In 1999, author and director Stephen Chbosky published his award winning book, The Perks of Being A Wallflower. Thirteen years later it earned a movie adaptation and became an even bigger success, with stars Emma Watson, Ezra Miller, and Logan Lerman. Similar to most movie adaptations, not everything in the movie was parallel to that of the book.
This story focuses on Charlie, a high school Freshman, and his small group of friends. In both adaptations his newly acquired Senior friends take him under their wing and guide him through high school. Over time, Charlie begins to fall for Sam, one of the Seniors, which winds up causing all kinds of drama for their friend group. This collection is a perfect coming of age story with all of its raw and relatable aspects.
However, how does the movie compare to its source material?
Movie: Sam and Charlie's Relationship
While both the book and the movie both portrayed their relationship in a good way, the movie just seemed to have a better handle on things. Sam's speech to Charlie towards the end of the movie was a perfect in all possible ways. Even when the two of them weren't dating they had a connection that the book ultimately did not capture as well as the movie.
The way that the producers approached said speech as well as all of their other scenes, including their Christmas scene and their scenes after Charlie went to the hospital, was phenomenal.
Book: Charlie's Mental Health
Though the movie did share a fair amount of light on Charlie's mental state, the book gave fans a greater sense of clarity. In the book readers got a better view of Charlie's life before he met Sam and Patrick which was much needed in order to fully understand Charlie as a person.
In the movie, however, the primary focus was on his relationship with his aunt Helen and briefly discussed his friendships before high school.
Movie: Mr. Anderson
Mr. Anderson was one of the best characters in both the book and the movie, however it felt easier to connect with the movie adaptation. Like the rest of the cast, the role of Mr. Anderson was perfectly cast to Paul Rudd. Mr. Anderson was one of Charlie's first friends, but he was kind to Charlie when everyone else wasn't.
Something worth noting is how he would always give Charlie books. Charlie was a smart kid, nothing in the film or the movie suggested that he wasn't. However, Mr. Anderson brought to light to Charlie's talent and potential as a writer, something that not a lot of his friends and family payed attention to.
Book: Everything About Candace
Candace's storyline in the book was fantastic, and he fans were left a little disappointed when some of her key character points were left out of the movie. For example, in the book Candace finds out that she is pregnant with Ponytail Derek's baby. Given that she's in high school and Derek is a horrible boyfriend, she decides to terminate the pregnancy.
There were also a lot of flashbacks to Charlie's childhood with his siblings that viewers didn't get to see in the movie, and there were some obvious differences in his and Candace's relationship.
Movie: Rocky!
Perhaps one of the greatest things to come of this movie was the seniors (Patrick, Sam, Mary Elizabeth, and Alice) and Bob's production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show! With Patrick front and center as Dr. Frank-N-Furter it was bound to be a success. When Craig, Sam's lousy college boyfriend, bails on being Rocky for yet another time, they ask Charlie to fill his shoes.
Charlie does and his nerves are through the roof (especially during Touch-a, Touch-a Touch-a, Touch Me) but in the end it wound up being one of the best scenes and plot point of the movie.
Book: Patrick
There's no denying that Patrick had his fair share of rough patches in his life, and for the most part the book did a better job at representing that. Of course, both the book and movie are told from Charlie's perspective, so all of this is based off of what he saw or was told.
The book gave readers a better look at what happened during Patrick and Brad's relationship, how things got where they were. The relationship was almost toxic, and the book did much better at conveying that.
Movie: Charlie, Sam, and Patrick's Friendship
Both the movie and the book paid justice to this iconic trio, however the movie won everyone over with the perfect actors and their effortless chemistry. Though the book had more details and scenes for the three, the movie did a better job at capturing what they had.
Charlie's first time talking to Sam and Patrick at the football game was a perfect introduction to his future friends. The scenes after Charlie went to the hospital were beautiful and could not have been done better.
Book: Charlie and His Aunt Helen
It is implied in both the book and the movie that Aunt Helen abused Charlie similar to how she had been abused when she was a child. Though the movie did shed a fair amount of light on the subject, the book simply handled it better. Readers know that Helen had been molested by her father at a young age, and during the movie it is suggested that she did the same to Charlie.
The book provided much more information about Helen and her life, making it much easier to draw connections than the movie.
Movie: The Tunnel and King's
Perhaps two of the most iconic things in the movie, King's and the Tunnel. After first meeting Charlie, Sam and Patrick take him to Kings, a restaurant they frequent. The restaurant hosts some of the best conversations of the film, including Sam telling Charlie and Patrick about her life at Penn State after graduation.
The Tunnel is the first thing viewers see once the movie begins. At the time it seems thoroughly unimportant but as the story progresses it begins to play a very key role. After Homecoming, Sam and Patrick take Charlie to his first party. On the way, they go through the Tunnel and blast David Bowie's "Heroes," a song they had somehow never heard. Sam climbs through the back window of their truck and stands in the bed with her hands in the air as Patrick drives on in protest.
Book: Christmas
One of the best moments in the book, the Christmas party. The group of friends does Secret Santa all week long until the final day when they all meet at Sam and Patrick's house with all of the gifts they had received and their final gift to give. They sat in the game room and drank brandy and exchanged gifts until they all finished and Sam took Charlie in her room to give him his gift: a typewriter.
Sam asks Charlie if he had ever been kissed by a girl, and when he said no she said that she wanted to be sure that the first person who kissed him loved him. She kisses Charlie, even though she is still in a relationship with Craig, and the chapter ends with a poem Charlie read to his friends and was also his last gift to Patrick.