From Page to Screen: The Perks of Being a Wallflower

'Asleep' by The Smiths

I'm just going to say it straight out: I thought the book was better. It is darker, more extreme and confronting and far superior to the movie. Mind you, I really loved the film like the thousands of other teenagers; that is how exceptional the book is. Despite having really depressing themes, the film provided a comforting setting that allowed its audience to feel good by the end, which is a masterful thing for the director, Stephen Chbosky, to be able to do. The unique thing about this film, as opposed to other adaptations, it was directed by the author- who had always planned to turn the book into a movie- which probably contributed greatly into the film's success.

Since Chbosky was the mediator of this epic phenomenon, casting would have undergone a more personal process, of him finding the perfect actors to portray his treasured characters. And we do indeed receive a stellar performance from Logan Lerman (Charlie), Emma Watson (Sam) and Ezra Miller (Patrick), who capture the vulnerability of each heartbreaking character who, we as an audience, empathise with.
However, the reason why I believe the book is better than the movie, because the writing of Chbosky is so poetic. Passages like:

"... looked at the sky and told me to see the stars. So, I looked up, and we were in this giant dome like a glass snow globe, and said that the amazing white stars were really only holes in the black glass of the dome, and when you went to heaven, the glass broke away, and there was nothing but a whole sheet of star white, which is brighter than anything but doesn't hurt your eyes. It was vast and open and thinly quiet, and I felt so small..." 

These beautiful descriptions that create a vivid picture in the mind aren't as vivid in the movie, which I think is a real shame, as it was the quality of the writing that made 'The Perks of Being a Wallflower' such a widely recognised piece of literature, that truly makes the reader feel.
It is a semi-autobiographical tale that is tragically beautiful, making you really delve deep into the hearts of the lost and seemingly isolated characters, and cry for all the sadness, pain and confusion that they are trying to strive through. Nevertheless, you can smile when you realise that these "wallflowers" aren't as alone as they sometimes feel, as they do have each other as a network of support.

A brief synopsis: Set in the early 1990's, the story follows freshman, Charlie through a series of letters that he writes to an anonymous pen pal, where he is able to express the struggles he experiences through high school, while coping with the confusion of the past, discovering friends and finding love and learning that it is okay to be different.

My favourite section of the book was a poem which captures the darkness that juxtaposes the light of the hopeful theme of "We are all infinite" that is woven throughout the story in both novel and film; however the film did not include this piece of brilliant writing.
Overall though, 'The Perks of being a Wallflower" can be considered a janus, holding such darkness and sadness, yet still retains the ability to be an uplifting tale that has connected strongly with teenagers everywhere. Being able to change so many people's lives, 'The Perks of being a Wallflower' is (rightly) considered one of the greatest teen film and novel of the modern day, which I think should be on everybody's bookshelves and dvd collection.