Movie Monday: The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky

Movie Monday is a new feature at Cover2CoverBlog where I talk about Book-Movie Adaptations. If you have any recommendations let me know in the comments. 

This feature may contain SPOILERS to both the books AND the movies so read carefully.

Today's comparison is... 

The Perks of Being a Wallflower

 

THE BOOK The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky Publisher: MTV Books and Pocket Books Publication Date:  1999

THE MOVIE The Perks of Being a Wallflower Staring: Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, and Ezra Miller Release Date: 2012

Another Warning: SPOILERS & TRIGGERS AHEAD

The Perks of Being a Wallflower for me was one of those books that really had everything I needed to hear when I read it - that was when I was in high school.
I saw the movie eventually but really didn't want to initially - I felt like it would ruin the feelings the book gave me. Eventually my curiosity won and I saw it.

A few key things to note though - the author directed the movie, so it should be a pretty close representation, right? Yes, it was but I had very different feelings about them...

The movie was good, but it just didn't give me the feels the way the book did. There was something dismal and melancholy about the book that just sat with me and has over the years. I remember the book being depressing but that was what I needed at the time - I was angsty, so was the book. It was nice.

The movie on the other hand had a more comedic feel to it. It was fanciful - if that makes sense a lot of the emotional moments are left out of the movie and even song choices have changed making the movie more light feeling.

Here are a few instances of changes:

• The Book is written as letters, whereas the Movie is more of a narrative - obviously they had to adapt to a different media, this was fine for me. But you learn more about Charlie on paper than on screen.
•  In the beginning of the book you learn that a friend of Charlie's has committed suicide. It is right there out in the open. In the movie it takes a while before you learn that tidbit of info.
• The tunnel scene in the book uses the song Landslide by Fleetwood Mac whereas the movie used We Can Be Heroes by Bowie - this changed the mood of this scene a good amount. Like I mentioned, it's more light.
• There is a beautiful poem that Charlie gives Patrick for Christmas in the book, in the movie - nope.
• I think the biggest change was how Charlie remembers his abuse and abuser. In the book, he and Sam are getting very close to having sex and he has a mental breakdown right before. In the movie, it is downplayed a bit, he realizes before anything too serious happens with Sam. Although, either way he ends up in the mental hospital.

The movie has its 'perks' (LOL) though, it is lighter and more audience ready. It was quirky and funny, and the characters and casting were amazing. I just really had the feels for the book.

Have you read Perks? What did you think of the book? Did you enjoy the movie? Let me know in the comments.