Rent Midnight Sun (2018)

Midnight Sun review by Mark McPherson - Cinema Paradiso

Midnight Sun is yet another addition to the pile of teenage dying dramas that seem to have been accumulating more recently. By now, most of us know the drill about how these movies play out; there’s a teenager with some crippling condition that shuts them out from society and one love interest will help them come out of their shell and learn to love before taking the big sleep. Sure enough, Midnight Sun doesn’t break from the pack and keeps the formula going, albeit with some decent performances.

The central teen here is Katie (Bella Thorne). Her condition is xeroderma pigmentosum, sometimes referred to as XP. The rules are that she can’t be in sunlight, spending all day indoors. Too much exposure and she’ll suffer too much skin damage, leading to her death. And so she grows up a mostly sheltered teenager, save for one curious friend who likes spending time with her indoors during the day and partying at night. Katie’s father, Jack (Rob Riggle), is also a pretty fun dad for someone who lost his wife and is on the verge of losing his daughter. He’s not ready but he puts on a great act of keeping things fresh and friendly with his daughter, perfectly in tune with her humor about finding adults lame.

But as with all crippling condition teen dramas, there’s a boy that enters the picture. In walks Charlie (Patrick Schwarzenegger), the local hot boy who walks by her window. And it just so happens that Charlie is looking for a new girl in his life. And thus the match-making takes off with Katie and Charlie hitting it off almost immediately. They connect well over their love of music, as Katie shows off how exceptionally she can play the guitar. But to avoid turning this film into the short life of a music career, most of the film falls back on the essentials of this subgenre; montages of going out for ice cream, party shots of dancing, a romantic dip for two at the lake, and a Cinderella moment where Katie needs to make it back home. Not because of her father worrying about her but because the sun is coming up and she’ll probably die when that happens.

The argument that the film doesn’t offer up anything all that new in its assembly is nothing new either. But what makes these types of films shine a bit brighter is with the polish of character and I must admit that Midnight Sun, though not wholly original, does put in some elbow grease. Rob Riggle usually plays characters that are seen as more intimidating and rude, having recently seen him as the evil dad of Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life. I found it fascinating to see him play the role of a sweet and sensitive dad who loves watching baseball with his little girl but still isn’t ready to admit her number will be up soon. Bella Thorne also brings some charisma to her role in how she has great chemistry with Riggle as well as a way with a guitar.

Despite some solid performances, Midnight Sun is mostly a widget, albeit a more pristine version of the old subgenre. It plays itself light, loose, and filled with plenty of wiggle room for music and montages. The romance proceeds down a typical path and the climax reaches for those tearjerker moments with much editing and a soft soundtrack. I can’t fault the film for delivering on what it promises but seeing that it has some strong actors at play just makes me feel a little sad that the production comes off as The Boy in the Bubble 4.0, now with upgraded character.