Love, Simon

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.

I knew nothing about this movie before I watched it. My wife heard it was great, gave me a brief synopsis of what it was about, so I said sure why not. I planned on catching up on some work emails while it was on in the background. Holy shit - I loved this flick. I thought it was awesome. I'm a sucker for romcoms anyway, but this movie had me laughing hysterically at points, then tearing up at others. Also, I didn't get any work done - my eyes were glued to the screen. The acting was fantasic - the kid that played Simon was so likeable. His parents were so fun to watch, and that speech his Mom gave him made me fight back some tears. The soundtrack was great, the pace was perfect, and it was just a fun damn movie to watch. Now, mind you, I'm a middle aged white dude, married with three little girls, who leans Republican, and voted for Trump. Say what you want... this was a great movie. Trying to raise my girls in this world, they are young and don't know the social difference between race, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, etc. My point is, I think this movie is important, and when they become old enough, I want them to see Love, Simon, not as a "gay" movie", but just another romantic comedy that happens to have a main character who is gay and is trying to find himself. That simple. Love, Simon, in my opinion, will go down in history as a great/memorable teenage flick like "Say Anything", "Reality Bites", "Can't Hardly Wait", etc. A fun, well acted movie, with awesome music that made me laugh, cry, and really root for the main character...who just so happens to be gay. And in my mind, and hopefully my kids' minds, is as normal as anything..