This review was written by my Film Swappers partner, Chris Ranson. You can follow Chris on twitter @Wolverinefactor.
Title: Before Midnight (2013)
Runtime: 109 minutes
Director: Richard Linklater
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I was super excited for Before Midnight when I first heard about it. I adore the first two films (Before Sunrise and Before Sunset), and simply couldn’t wait to see Before Midnight, which is why it made the cut for my most anticipated summer films of 2013. Heck, I even drove 2 hours into New York City to catch a screening of it!
In 1995 we met Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Celine (Julie Deply), two strangers on a train who spend a magical evening together. In 2004 we meet the couple nine years later, while Jesse is promoting his new novel, based off of their one amazing evening. A lot has changed in their lives, but it’s great seeing where it all goes in this one evening.
Before Midnight picks up in 2013, 18 years after our couple first met. If you haven’t seen the first two films, do yourself a favor and watch them before you see Before Midnight because this trilogy deserves to be watched in the order that it was intended.
What I loved about this film is that, despite being 18 years later, Ethan Hawke and Julie Deply both fall right back into these characters and bring them to life with ease. I’ve never seen two actors just become two very likeable characters, so many years later. Not once did I think “oh that’s Ethan Hawke”. They live and breathe the roles they are given.
Thanks to writer/director Richard Linklater, we have a script that is so solid, that it doesn’t matter that we spend 109 minutes with just dialogue and no actual action taking place. The dialogue is often witty and always smart. When the climax of the film takes place, I just didn’t know what to do: how can this be fixed? Is it true? Why the pussyfooting? Oh god, is it really going here?
With no action to speak of, we witness a mental train wreck that just bashes your brains in with emotions. How did we end up here? That’s why I not only loved this film, but the first two as well. It’s a finely crafted tale wrought with emotion. Anyone who enjoys romantic films needs to see this trilogy, and I honestly can’t wait to rewatch this when it hits dvd in a few months. If it’s playing in your area, find a way to watch the first two and dive into this one because it’s that good.
Chris was raised on horror films, which gave him a deep love for the genre, especially its most quirky and offbeat titles (like A Nightmare on Elm Street 2). This love quickly turned into an obsession for cinema in 1997, when he decided he needed to see every major theatrical release. Video games (JRPGs), reading (anything but fantasy), and reality television (Survivor) are just some of his other passions. He’s been with Cinefessions since 2013, and has been writing reviews all over the internet for the past twelve years.
Great review, Chris!
I adored Before Sunrise and was a bit disappointing by Before Sunset. (Maybe upset that they hadn’t stayed together? Maybe mad at the ending which didn’t show if they would this time? LOL… Actually it’s because the first film was so philosophical, exploring personal fulfillment through two characters who could have been anyone, and the second film brought us much more into their specific lives, no longer enabling them to be so connected to each viewer). So this ultimate chapter in the trilogy didn’t make my anticipated list.
But your review makes me want to see it — and to revisit the entire trilogy and give the second installment another look too. If nothing else, though, I admire the fact that Linklater accomplished such a feat: a trilogy over the span of 18 years, shooting the third film without anyone really knowing it until it was done, and having his stars so involved that they can, as you say, just pick up those characters after so many years.
Thanks!