Before Sunset – Film Review

A sequel to Before Sunrise, this film starts nine years later as Jesse (Ethan Hawke) travels across Europe giving readings from a book he wrote about the night he spent in Vienna with Celine (Julie Delpy). After his reading in Paris, Celine finds him, and they spend part of the day together before Jesse has to again leave for a flight. They are both in relationships now, and Jesse has a son, but as their strong feelings for each other start to return, both confess a longing for more.

Of all the films in Richard Linklater‘s utterly masterful Before trilogy, Sunset has to be my favorite. It serves as a dazzlingly interesting follow-up and one that works so incredibly well mainly because of just how natural it feels. It may take place nine years after the events of the first, but Linklater understands that meeting that one special person will always have an impact on you, no matter how many years have passed.

In this film, when Jesse bumps into Céline again after nearly a decade, it’s almost as if no time at all has passed. In the first film, these two characters were able to have a conversation with one another like it was nothing. They could find intriguing things to say about snowblowers if they really wanted to.

Linklater’s trilogy is filled to the brim with some of the best dialogue ever put into film. Simply watching them talk about the most mundane of things is an absolute treat, and it’s basically what all of these movies are about. We’re essentially watching a genuine, loving relationship blossom right before our eyes in each film.

The first film followed the spark, or beginning, of true love and the puppy-like innocence that comes with it. Sunset is the meat and potatoes of it all, where the relationship finally starts to take root and show how wonderful and beautiful it can all be. And Midnight, which I’ll review next, is the realization that love is harder than you initially thought.

It’s just genuinely amazing that a film about a couple in love can be so wildly entertaining. There’s truly not even a single wasted line of dialogue on display. It’s all utilized perfectly, creating one of the most memorable movies of all-time. Not to mention the fact that it’s ending is so mesmerizing that it’s hard to imagine someone actually writing it. It’s that good.

Just like in the first film, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy are powerhouses in their respective roles of Jesse and Céline. Despite both of them being famous actors, it’s almost impossible to see them as anything but their characters when watching this film. They feel so believable as a couple to the point where those who are unfamiliar with Hawke and Delpy’s personal lives may actually walk away thinking they’re together in real life.

This is absolutely one of those movies that’ll make you a hopeless romantic, and that’s kind of beautiful. It’s the best in the trilogy in my opinion, and one of the greatest romantic dramas of all-time.

Before Sunset is a mesmerizing follow-up to its predecessor, complete with incredible dialogue, superb direction from Richard Linklater, and featuring understated performances from Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy.