Before Sunrise (1995)

• Tweet
• Email

• Tweet
• Email

Director Richard Linklater

Stars Ethan Hawke & Julie Delpy

Things You Might Like

• Smart, sophisticated dialogue
• Natural chemistry of Hawke and Delpy
• Documentary quality views of Vienna
• A chance to see what happens when you let go
• Will they?

Things You Might Not Like

• Dialogue knows it is smart
• It’s meant to be a film not a travel guide
• Too gentle if you’re not in the mood
• Will they?

Conclusion
Beautifully shot and scripted, this is a treat as much for travellers as romantics.

4 out of 5 trains departed

Luke McGrath

***

Before Sunrise is a film that knows its place and knows its audience. Pitched at the smart and sophisticated romantic, it hits the mark in every department. Director Richard Linklater mixes together a script, cast and location that balance each other and add up to much more than you’d expect.

Set in Vienna, the films spans the course of one evening and follows the spontaneous romance of two foreign travellers. American Jesse (Hawke) is heading for a plane out of Europe, while French student Celine (Delpy) is taking the train to Paris. At Jesse’s suggestion, the two disembark at Vienna and spend the night wandering the streets getting to know each other. As the titular sunrise closes in, it dawns (!) on the couple that keeping in touch is going to be harder than they imagined.

Linklater’s great success is the balance between his characters and their temporary setting. His respect and admiration for Vienna are clear. The camera dwells lovingly over the scenery even longer than it does over his starring cast. The punctuating shots could easily belong to a documentary about the city, and should at the very least be appropriated by the tourist board.

When the director does switch back to his story, it is with equal skill and success. His young characters are almost indistinguishable from the cast. Hawke and Delpy embody the free spirited travellers naturally; it’s no surprise that the team was tempted into revisiting the scene in 2004′s Before Sunset.

The director’s obvious affection for his hippy couple dictates the tone of the film. To say it is character-driven is like saying Dune has a lot of sand in it. The barely-noticeable plot can be boiled down to a simple situation: man and women agree to spontaneous city romance. After this, Jesse and Celine are left to deal will the consequences. The two explore the city at a fascinatingly slow pace; they stop to eat, drink, play pinball and have a poem written for them. Yet they never lose our attention. Their dialogue drips with untapped potential and possibility; they muse about their situation, what brought them to it and (crucially) what they’ll do next.

Before Sunrise is a pitch perfect film. From beginning to end, a tone is established that never wavers. The score and photography align with the script and draw the audience in; you feel an optimistic romanticism falling over you as you watch. Few films can claim to have such a sustained and enveloping mood.

If there is criticism levelled at Before Sunrise it is for being in love with itself just a little too much. The film knows it is clever and know it is sophisticated. It never condescends to tell us how smart it is, but there are touches of unknowing arrogance lurking within.

Yet the film never falls for itself enough to grate on us. We want it to succeed as much as Jesse and Celine do. With the parting shots of the city that inspired him, Linklater pulls us back into the emotion of his conclusion.

Buy Before Sunrise  from Amazon