Before Sunset

[ono]

I saw a Before Sunrise / Before Sunset double-feature tonight.  (Yeah, 'bout time, I know.)  Needless to say, I have a huge grin on my face I won't be able to wipe off anytime soon.  The dialogue in this film especially was brilliant.  The scene in the car (like W2A said), and her playing the waltz and then dancing, two of the most amazing scenes ever.  The car scene, especially, was just phenomenal.  I can't get over just how powerful the writing there was.  He must've pored over that for a very long time.  That, or it was just one of those freak things.  Sunset is one of the best of the year, though really these are just two halfs of one great movie.

[The Perineum Falcon]

The car scene, especially, was just phenomenal.  I can't get over just how powerful the writing there was.  He must've pored over that for a very long time.

I think Delpy was responsible for most of that, wasn't she?

[ono]

Looks like they all (Linklater, Delpy, and Hawke) had a hand in the screenplay, you're right.

[Jeremy Blackman]

The entire movie is in real time, one long conversation that has a desperate bit of urgency to it, as if this little bit of time is all these characters will ever have together and they need to say everything they need to, and it all just pours out and doesn't stop. It was like Waking Life with a narrower conversational focus, which left me feeling linked intrinscially not so much to the characters but what they were saying and feeling.

Maybe it's just me, but I thought their endless dialogue was what prevented them from really making a connection. Does nobody else have a cynical view of their nonstop talking? It really bothered me. And there was something about Ethan Hawke that didn't sit well with me, some kind of overenthusiasm and extreme politeness that materialized into either incredulousness or insincerity (I can't tell).

I haven't seen the first film, so maybe I just didn't have much invested in the sequel, and maybe I'm just not feeling that 9 year gap.

Looks like they all (Linklater, Delpy, and Hawke) had a hand in the screenplay, you're right.

This is an uneducated guess, but much of the dialogue seemed improvised.

[UncleJoey]

Maybe it's just me, but I thought their endless dialogue was what prevented them from really making a connection.

What would you have had them do? Stare at each other? They had like 90 minutes to spend together. I would have talked the whole time, too.

I haven't seen the first film

That was a mistake. See the first film.

[cine]

I haven't seen the first film

That was a mistake. See the first film.

Yeah, JB, I'm not sure who else was in the same boat as you but I can't imagine anyone watching Before Sunset prior to seeing the first film. I know I wouldn't have liked it as much.

[Jeremy Blackman]

What would you have had them do? Stare at each other?

Yes, I was actually hoping for a moment just like that. A perfect ending would be them staring at each other for five minutes... it would have been such an incredible relief. I thought it was almost going to happen on the stairs, but then Ethan Hawke came up with that stupid line "I love these old staircases." The conversation was so evasive sometimes. How is that changed by seeing the first movie?

This movie didn't make me smile as much as it made me cringe. It was 80 minutes of tension and torture. And I thought it had a really clear dark side. I mean, think about it... half the dialogue and most of the physical acting is absolutely tragic.

[cine]

I guess you'll never know how much different your movie experience could've been..  

[Jeremy Blackman]

I guess you'll never know how much different your movie experience could've been..  

But Ghostboy also saw the sequel first, and his experience was apparently similar to most everyone else's.

[Ghostboy]

EDIT: JB beat me to my own point!

I saw it for the first time without having seen the first film, and I absolutely loved it. Then I went to a screening that showed the two back to back with no interruption and decided it was the best movie of the year.

So while the two combined are the best way to see the films, the second one does work fine on its own, and if JB didn't like it, I don't think the first one will help him see the light.

[Myxo]

Hey, it's another DVD that I guess I'm blind buying based on the raving of XIXAXers.

[ono]

Get them both, watch them back to back.  Before Sunrise reminded me why I love movies.  Before Sunset reaffirmed that yet again, and I thought it was even more well-written.  Sunrise is more substantial though.

[MacGuffin]

if JB didn't like it, I don't think the first one will help him see the light.

But I do think JB might like the first one. I think it's more of what he's looking for. There are pauses where they do stare at each other, like the stolen glances when they are listening to the record. The timeline in Sunrise is more carefree and isn't 'rushed' because it's played out in real time like Sunset.

[Jeremy Blackman]

I should definitely see the first one, then. Is it better to understand this movie as an addendum? (instead of a half)

You know that scene where they're talking about the environment for a while and then they light up? Did that bother anyone else?

I'm not saying it's a bad movie... I'm just seeing tragedy, irony, and evasion above everything else.

[Ghostboy]

No, it's definitely a half. The two films mirror each other in just about every possible way.

And while they the things they talk about may not be completely sunny...it's the fact that they talk about them that makes the film so wonderful. Never has hindsight or regret or even something as simple as gaining new perspectives been so well illustrated in a film.

BTW, none of it was improvised. Linklater talked about how they didn't really have time for any improv, due to the shooting schedule, so just about every little line or gesture was written and rehearsed well beforehand.