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Before Sunset
Warner Independent Pictures


8.2

based on 39 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 119 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie

FILM:

MPAA RATING: R for language and sexual references

Starring Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy, Vernon Dobtcheff, Louise Lemoine Torres, Rodolphe Pauly, Mariane Plasteig, Diabolo, Albert Delpy, and Marie Pillet

The timeless romantic story of two questing hearts and minds whose powerful bond defies time and place. (Warner Independent Pictures)

GENRE(S):	Drama \| Romance
WRITTEN BY:	Richard Linklater (also characters and story) Julie Delpy Ethan Hawke Kim Krizan (characters and story)
DIRECTED BY:	Richard Linklater
RELEASE DATE:	DVD: November 9, 2004 Video: November 9, 2004 Theatrical: July 2, 2004
RUNNING TIME:	80 minutes, Color
ORIGIN:	USA

Nominated, Golden Berlin Bear, 2004 Berlin International Film Festival

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

100

The Hollywood Reporter Kirk Honeycutt

This is one of the most wildly romantic movies in ages.

100

Village Voice J. Hoberman

Summer sequelitis is upon us, but the season is unlikely to bring anything more remarkable than Richard Linklater's sweet, smart, and deeply romantic Before Sunset.

100

Premiere Glenn Kenny

Yep, this movie is basically a yakfest, but an incredibly fluid and involving one, and if you have any kind of affinity for either of the characters, you’re bound to find the picture a kind of miracle.

100

Entertainment Weekly Owen Gleiberman

The new film, which unfolds in real time over the course of 80 minutes, is a deeper, darker, altogether more memorable experience. It doesn't extend the characters so much as fulfill them.

100

Chicago Tribune Michael Wilmington

This is a romance with minimal physical contact and sex--and that's part of what makes it work so well as a love story.

100

LA Weekly Scott Foundas

What ultimately makes Before Sunset so special (and maybe the most resonant, least self-conscious “great movie romance” of its era) is its deep-rooted honesty -- the way it takes the bitter with the sweet and somehow leaves us feeling elated.

100

Christian Science Monitor David Sterritt

All told, he's (Linklater) one of today's most versatile American filmmakers, and Before Sunset finds his light shining as brightly as ever.

100

Philadelphia Inquirer Steven Rea

It's great to see an American filmmaker - and a successful one at that - willing to simply train his cameras on the actors and let them, and their characters, come to life.

100

Seattle Post-Intelligencer Sean Axmaker

Romantic, real and as generous as it is vulnerable, the art of conversation has rarely been so acute, honest and revealing.

100

Los Angeles Times Manohla Dargis

Because Linklater now wears his heart on his sleeve, he has made a film that in its joy, optimism and aesthetic achievement keeps faith with American cinema at its finest.

100

USA Today Mike Clark

A movie this diminutive can be easily oversold, but we might see it on some year-end best lists. It eats at you, just like renewed love.

100

Boston Globe Ty Burr

That rose in the desert, a sequel that improves in every way upon its beloved predecessor and a romance that slowly builds a fire from embers thought dead.

100

San Francisco Chronicle Mick LaSalle

Magnificent but somewhat frustrating movie.

100

New York Post Megan Lehmann

Chance encounters and fated love are the stuff of fairy tales, which is what makes the deliriously romantic sequel Before Sunset a small miracle.

100

Salon.com Stephanie Zacharek

Although there isn't a single kiss in this love story, it's intensely erotic -- and more to the point, it's not afraid of eroticsm's juicier and more forthright twin, carnality.

100

Chicago Reader Jonathan Rosenbaum

One of the most perfect endings of any film that comes to mind.

100

Portland Oregonian Karen Karbo

Hawke is not a brilliant actor, but here he rises to the occasion: Every inch of him registers the weight of this moment.

100

Baltimore Sun Michael Sragow

A vibrant emotional epic.

100

Miami Herald Rene Rodriguez

Although it is technically a sequel, Before Sunset stands perfectly well on its own. In fact, the new movie plays better if you haven't seen the original for a while, so its details have grown appropriately fuzzy.

100

The New Republic Stanley Kauffmann

The result is a peculiar small gem, a true Linklater gem. The verity of the film, rather than any novelty or twist, keeps us fixed.

The New Yorker David Denby

The movie is an O. Henry-like conceit--the slenderness of the initial premise is part of the charm--but the anecdote becomes almost momentous as it goes on.

The Onion (A.V. Club) Scott Tobias

In the spirit of the original, Linklater closes with one of the best endings of its kind since George Romero's "Martin."

Austin Chronicle Marjorie Baumgarten

Although the characters and their backstories are carefully thought out, Delpy and Hawke deliver their dialogue as if spontaneous and unmeditated.

The Globe and Mail (Toronto) Rick Groen

This is a sequel just as intriguing as the original.

New York Daily News Jack Mathews

The naturalistic dialogue is a masterful bit of writing, credited to Linklater and his "Sunrise" co-writer Kim Krizan, as well as to the two stars.

Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman

The ex-lovers' new conversation is stimulating and banal, selfish and broad-minded, affectionate and recriminatory, insightful and obtuse - in short, the kind of dialogue two people might have while pouring out their hearts and poring over their pasts.

Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert

The film has the materials for a lifetime project; like the "7-Up" series, this is a conversation that could be returned to every 10 years or so, as Celine and Jesse grow older.

ReelViews James Berardinelli

In the midst of summer's cinematic thunder and lightning, this is a rare moment of tranquility.

Film Threat Peter Hanson

The sequel is an uninterrupted 80-minute dialogue between two richly imagined and performed characters.

Variety Eddie Cockrell

A savvy sequel that should speak to anyone who's let that one great love slip away.

Slate David Edelstein

The bad news is that Before Sunset is not as delirious an experience as its predecessor. The good news is that it's wonderful anyway, and in ways that tell us something about our romance with "Before Sunrise."

The New York Times Dana Stevens

The script of Before Sunset is both rambling and self-conscious, and at times it has the self-important sound of clever writing. But though it is sometimes maddening, the movie's prodigious verbiage is also enthralling.

Washington Post Ann Hornaday

Anything that inspires that many whoops, gasps and groans with only two actors and a few choice words has earned its place at the summertime box office trough.

Rolling Stone Peter Travers

There is something uniquely unforgettable in the way Linklater, Hawke and Delpy (equal collaborators on the script) find nuance, art and eroticism in words, spoken and unspoken. The actors shine.

TV Guide Angel Cohn

This sweet film is a genuine treat, even if there's little plot, no antic mayhem and its 90-minute running time is mostly consumed by nonstop, sometimes pretentious dialogue.

Dallas Observer Gregory Weinkauf

Meandering but reasonably charming.

Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern

It's "My Dinner With Andre" for the relationship generation.

Empire Liz Beardsworth

An intelligent, engagingly honest study of love lost and, just maybe, regained.

Washington Post Michael O'Sullivan

All foreplay and no climax.

The average user rating for this movie is 8.2 (out of 10) based on 119 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

C Y. gave it a10:
Strange hybrid of incandescent emotions and real life messiness; sublime yet grounded dialogue; and the most unabashedly romantic slice of life cinema since Brief Encounter.

C J gave it a9:
A profoundly satisfying follow up on the original (which you should definitely watch first). Although some of the conversation is just cute, at several points the characters expressed insights that I could relate to. I also think the decision to shoot the film in real-time in around 1.5 hours was very wise. It would have been impossible to capture the original magic of a full night, but this sequel has a different, more focused feel that fits where the characters are. And, I found the ending profoundly satisfying. It creeps up on you. Great!

Yssys G. gave it a10:
The ending it's just perfect!

D L gave it a10:
This movie is absolutely amazing, I don't know what C.M. saw but I think it should get $4 worth of brain cells.

S Wilson gave it a10:
classic. unique. real. I understand why your standard movie goer wouldn't get what they wanted out of this movie, and there's nothing wrong with that...but luckily I'm not that kind of person. If you're introspective and extrospective about the world, this movie will work for you.

C. M. gave it a0:
Unbelievably boring film. I found myself fast forwarding through most of the first 45 minutes, hoping the plot would thicken, but it never happened. It is clear that people who liked this movie are bored, lonely and desperately reaching for something that is missing in their own lives. It is sad that so many reviewers mislabel an atrocious waste of film such as this as 'Art' and 'Romantic'. I feel like I have been robbed of an evening of my time and $4 DVD rental fee.

Vian W. gave it a10:
A Very clever - Romantic movie i ever saw, this movie tells a lot about the connection, meaning of love without a single 'I Love u' word, but we feel a lot of emotion and love experience from the start till the end. Standing applause fo RIchard Linklater.

Before Sunset Warner Independent Pictures

Before Sunset
Warner Independent Pictures