By Kevin Ludy ’19
After unintentionally seeing it twice in one week, I’m just going to get this out of the way: I really, honestly, loved this movie. The movie “Love, Simon” is truly groundbreaking and provides both entertainment and an emotional roller coaster, all bundled in an engaging teen drama.
The main character in the movie is Simon Spier, played by Nick Robinson. Spier is an everyday teen: he attends classes, hangs out with his friends, goes to parties, has an iced coffee addiction and the list continues. On the outside, he looks like everyone else, except for one big secret: he’s gay and has not told any friends or family this important aspect of his life.
When another anonymous student on a message board also reveals that he is gay, Spier begins communicating with him under an alias, and soon their relationship is born. Navigating through announcing who he is to the world and pursuing a relationship turns into one with multiple people involved that includes blackmail, distress and drama.
This movie feels very realistic. The town it is set in is reminiscent of suburbs like Westport, and watching it draws viewers in. It also is made in a way that you can see and feel Simon’s struggles, even if you have never been in his position before. Looking around at the sold out theatre, groups of moms, teenagers, kids and people on dates were all engrossed to the movie. During the sad scenes a collective sob went throughout the theatre, along with every gasp and smile the rest of the movie brings.
The acting in the movie was top notch. Robinson gave possibly his best acting performance to date going way over 2017’s “Everything, Everything” and 2015’s “Jurassic World.” Some other standout actors were “13 Reasons Why” star Katherine Langford, whose character Leah is Simon’s childhood best friend. The featured teachers in the film, being the principal (played by Tony Hale) and the acting director (played by Natasha Rothwell) are extremely funny and help develop the world of “Love, Simon.”
The movie was able to give enough character development to every cast member which made you understand what drove their actions, showing how this movie was expertly planned and scripted.
Another major positive aspect of the movie was the soundtrack, which was curated by singer and producer Jack Antonoff. Antonoff was able to choose songs that perfectly fit the moods and settings in the movie, and added to the realistic setting the director was going for.
I do admit, however, that some of the things that take place are a little unrealistic. Considering what you learned about the characters, some actions they took seemed backwards, but these scenes and actions were few and far between, and viewers are quick to get swept up in the next scene and move on from what happened.
This movie is unprecedented on so many levels, while still feeling true to the “coming of age” movie category. One groundbreaking feature is that this is the first mainstream movie to feature a gay teen protagonist that was funded by a big movie company like 20th Century Fox, and with this comes the possibility of representation for people of different walks of life in future movies. If you enjoyed movies like “The Edge of Seventeen” or “Lady Bird,” chances are you would like this movie as well.
I would give “Love, Simon” an extremely strong nine out of 10.
