Why The New Movie 'Midnight Sun' Is Way More Than Just Another Tragic Love Story

Every excellent night in includes pajamas, lots of food, and, more often than not, a romantic movie. The film may not always be sappy, but it should always tug at your heartstrings. A new one to add to your list of romantic dramas is Midnight Sun, out March 23. Starring Bella Thorne and Patrick Schwarzenegger, the movie follows a teen girl with a disease that's basically an allergy to the sun, causing her to stay indoors nearly 24/7 — a problem when she begins to fall in love. It's a fascinating concept, but no, Midnight Sun is not a true story; in actuality, it's a fictional tale that's a remake of a foreign film.

The original movie was a 2006 Japanese romantic drama called Taiyō no uta, or Song to the Sun. It's since been translated or changed to Midnight Sun, leading to the title of the new movie. Due to its success, the original film was also turned into a TV drama and a manga before this year's American version was made.

Not a ton has been changed since the 2006 original. Midnight Sun focuses on Katie Price (Bella Thorne) who has a disorder called xeroderma pigmentosum, which causes extreme irritation from exposure to sun. Katie has to stay indoors during the day behind special windows, but can go out at night. Just like in the original Japanese movie, Katie spends her little time outside at a train station, playing her music on her guitar. (In Taiyō no uta, the main character is a singer because the actor, Yui, is a well-known singer in Japan.) As the trailer for Midnight Sun shows, Katie and Charlie (Patrick Schwarzenegger) eventually meet after she pines for him from afar for a while, and they start a romance of epic proportions.

At first glance, the movie may seem something out of a romance novel, with similar storylines to A Walk To Remember, Everything, Everything, or The Fault In Our Stars. All three of those were originally books by famous authors; Nicholas Sparks is known for his romance-novels-turned-movies, Nicola Yoon has written several YA bestsellers, and John Green is known for writing books from the perspective of teens trying to navigate adolescence and love. Even though Midnight Sun is based off of another movie, there is actually a novel companion you can buy on Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Although the movie isn't a true story, the illness Katie Price has — xeroderma pigmentosum (XP) — is a real thing, and as scary as it sounds. If you have XP, you have to stay indoors, just like Katie, or your skin and eyes will burn under the sun with only minutes of exposure. If not monitored, someone with XP has a 100 percent chance of developing skin cancer, according to Cancer.net, and nearly 30 percent of those with XP develop neurological problems like hearing loss, trouble talking, and difficulty walking, GHR reports. Thankfully, XP is incredibly rare, with only one in one million people getting it in America and Europe combined.

Midnight Sun brings this tragic if fascinating illness to life but doesn't let it totally define Katie's life. Just like in the Japanese version, Midnight Sun has original songs for the film, with five of them sung by Bella Thorne. Music is how Katie and Charlie meet, and it's a major aspect of Katie's character's interests and personality.

So while the illness may be the most memorable aspect of the film for some viewers, there's also plenty of other elements to enjoy and appreciate. Midnight Sun may be a tragic romance, but it's also filled with many sweet moments audiences will undoubtedly root for.