2014's Boyhood is a film that has stuck with me ever since I first saw it. It's tale of growing up, without all the drama of a typical Hollywood film really grabbed me and it's a film I regularly find myself returning to. However I've never actually looked into director Richard Linklater's other films, until today when I sat down at watched 1995's Before Sunrise.
Whilst on a train travelling through Europe, early twenty-something's Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Celine (Julie Delpy) meet as strangers and have an instant chemistry that makes the two of them decide to spend the night together in Vienna getting to know each other and eventually falling in love, all Before Sunrise. Much like Boyhood the film doesn't have a conventional plot structure, there is no drama or even a conflict as such, the only thing that we as an audience really have to contend with is the fact that Jesse and Celine only have a few hours together as strangers as Jesse must catch a flight in the morning. The two discuss what matters to them, what drives their lives, what regrets they have, and most importantly how they feel about love and all the baggage that comes with it.
It's a relatively short film at just over 90 minutes, but considering it's 90 minutes of two people talking it packs a lot in. Is this film for everyone? No. This is a film where, at least in the conventional sense, nothing happens. It's just two people talking. But this film is romance boiled down to its most basic and raw form and presented with some fantastic acting that really make this story personal and human, rather than fantasy. If you like romance stories, I can't recommend this enough.
Whilst on a train travelling through Europe, early twenty-something's Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Celine (Julie Delpy) meet as strangers and have an instant chemistry that makes the two of them decide to spend the night together in Vienna getting to know each other and eventually falling in love, all Before Sunrise. Much like Boyhood the film doesn't have a conventional plot structure, there is no drama or even a conflict as such, the only thing that we as an audience really have to contend with is the fact that Jesse and Celine only have a few hours together as strangers as Jesse must catch a flight in the morning. The two discuss what matters to them, what drives their lives, what regrets they have, and most importantly how they feel about love and all the baggage that comes with it.
It's a relatively short film at just over 90 minutes, but considering it's 90 minutes of two people talking it packs a lot in. Is this film for everyone? No. This is a film where, at least in the conventional sense, nothing happens. It's just two people talking. But this film is romance boiled down to its most basic and raw form and presented with some fantastic acting that really make this story personal and human, rather than fantasy. If you like romance stories, I can't recommend this enough.