Directed
by Greg Berlanti
Written
by Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger
Starring
Nick Robinson
Normally
my Review Tuesday posts deal with books I’ve read recently (or not
so recently, if I’m strapped for time!) but today I want to talk
about a movie I saw last week, “Love, Simon”.
You
may already know about this film, as it has done really well at the
box office. All I can say is, everything good you’ve heard about
this movie, you can multiply by ten. “Love, Simon” is
simultaneously heartfelt and romantic, brutally honest, and
laugh-out-loud funny. I viewed it on a long plane flight. Every so
often the guy across the aisle would give me a weird look when I
broke out into guffaws.
The
story revolves around and is told from the perspective of Simon
Spier, a high school senior in a suburb near Atlanta. As Simon
repeatedly reminds us, he’s a typical, normal teenager. He gets
along well with his liberal parents and younger sister. He has a
small, close knit group of friends, including Leah whom he has known
since childhood, Nick, and newcomer Abby. Like any high school kid,
he deals with bullies, misfits, demanding teachers and nosy assistant
principals. He’s counting the days until graduation, after which he
plans to go to college in Los Angeles.
One
thing sets Simon apart, though. He’s secretly gay. He’s known
this for several years—ever since he started having wet dreams
about Daniel Radcliffe—but he has never shared this information
with anyone. The knowledge becomes an increasingly heavy burden. Even
though he realizes his parents and friends are unlikely to think less
of him, he cannot muster the courage to come out to them.
An
anonymous post on the school blog, written by another closeted gay
student, changes everything. Simon begins to correspond with the
other guy, who calls himself Blue, using a pseudonym of his own.
Finally Simon has someone with whom he can share his desires, his
fears and his uncertainty. Indeed, his online relationship with Blue
becomes the focus of his life, as he tries to determine the identity
of his mysterious correspondent.
When
a socially awkward classmate (Martin) accidentally reads and records
one of Simon’s emails to Blue, Simon’s life starts to unravel.
Martin resorts to blackmail to get closer to Abby. Terrified of being
outed, Simon finds himself lying to and manipulating his best
friends, with unhappy consequences.
The
film ends happily,
with everyone learning a few lessons. However, it’s not hard to
imagine a less satisfactory conclusion. LGBTQ
teens attempt suicide almost five times more often than heterosexual
youth. Early in the film, Simon’s ex-quarterback father makes
tasteless jokes about homosexuals. If these reflected his real
feelings, Simon might well have ended up estranged from at least one
of his parents (though it’s hard to believe his touchy-feely
therapist mother would ever reject him). Given the ridicule directed
at the high school’s only openly gay student Ethen
(who responds with delightful, razor-sharp sarcasm),
Simon’s last term
before graduation could have been a miserable period of harassment
and bullying. Simon is
one of the lucky ones.
All
this might make it sound as though “Love, Simon” is a serious
consideration of the problems of gay youth. That’s not exactly
wrong, but there’s nothing heavy or preachy about this movie. As I
noted above, it has some hilarious segments. For instance, in one
brilliant sequence, Simon wonders why it’s only LGBTQ people who
have to come out and imagines what it would be like if his friends
were forced to reveal to their parents that they were heterosexual.
It’s
been decades since I was in high school, but I remember quite clearly
both the excitement and the angst. I was particularly interested in
the film’s portrayal of what high school is like today, in this era
of mobile phones, social media and instant communication. The
interactions between students, their concerns and their interests,
were less different than I would have expected.
The
film’s cast does an amazing job. I want to particularly mention
Natasha Rothwell who plays the drama teacher Ms. Albright with
wonderful intelligence and humor. Her streetwise, snarky portrayal of
an actress who’s exchanged a stage career for a teaching position is pitch perfect.
Overall,
I loved this film. It’s hugely entertaining, without compromising
its very timely message. If you haven’t seen it yet, put it on your
list. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.
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