Love, Simon
2.5/5
Directed by: Greg Berlanti
Rated: PG-13
Simon is a boy just like most. He attends high school, he has a dad, a mom and a sister that he actually likes. He's got a group of friends that he hangs out with, and gets iced coffee with every Saturday. Yea, Simon is a boy like most, except he has a big secret...he's gay. He hasn't told anyone, yet, and he's not sure how. He would have kept it a secret until college, if he had not seen an anonymous post on his neighborhood's message board. Someone else in Creekwood is secretly gay. Through anonymous emails, Simon and the mysterious "Blue" form a relationship across digital space. Though things are going well for Simon, he worries about what would happen if people knew his secret? What would happen if Simon's emails were leaked?
Love, Simon's story about people, secrets and the relationships between them is primarily character driven. These characters, however, are illustrated as personas that are defined by their beliefs, hobbies, friends and love lives. Nick Robinson plays Simon in an emotionally distant yet humanely resonant performance. Katherine Langford's portrayal of Simon's best friend, Leah, is not as convincing as Robinson's. Jorge Lendeborg Jr. is little more than likeable as Simon's other friend, Nick. Alexandra Shipp offers a well constructed and amusing performance as Abby. Far more curious than any of these actors and actresses is Logan Miller's enigmatic performance as Simon's high-handed "friend," Martin. Some audiences will find Miller's performance obnoxious and overbearing, while others may see him as a misunderstood and endearing character. Though Love, Simon's cast does an alright job telling this story, there are no stand out or exceptionally noteworthy performances.
A movie's characters, however, could do nothing if they had no setting, and Greg Berlanti's Love, Simon features an interesting depiction of one of this move's settings. Love, Simon has digital space scenes, where one piece of gossip, a message over social media or a secret love email fills the movie screen and places audiences in the characters' mindsets. The way this movie presents the typing of emails and the scrolling through of message boards accurately matches the look and feeling someone may get when they look at their phone or computer screen. It is curious that this same level of well crafted direction does not flow throughout this movie. Love, Simon's visual appeal, aside from some character telling costumes, is not above average. Though the soundtrack's integration into these settings is sometimes smart it is usually ineffective. Some audience members may want to scream, if they have to hear one more "Bleachers" song.
Though most audiences do not care if Love, Simon is technically outstanding, most audiences will want to see if Love, Simon is a true story with a meaningful message and heart. The good news is audience members will be able to relate to Simon's story, through connection with his coming out story or with his feeling of always being on the outside. Love, Simon is a movie that says, "It is alright to be yourself," but Love, Simon gets stuck on defining oneself through others. Each persona in Love, Simon is primarily identified by their friends and relationships. These characters could not exist separate from each other, which seems to make Love, Simon's actual message be, "It is alright to be yourself, as long as people like you." There is a character in this movie who has no friends, acquires friends and then by the end has no friends. He is the antagonist. Though Love, Simon is primarily about the importance of reaching out and finding someone, the movie overlooks what can happen if you reach out and still make no connections.
Verdict: Love, Simon is an alright true movie, but its somewhat misguided message, character personas and unstimulating directing may only make this movie a hit amongst high-schoolers and only for about a year.
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