Picture Credits: Life As An Earthling
“I guess when you're young, you just believe there'll be many people with whom you'll connect with. Later in life, you realize it only happens a few times.”
Life is a journey intercepted by hundreds of people. But we never grow the same amount of affinity for two people. We are drawn towards certain individuals, and never in the same manner. The heartstrings do pull stronger for that one person that makes all the others feel like a shot in the dark.
Movie’s Name - Before Sunset (2004)
Directed By - Richard Linklater
Written By - Richard Linklater, Kim Krizan, Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy
Starring - Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy
Duration - 1h 20min
Genre - Romance
Language - English
Plot (Spoiler Alert!)
Nine years after their rendezvous in Vienna in Before Sunrise, Jesse (Ethan Hawke) is the successful author of the bestselling novel This Time, based on his day spent with Celine (Julie Delpy).
During his reading at the Parisian bookstore Shakespeare and Company, three journalists offer varying conclusions to whether the main characters ever meet again, when he finds Celine standing there, flashing a smile at him.
Since Jesse has to leave for the airport an hour after the reading, they decide to catch up over a quick cup of coffee. Both discuss the reason for not meeting up six months later as promised, to which Celine says that her grandmother had passed away suddenly.
Though Jesse also claims to have not returned, he does reveal on insistence that he had come looking for her. Celine learns that Jesse is now married and has a son named Hank, while Jesse learns that Celine is now an environmental activist with a photojournalist boyfriend.
As Jesse and Celine walk the streets of Paris conversing about their lives, work and politics, their romantic spark rekindles. They lament over how unhappy they are in their lives, when Jesse admits that he wrote the book hoping that he’ll see her again. They go up to Celine’s apartment even after repeated insistence that Jesse will miss his flight.
Jesse convinces Celine to play a waltz written about their time in Vienna that takes them right back to where they started. As Nina Simone’s Just in Time plays over the stereo, Celine says “Baby…you are gonna miss that plane.” Jesse smiles at her saying, “I know”.
Underlying Themes of Conversation
The essence of the film, much like the prequel, lies in the conversations that Jesse and Celine share. This is largely due to the film taking place in real time. While so many of their conversation topics range from work to politics, what is the most prominent is their opinions on the things they’ve learnt while apart and their philosophies for a good life.
“The true work of improving things is in the little achievements of the day, and that's what you need to enjoy.”
Jesse and Celine constantly talk about the little ways that make life worth living and make people happy on a daily basis. They leave the ideology that the little things in life bring about the most joy. They also believe that these little things are the antidotes to suffering:
“Life's hard. It's supposed to be. If we didn't suffer, we'd never learn anything.”
One of the eeriest details in Before Sunset that left fans baffled 15 years after its release is its foreshadowing of the fire at the Notre-Dame Cathedral. While it is only a casual piece of information in the movie that entails how beautiful places enchant people, the magnitude of the coincidence is simply unbelievable!
“Jesse: I heard this story once about when the Germans were occupying Paris and they had to retreat back. They wired Notre Dame to blow, but they had to leave one guy in charge of hitting the switch.
And the guy, the soldier, he couldn't do it. You know, he just sat there, knocked out by how beautiful the place was. And then when the allied troops came in, they found all the explosives just lying there and the switch unturned, and they found the same thing at Sacre Coeur, Eiffel Tower. Couple other places I think...
Celine: Is that true?
Jesse: I don't know. I always liked the story, though.”
Director’s Inspiration
Richard Linklater was inspired to make this film after meeting a young woman named Amy Lehrhaupt, and spending an evening with her in Philadelphia on his way from New York to Austin. Celine’s character is based on Amy, and Jesse is loosely based on Linklater himself.
After the release of Before Sunrise, Richard Linklater, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy began working on a bigger budget sequel but failed to receive adequate funding. As they went on with their independent work, they returned in 2003 after Hawke and actress Uma Thurman’s divorce.
They accumulated various versions of screenplays they had written as well as scenes written during the making of Before Sunrise.
Critical Reception
Premiered on 10th February, 2004 at the Berlin International Film Festival and released in theaters on 2nd July, 2004, Before Sunset grossed $16 million with a budget of $2.7 million (about 3 times its prequel!).
Much like Before Sunrise, its sequel is very critically acclaimed. It stood in 2nd place at the Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Film. It was also nominated for the 77th Academy Awards for Best Writing (Adapted Screenplay).
Famous Quotes
“Memory is a wonderful thing if you don't have to deal with the past.”
“Even being alone--it's better than being with a lover and feeling lonely.”
“Happiness is in doing, not in getting what you want.”
“We all see the world through our own tiny keyhole.”
“There are so many things I want to do, but I end up doing not much.”
“You can never replace anyone because everyone is made up of such beautiful specific details.”
“Baby, you are gonna miss that plane.”
The Bottom Line
Before Sunset is considered to be one of the most well-made sequels of all time. While it is a special treat for cinephiles all over, the heart of the film belongs to all the romantics out there. No matter where you are in life, this film will take you right back to the one that got away!
My ratings for the movie - 5 on 5
Written By - Kristi Mazumdar
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