This is boring, and it's partly that believability thing. How many alienated outsiders do you have to gather together before they become insiders? Alternatively, they are all so good-looking, smart and well-heeled, they are winners, surely.

"Like real teenagers, Watson and Miller convincingly move from glowing objects of desire to comic relief to deeply troubled human beings."

I think for a first film this guy who wrote the book and has adapted it for the screen has done a terrific job and I really found these characters sympathetic.

In not following the status quo and for being more honest than angst-ridden, "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" is an extremely soulful and satisfying challenge for the normally fluffy or unrealistic high school setting of movies.