Love, Simon (2018)

Absolutely Fantastic

It's funny, it's tense, it features two great performances from two actors and the director expertly creates a web of odd tension where you actually don't know what is happening for the majority of the run time.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

If I need to use three words to explain "Love, Simon," I would say beautiful, beautiful and beautiful. It is such a simple, easy and inspiring story. Just for the sake of making a point, you don't need to complicate things. Make it simple with a powerful message. This film shows us, simple things can be excessively nice. "Love, Simon" seems to be a film about a gay teenager who struggles with his secret because of the pressure of the society, but the film is actually much more than that. It is about all the people who are different than the society, who struggle to fit in, who fail to understand its rules and who have tough time to obey. Most of the time, once again because of the rotten society, its people and its rules, different people think something is wrong with them, and when they don't have the necessary support from their friends and society, they commit suicide or develop self-hate. Films like "Love, Simon" encourages this kind of people, who are not accepted by the society, or who think they will not be accepted by the society, to think there is absolutely nothing wrong with them. "Love, Simon" shows the power of cinema over people. While delivering a powerful message, it also uses an incredibly simple story and language. This film is for everyone. It is for friends, family, people, young or old. It is sharing a universal message. If there is one negative thing to say about "Love, Simon," it is the fact that in real life these struggles may not be solved that easy. Thanks to Simon's awesome friends and family, he gets over the fact that he is gay easily, but imagine a contra-scenario where his family wouldn't accept such a thing, or if he wasn't welcomed by his family, then what do you think would have happened? World is not about America, there are societies who are socially and culturally way behind them, and in those countries, there are people with secrets too. I'm pretty sure that "Love, Simon" is banned in some countries."Love, Simon" is eligible for competing in the 91st Academy Awards. In my opinion it will have nominations for at least two categories. Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role, Nick Robinson, and Best Motion Picture of the Year. I have always wanted to watch critically-acclaimed films in advance, and guess about their nominations, this way I am able to test my knowledge about cinema. Anyway, getting back to the film, "Love, Simon" shows the entire world that a teenager film doesn't need to be stupid and meaningless and only about sex and getting laid. I like the facial expressional and overall performance of Nick Robinson. His performance makes all the difference when combined with this delightful story. Director of the film Greg Berlanti is a very experienced producer but it is not easy to say the same thing when it comes to directing. Before "Love, Simon" he was the director of The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy and Life as We Know It. However, you might have heard his name as the producer of TV series The Flash, Legends of Tomorrow and Arrow if you are interested in Superhero TV Series. I am not, that's why I haven't heard of him until now, but I must say that, as a director of "Love, Simon," he did a very good job. Conversations are up to date and relevant, he doesn't interfere in the story too much and manages to harmonize all the positive components of the film, like the story, performances, situations, reactions and atmosphere. He knows how to get the very best out of an actor.The comma between Love and Simon makes a huge difference. Because in the story, protagonist falls in love with another gay colleague with whom he exchanges mails, and he always signs the mail by saying Love, Jacques, which means Simon in French. Without the comma the name turns out to be Love Simon, but Simon doesn't need anybody's love because he is strong enough by himself. This film is said to be the first film by a major Hollywood studio to focus on a gay teenage romance, but I have to say that "Love, Simon" is not a gay romance. It is a film of self-struggle and standing up for yourself. There is no romance between gay people in the film, I mean this is not the purpose of "Love, Simon" to be understood as a production about gay people. Because it is not. "Love, Simon" is one of the best films of 2018 and a very useful one too, in the means of creating public awareness. I had a lot of fun watching it.

It's clearly not a movie for my age, but I can see the importance of the subject coming out of the closet with a lighter, humorous movie. If I was that age, I'm sure that this movie would console me by taking on gay.Simon's point of view very well demonstrated by the direction. A movie that surprised me!

In a few words, a beautiful and true love story. In the beginning I was not sure what to expect from this movie but after a few minutes it was clear; the producers told a good story that needs to be heard more often. As said before we need more movies likes these. And also a reminder from me, love yourself the way you are, because your are amazing and deserve to be loved just like everyone else!

I knew nothing about this movie before I watched it. My wife heard it was great, gave me a brief synopsis of what it was about, so I said sure why not. I planned on catching up on some work emails while it was on in the background.Holy shit - I loved this flick. I thought it was awesome. I'm a sucker for romcoms anyway, but this movie had me laughing hysterically at points, then tearing up at others. Also, I didn't get any work done - my eyes were glued to the screen.The acting was fantasic - the kid that played Simon was so likeable. His parents were so fun to watch, and that speech his Mom gave him made me fight back some tears. The soundtrack was great, the pace was perfect, and it was just a fun damn movie to watch.Now, mind you, I'm a middle aged white dude, married with three little girls, who leans Republican, and voted for Trump. Say what you want... this was a great movie.Trying to raise my girls in this world, they are young and don't know the social difference between race, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, etc. My point is, I think this movie is important, and when they become old enough, I want them to see Love, Simon, not as a "gay" movie", but just another romantic comedy that happens to have a main character who is gay and is trying to find himself. That simple.Love, Simon, in my opinion, will go down in history as a great/memorable teenage flick like "Say Anything", "Reality Bites", "Can't Hardly Wait", etc.A fun, well acted movie, with awesome music that made me laugh, cry, and really root for the main character...who just so happens to be gay. And in my mind, and hopefully my kids' minds, is as normal as anything..