The Perks of Being a Wallflower appears in an aspect ratio of approximately 1.85:1 on this Blu-ray Disc. This turned into a generally good but not great image.
Granted, I suspect the Blu-ray replicated the source as intended. I got the impression the filmmakers wanted to deliver a somewhat “worn” look to the film to fit the period setting.
In any case, this meant sharpness that was mostly satisfying. The movie rarely felt particularly precise, it still came with fairly accurate delineation.
No issues with jagged edges or moiré effects appeared, and I saw no edge haloes. Print flaws also remained absent.
Colors leaned toward a fairly heavy amber/orange vibe, one that seemed oddly ugly. Again, this seemed intentional, but it didn’t give us appealing hues, even if the disc replicated them as desired.
Blacks could feel a bit crushed, but they usually brought reasonable depth, and shadows showed positive clarity. This was a more than watchable image but not a particularly attractive one.
Don’t expect a lot of zing from the low-key DTS-HD MA 5.1 soundtrack of Perks. The soundscape emphasized music and ambience much of the time.
Even “big” scenes – like parties or football games – lacked a lot of real involvement. The soundfield seemed adequate but not especially impactful.
Audio quality worked fine, with speech that appeared natural and distinctive. Music boasted nice range and punch.
As noted, effects lacked much to do, but they felt accurate and clear. This wound up as a decent track that largely suited the material.
As we shift to extras, we locate two separate audio commentaries. The first comes from writer/director Stephen Chbosky. He provides a running, screen-specific look at story/characters and autobiographical elements, cast and performances, sets and locations, music, period details, editing, and related domains.
With an honest, empathetic tone, Chbosky provides a strong commentary. He mixes production notes with other insights to turn this into an engaging and informative chat.
Note that Chbosky explains why Charlie doesn’t know Bowie’s “’Heroes’” but his defense of this concept doesn’t satisfy. The movie’s problem stems from the notion Charlie’s older hipster pals don’t know the song, and that continues to stretch credulity.
For the second commentary, we find Chbosky and actors Logan Lerman, Emma Watson, Ezra Miller, Johnny Simmons, Mae Whitman and Erin Wilhemi. All sit together for this running, screen-specific discussion of sets and locations, story and characters, cast and performances, influences, music and connected topics.
Don’t expect much from this meandering track. Most of the useful info already appears in Chbosky’s conversation, so this becomes little more than a giddy discussion of how much everyone loves the film. A few new nuggets emerge but not enough to turn this into a quality commentary.
A featurette called Best Summer Ever spans five minutes. It brings notes from Chbosky, Watson, Miller, Lerman, Whitman, and Wilhelmi.
“Ever” examines the cast and their experiences. A few insights emerge but most of this feels fluffy.
12 Deleted Scenes occupy a total of 23 minutes, 11 seconds. For the most part, these include either extensions of existing moments or scenes that add a bit of development to characters.
Most seem fairly superfluous, though a couple work better. In particular, it seems good to get a flashback look at Charlie’s dead friend Michael.
We can watch these with or without commentary from Chbosky. He relates notes about the sequences and why he cut them, so he adds good information.
Three examples of Dailies arrive as well, and these span a total of seven minutes, four seconds. These offer raw shots for three scenes.
None of these seem vaguely crucial. Nonetheless, they offer some entertainment value.
Like the “Deleted Scenes”, we can also view the “Dailies” with or without commentary from Chbosky. He gives us useful background about the clips.
The disc opens with ads for Warm Bodies, Step Up: Revolution, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 and The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 Extended Edition. We also get the trailer for Perks.
More a collection of high school clichés than a real story, The Perks of Being a Wallflower quickly turns tedious and annoying. The characters never feel real and they make this a meandering, obnoxious affair. The Blu-ray comes with generally positive picture and audio as well as a good mix of bonus materials. The movie ends up as a melodramatic dud.