The Sun Is Also a Star Parent Guide

Is it possible to fall in love with someone in just one day? Daniel Bae (Charles Melton) certainly thinks so. Mesmerized by Natasha Kingsley (Yara Shahidi), who he has just met, he bets he can make her fall in love with him in 24 hours – or one, if time is limited. Natasha, a hard-headed realist, doesn’t believe in love, let alone instant love. But Daniel assures her that if she answers carefully selected questions, they will fall for each other. What Daniel doesn’t know is that he is racing against the clock in more ways than one: Natasha and her family are undocumented immigrants and are scheduled to be deported on the following day.

The Sun Is Also a Star brings new meaning to “whirlwind romance”. Whether audiences buy into the plot will depend almost entirely on their belief in the premise of instant attraction. Hardcore romantics will likely swoon over the dreamy gazes and sun-washed montages. More skeptical viewers will see the attraction but wonder about its staying power. Throughout the film, I kept ruminating on late night discussions with my university roommates when we hashed out the differences between “falling in like”, “falling in lust”, and “falling in love.” I think the charming young protagonists in this film would benefit from a similar conversation.

Parents may well be delighted to have a movie like this to use as a springboard for similar chats with their teens. And they will be relieved to know that The Sun Is Also a Star is one of the cleanest teen romantic dramas to hit the big screen recently. It features minimal swearing, no drug or alcohol use, and one fistfight. Even sexual content is limited to embracing, kissing, and one make-out session where the young couple remain fully clothed. The film’s biggest downside isn’t related to content but is its cinematography, overly reliant on blurry footage, jerky camera work, and way too many swooping aerial shots of New York City. The movie is about ten minutes too long and cutting down on this footage would kill two birds with one stone.

Despite the movie’s irksome cinematography and improbable plot, it’s still an enjoyable viewing experience for fans of romantic drama, and that is entirely due to the cast. Charles Melton and Yara Shahidi have a magnetic screen presence and real chemistry, which compensates for the occasionally awkward dialogue and the moments where the acting can feel a bit studied. The young couple have such vibrant energy and such unbelievable good looks that it is almost impossible to tear one’s eyes away from the screen. Melton’s intense, yearning gaze and Shahidi’s wide-eyed, expressive face project so much emotion that it’s almost palpable.

The film begins with Natasha saying, “I always believed it would take a lifetime to understand the human heart. In the end, all it took was a single day.” Whether falling in love can happen in a day is a matter of opinion. But that the events of a day can change the way we see the world and ourselves is the real take away from this touching little film.