Love, Simon is the kind of queer film I wish was available to me as a tween/young teen. Soon to be a cult classic, the film creates a laugh-out-loud funny yet heart rendering portrayal of not only being young and queer but transitioning more into the “person you truly are.”
The story takes place in a suburban area with the protagonist Simon Spier, played by Nick Robinson being “just like you, but with a secret.” His secret, no prizes here, is that he is gay. Finding out on a popularly used forum that another guy at his school is also in the closet, pen named ‘Blue’, Simon decides to strike up a pen pal relationship resulting in the two falling in love. The story predominantly follows Simon coming into his own and trying to discover who the mysterious Blue is.
With great performances from both the supporting and main cast, including Nick Robinson as Simon Spier and Alexandra Shipp as the pimped out friend, Abby Suso. The representation of POC although was very good with one Shipp being one of the main cast members and one of the possible love interests Keiynan Lonsdale playing Bram Greenfeld. The direction from Greg Berlanti and amazing soundtrack and musical composition by Rob Simonsen are great features of this heart warming film.
Although most likely not winning any major awards, it’s the kind of film that makes being queer feel more normal and depicts a coming out that is scary not because it is life threatening but because of one’s own perception of self. Although homophobia is shown within the social sphere of Simon’s world, it is something that even he admits is less to do with his worries about lack of acceptance and more to do with an identity crisis. I think to me this seems like a very relatable coming out story as when I realised that I am queer myself, I knew my parents would love and accept me, but I worried about what it meant for me as a person and how it shifted my identity. Love, Simon shows something that I think is especially important for an increasingly accepting, liberal viewer: coming out is not about becoming someone else but being more open and comfortable with who you truly are.
A great watch for any age and background, Love, Simon is the next must-see teen movie classic. Three and a half stars.
Arran (18)