Dear Evan Hansen, the movie was released on Sept. 24. The plot of the musical adapted movie follows the story of Evan Hansen, a 17-year-old high school student, with social anxiety, who finds himself going down the rabbit hole of lies as he tries to prove that he was friends with Connor Murphy, his classmate who committed suicide. Evan Hansen, in reality barely knew Connor Murphy, but due to Connor’s parents thinking that the letter Evan wrote to himself to help with his anxiety, was Connor’s suicide note to Evan, Evan tries to prove to them that they were in fact, friends, as to not disappoint them. The movie powerfully describes the feeling of loneliness, anxiety, and self-delusion.

Despite receiving backlash for casting a 28-year-old for a 17-year-old’s role or for defying the roles of protagonist and antagonist, the movie does a good job of painting the picture of teen mental health.

In an article by Dr. Harold S. Koplewicz, president and medical director of the Child Mind Institute, he explains the true message of the movie. 

“This movie has a powerful and fundamental honesty that resonates. And its primary message—that mental health disorders are real, common, and treatable—will likely be a lifesaver for countless young people,” says Dr. Koplewicz in his article. “The film lets us see that anxiety disorders are equal-opportunity conditions, affect both the seeming outsiders like Evan and the more traditional high achievers like class president Alana. It explores the power of social media for good and bad.”

The movie correlates to teenagers in multiple ways; mental health, social media, self-image, and many others. 

Coming to school, you do not know what your classmates are going through or what they feel like. As much as we’d like to think people are transparent with us, they, unfortunately, are not. Evan on the outside appears to be a normal student; maybe a loner. However, on the inside, the social anxiety is caused by Evan’s past experiences with his father. The plot sternly reminds its audience about how easy it is to assume without knowing the truth. 

The movie also sheds light on self-image issues in teenagers. After getting popular for his speech regarding Connor, Evan gets a little wrapped up in the new come attention he receives. This also alienates him from his mother. For the first time he feels noticed, but his response to that is problematic.

“I loved the movie and it evoked many emotions,” said Arcadia High School freshman Jasmyn Garza. “It was a really eye-opening movie, I think it spreads awareness about things that occur in the real world and shines a light on them.”

Overall, Dear Evan Hansen provokes its audience to think about mental health in a different way and puts emphasis on teenage mental health.

Photo courtesy of UNSPLASH.COM