FILM REVIEW: Love, Simon (2018)

Directed by Greg Berlanti

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As I sat and watched Love, Simon, I was particularly taken by the audience’s vocal and emotionally visible involvement in the drama that unfolded on the screen – many a hearty laugh were had, tears were shed, even some enthusiastic applause here and there. I must admit that this energy was all-too contagious, as I found myself joining once in a while (albeit, in my typical reserved fashion).

Love, Simon is a good movie. Not a great movie, but a good movie. As far as LGBT and coming of age/teen films go, there is no new territory covered here, but there is enough good humor and raw emotion that make it a worthwhile experienced, further driven by excellent performances all across the board.

The story is narrated by our protagonist, the teenage Simon (Nick Robinson). He lives a comfortable suburban life with his wonderful and loving family. At school, he has a very close-knit group of friends. Though everything is going just fine, Simon has a big secret: he is gay. Though he doesn’t appear to be tormented or tortured by his sexuality, it is a source of confusion and awkwardness for him, uncertain as to whether he should “come out” or not – it doesn’t help that there are two bullies at school who continuously pick on the outer-than-out gay kid (though the latter is more annoyed than crestfallenby their antics).

A blog post has revealed that there is a fellow gay student at Simon’s high school, who calls himself “Blue”. Here is the perfect opportunity for Simon to discuss his sexuality (anonymously, at that) comes before him. Simon contacts Blue via email, dubbing himself “Jacques”. Though he desperately wants to know who Blue is, Simon is more concerned with actually talking than flirting. A tricky situation occurs when Simon leaves his email open on a public computer to be discovered by resident weird kid Martin (Logan Miller). Martin has a huge crush on Simon’s close friend Abby (Alexandra Shipp), and this just might be his ticket to her heart (according to his instincts). He takes screenshots of Simon’s emails and threatens to publicize them unless Simon assists in getting Abby to like him.

What I am about to say will sound patronizing at first: Love, Simon from start to finish feels like it was written by high school students. Hold your wind – bear with me for just a moment. Yes, this is a criticism, but it is also a commendation. You’ll read why.

In my opinion, one of the most important factors of a great film is that of timelessness. To get an idea of what I’m talking about, think to yourself “Would an audience from 40-50 years ago be able to watch and enjoy this without too much alienation from the differences in time period?” In the case of Love, Simon, the hypothetical audience would need a roadman, as the film is over-indulges in references to modern fads and trends that will most likely be outdated in a few years.

Granted, I understand that this is a mainstream film for a mainstream audience, but there are better ways of going about catering to a mainstream audience without such practices. Though not a commercial smash, the absolutely wonderful The Spectacular Now is a perfect example timelessness and commercial accessibility. On a side-note, Love, Simon loves to show off its trendy soundtrack. It’s actually got decent music, but it is forced to the point that it often comes across as that one kid on YouTube who says “I’m 12 and I love this music.” It gets rather tiresome.

Love, Simon is suffocated by this excessive indulgence in trendiness in its first half, but the second half is almost a whole different story (without feeling like a different movie). Remember my remark about his film feeling like it was written by teenagers? Granted, I doubt it actually was, but there was too much mindset in appealing to high school audiences. What I was impressed by was the film’s integrity – Love, Simon knows exactly when the trends, fun and games need to put the big boy pants on and take the material seriously. In spite of a couple of plot points (being Martin’s blackmailing and the bullies), Love, Simon never cops out with cheap melodrama, making the overall scenario refreshingly…real. But it’s not all tear-jerking drama, as Love, Simon knows when to lighten up, and there’s plenty of wonderful humor – I found myself always laughing with and at Logan Miller’s Martin, one of those characters that’s hard to love, but harder to hate (I would also like to see a movie about this kid).

What results is drama that becomes very touching. This is made all the more powerful by a wonderful cast. Maybe not anything Oscar-worthy, but there are excellent performances all across the board. I’ve already mentioned Logan Miller, but I’m primarily concerned about Nick Robinson, who hits all the right notes for Simon, who constantly narrates how he’s “normal, just like you”. Robinson treats the character as such, and he really feels like an average teenager, making his inner debacle more real and engaging. And then there’s Natasha Rothwell as the hilarious yet badass Ms. Halbright (I won’t spoil the badass part).

I ultimately feel like Love, Simon never hit take-off speed and reached the excellent film it could have been. Then again, I’m somewhat desensitized by LGBT dramas as there are plenty of them out there (and some great ones at that). That said, it was good enough that it warrants a recommendation from me. Let me put it this way: do I think this is the LGBT film that a young audience deserves? I think they deserve better, but Love, Simon will suffice in the meantime.