Todorov, Propp and Barthes Theories

Todorov - Equilibrium

The equilibrium of this film is probably when Charlie, the main character is simply writing in a diary about being the new kid at his new High School, getting on with life like a normal student. The disequilibrium is when he finds friends who, as it says in the trailer, let him in. After this, his life changes and he experiences new things e.g. getting into fights and going to parties. The new equilibrium is not shown in the trailer but this is a good thing because if it was, no one would watch the film because they know how it's going to end so really there's no point.

Propp - Characters

I think the protagonist is Charlie because he is on a quest to find himself and as he says 'turn things around this year'.
I think the antagonist is Brad, a football player, who Charlie beats up after Brad trips Charlie's friend Patrick up.
I think the heroine is Sam, who Charlie is in love with. She and Patrick welcome Charlie into their friendship group and they are seen hugging towards the end of the trailer.
I think the father, donor and the mentor is Charlie's English teacher, who we see befriending Charlie at the beginning of the trailer and giving him friendship advice.
I think the helpers are Sam and Patrick because they accept him in their friendship group, are with him at most points during the film and they seem to help him in situations throughout.

Darthes - Codes

At one point in the trailer, we briefly see Charlie looking very upset and clutching his neck. An example of an enigma code, and a question that may be asked is 'what is making him upset and distressed?'. Another key moment in the trailer shows Charlie having a fight with another, older looking boy. Questions asked might be 'what caused the fight?', 'does he get hurt?' , 'who wins the fight?' , ' what happens after the fight?' and probably more. At another point in the trailer, we see Patrick joining in with the cheerleaders at the football game. Due to his demeanour and the way he moves, the obvious question that most people would ask is 'is he gay?' and 'does his being gay cause problems in the film?'. 

Word Count: 378

Representation

The Perks of Being a Wallflower is a coming-of-age comedy drama film starring Logan Lerman, Emma Watson and Ezra Miller.

Charlie, played by Logan Lerman is just starting high school and many stereotypes given to new kids are reinforced in the film. For example, his character appears shy, anti-social and friendless; everything you would expect a new student to be like, because this is how they are always portrayed in films and TV. He also seems vulnerable and an easy target for bullies and peer pressure, a demeanour he shows when he is standing at the back of the hall at the homecoming by himself, not really fitting in, which is again another way we would expect new people without friends to act.

We can tell that Patrick, an older boy who befriends Charlie shortly after he joins the school, is gay. We can tell this because at 0:56 when Charlie asks if he likes football, he says “love it,” and then joins in with the cheer leading, making us realise that he loves the cheer leading rather than the football. This is a typical stereotype of gay people; that they like 'girly' activities rather than 'manly' activities, and this is how the filmmakers have portrayed him.

Sam, a girl, also older, and already friends with Patrick is given a nickname at 1:25 by Patrick which is 'slut'. This is a derogatory term for a girl who has casual sex with more than one man. Although here it’s a joke between two friends, it's a common name given to many girls. However, there is not a common name given to men who do the same thing. This shows that males feel they can call girls that name frequently because girls are seemingly too weak to tell them to stop which is how they are portrayed, especially later in the trailer at 1:44 when it looks like a man is leading Sam into another room, apparently controlling her.