Charlie & Sam's Relationship

What is interesting about the adaption of Stephen Chbosky's book Perks of Being a Wallflower is that he wrote the screenplay and directed the film, so any changes made to the plot or characters were choices he made. The changes in the relationship between Sam and Charlie were his decision, and he must have decided that the complicated novel version of their relationship would not translate well into film. Instead of Charlie being a young, inexperienced boy in love with a girl four years older and out of his league and Sam being an older mentor who occasionally indulged his crush, their relationship is continually established as romantic. The novel allowed their relationship to contain paradoxes. For example, Sam didn't think of Charlie in a romantic way but would kiss him out of protective love. Whereas the film suggested that Sam reciprocated Charlie's love. 

The Sam in the film is protective of Charlie, but she also views him as more of an equal. There are several moments where she confides in him, one of them is when she is worried about not performing well enough on the SAT's to get into Penn State. Charlie then offers to tutor her, and additional scenes happen in the diner where the changing background scenery suggests the passage of time. This helps to establish their relationship as something separate from Charlies relationship with the group. While Charlie is in love with Sam in the book, their time together is rarely spent alone and is often much friendlier than displayed in the film. 

Charlie is also not as aggressive with his feelings in the novel, as he is more concerned with Sam's happiness then them having a romantic relationship. He seems to understand the age difference and the fact that Sam will always be more of a friend than a girlfriend. Honestly, most of his crush seems to stem from the fact that this was the first girl (besides his aunt) who was nice to him. In the film he makes sarcastic comments to remind Sam of their relationship and the audience of the romantic undertones between them. When he finds out Sam's boyfriend won't be there for Christmas he sarcastically says "Oh so sorry he won't be joining us" while smirking, and when he's with Mary Elizabeth he says "I'll try not to make you too jealous". 

For me, the film mirrored Charlie and Sam's relationship with Charlie's sister and pony-tail Derrick. Charlie made Sam soppy mix-tapes and Sam indulged him, just as Charlie's sister did (although Sam may have appreciated hers). Her speech in her bedroom before she left for college is reminiscent of the one Charlie's sister gives Derrick before he slaps her: decide what you want, be a man. And then is also followed with kissing and at least an attempt at sex. Perhaps because Chbosky chose to downplay the importance of his sister's behavior in the film, he incorporated some of that into Charlie and Sam's relationship. I don't think so though, since it had a completely different effect. I think it was mostly to make the relationship more black and white. Sam wanted to be with Charlie, but she had to date some people who treat her badly first. Their kiss in the closing, additional scene suggests that they might even end up together.