, because they're dealing with this horrendous shit. But for Charlie, it was like, I'm gonna keep this quiet. Because it's clear, too, that like his family is always worried about like how he's doing mentally. And so he doesn't want to make them worried.

ryley 11:40

Yeah.

kat 11:41

So, he's not going to like talk about it, and like, make it an outward thing.

ryley 11:44

He might not be ready to talk about that stuff in general, because that is some very traumatic stuff to talk about. And you just yeah, you know, how do you how do you just go about saying that telling people?

kat 11:55

Yeah.

ryley 11:56

You know?

kat 11:56

Definitely. Because like, I just, I think that's part of the beauty of this movie is like, all of these characters are dealing with awful shit. But they still have to, like, do like, live their life and try to enjoy themselves as much as they can. And I just think it's very successful in doing something like that. Now to the less serious notes that I had. This isn't completely unserious. But his older brother seems like really like a really sweet character. Like, I genuinely love that character. Especially like the little talk like little heart to heart that they have, like, at Christmas time. And he just like asks him how he's doing. Like, I just think that's really sweet. Like, I like that his his family is like sweet and seems like they care as much as they can for what they notice.

ryley 12:36

Exactly. And that's the other thing too, like they show like, you know, he doesn't come from like a heartless family, like his family cares about him. He has people that cares about him throughout this movie.

kat 12:45

Definitely true about a lot of teens, like, going through this shit. It doesn't mean that their family is not asking them if they're okay, or like caring about them. It's just like the fact of like, you don't want to worry people, like you don't want to make people feel like they have to watch you all the time. So like, you're not going to talk about it. But that doesn't mean that your family doesn't care.

ryley 13:03

Yeah, exactly. And it's just, yeah, I just love how warm this movie can be like, like, just like, he does have support in different ways.

kat 13:11

And his sister still acts like an older sister like she's nice to him all the time.

ryley 13:16

No.

kat 13:16

That's how siblings are, I enjoyed that too. Like, it just seems very like, as much as a movie can, like realistic and I understand why a lot of people find this movie to be really relatable. And like I find it very relatable too. The other thing I skipped past all the other lines, I was going to talk about a line that I say every time someone gives me a gift that I really like. It's one of my favorite lines. It's from I forget what his name is the friend that like is a stoner is in culinary school or something. And he's just sitting there. He's like, high, and someone got him bubbles as his present for Secret Santa. And he's like, "he knows me. He really knows me."

I remember that one. I love that.

I love that line. And then the other one I wrote down was, "Woo, I'm below average." It was me. That was me the entirety of high school. Because like you said earlier, C's get degrees.

ryley 14:08

C’s a take get- I can't say it anymore. C's get degrees.

There we go.

kat 14:15

They indeed do. Well, now we can move on. Do you have anything else that you want to add before we move on actually?

ryley 14:20

No.

kat 14:21

Okay, so we can move on to the critical reviews. Most of them were pretty positive. One thing that gets mentioned a lot, though, is the fact that: how the fuck did they not know the song heroes by David Bowie?

ryley 14:33

Everyone who David Bowie was, so.

kat 14:36

Literally.

ryley 14:36

There's no way. There's no way they're gonna go, "Oh, there's this new artist, David Bowie that we haven't listened to." Like, no, you're gonna know who that guy is.

kat 14:44

They're not that sheltered. They're constantly at the record store according to them and talking to each other, like.

ryley 14:49

Yeah.

kat 14:49

What do you just only go to the Smiths section?

ryley 14:52

No kidding.

kat 14:53

But this first review that I have is from The Austin Chronicle and it's written by Kimberly Jones in 2012. Jones gives this a 2.5 out of five starting with, quote "Ripe, dramatic material, but Chbosky surrounds his hurting characters with the cinematic equivalent of a hug circle, which is sweet, but rather antithetical to tension building," unquote and then quote, "in this sensitive but still water, bildungsroman" which is just a fancy word for coming of age novel.

ryley 15:23

I hate when they do that. It irritates the crap out of me.

kat 15:27

But I only put that in there because they used an unnecessarily fancy word. But they they end this review with quote, "in it's best stretches the film captures the electrifying sensation and outcasts fields when he finds his people. Truly, every shy, thoughtful kid deserves the same kind of support system that rallies around Charlie when his depression overwhelms him. But even as Charlie's grip on sanity starts to go Chbosky's tone of gentle optimism never wavers." So it's like this one, they seemed like they kind of had some issues with it, but they still understand the effectiveness of a movie like this.

ryley 16:02

Yeah. Are they like complaining that they think it's too sweet?

kat 16:06

I guess, I guess so. Like, I guess this, the caring and support system kind of aspects takes away from like, the tension that could be built like, especially with the end of the movie, but even then, no one's home when he's about to do that. And what did you want him not to have be able to call his sister and tell her something's wrong?

ryley 16:28

That's the thing. And like, also, like, that's what draws me to the movie. If there wasn't a support system for him, I feel like this would be a way darker movie.

kat 16:36

Yeah, and there would be nothing happening.

ryley 16:37

And I probably wouldn't want to watch it because it's just sad. I think it's more realistic to show that he does have a support system. And he is struggling, and that's okay.

kat 16:48

Yeah,exactly. It's not like he's cured whenever he calls his sister.

ryley 16:51

Exactly.

kat 16:52

He goes immediately to like, the hospital like he's not, he's not just sent back out, and let- they don't just let him go home. Like, that's what would happen if like some another teenager were to do something like this. Like, they wouldn't just get to go home and like, just go back to normal life immediately. Like you'd, you'd have to take a little bit of time in a hospital before you could do that. Especially with what Charlie attempted to do. I don't know because I feel like that hope needs to be there.

ryley 17:22

Yeah, exactly.

kat 17:24

But we'll move on to the next one. It's from The Next Best Picture podcast by Nicole Ackman from 2021, who gives this movie a nine out of 10. And before they get into, so I think it was just a transcript I read from the podcast itself, but they put the good and the bad at the very top just to list their general thoughts about it. So under the good, they believed that there were strong performances, and that coupled with the screenplay, really anchor this coming of age story, and it's touching without being overly sentimental. And something that was bad. They just feel like too many plot points were packed into this movie, which there's- there's a lot of- a lot of character stories going on but the focus is still always Charlie.

ryley 18:08

I'm not confused by anything because there's too many plot points or like, I'm not distracted. Like it's, I don't think it's too much. I mean, there's a lot I will say that but it's not overwhelming.

kat 18:20

I don't think it's an unrealistic way to portray it either. Because like, when you're going through shit, it doesn't mean that everyone else in the world isn't either.

ryley 18:27

Yeah.

kat 18:27

Something that they found unique about this movie is that Chbosky wrote the book and the movie and directed it, which I agree like, it's kind of a big deal that he was able to, and I think he did a good job, considering, because I feel like that could go bad really easily.

ryley 18:43

To me, I think it- it makes more sense that he wrote the book, wrote the screenplay, and then directed it. Because like, I feel like, I mean, if you wrote the book, you get to show what you want to show in the, like, I don't know, to me like, if you can direct the movie to your own book, feel like you should, because I feel like that it's gonna be really good insight to your book and how you view it and how, what you want to express in the film.

kat 19:11

And I feel like if if the movie is good, people can't complain about how it was done a whole lot, because it's like, you can say that you interpret it this way but the literal writer, like author of the book interprets it the way it's shown in the movie, so. But the next thing is that the movie deals, with delicate, deals very delicately with the weighty topics that are discussed, but it never feels like it's exploiting those things. Which I also agree like it doesn't it doesn't feel like it's only using those to make the story more interesting. It's just like, it's trying to tell a story about these things. And that also the characters aren't completely defined by the struggles that they're like dealing with. And then praises the person romances of Watson and Miller, but says that Logan Lerman is truly the star of the show, and isn't like outshined by anybody. They end the- they end the review with quote, "many who love this film can identify its iconic lines and moments like the tunnel scene even nine years after it came out" end quote. And then, "through the ups and downs in the lives of teenagers one thing is constant, music. In this movie, as with the novel, the music becomes a character in itself. Mixtapes run rampant."

ryley 20:28

That tunnel scene, I think that's somebody that like defines- that's something for our generation that you know, like, you know, those 80s iconic scenes.

kat 20:37

Yeah.

ryley 20:38

That's one of ours.

kat 20:39

Yeah, we are infinite. Definitely that cheesy line from our from our adolescence.

ryley 20:45

And that scene, I've- yeah.

kat 20:47

That's, that's like a complete like fucking block of cheese. Like, that is a wheel of cheese. But it's-

ryley 20:56

And I love it.

kat 20:56

It's nostalgic. It's nostalgic so it's fine.

ryley 20:59

Cheese is good.

kat 21:00

Cheese is good. The next one that I have is from Alternate Ending, and it's titled, "Movies I missed in 2012," and was written by Tim Brayton in 2012. Tim gave perks of being a wallflower a six out of 10. Starting with quote, "though, Patrick and Sam administration's not withstanding, it actually takes a fantastically ill judged and easy guest twist mired in a dime store Freudianism to solve Charlie's social woes, which does rather tend to undercut the message in a way that Chbosky couldn't have intended." Brayton also calls Charlie's monologue at the end, the one that involves the we are infinite, calls it cheesy, which it is.

ryley 21:40

It's fine.

kat 21:41

It's fine. And then says that the massive plot points are clustered together. And it says quote, "I would have recognized the song heroes in 1991 and I was 10." Oh, I guess this is the 90s not the 80s it's like 1990.

ryley 21:56

Is it? Oh.

kat 21:58

Yeah, my bad.

ryley 22:01

I could've sworn it was 80s.

kat 22:01

was actually set in the 90s Yeah, those eras blend

ryley 22:06

They blend.

kat 22:06

Together a little bit.

ryley 22:07

Yeah, they blend.

kat 22:08

Because you know, the beginning of a decade isn't like hard set a different looking thing. And then says that the movie is fun to pick on but its worst sins are generic and the film is good in the realm of like a high school Coming of Age movie. So like, Brayton doesn't think it's a terrible movie but it's fun to spend time with these characters and that counts. Doesn't agree with most of Chbosky's is camera choices. And then says that it wasn't special, but quote, "every generation needs its own touchstones, I guess. I'm not quite sure what generation exactly is supposed to be feeling this one. But I hope they find it." It's us. It's us. Gen Z.

ryley 22:42

It's literally the teenagers who went to go see that movie in theaters. So it's us.

kat 22:42

It's old Gen Z. It's fucking oldest people.

ryley 22:42

We are old. We're the oldest of Gen Z.

kat 22:45

Oh, no, we're gonna be like the elder millennials. But like elder Gen Z. That's us. We're the elder Gen Z. We're only like fucking 22 and 23, so.

ryley 23:01

yeah.

kat 23:02

but yeah, that's- this- We are the generation that this movie spoke to.

ryley 23:05

Yeah.

kat 23:06

I- Yeah. I like that they acknowledge that like this- this movie is important to a generation.

ryley 23:12

Yeah

kat 23:13

Like it is. It's our generation. This movie is very important to people our age.

ryley 23:16

He's like what generation this is for? I don't know, like.

kat 23:19

Maybe the teenagers when the fucking movie came out.

ryley 23:21

You know, there's other teenagers? You know, there's teenagers right now? Like, you know, they exist. They didn't- You didn't outgrow that. You know?

kat 23:27

do you think that this movie was for people who were teenagers in the 90s? No.

ryley 23:31

Exactly, like.

kat 23:32

No.

ryley 23:33

Yeah.

kat 23:33

It came out in 2012. It's for me. It's for me. For eighth grade Kat, okay. Okay, so the next one is from the Spectator and is titled, "Young Love," and it was written by Deborah Ross in 2012. I didn't see a rating, but it was rotten on Rotten Tomatoes. Quote, "I'm not convinced you can be a wallflower if you're as ravishing as Emma Watson," and then calls the Sam's character of slag, which if you don't know, is slang, basically, she's calling her a slut, and blames that on her childhood, which, like I get, I get, but like, this writer was being such a dick about it. For no reason.

ryley 24:18

First off, she's calling her a slut, which is offensive and then saying she's a slut, because of what happened to her in her childhood.

kat 24:27

Yes.

ryley 24:28

That's horrible.

kat 24:28

You know her getting molested by her dad's business partner?

ryley 24:31

That's so offensive.

kat 24:33

They didn't point out specifically like the- what happened to her, they just blame it on her childhood. Which let me just say that psychologically, could be a cause for promiscuity, but like that doesn't need to be mentioned here.

ryley 24:50

No. Well, also you don't have to be like, I don't know. It just sounds so negative.

kat 24:55

We'll move on to the next thing because that pissed me off when I read it. I was like,

ryley 24:57

Yeah.

kat 24:58

Why are you being such a dick? And then come contrary to another review we read, this reviewer believes that the characters trauma is part of their character, and that it's not threaded throughout the narrative well, which I think is just blatantly wrong.

ryley 25:13

Yeah

kat 25:14

They don't they aren't defined by the shit that's going on in their life.

ryley 25:17

It's stuff that happened to them. But it, isn't it No, it does not define them. No.

kat 25:21

Prime example. Patrick's the one who is currently going through something that is happening right then. And he is just, it is under the surface. Until it like blows up, obviously. But like, he's not defined by that shit happening to him. It's just his characters arc. Well, that is. What happens to his character?

ryley 25:40

Exactly.

kat 25:41

This was the one that made me the angriest out of all the ones that I read.

ryley 25:44

How old is this person who wrote this? By the way?

kat 25:47

I don't know. I could I don't remember enough to, to say, this could be a young person who's being a dick too, like it, it's not I don't think it's necessarily specific to an old person saying it.

ryley 25:58

It sounds outdated. And a sound came from someone who was older.

kat 26:02

And then, in my notes, I went on a rant about this next point. So I'm about to go on a rant about this next point. They critique the fact that Charlie just shouts out that his best friend took his life and then is never mentioned again. Have you ever met a teenager who's gone through something like that, where their best friend has killed themselves, or they just have some major trauma that's happened to them? He was high, and he probably wouldn't have told Sam that that happened if he wasn't stoned. Like, teenagers or children, they're still children, they don't know how to process that kind of shit. So like a teenager's friends isn't going to know how to handle that either. So they just like will probably talk about it amongst themselves, not with him. They'll just like mentioned that he said that to them. It doesn't need to get brought up throughout the story. It's just kind of like, this is where Charlie's at in his life. He's just started high school and his best friend killed himself, like that is just that is just to show where he's at mentally and that like he has shit going on. Like, what more do you fucking want? Teenagers don't- What do you want them to do? Like, sit down and have like a group therapy session? I didn't start really talking about mental health things with friends until I graduated college, maybe a little bit while I was in college. I would not have been able to talk to a friend about their friend killing themselves.

ryley 27:26

Yeah

kat 27:27

You just you're literally their friend to keep them happy. And like, make sure that they're feeling happy. Like what the fuck? Why is that even a critique of this?

ryley 27:37

Yeah. Yeah, I don't know about that. Yeah, I don't know why either. But also like, friends are, you know, when you do want to talk about itself, they're there to listen and be supportive.

kat 27:47

And he's like, a fucking 14 year old. He's a freshman in high school. Like, that's something I forget too, like, he's supposed to be 14, or like, 15, 14 or 15. Because he's a fucking freshman.

ryley 28:00

Yeah.

kat 28:00

And they're like, 17 year olds. That's not a fucking adult.

ryley 28:03

No.

kat 28:04

I'm sorry, when they- when they turn 18, still not an adult, really. Like you're still a kid. I hated that review.

ryley 28:12

Yeah.

kat 28:13

But we'll move on to the last two that I have. The next one is from Sarah's Backstage Pass. And it's written by Sarah Knight Adamson, I'm pretty sure she did a review of New Moon or Eclipse. This was written in 2012 and Adamson gave the film 3.5 out of five. Saying that the novel was wonderful. So quote, "whether you're struggling through your teens or you struggled 1, 10, or even 50 years ago, The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a relatable tale of navigating the rough terrain to feel comfortable in your own skin." She also really liked the journal entry style narration of just Charlie narrating it through his letters. And then quote, "the casting Gods shined upon this film." The one before this one was the only one that didn't mention any redeeming qualities of the movie, even if it had criticisms. And like, all of the other ones understand that even if they didn't like this film, it's important to young people, so.

ryley 29:08

And had like good aspects to it.

kat 29:12

Exactly.

ryley 29:12

It had like really good moments and really good parts.

kat 29:16

And then the last one that I had was from the independent critic Richard Propew, who gave it a four out of four. And Probes describes the film- describes films that will rattle the cages of your soul and touch you in a deep place and saying that Perks of Being a Wallflower is that kind of film. He believes that it's not cliche at all, and that it's actually just refreshingly honest and authentic, especially compared to a lot of other high school movies that had been made up to that point. The way that Charlie's story unfolds, feels truthful, and that makes it like more painful to watch. And that Patrick and Sam have their own wounds as well, but they seem to exist in a happier place because they have those friendships that they built and they had such a strong friend group throughout them. And Perks was Logan Lerman's finest work to date, according to Richard Propes. He also praises the growth of Lerman's acting ability up to that point. And Watson portrays Sam's free spiritedness very well. "She, for the most part, conquers the American accent," which I'm glad he mentioned, because there are moments when she slips into British just a little bit. She doesn't have the best American accent, but that's fine, she's a great actress. And then the 1991 pop culture references are done in a way that makes the movie feel authentic. He also praises the intimate and revealing camera work that was done by cinematographer Andrew Dunn, as well as the killer soundtrack and terrific score by Michael Brook. And probes ends the review with quote, "with honesty, authenticity, a lack of faux sentimentality, and a sense of affection for its characters and all their glorious quirks. The Perks of Being a Wallflower celebrates the stories that make up our lives and the friends and loved ones who help us survive the journey." End quote,

ryley 31:06

Richard always gets it.

kat 31:07

He does.

ryley 31:08

like anytime Richard has an opinion about a movie. I'm usually within the same.

kat 31:13

Yeah.

ryley 31:14

Like he just gets it.

kat 31:15

Yeah. Like even if a movie is not like the entire Twilight series, like.

ryley 31:20

Oh my gosh, he was honest but like he wasn't like hating on them.

kat 31:24

Yeah. Except for-

ryley 31:25

If he didnt like it he was legitimately like- for Breaking Dawn Part one, right? Everyone hates that.

kat 31:31

Yeah. I was gonna say except for his feelings about Taylor Lautner.

ryley 31:35

Oh, a hatred.

kat 31:38

It was a hatred. But yeah, but he really does. He has. He has really on point opinions about movies.

ryley 31:46

That's why we always mentioned him.

kat 31:47

He- I mean, he's also watched like, almost every movie. We've done.

ryley 31:50

He's watched like every movie. Every time we pick a movie. He has an- he has an article about it, he's our shining star.

kat 31:57

He is shining star. Let's see. I think his- he's really good with his words, I think is, yeah.

ryley 32:05

Yeah, like the way he described everything good about this movie is like, he said it beautifully. Like, I'm not going to- I'm like- he- he encompassed how I feel about this movie.

kat 32:15

Oh, yeah.

ryley 32:15

So I don't have anything more to say than: absolutely, Richard.

kat 32:18

Yeah. That's that's one thing with a lot of these reviews is like, they sum it up pretty decently. So it's like- there's- we don't have a whole lot to add unless they're just being a dick about the movie or something.

ryley 32:30

Yeah.

kat 32:31

But we can-

ryley 32:31

Or misogynistic towards Emma Watson's character, Sam.

kat 32:35

Yeah, literally. But we can move on now to the audience reviews, which are a little, always a little more unhinged.

ryley 32:42

A little spicy.

kat 32:43

A little spicy. So the first one I have is a 10 out of 10 and it is from IMDb and was written in 2012. "An amazing movie that sucks you in and doesn't let go. Words cannot do this justice. Watch this" exclamation point. "I say A plus." And then they quote Emma Watson with the Welcome to the island of misfit toys at the beginning of this. And then they go into the review and say "Charlie is a very, very shy boy just starting his," graduation wait, no, "just starting his freshman year in high school. From his first day he counts down the days till his graduation. He meets two seniors, Sam and Patrick, who help him adjust. There are a few movies that can suck you in the first few minutes. This is one of them. This is a movie that has a character that everyone can relate to, which is very rare these days. There's also movies that are so good that words cannot express how good they are. This is also one of those. I honestly can't express how great this movie is and cannot recommend it highly enough. I was actually fighting back tears almost the entire time. And for me saying that about a non sports movie, that is saying a lot. I really have nothing else to say. Except this is an absolute must see overall. Wow, just wow, I give this an A plus."

ryley 34:03

I love reviews like that. We're like they'll even go like and I'm not usually one to say movies like this are good. I love those.Those are my favorites.

kat 34:11

Like it wasn't Remember The Titans. So it wasn't-

ryley 34:14

But it was still good.

kat 34:15

Still good. Me too. So this one's a little off the wall. And it was just so random that I had to include it. So this one's a one out of 10 from IMDb from 2016. And it is titled "there are almost no shark attacks." And then they say, "actually, I don't think there was a single shark attack. I kept thinking throughout the film. Maybe this is where the shark will come and attack. But I don't even recall a scene where any characters were even near the ocean. The whole story takes place around Pittsburgh, which is in western Pennsylvania. This is an area," renowned, "world renowned for having no sharks. The cast was great, Ezra Miller being the standout but I feel like they shouldn't sell a movie on a marketing campaign around shark attacks, but then have no gosh darn shark attacks. The movie felt as if it were leading up to a trip to the ocean, where Logan lemons character would be attacked by a shark. This motion picture was almost all build up with no payoff. The payoff here being that there were no sharks and no shark attacks. Jaws was a good movie, because it promised shark attacks was suspenseful and had shark attacks. That is how you make a quality cinema."

ryley 35:32

Did eight year old me watch this? And write this review?

kat 35:36

You time traveled, watched Perks of Being a Wallflower?

ryley 35:38

Yeah.

kat 35:39

But I have like a heavy suspicion. This person just thought this would be funny. And I agree. I think it's so silly and random.

ryley 35:46

Yeah, because I didn't know if they had a point. No, to like, oh, this has no shark attacks, or is this this is just a random. I can't tell if it's a child or adult writing this. If, you know, if shark attacks are being put on the table for this movie, it's a zero, because there are no shark attacks.

kat 36:04

True. Like they have a point. Like

ryley 36:06

maybe metaphor metaphorically.

kat 36:09

Metaphorically. Sure.

ryley 36:10

I could go on with that because I don't have the energy to-

kat 36:13

That's fair. I dont either.

ryley 36:14

-Go on with this bit.

kat 36:15

I wasn't- I don't have the energy to entertain it. So this next one is a one out of 10 IMDb titled, "perks of ruining your own classic novella." "The actor playing Charlie was too good looking. I always picture a young." This was written in 2021, by the way. I also- "I always pictured a young Elliot Smith. I read that the director slash writer caved into pressure from the lead actor who was originally cast as another character in the book, probably the jock, who looked like a total wimp next to this lofty, strapping young man. As for the rest of the kids, they were an iPhone away from being typical Millennials rather than 90s misfit slash drama kids. I understand that the book was originally written for a young audience at the time, who could relate and it makes sense that the movie would be targeted to today's youth. But the whole thing just feels phony and forced, especially when they get faux excited about discovering a band like the Cocateu Twins, all while living in the world where they had never heard of David Bowie's heroes. If you liked the book, stay away from this adaptation." And then it says zero out of one found this helpful, which means someone downvoted this

ryley 37:26

Oh, good. Because it's kind of obnoxious.

kat 37:28

Wasn't me, though I would.

ryley 37:31

It's just kind of obnoxious.

kat 37:32

It is.

ryley 37:32

Because like to say- to say the person who wrote the book and then directed the movie for them, for them to critique it and go like, Oh, this- they ruined it, it's like, that's pretty confident of you to do.

kat 37:44

it is very confident. And like, I don't think that they come off like kids from today, at all. They're like, I mean, we couldn't even we couldn't figure out if it was the 80s or 90s but that's literally because we didn't grow up in this time. So we don't know what it would look like. But I don't think how the- I don't think it was very contingent on the time period. But I also don't think that they 100% only seemed like millennial teenagers.

ryley 38:15

I hate when people act like hipsters are this new thing, or like just saying that just appeared in the mid 2000s? I'm like, no, there are pretentious teenagers all throughout history. So don't act like, you know.

kat 38:28

Yeah.

ryley 38:28

Don't act like it's new.

kat 38:30

Yeah. Like, I don't think millennials wouldn't have been in high school in 1991.

ryley 38:38

Probably not.

kat 38:39

But they would have been at some point in the 90s would have been in high school.

ryley 38:43

Yeah, definitely.

kat 38:44

So I don't really understand the point this person's trying to make. I feel like they just

ryley 38:49

Me neither.

kat 38:49

Think that all millennials is anyone who's in their 20s and younger right now.

ryley 38:56

Yeah.

kat 38:57

But yeah, it just seemed a little pretentious. Because I read the book. It's not a bad adaptation of the book. It's just different because there's a lot more-

ryley 39:10

It's a movie.

kat 39:10

-shit happens in the book that they can't just put in there. But anyway, I think the only accurate point they had was the David Bowie heroes thing.

ryley 39:19

Yeah, that's pretty. That's pretty true.

kat 39:22

Okay, so the next one is a one out of 10 from 2016. called "First world problems the movie." First world problems of rich suburban kids the movie, or basically a feature length episode of Degrassi. The movie is filled with such whiny, pretentious, self righteous self pity wallowing, predictable, teenage melodrama that is so falsely attributed to be deep and on point that it's just plain hard to take seriously in any stretch of the word. It's also an enigma. It's a film that many teenagers pretend to identify with, even though it's view of typical teenage American life is so hollow, vacuous and falsified. Not to mention very exploited have real insecurities that teenagers feel which are only used as superficial character defining traits, never to be elaborated on, to gain audience sympathy. It also only touches on teenagers that live in wealthy suburban areas, making for a very narrow field of their target demographic to represent. It comes across as so insincere and manipulative, that it's actually rather infuriating and sufferable." Which to that, I have to say, I understand like the part where it's like they're all wealthy white teenagers, like, sure, sure, that- it could be set anywhere. But the thing is, kids can go through these things and like the any of the characters are going through in any life situation. And I don't think that it needs to be fully elaborated on on why all this shit that's happened to them is, like, a bad thing to happen to them. I think it's just like showing how it's affecting them. And I think that's very effective in, like, helping teenagers relate to it.

ryley 41:01

And it just kind of sounded like they were diminishing whatever they were going through. You know, it's just like, you're it's- it's contradicting.

kat 41:11

Yeah.

ryley 41:11

I think.

kat 41:12

It's like, do you think nobody's gone through something like what they've gone through in the movie?

ryley 41:15

Yeah, like, it's, I don't know. I just didn't, I didn't complete like, I agree with some things. Absolutely, but like, I don't know, I don't know how to respond to this.

kat 41:27

I'm just offended. Like, I love Degrassi, but I love Degrassi, because it's like, cheesy and awful.

ryley 41:33

Yeah, it's stupid.

kat 41:35

Like this has cheesy moments, of course, because it's coming of age movie.

ryley 41:39

Yeah.

kat 41:39

And teenagers are embarrassing sometimes. But like, it is not as bad as Degrassi,

ryley 41:46

No and like it. I don't know. I don't know.

kat 41:50

This next one. It's basically pointing a finger at you.

ryley 41:53

Me?

kat 41:53

It's, it's, it's calling you out?

ryley 41:56

Oh, no.

kat 41:57

Okay, you ready?

ryley 41:58

Yeah, I'm ready.

kat 42:00

It's a one out of 10 from 2012. Titled, "bah."

ryley 42:05

Okay, already, yes, already.

kat 42:08

I'm, "I'm much aware people are going to hate me to death for my opinion about this picture, but I'm saying it anyway. From the get go I already knew it was going to be a movie for the Juno audience."

ryley 42:21

Yeah.

kat 42:24

"Mainly because of the irritating teenagers that were in my cinema session." I don't-

ryley 42:29

What?

kat 42:30

Is this person British? Is that how British people talk or write things? My cinema session?

ryley 42:35

What is that?

kat 42:36

Like I think they just made when they went to the movies to see this. There were a bunch of teenagers

ryley 42:40

Just say movie theater.

kat 42:41

Literally. But moving-

ryley 42:42

Oh my god.

kat 42:43

To continue. "Logan Lerman plays a typical nerd who nobody cares about. And as predictable as it could be. He becomes a nice guy after some while whereas the nice guys become boring." That's how, "that's been used in," They put they just keyboard smashed a bunch of numbers, "amount of past American movies and I really don't understand how IMDb users miss that. Emma Watson is just as boring as she is in every movie. The main couple is completely predictable, irritating, and when they have their first kiss, it was the catalyst for me to leave the cinema room. Something I've never done in my entire life."

ryley 43:22

You sound- this person sounds like they have done that several times. Because if this is the movie you walked out in, I can only imagine the other movies you've watched that thought. Like, it just doesn't make sense.

kat 43:36

Yeah.

ryley 43:36

If you're gonna walk out in this movie, there's so many other movies to walk out.

kat 43:39

Oh, yeah.

ryley 43:40

And I'm sure they have done that.

kat 43:41

Yeah, they keep going. "Surely the soundtrack is also horrible. Be prepared to listen to strange rock likely gangs. If you like rock you won't enjoy it all in all it's just another typical American teenage drama with nothing else to offer you."

ryley 44:00

Why did they expose themselves for having such bad music taste?

kat 44:04

Really though, like.

ryley 44:05

Yeah.

kat 44:06

You shouldn't-

ryley 44:06

You don't have to do that to yourself.

kat 44:08

You shouldn't run around telling people you don't like the music in this movie.

ryley 44:10

Yeah.

kat 44:13

You're telling me you don't like Dear god by XTC?

ryley 44:18

That's so funny.

kat 44:19

Okay. So I think that's all of the IMDB ones I have, the rest are from letterboxd. I think there's one more IMDb in there somewhere, but the next chunk are just from letterboxd. So the next the next one is I start half and it's from 2013, on letterboxd and says in quotes it says "Don't you just love old music" and then the next quote says "things sounds so much better on vinyl," and then they say "actual lines of dialogue spoken in this movie. Fuck you. You self absorbed pretentious douchebags, half a star," for each, "for the three leads who I thought delivered competent performances despite the material they had to work with."

ryley 44:56

Okay, but I've definitely said thos sentences out loud mulitple times in my life.

kat 45:01

You have.

ryley 45:01

I've said it so many times and you know what it's like one of those things where like, I should be embarrassed but I'm not.

kat 45:07

Doesn't it sound so much better on vinyl?

ryley 45:11

I've said that so many

kat 45:12

I know.

ryley 45:14

and not because of this movie, I'll just say that I'll just say it.

kat 45:17

Yeah, I mean your your parents- your family had like a record player already before you saw this movie, right?

ryley 45:23

Like, oh yeah, we I had a record player at 13 years old. So that is before this movie came out.

kat 45:29

That is around the time this movie came out.

ryley 45:31

I know I didn't get one. I didn't get it because of that movie.

kat 45:34

Sure.

ryley 45:35

I got it because I'm a I'm a hipster. I was a hipster.

kat 45:39

Sure. Just so happened that this movie-

ryley 45:41

Just in my own way.

kat 45:42

Just so happened that this movie came out in 2012. And you bought it when you were 13. But whatever.

ryley 45:47

I- Hey, I'm not gonna blame this movie for me being annoying. I was annoying my own way.

kat 45:52

Yeah, fair.

ryley 45:53

By myself.

kat 45:56

I think I got one soon after seeing this movie, so I'm gonna say that I didn't get one because of this movie. But I also-

ryley 46:03

Did you get a mini one?

kat 46:04

I got a Crosley cruiser. I got the one of the suitcase ones.

ryley 46:08

I want to traveling one.

kat 46:10

Yeah.

ryley 46:11

That- It's- it's probably the one of the most obnoxious things I've ever said. But I really want a traveling record player.

kat 46:18

It is. I can imagine-

ryley 46:19

It just sounds fun.

kat 46:19

I can imagine you and Austin in the park dressed also like fucking hipsters just on a picnic blanket playing your fucking vinyls.

ryley 46:28

We would totally do that.

kat 46:29

I know.

ryley 46:30

It sounds nice. I'm gonna pitch it to him. I'm gonna tell you right now we're probably gonna get one soon after, after I say it to him.

kat 46:36

It sounds about right. So this next one's from 2014 as a one star review, and it just says, "Wow, boy, jeez. You guys weren't kidding. It sure makes this painfully accurate parody of an indie movie trailer video seem painfully accurate."

ryley 46:55

I'm kind of like, okay, a lot of these are. They're mean, but like, I get it. And they're only mean because it feels personal.

kat 47:04

Yeah, of course. I know what this movie turned me into.

ryley 47:07

Yeah.

kat 47:08

So I'm not going to fight them on that. But it's- they're-

ryley 47:11

Yeah.

kat 47:12

But if they are critiquing the impact of this movie, I will fight. Okay, so this next one's a half star and it is from 2021. "This movie sucks so bad. Emma Watson can't even save it. And it did worse than just a bad movie. It spawned an army of wallflowers, who believe that they are destined for greatness and different than everyone else. Even though they are," just the, "just people who Naruto run through the halls and listen to 80s music and reminisce about a time they weren't even born in. I hate you Perks of Being a Wallflower. More like Perks of Being a balls flower."

ryley 47:49

All right, sick burn, too.

kat 47:52

We did Naruto run.

ryley 47:52

I never Naruto- I never did that. And they tell you right now. No kid who does Naruto run like that movie as much as we did.

kat 48:00

So I mean, it's possible, but I feel like it was maybe

ryley 48:03

the kids I knew

kat 48:04

10-year-olds

ryley 48:05

that Naruto runned, there's no way they liked that movie. There's no way the kids who did that and I were watching the samemovie.

kat 48:11

No, we did not take the impact of this movie the same way. Okay. But yeah, you got us on everything else though. I can't fight you on that. We never called ourselves wallflowers.

ryley 48:25

Oh, no. We weren't that lame.

kat 48:27

I was. I think I was-

ryley 48:29

We thought it but.

kat 48:31

Okay, so the next one is a three out of 10 from 2013 on IMDb. And it is titled, "A more gritty teen film." "I agree with," other, "the other reviewers who have said that," this in no way, "this in no way is an average high school movie. while others," pretend others, "tend to apply a more rose tinted view or even a version of how adults perceive it to be this film has a feel of being authentic about it. The cast are all pretty much unknowns to me, but play their roles very strongly. They capture all the heart and warmth of the subject matter while dealing with equally dealing equally with some very heavy issues. Emma Watson of Harry Potter fame is is the big name going in though. And once you get used to her American accent, you realize how what a talent she is. My only negative point is that the film should be a certain should be higher than a 12 certificate, which I'm guessing is how they rate movies in other countries." So it should be it shouldn't be PG 13 It should be rated a little higher.

ryley 49:32

Okay.

kat 49:33

"The blurb on the DVD box makes it sound much more cheery but be warned there are some pretty dark and disturbing moments," with the running time, "within the running time. I think a 15 certificate would have been more suitable." So basically just saying like, should have been rated a little bit higher.

ryley 49:48

Yeah. Yeah, maybe. I don't know.

kat 49:52

I don't think a 12 year old should be watching this but I watched it when I was like 12 or 13.

ryley 49:55

That's the thing. I want to say no 12 You shouldn't watch this but I know I was probably around that age so I can't I just be a hypocrite if I just said that, so.

kat 50:04

and the thing is, I don't think that, the- the first time I watched this movie, I don't think that the things that would be darker disturbing really stood out to me as much as they would if I were to watch it when I was older and like understood the world a little bit better.

ryley 50:18

Yeah, I was watching worse movies than that by 12. So it's not like, I mean, I really can't say it should have been rated higher when I was watching it.

kat 50:28

My parents- my parents have been showing me and taking me to see rated R movies since I was like, able to walk because they don't want to call babysitter. They just take me with them. Like I don't think Perks of Being a Wallflower is really gonna hurt.

ryley 50:44

Yeah.

kat 50:46

But the last two I have are generally positive like that last one wasn't completely negative, it just the rating bothered them, which I think is fair

ryley 50:53

It's like a- I think that's a fair thing to talk about. Definitely.

kat 50:58

The next one I have is not as emotional as the one I'm going to read after it. Just want to preface that. It- the next- the one after that's pretty emotional. So I'm gonna start with this one. And we're gonna end on the really emotional one. This is a four star review from 2020. And it just says, this is on letterboxed. "Why don't you go and scroll through 2012 to 2014 tumblr and try and tell me that this wasn't a complete cultural reset. We are infinite bitch."

ryley 51:30

Yes.

kat 51:31

Yes.

ryley 51:32

Yes. I love that.

kat 51:34

I agree.

ryley 51:35

Cultural- Cultural reset.

kat 51:37

It definitely did not help with the amount of like, early 90s nostalgia that was on Tumblr being posted by people who were born in 2000.

ryley 51:50

This movie caused so much damage.

kat 51:53

Oh, yeah. Okay, but this next one is probably one of my favorite reviews of this movie, because it just it really captures how much of an impact this movie can have on people. So it's a five star review from 2018. And it says "Ah yes, this movie about privileged rich kids dealing with their meaningless shallow problems like the lingering trauma of child sexual abuse, dealing with grief over your best friend suicide, being openly gay and," receiving beautiful, "receiving brutal homophobia and dismissal from the man you love. Being cheated on and abandoned in relationships and dealing with depression and crippling social anxieties by making connections and bonding with people to find some form of solace and beauty in the world filled with such deep pain. This movie was the first time I ever saw someone that felt like me. And," it's still one of those, "it's still one of the only ones. This movie has helped me through initial doubts over my diagnosis over depressive periods throughout my life through my intense self hatred and physically violent lapses. It has existed with me and grown with me. And now as I approach the end of my adolescent self, I look back and imagine Charlie and dream for him a world where his traumas healed, and everything became okay. It makes me believe that mine will too." And I'm gonna cry.

ryley 53:06

I start making faces. I couldn't uh- my emotions. But that's why I love this movie.

kat 53:13

Yeah, because of that.

ryley 53:15

Exactly. Like they they said it so beautifully, like.

kat 53:18

They really did.

ryley 53:19

This movie was relatable in the best way possible, like.

kat 53:22

Absolutely.

ryley 53:23

It's wonderful.

kat 53:24

And like, I don't- I don't think I can sum it up better than that. Like, of course, like it's cheesy. But what is a teen Coming of Age movie without the cheesiness? It's-

ryley 53:33

Exactly.

kat 53:34

like, if you were-

ryley 53:36

Gotta be a little bit cringy.

kat 53:37

Yeah.

ryley 53:38

Because teenagers are cringy.

kat 53:41

Yes. Because like, as much as like, because when you're a teenager watching this, you're younger than the characters that you're watching this. You're like, wow, they seem so cool. And then you become an adult, and you realize, Oh, those are just kind of cringy things to say, and that's fine. But it's like, it's like-

ryley 53:44

You're allowed to be, you're allowed to do that.

kat 53:54

It's like what we talked about with Juno. Teenagers are the cringiest people on the planet. And we all go through that phase. We all have had something we did or said that we look back on and we're like, oh, God, you know, so it's, I think that makes them a little more accurate and relatable. And it causes teenagers to say some more cheesy things in real life.

ryley 54:22

You're allowed to be a teenager when you're a teenager. You don't be a teenager when you're an adult. That's it's worse.

kat 54:28

You know what? Well, even worse than that. Don't try to be an adult when you're a teenager teenager.

ryley 54:32

No kidding.

kat 54:32

You know, like, just be a kid. Like if there are any teenagers listening, just let yourself be a teenager. Okay?

ryley 54:38

Yeah.

kat 54:39

Because you're gonna miss this time when you get out of it. Okay? It's, it's worth it to just let yourself feel your adolescence and be dorky and cheesy and cringy. And if you haven't watched this movie, watch this movie, it'll perfectly sum up what we mean. You know?

ryley 54:54

Exactly.

kat 54:54

But yeah, this movie will always hold a very special place in my heart. And I feel very similarly to how the last commenter, not commenter, reviewer did with this movie I don't specifically, you know, relate to Charlie, but there's other characters in it that like, the shit they're going through, was relatable to me as a teenager. So like it has something for everyone, even if it's like the tiniest, miniscule detail about a character is what you relate to. That's fine. I think that's just something that's very, very special. And I'm gonna give this movie a five out of five because it deserves it for me.

ryley 55:28

I would also give it a five out of five. It's a great, it's one of those movies I grew up with that I love, still love to this day. I know- I know what it is and love it for it.

kat 55:39

Yeah, it's just a wonderful, authentic open book of a movie.

ryley 55:43

I forgot to say this in the beginning. But did you also want to cut your hair like Emma Watson's hair and this movie? Because I did. I wanted to pixie cut so bad, but I was too scared to get it.

kat 55:53

I was still recovering from when all my hair got chopped off into a pixie cut without me wanting it cut that way. So I didn't, I personally did not want my hair like that.

ryley 56:05

I still want my hair like that a little bit.

kat 56:07

I just am so like the shortest I've ever gotten my hair was like a little bit above my jawline. And that looked fine. Like it was cute. I think I've gotten close to the length that she had. She just had it shorter in the front.

ryley 56:20

She almost had a mullet didn't she?

kat 56:22

She did kind of because like she would- she would pin back the sides she had like basically what I do with my hair, with my mullet. I don't think I ever really wanted that short of hair at that point because I was like I have to grow my hair out as long as possible to recover from the pixie cut that I got.

ryley 56:38

Yeah.

kat 56:39

So I think now if I were to watch it- it's like every time I watch Amelie I want to cut my bangs. But anyway, if this movie meant anything to you growing up or if you've watched it recently and you felt impacted by it, please let us know. You can find us on Instagram and Tiktok at Easy Bake takes. Our DMS are open, you're welcome to talk to us and comment and let us know how you feel and suggest movies to us. But we also have a YouTube channel that we will be uploading podcast episodes on to. We'll probably using the YouTube channel to make like video essay type things as well. Look out for us on YouTube. Just look up Easy Bake Takes we should show up. And thank you so much for listening. This has been Easy Bake Takes. I'm Kat

ryley 57:23

And I'm Ryley.

kat 57:25

Easy watching out there.

ryley 57:27

Bye.

kat 57:27

Bye.