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 406 Ratings

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8.6

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8.6	Your Score
8.6	User Score Universal acclaim based on 406 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

EdisonF.

Apr 6, 2006

I love this movie because there's a girl like Celine in my life. I could not be with her because I will go abroad this fall. What a pity! I hate reality.

0 of 0 users found this helpful

CY.

May 3, 2008

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.

0 of 0 users found this helpful

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

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

Spangle

Jun 19, 2015

A continuation of Richard Linklater's "stream of consciousness" romance trilogy, Before Sunset is better than Before Sunrise, but not by much, because both are still phenomenal pieces of cinema. Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy are yet again fantastic in this film with their chemistry together onA continuation of Richard Linklater's "stream of consciousness" romance trilogy, Before Sunset is better than Before Sunrise, but not by much, because both are still phenomenal pieces of cinema. Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy are yet again fantastic in this film with their chemistry together on display for all to see. The two of them seem to just bounce off of one another and it gives the love between them a realistic feeling. Featuring the same hilarious moments, honest and riveting dialogue, and pure romance, as the first film, the thing that puts Before Sunset above Before Sunrise for me is the way in which the characters have grown. In the first film, they are innocent. They are both romantics who may not be open about this due to parts of their past, but deep down, they believe in love and "the one". Now, both are jaded and unhappy. Yet, though they claim otherwise, both are still romantics. They are simply both afraid to be hurt further and show the scars of love lost. There is a longing between both of them that has left both unsatisfied in other endeavors. Their dialogue suggests they are now both cynics who no longer believe in love, but in reality, it portrays them as people who deny their true feelings because they are afraid of it falling apart all over again. For this, Before Sunset shows great maturity amid its romance that leaves hope for the future, yet that hope is tempered and covered in doubt. What will happen? Will they find happiness? A brilliant film, Before Sunset shows Richard Linklater's talent as a writer and director for all to see.… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

NickTheCritick

Apr 24, 2022

Nine years after their first and only meeting, Jesse and Céline find themselves in Paris. He is now a successful writer, she works for an environmental association. In the few hours before he is due to return to the US, they take a long walk during which they let their guard down in defenseNine years after their first and only meeting, Jesse and Céline find themselves in Paris. He is now a successful writer, she works for an environmental association. In the few hours before he is due to return to the US, they take a long walk during which they let their guard down in defense of their mutual feelings. Long sequence shots with dialogues poised on nostalgia, full of stereotypes of the two cultures in comparison. Film aimed at the search for the unspoken, for the small refractions of the soul, for the everyday that escapes, for the passing of time.… 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 49 REVIEWS

4	#4 Best Movie of 2004
42	#42 Most Discussed Movie of 2004
39	#39 Most Shared Movie of 2004