"Sunrise... Sunset..."

Mary, the Director of Admissions at my school, loaned me two DVD's at the beginning of the summer and told me that I'd love them.

They were Before Sunrise and Before Sunset with Ethan Hawke (Training Day) and Julie Delpy (An American Werewolf in Paris). It took me all summer to actually sit down and watch them, with many opportunities available, by the way. I just didn't think that I'd enjoy them... None of my favorite celebrities appeared, none of my favorite directors were at the helm, and I just didn't know enough about either movie.

Finally, I told myself to "shut up and have a good time"...

In Before Sunrise, we meet Jesse and Celine on a train. They accidentally meet each other after some annoying passengers cause Celine to move closer to Jesse. They strike up a conversation and end up relocating to get away from the distractions all together...

They continue their conversation until the train stops in Vienna, where Jesse must spend the evening in order to catch a flight early the next morning. He talks Celine into walking around Vienna with him for the evening, since he doesn't have enough money for a hotel room.

She agrees, and the one-night romance begins.

The two know that they will, most likely, never see each other after the night is over. Jesse will return to the United States while Celine continues to Paris, where she is enrolled in school.

The entire 105-minute movie is their ongoing conversation... As the viewers, we learn about these characters as they learn about each other. They talk about everything and a romance is quickly born. They walk around Vienna, which is like another character in the story. The sights are beautiful, and the cinematographer, Lee Daniel, makes sure that we notice.

At the end of Before Sunrise, they promise to meet up in six months, on December 16, at the train station to see if what they shared that night wasn't just a one-night thing...

Nine years later, Before Sunset picks up with Jesse in Paris at a book signing, the final stop on his tour. He's written a book about his night with Celine, and it has become a best-seller. As he finishes his question-and-answer session, he catches a glimpse of Celine standing off to the side of the library.

Once again, he has a flight to catch and only has a short time in Paris. He and Celine go for coffee and spend the remainder of the 80-minute movie catching up on lost time. As they walk around Paris, they discuss their scheduled meeting on December 16... Who showed up? Who didn't? Did either one of them make the trip? I'll never tell... :-)

The ending of this movie is perfect... I absolutely will not disclose that information. Watch these movies for yourselves! For now, to see if you'd be remotely interested, I've included the trailers to both.





I'm going to "review" movies, music, television, books, etc. a little differently than most people. I'll list my thoughts in bullets to help get to the point of how I felt about a certain piece of work.

My Thoughts on Before Sunrise:

• Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy have amazing chemistry!
• Terrific directing from Richard Linklater (The School of Rock).
  
• With all of its dialogue and not a lot happening, it still manages to keep the viewer intrigued, for the most part, from beginning to end. (There are a few moments when it seemed a tad slow.)
  
• The budding, one-night romance is extremely believable and not rushed in any way, shape, or form.
• The ending may upset some who hope for the fairytale ending; however, I feel that it ends the way that it should.

OVERALL RATING (Out of 05): 04/05

My Thoughts on Before Sunset:

• This was a sequel that needed to be made, unlike many that are strictly made to make more money.
  
• One of those instances where a sequel is just as good as its predecessor.
• Like Before Sunrise, not a lot occurs, but the dialogue, this time co-written by Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, help the movie move smoothly and keeps the viewers interested and entertained.
• For some reason, all of the references and talk about sex were a bit too much to me. I felt that the characters could've found other things to talk about... That's just me.
• As I stated before, the ending is perfect, even if a tad abrupt.
  

OVERALL RATING (Out of 05): 04/05

Do yourselves a favor... Rent these movies, put them on your NetFlix queue, or just buy them. Both are really good romances with terrific acting.

Enjoy!