‘Love Simon’ is the romantic comedy that everyone needs to see
By Alexis Ancel // Editor-in-Chief
We asked—no, we begged—and Hollywood finally came through for us. “Love, Simon” is the gay rom-com we’ve all been needing for decades, and it does not disappoint.
The film follows the story of 16-year-old Simon, whose life appears on the outside to be as normal as it gets, but has one secret: no one knows he’s gay. Using pseudonyms and anonymous emails, Simon develops a relationship with another guy at his school, and he spends the majority of the movie working to identify this mystery man while he comes to grips with his own sexuality. Nick Robinson captured an honesty and authenticity in Simon that makes you fall in love within two minutes of screen time, and each cast member fit their role perfectly.
“Love, Simon” truly is everything you want it to be and more. It’s charming, funny, romantic and exactly what we need today. The story is all too real from start to finish. I have yet to see another film that manages to capture the experience of coming to terms with one’s sexuality as authentically as this movie does. Obviously one movie can’t possibly cover every adversity the LGBTQ+ community has faced, but of the issues it did address, it got almost everything right. It shows that even for an upper-middle class white male with a good support system, it’s still hard. It’s still hard to be honest with yourself and your family. It’s still hard to let go of the secret you’ve been holding onto for years and be open about who you are. It’s still hard to live in a world that judges and discriminates against people for who they are or who they love.
I like to think of “Love, Simon” as a gateway film. It’s like a gay icebreaker, and it did its job beautifully. As strongly as I believe that who a person is or loves should impact absolutely no one, I understand all too well that this is not the society we live in. Although this movie shows very little of it, which I appreciate in some regard, homophobia is still alive and well. If this movie changes a few minds, it’s a start. If a story about a gay upper-middle class white male with an accepting family and a happy ending eases people in, that’s fine for now. I get it. If it’s between minimal representation and no representation whatsoever, I’ll take what I can get. For now, at least.
My hope is that this movie is just the beginning of a new era of LGBTQ+ blockbuster hits, and that maybe in the future, we really will start seeing films about transgender women in the military and bisexual boys living in conservative small towns in the Midwest. More than anything, I hope we start seeing LGBTQ+ people better represented in mainstream media, but without sexuality or gender identity as the central plot point of the story.
The only problems I had with the film were so minimal that I can’t bring myself to complain. If “Love, Simon” changes a few minds, and a few more people become a bit more accepting of LGBTQ+ people, we’re one step closer to living in a world where everyone can be and love whomever they please. “Love, Simon” is an important film for everyone to watch, and I mean everyone. It’s a refreshing addition to the romantic comedy genre that we’ve all been waiting for.