There are tons of love stories out there that contain a beautiful girl who’s trying to get her life together and somehow magically finds her way into the arms of a handsome man. The story contains a stupid best friend, a jealous girl, and an older figure with wise insight. Well, not this love story. Finally, 20th century has finally brought to everyone’s attention with this coming-of-age, motion picture that being gay is more than okay. The beautiful, young, and talented ensemble brought a memorable performance that really showed what life can be like when you’re out of the closet. I like how the movie represented the reality of coming out. It isn’t always sunshine and butterflies, there are negative effects when you’re out of the closet. In this compelling coming-of-age.
“Everyone deserves a great love story.” My favorite quote of 2018. Brought from the novel, Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda 20th Century fox brings the book to the big screen. Love, Simon brings out the vulnerability of a young teen who is struggling to come out of the closet and faces difficulties such as blackmail and exclusion from family and friends along the way. Our protagonist Simon Spier starts talking to an anonymous closeted student online and the two form a relationship that gets the audience rooting for them throughout the movie.
This maybe an unpopular opinion, take it or leave it but this movie is relative to teenagers as close it can get. Teenagers love relatable content, because most teenagers feel like an outsider. And this movie perfectly represents that, since the protagonist feels like an outsider because of his sexual orientation young audience members can relate to that. Even with the ensemble, his best friend Leia mentions in the movie that when she’s in a party she sees everyone but is on the other side. That scene really hits home to those who aren’t extroverts and can’t socialize easily. Not just a sexual orientation dilemma, it proves that there are more people like that and watching that on the big screen brings smiles and comfort those who feel it.
What I admired about this movie was the simplicity of that life isn’t a fairy tale. Especially high school. Is this movie just a little cheesy? Yes. The most entertaining ones are, that is what grabs the attention of teenagers these days. Along with its trendy vibe, the soundtrack to the movies in my opinion fits perfectly. There weren’t any mainstream songs that you would recognize from the radio. The teenagers in the movie did not seem mainstream and looked like they were on the indie old type of music. Which I believe put a good factor onto the movie. The chemistry between the characters is infallible, it is explained that the group Simon hangs out with has known each other for a long time and because of the actors/actress’s skills it seems like it. The cast has this chemistry that makes them seem like a real family. I believe that is a strong factor on why it makes this movie worth watching.
As Simon and his new pen pal Blue draw closer and closer throughout the movie, the physical expressions in Simon’s face is noticeable. I believe what really won over the hearts of the audience is it’s charismatic ensemble, it’s soundtrack, and its unique storyline. There aren’t many movies out there that can reach out to homosexual teens. The movie brings out a unique style of coming for the protagonist’s love interest. Instead of a boring sit-down talk there is a Ferris wheel scene that reveals the man behind the computer, Blue. The most beautiful scene in my opinion was when Simon and his father talk about how his father missed it. Because of their close bond the Spier family has, his father feels guilty for missing it. There are homosexual men out there who probably had a hard time coming out to the father, so this scene is a good example to young homosexual boys to go for it. To be who you really are, not who you think you were meant to be.
With the all the suspects that could lead up to the reveal of Blue. Most teens can relate to the struggle of finding the person that is crushing on them Love, Simon has comically introduced a new right of passage that brings a new-found respect to those who love themselves and aren’t afraid to show it. There is character growth with the whole ensemble due to the fact that they all learn how to get over their selfish needs. The performances of the actors deserve a real nice pat on the back because of the positive support throughout the movie despite the conflict in the middle. After hitting 66.32 million in the box office, it is no secret that this story found it’s way to our hearts. As you watch the movie you just think to yourself what Simon said “Everyone deserves a good love story” so even if you walked into the theatre alone, you walk out with high hopes for the future realizing that your love story is yet to be written.