Before Sunset
Patriot Cinemas Nickelodeon
* * * ½ (out of 4)

A friend assured me this would be a good movie. Before Sunrise is her favorite, so she had a reason. On the other hand, I have not seen Before Sunrise, and without her there probably would have been no reason for me to see this movie, and I probably would have missed it. And that would have been a shame. This is a movie with exquisite direction and a fully developed pair of characters that have a completely genuine chemistry; these are not compliments that can be paid very often.

Set (and made) nine years after the first, Jesse (Ethan Hawke) has written a book about his experience with a French woman (Julie Delpy) on a train. On his final book tour stop in France, she seeks out the appearance and invites him to spend the rest of the afternoon with her in order to catch up, and perhaps answer some lingering questions. The afternoon unfolds similar to the first, sparking a flowing and wandering conversation that covers all topics, but is interspersed with questions about that one train ride nine years early, and about whether or not these two have any sort of future together.

My favorite aspect of this movie is the energy exhibited from everyone involved. Written by Hawke, Delpy, and director Richard Linklater, it’s obvious that this is something all three of them wanted to do, and that comes through crystal clear throughout the movie. Hawke and Delpy are incredibly at ease with each other (once the characters get past the initial awkwardness of seeing someone after you spent a night with them nearly a decade earlier), and the conversation flows so smoothly from politics, to religion, and the environment, always circling back to their own lives and experiences and hinting at what that night meant to each of them. Linklater makes a wise choice in shooting the film in real time; from the moment Hawke appears in the bookstore until the moment the film finally fades to black, not a minute more has passed onscreen than in the theater. Not a single word of conversation has been missed. Camera cuts are necessary, but not frequent, leading to some truly impressive shots that last for seven or eight minutes at a time. It’s a wonderful movie in which to just get lost, listening to the two of them and wandering around Paris with them for an hour and a half.

Hawke and Delpy seem happy to return to these characters, and one can only assume they pick up right where they left off at the end of Sunrise. The most interesting moments are when they delve into their personal lives, discussing what that night has done to them, or where they are in their love lives now. The fact that Jesse is married with a son but still writes this book basically in an effort to find Celine is a much discussed notion, and very interesting to listen to.

I’m hooked. I need to find a copy of Before Sunrise to see how this started. Richard Linklater made great choices and shot Paris in all its glory. Before Sunrise seems to be getting a relatively limited release, so don’t miss out on this f you have an opportunity to see it.