For my first review I wanted to start with something recent so I chose Love Simon (picture courtesy of goggle images). As a warning, there will be a few spoilers but hopefully not many. As I am late to actually watching the movie, I had already heard from others that the movie was pretty good. However, despite this, I was still a bit hesitant because gay characters are usually not depicted well.
The movie starts out stereotypical with Simon declaring that he's a regular person just like anyone else and that he just has a big secret. I don't want to delve into the plot too much as not to spoil a lot and because I mainly want to focus on his portrayal. In the beginning of the movie we can see that Simon is an awkward teenager who enjoys hanging out with his friend group.Everything changes for Simon when his school's gossip website that there is a closeted gay guy at their school. Simon decides to reach out.
This portrayal is really good because closeted young LGBT teens often seek solace in online friends. Friendships like these allow each person to truly be themselves. As these kids get more comfortable expressing who they are through these relationships, they often gain the courage to come out to friends and family. This is shown when both Blue and Simon get the courage to come out to their parents.
The portrayal of Simon gets even better when someone reads his emails and finds out he's gave. Marvin, the guy who read the emails, screenshotted them and is now blackmailing Simon into setting him up with his friend or he'll release the images on the gossip website. Simon, terrified of being forced to come out, does everything he can to keep his secret from coming out, even ruining his friendships. This is very true of the LGBT community, many closeted youth feel like their world would be over if anyone ever knew, so they would do anything to keep their secret. Ultimately Simon fails and Marvin releases the emails.
With his secret now out, Simon gains new confidence and is determined to find out who Blue really is. At first Blue is reluctant to meet but eventually he meets Simon at the amusement park, revealing himself. The two began a new relationship. Overall I felt like Love Simon did an excellent job of accurately depicting the struggles of a closeted LGBT youth. That's not something you can say about most movies. I highly recommend that everyone watch the movie and feel free to comment anything else you want to add.
Love-Jacques
P.S. that's a reference to the movie.