If you’ve read the book version of “The perks of Being a Wallflower”, you already know what it’s about. I had the advantage of not knowing anything when I saw it today, which made it all the more enjoyable. What seems to be a typical coming of age movie (at least from its trailer) turns out to be a smart, entertaining story about friendship. It also provides Logan Lerman and his co-stars, the delightful Emma Watson and Ezra Miller (terrific in “We Need to talk about Kevin”), with a great vehicle. The premise is simple: It’s set in 1991 in a Pittsburgh town and focuses on Charlie  (Lerman), the high-school freshman of the film’s title whose reserved nature hasn’t helped him much in making friends. Then there’s Ezra Miller in a juicy role as Patrick, the witty and gay senior-class clown who decides to take Charlie under his wings. The young woman who completes this “island of misfits toys” as she puts it is non-other than Emma Watson (her British accent completely gone), also a senior and Patrick’s half sister. That’s all you need to know in case you haven’t read the book. Suffices to say that the sheer likability of the leading characters carries this movie along, and the script takes some clever and unexpected turns under the assured direction of Stephen Chbosky (who also wrote the novel), who is making his feature debut. For a movie that, on the surface, would seem to be cheesy, “Perks” is surprisingly sweet and even funny at times, painting an all-too-rare portrait of three High-School kids in the process of building a solid friendship. Anyone who remembers stumbling through adolescence feeling like an outsider should relate to this movie. But what really lifts “The Perks of being a Wallflower” above the  herd, besides solid performances from its three stars, is the movie’s willingness to replace clichés with painful truths. It’s irresistible.

Rating: 3/4