5 Movies To Watch If You Like The Last Sunrise

The best romantic movies of all time know how to juxtapose sweetness with bitterness, and Amazon Prime's "The Last Sunrise" follows this recipe faithfully. Carlson Young's romantic drama stars Maia Reficco as Ry Pera, a young dancer whose life and career plans fall apart upon discovering she's epileptic. Forced to choose between a lifetime of medication and a surgery she dreads, she chooses the former and its unfortunate side effects leave her disaffected and apathetic.

When Ry's mother Isolde (Eva Longoria) moves them to Mallorca, Spain, Ry makes friends with locals and finds herself in a world that's far more uninhibited than the one she's accustomed to. She also meets Juliàn (Fernando Lindez), a handsome fisherman who just might break through her numbness. However, not only does Ry still have to deal with her condition, but Juliàn's family business is struggling and owes money to seriously bad people — and Isolde's company might be the source of their troubles.

"The Last Sunrise" is an interesting watch for fans of romantic dramas with high personal stakes. Afterwards, you might be in the mood to seek other films that tackle similar themes of budding romance among deep private struggles. Here are five movies like "The Last Sunrise" that will give you precisely that.

One note before diving in, though: By necessity, this article will discuss important plot points from some of these movies. As such, spoilers ahoy. 

For those who think that "The Last Sunrise" was great but could have done with far more tragedy, Adam Shankman's 2002 film "A Walk to Remember" should definitely go in the pile of films to watch next. Starring Mandy Moore as Jamie Sullivan and Shane West as Landon Carter, the film is based on Nicholas Sparks' book of the same name, although its setting is more contemporary.

Here, Landon is a classically overconfident popular high school type who's happy to bully others and has little in the way of empathy. Meanwhile, Jamie is a sheltered reverend's daughter who connects with Jamie over a school play, but specifically discourages any emotional interaction. This being a romantic movie, the pair obviously end up falling for each other despite their different temperaments and standings in the school's social hierarchy. There's a catch, though. Unbeknownst to her peers, Jamie has incurable leukemia.

Yes, it's a good, old-fashioned tragic romance, and a deeply touching one at that. As a bonus, the film features Daryl Hannah and Peter Coyote in supporting parental roles, as well as strong early turns from the likes of Lauren German and Paz de la Huerta.

For a slightly more comedic but no less touching approach to the dual subjects of love and disease, fans of "The Last Sunrise" may wish to check out Stephanie Laing's 2018 Netflix film "Irreplaceable You." Here, Allie (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) and Sam (Michiel Huisman) are a rare couple who are seemingly destined to be together. Nothing in this world can possibly drive them apart, and their impending wedding is all but stated to be a case of "happily ever after." Or it would be, if it wasn't for Allie's unexpected terminal cancer diagnosis, which derails the couple's plans in a dramatic fashion.

A romantic movie always benefits from a strong supporting cast, and "Irreplaceable You" delivers on that front far better than most. "Loki" star Mbatha-Raw and "Game of Thrones" star Huisman have good chemistry, and they're surrounded by the likes of Christopher Walken, Kate McKinnon (who admittedly has made better movies), Brian Tyree Henry, and Steve Coogan for good measure.

"Irreplaceable You" excels in balancing the drama and tragedy of a love that suddenly has an expiration date with glimmers of light from the touching connections Allie forges with her fellow cancer patients. This movie is about more than romance; It's also about making sure the other person is as comfortable as possible once the love story reaches its end.

Based on the novel of the same name by John Green, director Josh Boone's "The Fault in Our Stars" is another romantic drama where cancer is a constant companion. In fact, the movie ups the ante by a considerable margin: Here, the young central couple of Hazel Grace Lancaster (Shailene Woodley) and Gus Lancaster (Ansel Elgort) are both dealing with their own versions of the disease, along with one of Gus' friends Isaac (Nat Wolff). What's more, a key plot device is a cancer-themed novel written by the reclusive Peter van Houten, played by a delightfully venomous Willem Dafoe.

It's a lot, but "The Fault in Our Stars" doesn't shy away from the weight of its pitch black themes. Instead, it weaves the frailty of life in the very framework of its story, which weaves between Indianapolis and Amsterdam. Somehow, the end result delivers a perfect combination of levity and tragedy, with Woodley in particular carrying her difficult role with great nuance. 

"The Fault in Our Stars" is a believable, touching story about people who find love even in the pits of darkest despair. You might not want it for lighthearted amusement, but if you're in the market for a particularly thought-provoking romantic drama and one of the best teen romance movies of all time to have a good cry over, it's an excellent choice.

Justin Baldoni's "Five Feet Apart" is about two young people who both live with cystic fibrosis, a hereditary condition that damages internal organs and wrecks the immune system. On top of this, Will Newman (Cole Sprouse) has a dangerous bacterial infection that would risk Stella Grant's (Haley Lu Richardson) important organ transplant surgery should she contract it. So, of course they fall for each other.

Despite its grim subject matter, "Five Feet Apart" is arguably the most straightforward romantic drama on this list, dealing with its subject matter in a similar fashion to "The Last Sunrise." While not directly based on a true story, the title refers to the minimum "six-foot rule" distance that two cystic fibrosis patients must abide by, which the main couple rebels against in their own small way.

It should be noted that the six-foot rule that acts as the film's central plot device doesn't actually work the way "Five Feet Apart" depicts it, since it only applies to outdoors interactions. Still, if you remember not to take medical advice from a romantic teen drama, it's a moving story about an impossible situation.

Thea Sharrock's "Me Before You" takes place in a small town in England. Here, stoic former banker Will Traynor (Sam Claflin) resides in a massive manor with his parents Camilla (Janet McTeer) and Steven (Charles Dance), bound in a wheelchair after an accident left him paralyzed. When the bubbly Lou Clark (Emilia Clarke) is hired as Will's new caretaker, she slowly brings him out of his shell and shows him that he can still enjoy life. But is the couple's emerging love story enough to keep Will going, especially when he harbors suspicions that Lou would be far happier with a man who has full mobility?

Based on Jojo Moyes' book of the same title and adapted for screen by Moyes herself, "Me Before You" combines "The Last Sunshine"-style romantic drama with the class disparity themes of "My Fair Lady" and the caretaker buddy comedy-drama of "The Intouchables" to great effect — and even greater tragedy.