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MIDNIGHT SUN- Review – We Are Movie Geeks

Review

MIDNIGHT SUN- Review

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A week ago saw the release of a teen romance with a twist. LOVE, SIMON trod some familiar territory but did so with a quirky sense of humor and a new element as its hero was wrestling with the decision to come out to his friends and family while pursuing an online mystery crush. The result was a surprisingly sweet flick that connected with audiences, landing in the box office top five. This week’s release also concerns a high school senior who’s conflicted about revealing a secret. But with this young woman, her secret is known to a very close pal and her pop. It’s that hunky “boy next door” who’s kept in the dark (literally, as we’ll find out later). This young romance is complicated by an ultra rare affliction, so the plot has a long lineage in cinema. The brave hero/heroine facing an uncertain medical fate has been a staple of romantic flicks, referred to as “weepers” back in the studios’ golden age. Most notably, Bette Davis had a big hit as she faced a DARK VICTORY, then decades later LOVE STORY had film goers sniffling. Then, with the advent of the made-for-television movies, the airwaves were crowded with what some critics dismissed as “disease of the week” tear-jerkers. Later basic cable channels made them a big staple. But now we’re back on the big screen as two young lovers try to bask in the glow of the MIDNIGHT SUN.

 

We first meet Katie Price as a seven year-old sharing a dream of her mother teaching her how to play the guitar as the enjoy a bright sunny day at the beach. Now, this is a fantasy for two big reasons. She’s already lost her mother to a fatal car crash. And lil’ Katie can’t enjoy a sunny day as she was born with the rare condition known as Xeroderma Pigmentosum (XP). Basically it’s an allergy to sunlight so intense that the slightest exposure could cause skin cancers and even “fry” her brain. Her loving father Jack (Rob Riggle) must home-school her, and closely supervise any nighttime excursions. The house with the black windows becomes the source of much speculation among the schoolkids (“a vampire girl lives there”). Happily, one precocious young girl named Morgan ventures to the door to learn the truth (and invite herself over for after-dark pizza). So now lonely Katie has a best friend, and soon has a crush as she gazes out her window to watch the cute skateboarding boy down the street, Charlie. As the years pass Katie matures into a lovely young woman (Bella Thorne), as Charlie (Patrick Schwarzenegger) becomes quite the hunk. On high school graduation day, Katie watches Morgan (Quinn Shephard), Charlie, and their classmates get their diplomas via streaming video. To celebrate, she asks her pop if she can go down to the train station that night and play her guitar for the commuters. Meanwhile a very somber Charlie doesn’t feel like partying with his pals on the beach. And where does he end up? Of course he’s enthralled by Katie’s singing, and shocks her as he starts up a conversation (mainly, “Where have you been hiding?”). Katie panics (she doesn’t want to scare him off by explaining XP) and dashes home. Meeting up with Morgan, she realizes that she left her notebook full of song lyrics back at the station. Morgan goes to look for it, then tells Katie that she can pick it up the next night. And who’s there with the prized notebook (Morgan a bit of a matchmaker)? Thus begins a sweet Summer romance. But Katie is torn. Will Charlie break things off when he learns of her condition? And when is the right time to tell him? Can they possibly have a future together?

 

 

Disney TV vet Thorne makes Katie a most sympathetic heroine. And it doesn’t hurt that the camera seems to adore her, making her character an ethereal modern-day variation of iconic storybook subjects (Rapunzel and Cinderella immediately spring to mind). Plus Thorne conveys Katie’s wide-eyed thrill of discovery (the first party, first flirtation, and, of course, the first kiss). This makes our hearts heavy when XP begins to take its toll, though despite the pale facial makeup accented by dark under eye circles, she’s still an other-worldly beauty. To be fair, the same can be said of Schwarzenegger’s Charlie, the teen dream who shrugs off the BMOC title. While his buddies indulge in crude carousing, he’s looking for more. Meeting Katie helps opens his eyes to life beyond the parties and pursuits. A back story about a crushed sports career gives him some needed depth. He’s more than a lanky “Ken doll” with a familiar infectious smile. Shephard rounds out the teen trio as the most supportive best pal with no filter. Morgan cares deeply about Katie despite her tough-talking, “whatever” persona. But the most entertaining and endearing performance comes from (usual) funnyman Riggle. Frequently the overly aggressive lunkhead (as in the JUMP STREET series), he channels that into a soft-hearted “papa bear”, ready to protect his beloved cub, while enjoying their “playtime’ just as much as she does (he beams with delight as she bemoans his “lame” graduation card). Later he tries to be the inquiring, intimidating pop with Charlie, but he can’t prevent his warmth from diffusing the awkward situation (unlike Curtis Jackson in DEN OF THIEVES). But after tickling our funnybones, Riggle effortlessly breaks our hearts as cruel fate dominates the film’s last act. Much like Tony Hale and Josh Duhamel in LOVE, SIMON, he’s the film’s adult MVP.

 

In a departure from his work on the STEP UP: REVOLUTION, director Scott Speer gently prods this film’s familiar plot at a most leisurely pace. There’s plenty of time to watch the pretty young people (stripping for a midnight swim, the two leads look to have just stepped down from Olympus) skip and frolic in the pretty settings (the Washington state backdrop could be very well down the street from LOVE, SIMON’s suburban Atlanta). Though a “mean girl” ex of Charlie’s scowls at Katie briefly, nothing truly awful intrudes on this postcard perfect village (aside from the darn XP). The soundtrack is packed with “easy listening” pop hits that swell and explode at just the right moments (that kiss), along with the tunes “penned and performed” by Katie (the extras sure love her). The flick is bit more slick than the standard “Lifetime” or “Hallmark Channel” weekend premiers, and at a quick 90 minutes, it doesn’t have a lot of time to wallow in “noble misery”. With the bonus inspired casting of Riggle, MIDNIGHT SUN is a sweet, not to sappy way to exercise the ole’ tear ducts.

 

3 Out of 5

 

Jim Batts was a contestant on the movie edition of TV's "Who Wants to be a Millionaire" in 2009 and has been a member of the St. Louis Film Critics organization since 2013.