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Back Shelf Beauties
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Before Sunset Up until I checked the table of contents, I could have sworn I put Before Sunrise in my book, Back Shelf Beauties. It was one of those movies that made every young man wonder, "why can't that happen to me?" The idea of meeting a beautiful French woman on a train and having her fall in love with you appears to be the most romantic thing that could ever happen, especially when you're 23 and riding the subway to work everyday like I was at the time. Before Sunset takes us back to Europe to see what happened to those two young kids nine years later, but do we really want to know? Like I said, it's nine years later, and Jesse Wallace (Ethan Hawke) is touring Europe to promote his new book. It's all about this one, magical night he had nine years ago, riding the train through Europe, where he met Celine (Julie Delpy). In one night, they had the kind of passionate relationship everyone dreams of, but he had to go back to America with a promise they would get together six months later. As he answers questions from the press and readers, Celine appears, and they spend another day together catching up on old times, discovering what they have done with their lives, and reexamining the night they never forgot. Whatever happened to them? Are they still in love? Am I still in love with Julie Delpy? Before Sunset makes much more sense after you have seen Before Sunrise, so rent it. While part of me felt Before Sunrise deserved to stand on its own, giving the audience a chance to wonder and dream about what ever happened to those two lovers (something addressed in the opening moments of the film), Before Sunset felt like getting together with an old friend you haven't seen since college and measuring where life has gone and who you are and used to be. Thankfully, writer/director Richard Linklater gives us more mystery to mull over, and keeps to the original film's spirit by focusing exclusively on Celine and Jesse. You have to be a romantic to love these movies, and I fell for them hook, line and sinker. Hawke and Delpy share a special chemistry that allows you to enjoy the most insufferable of conversations, but we aren't as interested in the conversation as we are the spark between the leads. Hawke is at his best as he watches Delpy speak, looks at her longingly, reacts to her craziness or shows moments of regret. Delpy takes full advantage of Celine as she shows us her newfound maturity, but never drops the neuroses and youthful charm that first attracted Jesse and every man who ever saw Before Sunrise. It's more whimsical than the first, but Hawke and Delpy slowly and subtly emotionally challenge the audience as a polite get-together grows into something more. This is what gets the romantics in the audience wrapped up in the relationship, and makes Before Sunset a great date movie. It's a simple story, and one we must follow all the way until the end to truly appreciate, but Before Sunset is the kind of film you want to see with someone special. 3 Waffles (Out Of 4) Copyright 2004 - WaffleMovies.com
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