Following the outpour of support brought in by the Oscar award-winning "Call Me By Your Name," it was no surprise that "love, Simon" would have much the same response. With similar themes of coming out and a central focus on the lives of queer teens, both films have proven to satisfy the long-running demand of LGBTQ+ people for representation on the big screen.
An LGBTQ+ twist on the old standard
Although the style of kitchy teen comedy is nothing new, "Love, Simon," flips the genre on its head in order to give gay teens the same love stories that heterosexual teens have had access to for decades.
17-year-old Simon Spier, played by Nick Robinson (Jurassic World), has his tentative life in the closet turned upside-down when his online correspondences with an anonymous student at school are leaked to a gossip blog. "Love, Simon" explores the role of social media and external pressure as it affects the lives of teens discovering themselves and their sexualities.
While the film follows many of the standard teenage discovery plotlines, "Love, Simon" differs in a very important way. The outing of Simon's sexuality is dealt with powerfully as Simon's own coming out is ripped out from under him. This storyline is unique to that of queer individuals and is often foreign to mainstream films, leaving the audience with the sentiment, "Why is 'straight' the default?" Simon must simultaneously decide to own his sexuality while also grappling with the realization that he will never have the coming out story he dreamed of.
'Love, Simon' has an all-star cast and crew
Based on the critically acclaimed novel titled "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda" by Becky Albertalli, this unique and refreshing take on the romantic comedy was adapted for the screen by "This Is Us" writers, Elizabeth Berger and Isaac Aptaker. The cast is made up of a diverse group of actors whose performances are heartfelt and evocative enough to even rival that of acting veteran, Jennifer Garner.
Garner's scene with her on-screen son following his coming out will have even the coldest-hearted of humans shedding tears.
Breakout Australian actors Katherine Langford ("13 Reasons Why") and Keiynan Lonsdale ("The Flash") are only two of the various cast members with promising futures in acting. Both Langford and Lonsdale have also recently come out as bisexual, contributing to the legitimacy of "Love, Simon"'s claim to inclusivity.
As the tides of the film industry continue to shift and open to those who have previously been dismissed from prominent roles, it seems that queer people of color are beginning to receive the representation they deserve.
