Creepy, kooky, mysterious and very gay - Dallas Voice
Creepy, kooky, mysterious and very gay - Dallas Voice
Creepy, kooky, mysterious and very gay - Dallas Voice
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26 dallasvoice.com • 09.28.12<br />
l+s screen<br />
Late bloomer<br />
Gay author Stephen Chbosky finally adapts queer teen novel for the screen<br />
NOVEL TO SCREENPLAY TO DIRECTION | Chbosky, left, directs his teen stars — including ‘Harry Potter’<br />
alum Emma Watson — in the film version of his young adult novel ‘The Perks of Being a Wallflower.’<br />
Stephen Chbosky’s 1999 young adult novel The Perks of Being a Wallflower touched many queer<br />
readers’ hearts with its positive, honest depiction of Patrick, a charismatic <strong>gay</strong> teenager. The<br />
book’s profound messages — of acceptance, the benefits of being different <strong>and</strong> overcoming<br />
emotional trauma — actually saved some of those LGBT readers’ lives (more on that below). Due to<br />
Wallflower’s accurate reflection of teen life <strong>and</strong> language, many conservatives deemed it obscene,<br />
fighting to (<strong>and</strong> sometimes succeeding) in banning it from schools <strong>and</strong> libraries. From 2006 to 2009, it<br />
was on the American Library Association’s annual list “Top 10 Most Frequently Challenged Books.”<br />
A whole new generation is soon to experience Wallflower through its cinematic adaptation, which<br />
Chbosky wrote <strong>and</strong> directed. Logan Lerman stars as Charlie, an emotionally damaged Pittsburgh<br />
high school freshman, who falls in with a clique of seniors including Sam (played by Emma Watson)<br />
<strong>and</strong> her <strong>gay</strong> stepbrother, Patrick (Ezra Miller). Patrick, who performs as Frank-N.-Furter at local<br />
Rocky Horror Picture Show screenings, is also having a cl<strong>and</strong>estine relationship with closeted jock Brad<br />
(Johnny Simmons), which Charlie learns of <strong>and</strong> grows even closer to Patrick. These friendships <strong>and</strong><br />
experiences ultimately help Charlie come to grips with a buried secret <strong>and</strong> end a crippling silence.<br />
Co-creator of the TV series phenomenon, Jericho (which may yet be revived again as a Netflix series),<br />
Chbosky also penned the screenplay for Rent. Here he discusses bringing Wallflower to screen,<br />
Miller’s recent coming out <strong>and</strong> saving LGBT lives through his work. •<br />
— Lawrence Ferber<br />
<strong>Dallas</strong> <strong>Voice</strong>: Was the character of<br />
Patrick based on someone you<br />
knew? Chbosky: There was a person<br />
I knew in college who inspired a<br />
good deal of Patrick <strong>and</strong> the experiences<br />
I wrote about. Patrick was a<br />
combination of that friend <strong>and</strong> the older brother I always<br />
wished I had. It was important to me in the<br />
book, <strong>and</strong> especially the movie, that Patrick be the<br />
coolest character in the school. I remember growing<br />
up I loved Ferris Bueller <strong>and</strong> thought that type of person<br />
— who was so confident, self-assured, <strong>and</strong> free<br />
<strong>and</strong> generous to his friends — I wanted that in<br />
Patrick.<br />
I interviewed Ezra a year ago <strong>and</strong> he was <strong>very</strong> open<br />
...BeiNG A WAllflOWeR<br />
Ezra Miller, Logan Lerman.<br />
Rated PG-13. 100 mins.<br />
Opens today at the Angelika<br />
Mockingbird Station.<br />
about his same-sex experiences.<br />
More recently, he just went ahead<br />
<strong>and</strong> actually said, “I’m queer.” I<br />
love Ezra as a person <strong>and</strong> actor.<br />
Ezra brings more life, heart <strong>and</strong> freedom<br />
to Patrick than I could have<br />
hoped for. He’s the type of person to always tell <strong>and</strong><br />
live the truth, whatever it is. The more people that<br />
speak the truth about themselves, the less silence<br />
there is <strong>and</strong> more people will live better lives. Ezra’s a<br />
role model on that level.<br />
What about Johnny Simmons as closeted Brad,<br />
who is loathsome <strong>and</strong> allows his jock friends to<br />
abuse Patrick, but for whom you also feel compassion.<br />
Johnny’s a great actor. Listen, that charac-