Review by Felipe Ibañez

Love, Simon 2018

*You get to exhale now, Simon*
I finally watched this and it was perfect, this is beautiful, and very necessary!
My favorite scene was by far Jennifer Garner's speech, that if you watched the movie, you probably know what i'm talking about.
There's probably just a few little things I didn't like, especially some of the classic topics and stereotypes that this genre of film usually has, but still, it's amazing.

We need more films like this. Fun, heartwarming, and just fantastic all around!!

Also, a reminder if this wasn't enough: Be yourself. Be happy. You deserve it. (At 31, I still have not had the luck to find my true love, it's sad but it's true.)

My Score: 8/10.

*Trivias*
_ +Just as the film went into production, Nick Robinson's younger brother came out as gay.
+This was the first film produced by a major Hollywood studio to feature a gay teenage protagonist.
+Keiynan Lonsdale was inspired to publicly come out through his involvement in this film.
+Jennifer Garner's "exhale" speech wasn't originally included in the film: there was just one 'parent scene', and a scene with the dad. When Jennifer became interested in the role of Emily, she asked director Greg Berlanti for a scene that has her connect with Simon, so they built it again and wrote what would become essentially the message of the movie.
+Director Greg Berlanti revealed in an interview that there were clips of the "friend group" (Simon, Leah, Abby, and Nick) that were filmed without the actors' knowledge. In order to capture the authenticity of a group of friends beyond the confines of acting, the director would sometimes tell the actors to "cut" but have the cameras keep rolling. Many of these unscripted interactions of friends just being friends (including the dancing in the car scene) made the final cut.
+Kristen Bell, Neil Patrick Harris, Matt Bomer, Tyler Oakley, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, screenwriter Martin Gero, Benj Pasek, Andrew Rannells, Joey Graceffa, Scott Hoying and Superfruit's Mitch Grassi were so moved by the film that they bought out theaters in their hometowns so it would reach as many people as possible. Jennifer Garner, Greg Berlanti and Berlanti's husband Robbie Rogers were so proud of being part of the film that they also did the same thing.
+The production code for the film was "Blue," which is the pseudonym of the person Simon E-mails.
+In Simon's bedroom, there is a copy of Becky Albertalli's (the author of "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda") second novel, "The Upside of Unrequited" on his bookshelf. "The Upside of Unrequieted" also takes place in the "Simon-verse" and revolves around Abby's cousins.
+Although the movie is titled "Love, Simon," it was actually an adaptation of the book "Simon vs. The Homosapiens Agenda." The movie originally had the same name as the book, but it was too long to say, hence the name change.
+The words "hour to hour note to note" can be seen written on Simon's wall, which is a nod to the E-mail ("[email protected]") Simon used in the book to talk to Blue. It was changed in the film to "[email protected]."
+In Simon's bedroom there is an Elliott Smith poster which is a nod to Simon's favorite musician from the book, which he shares with Blue and later connects him with Blue.
+Colton Haynes had a small role in a deleted scene as man who approaches Simon at a gay bar, mistaking him for someone else he knows, and ends up asking Simon to dance.
+Love, Simon (2018) marks the second time major studio 20th Century Fox has made a film that showcases a sympathetic portrayal of a leading homosexual character coming to terms with his orientation and ending on a happy note. The first was Making Love (1982) in 1982.
+Singer Shawn Mendes was invited to audition for the role of Simon but was allegedly unable to do so, as he did not have enough time.
+In the international trailer voice-over, Blue refers to Simon as Simon, not Jacques.
+On the DVD commentary, Greg Berlanti, Isaac Aptaker, and Isaac Klausner discuss the fact that it was surprisingly difficult to settle on the musical that Simon and some of his friends are rehearsing during much of the movie. In the source novel, the musical was Oliver!, but the producers couldn't get the rights to that. For a while, their solution was to have the screenwriters work on an original musical adaptation of the classic teen romance movie Say Anything. Some of that musical was actually written before they decided instead to go with Cabaret, which the rightsholders said was allowed as long as they didn't show the Sally Bowles character in a top hat (which would have suggested that the high school was performing the movie or revival versions of the show instead of the original 1960s stage musical). Berlanti, Aptaker, and Klausner also appreciated the resonances between Cabaret and Love, Simon--both contain closeted gay male characters coming to terms with their sexuality.
+Originally Blake Neely, the general composer for director Greg Berlanti's TV shows, was attached to score the film.
+Simon's coming out dream sequence is to Whitney Houston's "Dance With Somebody." His movie mom, Jennifer Garner, gets ready for a night out on the town to the same song in the movie "13 Going on 30."
+On Simon's bedroom door, there's a poster for the 2007 of Montreal album, "Hissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer?"; an album about a transgender rock star. of Montreal are known for their flamboyant stage personas and frontman, Kevin Barnes, has always been misconstrued as bisexual, but that band are advocates for LGBTQ+ rights.
+It was confirmed by Becky Albertalli (author of "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda") that Alice Spier (Simon's older sister) is not present in the film.
+It was confirmed by Becky Albertalli (author of "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda") that Simon only wears glasses in flashbacks, compared to the book where he always wears glasses.
+Temple Hill Entertainment, who produced the movie, is known for adapting other young adult novels such as The Fault in Our Stars (2014) and The Maze Runner (2014).
+In the closing scene to the movie, when Simon and his friends drive off through the neighborhood, they drive by the house that was used in Life As We Know it. Life As We Know it also starred Josh Duhamel who plays Simon's dad.
+Katherine Langford and Miles Heizer previously starred together in the Netflix Original series 13 Reasons Why (2017).
+Director Greg Berlanti previously worked with Keiynan Lonsdale on The Flash (2014).
+Simon has a theatre program for "Hamilton" displayed in his bedroom next to the window.
+Love, Simon premiered at the Mardi Gras Film Festival on February 27, 2018.
+Nick Robinson and Talitha Eliana Bateman previously worked together in the young adult film The 5th Wave (2016).
+This was the second project where director Greg Berlanti and Josh Duhamel worked together. They previously worked on Life as We Know It (2010).
+In the movie, Simon has a reaccuring dream about Daniel Radcliffe, who starred as Harry Potter in the "Harry Potter" franchise. On his wall, Simon has a Hufflepuff crest. Hufflepuff was one of the four houses in "Harry Potter."
+Though the name of the high school that the main characters attend, Creekwood High, comes from the source novel, it is also reminiscent of director Greg Berlanti's first job on television: as a writer for the teen drama Dawson's Creek. Like this movie, that show also broke ground in its depiction of gay teen romance.
+Logan Miller and Jennifer Garner previously appeared together in the movie Ghost of Girlfriends Past (2009).
+It is based on the novel Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli.
+Joshua Mikel and Logan Miller appeared on The Walking Dead (2010) together.
+Spier, Simons surname is dutch for muscle
+One of the stickers on Simon's bedroom wall is a picture of a banana. This is the cover art to the first Velvet Underground album, created by Andy Warhol (who was also that band's manager and producer when that album came out in 1967). Warhol was gay, making this an appropriate sticker for Simon's room.
+There are several little moments through the film which hint that Simon's best friend Leah (Katherine Langford) may have some undisclosed feelings for Abby (Alexandra Shipp). This is further explored in "Leah on the Offbeat", the sequel to the original book, although it isn't known if that story will be adapted into a movie.
+At one point in the film, Martin makes a joke to Abby that you would call a Black and a Jewish person "Blewish" (or, Blue-ish). This is essentially revealed to be Blue's identity in the end - he is indeed black and Jewish.
+The last cast member to be announced was Blue. Book fans spent months waiting to discover the actor who would be playing Simon's E-mail buddy. Throughout the whole of filming, no pictures were released of the actor.
+Foreshadowing: At the start of the film Nick talks about a dream he had where he had to choose between red and blue. Abby responds that he is a cross between Cristiano Ronaldo and Sigmund Freud. Of the two people Nick asks out in the film, Leah is at this point wearing blue, and Abby is wearing red. At the Halloween party, the two people who go on to ask Abby out are Nick, who is dressed as Ronaldo, and Martin, who is dressed as Freud.
+In the original book "Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda," Bram reveals the inspiration for his username, Blugreen118, comes from his full name - Abraham Louis Greenfeld - and birthday (January 18th).
+Actors playing Simon and Blue have both played a character named 'Olly.' Nick Robinson as Olly in 'Everything, Everything' and Keiynan Lonsdale as Olly in 'Dance Academy'

^^Cameo^^
Robbie Rogers: Director Greg Berlanti's real life husband briefly appears as the soccer coach. _

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