Tldr: The film is mediocre, and if you read the book (which is great), you will notice it even more. Simon and the rest of the characters are very well written in the book, and there's no room for tropes like the "Easily Forgiven" or "Karma Houdini" ones, unlike in the film.
So I watched this film like 2 years ago or so, and I thought it was okeish. I initially gave it a 7, conscious that I was being very generous simply because it was a movie with LGBTQ+ thematic, and hence, I felt I had to support projects like this. But no, the film is not that great per se. The story is not very deep, and the characters are not so interesting. Mainly, the protagonist, Simon, is not a nice person. He is not a good example or a hero. He manipulates his friends, putting at risk their feelings and relationships - their happiness - all for egoistical interests. But all is forgiven at the end, because after all Simon is supposed to be a good guy that just took some "small" wrong decisions under pressure and, more importantly, did everything in the name of love. Awful message, common place, the contrary of what people need to believe is correct and good. You name it.
Just yesterday I finished reading the book "Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda" for the first time, and I loved it. The book is so good for many reasons, for example it is a good example for teenagers of how to act when you encounter certain emotional problematics. I watched the film again, today, thinking "Why I don't remember this film as good one...?" Well, turns out the film has small to do with the book, really. Simon, in the books, is an awesome person. He is not perfect, but no way he would manipulate his friends. The only thing he does in the book is inviting Martin to some activities that include Abby, nothing more. That's not the only difference between book-Simon and movie-Simon, but that's the one that annoyed me the most. And to be honest, all the characters in the film have very small connections (other than the names and a few details) to the characters in the book. The film and its characters are way two-dimensional, when the book is so rich. Martin is a joke in the film, when in the book he has motivations; he is not totally unlikeable, there's no room to enjoy how he fails and puts himself in ridicule (not that the scene even exists in the book). By the end of the book most of us can probably empathize with Martin feelings, at least a bit. And that's how you really write a good character.
It's a shame this book was made into a film, where time is a problem and so much needs to be cut... But changing the characters that way, I really can't understand that, especially with Simon's case. Now the series "Love, Victor" is being made... And even if it's not as interesting as "Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda", at least there is more depth and the characters are not that flat. I wish they had made a series about Simon and Blue's story instead of this film.
If you really want to know about this story, please read the book. It really deserves attention. But please, forget about this film.
So I watched this film like 2 years ago or so, and I thought it was okeish. I initially gave it a 7, conscious that I was being very generous simply because it was a movie with LGBTQ+ thematic, and hence, I felt I had to support projects like this. But no, the film is not that great per se. The story is not very deep, and the characters are not so interesting. Mainly, the protagonist, Simon, is not a nice person. He is not a good example or a hero. He manipulates his friends, putting at risk their feelings and relationships - their happiness - all for egoistical interests. But all is forgiven at the end, because after all Simon is supposed to be a good guy that just took some "small" wrong decisions under pressure and, more importantly, did everything in the name of love. Awful message, common place, the contrary of what people need to believe is correct and good. You name it.
Just yesterday I finished reading the book "Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda" for the first time, and I loved it. The book is so good for many reasons, for example it is a good example for teenagers of how to act when you encounter certain emotional problematics. I watched the film again, today, thinking "Why I don't remember this film as good one...?" Well, turns out the film has small to do with the book, really. Simon, in the books, is an awesome person. He is not perfect, but no way he would manipulate his friends. The only thing he does in the book is inviting Martin to some activities that include Abby, nothing more. That's not the only difference between book-Simon and movie-Simon, but that's the one that annoyed me the most. And to be honest, all the characters in the film have very small connections (other than the names and a few details) to the characters in the book. The film and its characters are way two-dimensional, when the book is so rich. Martin is a joke in the film, when in the book he has motivations; he is not totally unlikeable, there's no room to enjoy how he fails and puts himself in ridicule (not that the scene even exists in the book). By the end of the book most of us can probably empathize with Martin feelings, at least a bit. And that's how you really write a good character.
It's a shame this book was made into a film, where time is a problem and so much needs to be cut... But changing the characters that way, I really can't understand that, especially with Simon's case. Now the series "Love, Victor" is being made... And even if it's not as interesting as "Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda", at least there is more depth and the characters are not that flat. I wish they had made a series about Simon and Blue's story instead of this film.
If you really want to know about this story, please read the book. It really deserves attention. But please, forget about this film.