10. Ezra Miller & Logan Lerman In The Perks Of Being A Wallflower
The Set Up Ezra Miller plays Patrick, a gay high school senior whose closeted, football-playing boyfriend breaks things off after getting caught with Patrick by his homophobic father. Lerman's shy, anxious Charlie is Patrick's best friend. The two take drives out to the park where Charlie listens to Patrick's woes as he drinks from the bottle. In For The Kill "I just need to meet a good guy." Patrick - lost in heartbreak, skeptical he will ever love again - takes Charlie's face in his hands and kisses him square on the lips. What Makes It So Great Charlie's reaction. He's surprised. But Lerman's expression also evokes empathy for Patrick. Few male-male kisses (especially one between gay and straight characters) end with a hug. Most end with a fist and slur. "It's alright," says Charlie. And it is alright. Because Charlie knows heartbreak as well as any other person. He knows that pain isn't always expressed with convention. He embraces his friend with compassion - just as any humane person would.
Ian Tilman Nichols is a film reviewer and enthusiast based out of Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA. You can hear more of his thoughts on films by checking out the It's Only a Podcast and Flicksation podcasts.
