Before Sunset

Name: Before Sunset
Genre: Drama, Romance
Released: July 2, 2004
Duration: 80 min
Rating: 90
Cast: Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy

2004

METASCORE

Universal acclaim based on 39 Critic Reviews

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USER SCORE

Universal acclaim based on 388 Ratings

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8.7

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8.7	Your Score
8.7	User Score Universal acclaim based on 388 Ratings

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Before Sunset

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Movie Details & Credits

Warner Independent Pictures (WIP) | Release Date: July 2, 2004 | R

Starring: Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy

Summary: The timeless romantic story of two questing hearts and minds whose powerful bond defies time and place. [Warner Independent Pictures]

Director: Richard Linklater

Genre(s): Drama, Romance

Rating: R

Runtime: 80 min

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Critic Reviews

100

Kirk Honeycutt

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

100

Sean Axmaker

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

100

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. Read full review

100

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. Read full review

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. Read full review

James Berardinelli

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

Michael O'Sullivan

All foreplay and no climax. Read full review

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User Reviews

fearless11

Oct 4, 2012

Astonishing. Not just incredibly well-written and wonderfully engaging - you never feel like it's film because there is always a great sense of reality to it.
Amazing.

9 of 9 users found this helpful90

A.G.

Jun 19, 2007

It is very clear from the wording of comments that rating is directly related to level of intellectualism and an experience of real sensational love.

0 of 0 users found this helpful

happydolphin

Apr 18, 2013

I re-watched both 'Sunrise' and 'Sunset' in preparation for 'Before Midnight'. 'Sunset' is my favourite of the two, perhaps the most beautifully romantic movie of all time! Kudos to the director that makes himself invisible and reels you in with his skill and kudos to the actors thatI re-watched both 'Sunrise' and 'Sunset' in preparation for 'Before Midnight'. 'Sunset' is my favourite of the two, perhaps the most beautifully romantic movie of all time! Kudos to the director that makes himself invisible and reels you in with his skill and kudos to the actors that absolutely make you fall in love with and root for them! What strikes me is how each time I watch this movie, I discover something new relatable in the conversation. And then there are the questions! Is duty more important than authenticity? Is time relevant? Is love worth the risk? The price? What does it mean being mature and responsible? Are the choices we make truly our own or is fate and circumstance the defining factor? I find Jesse to be the more hopeful about life in this round, in spite of his miserable marriage and Celine the more vulnerable in spite of all the armour she has built over the years to avoid pain. The boat and the car scene are for me among the most memorable moments I have ever experienced at the movies. The ending could not have been more fitting and perfect, but somehow I have no doubt about the outcome, he has no choice but to miss that plane. Can't wait to listen in on another walk and talk of these two in a month or so in 'Before Midnight'. Am I a goofball or what!… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

Bedy

Mar 13, 2006

Thise is a romantic movie that must be seen. Its about two peaple who met 9 years ago and can´t forget about each other . Then they meet again 9 years later, and have only a few hours to realize that. It´s a very romantic story that is a bit unrealistic, and it is very different Thise is a romantic movie that must be seen. Its about two peaple who met 9 years ago and can´t forget about each other . Then they meet again 9 years later, and have only a few hours to realize that. It´s a very romantic story that is a bit unrealistic, and it is very different from other romantic movies since its only diallogue. Peaple who need action aren´t going to enjoye thise one.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful

Thegodfatherson

Jun 10, 2013

Back in 1995, Richard Linklater until then best-known for Slacker and Dazed And Confused left Kevin Smith to chronicle America's waster youth and made a small, offbeat romance called Before Sunrise. A deeply appealing two-hander about an American backpacker (Hawke) and a French studentBack in 1995, Richard Linklater until then best-known for Slacker and Dazed And Confused left Kevin Smith to chronicle America's waster youth and made a small, offbeat romance called Before Sunrise. A deeply appealing two-hander about an American backpacker (Hawke) and a French student (then-unknown Delpy) who meet on a train and talk their way around Vienna, Before Sunrise charmed romantically-inclined twentysomethings everywhere. The crux of the matter in that film, of course, is that at the end the pair agree to meet six months on. Would they be there? Would they live happily ever after? It was fun to daydream, but ultimately, was that even the point? It is now. A decade later, Linklater rejoined by his two stars, who share the writing credits has produced a "real-time" sequel, catching up with Jesse and Celine nine years down the road a prospect that must strike both joy and trepidation into the hearts of devotees. Have they spoilt it all? Conversely, will it mean anything to those new to the pair? Should it ever have been made? The answers to these are broadly no, yes (there are even helpful flashbacks to the first film but oh don't they show how shockingly gaunt Hawke has become!) and, well, the third could generate debates to rival those of our spirited protagonists. Certainly there are problems with the film. A mere 80 minutes long, like Before Sunrise the structure of Before Sunset two people wander aimlessly, arguing, flirting, ultimately rejoicing in each other is not on paper the stuff of high drama, and some will find the lack of a definite story arc undisciplined and unengaging. Potentially more damaging is the abruptness of the ending which, coupled with the short running time, could leave some viewers wondering if the last reel slipped down the back of a filing cabinet. Teasingly frustrating in its ambiguity, the final scene languid, heady, sexy as hell eschews a solid, conventionally dramatic conclusion, instead taunting us with yet more questions some will love this, but after the building tension of the preceding moments, others will demand more. That said, there is still so much to love about Linklater's literate, candid, and this time necessarily more sombre film. Jesse and Celine, now in their early 30s and in theory older and wiser, are still as delightfully real as they were ten years ago. All credit to Hawke and Delpy, who hardly seem to be acting; they just are these characters. Meeting up by (almost) chance in Paris with mere hours until Jesse has to leave, the shell-shocked pair walk the streets of Le Marais and the Latin Quarter, stumbling from awkwardly polite niceties to heartfelt confessions and anxieties touching the very core of their "grown-up" lives the poignancy of regret, the loneliness of failing relationships, the agonising conflict between desire and duty universal subjects that extend beyond the parameters of Jesse and Celine's story and will strike a chord even with those unfamiliar with the first film. While some might balk at such wordiness, the film is far from earnest or depressing, full of humour and joy and the three writers counter any chance of boredom by dropping mini bombshells at regular intervals; tiny ripples on the Richter Scale, perhaps, but hugely important twists in the context of this couple. Set against the beauty of Paris cinematographer Lee Daniel hardly has to try! it's near impossible not to be seduced by this picture, the director nevertheless cranking up the aesthetics by filming the city in long, golden-dappled tracking shots that soothe the eye just as he tightens the emotional screws. An involving and all too fleeting joy.… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

chocobrownies

Jan 25, 2019

I love this as well but I'm not forgetting the fact that he cheated and left her wife for her. I think that's the only thing that made me meh in this film however, i know this is just a movie and actors didn't make their characters "hate-able" if there is even a word like that. Still, aI love this as well but I'm not forgetting the fact that he cheated and left her wife for her. I think that's the only thing that made me meh in this film however, i know this is just a movie and actors didn't make their characters "hate-able" if there is even a word like that. Still, a classic movie!… Expand

0 of 0 users found this helpful00

ElleR.

Apr 13, 2006

This was by far the worst movie I have ever seen. It was painfully boring.

0 of 5 users found this helpful

SEE ALL 43 REVIEWS

4	#4 Best Movie of 2004
44	#44 Most Discussed Movie of 2004
39	#39 Most Shared Movie of 2004