Con amor, Simon

Finally. A Hollywood studio producing a big LGBT romantic comedy.

Based on the YA book this film is really something special.

Not preachy, but heartfelt, this film deserves the hype and love from fans it has in turn earned.

Well worth a watch.

Love, Simon is a very touching, heartwarming story about a relatable teenager with a big secret. This film is entirely relatable for anyone who has been in high school. Viewers don't need to share Simon's exact problems in order to enjoy this film. That's what makes it so special! The characters are all well-thought out and the story is very funny, interesting, and emotional. This is a film for everyone!

I didn't think I would, but - I loved it.

The first 15 minutes or so, I cringed a few times, thinking it was going to be too clever, too cute, and too precious for its own good.

But even my cynical, hard-hearted self soon melted with the realization that the intelligence, depth, and charm were all legitimate and sincere.

I left the theater with a full heart and am confident "Love, Simon" will remain with me as one of my favorites of this new film year.

Wow...this was such a mixed experience for me. I frankly hated (no joke) roughly the first third to half of "Love, Simon," but, when more depth and consequences of actions are portrayed in the second half of the film I became engaged and loved it, up to and including the ending, which is as sweet and touching a conclusion as you hope for in a rom-com. I realize this is meant to be an homage to 80's teen films, so I tried to forgive the too-pat, flat, one-dimensional stereotypical characters frenetically surrounding the more grounded Simon (and there are far too many of them for you to have time to remember or care about), but the snarky, too-cool, and "clever" dialogue really got to me, and the film lost me for that first period. But then the consequences of Simon's selfish and, well, ultimately cruel actions toward his loving friends and family kicked in, and the resulting scenes swept me up and delivered me nicely to that sweet ending. I would likely watch this again, but with the awareness that I'd be enduring the first half (the equivalent of fingernails screeching on a blackboard) because it builds to a very satisfying second-half and conclusion. Worth viewing, but not the film I'd hoped it would be when I saw the clever and fun trailers for months prior to opening.

Helmed to be one of this generation's homage to John Hughes (well-curated soundtrack, romantic comedy in a high school setting), we're not exaggerating when we say this is the movie we needed when my generation was growing up.

Back in the day, I remember there was only one gay character on mainstream media: Jack McPhee from Dawson's Creek, a football player originally brought in to play a love triangle with Dawson and Joey. Eventually he broke TV grounds when he came out as gay and was the first featured ever male gay kiss on primetime television. This was back in the year 2000.

Going further back, the other gay character I had access to was Matt Fielding from Melrose Place in the early 90s. For a show that was all about gossip and scandals, surprisingly enough it relegated Matt in the background as the token gay character, way before the term was even conceived.

Fast forward to today and we have Love, Simon, a coming-of-age movie about Simon Spier, who is gay but is unable to come out for fear of being bullied and ridiculed and ends up exchanging anonymous messages with the other gay person in his school hiding under the name Blue. When a fellow student comes across their exchanges, Simon is forced further to remain in the closet when he is blackmailed to score the guy a date with one his girl friends (ah, don't you just miss high school life?)

Whether it was intentional that aside from the lead every one else (i.e. straight) was relegated to the background as supporting characters mostly because they didn't prolong some of the conflicts enough, making it seem like coming out is that easy. Sometimes it is, sometimes it can be messy. But the point is you'll never know until you try. And even if the movie didn't get it all right, it echoes what the lead Nick Robinson said in one his interviews, it's at least a conversation starter.