Mr Linklater, consider yourself redeemed!

Rating: 8/10 (10 June 2005)

I must first admit that one star is for the pleasant surprise this delight of a film produced after viewing it a month after surviving director Linklater's awful Waking Life, which was nail bitingly close to being the worst film I have ever witnessed. That said you must be warned, Before Sunrise is what I label a 'hit or miss' movie (no, not in the rhyming slang sense, tsk), in that the impact of the film will depend largely on the viewer, you will either love it or hate it. Also in the film not a lot happens, there is no real drama, conflict or action just 2 people who meet share a day together in Vienna and fall in love. It is a 'talky' film, it almost all dialogue, the dialogue will not always be easy to digest for everyone, I found the film to drag at points, but there are at least some things in here that I think everyone can relate to. What makes the film a success (to some, not all) is the way that this relationship unfolds, with sublime realism and tenderness. A very simple film on the surface it has intricacies that are open for the viewer to interpret in relation to their own lives and feelings.
This story put me instantly in mind of Lost in Translation, except for the age gap, the other difference is we have no prior knowledge of the main characters when they meet. We have two young folk travelling home through Europe by train, Jesse, a typically sceptical American guy who has just split with his long distance girlfriend who he left behind in Madrid to go on a whirlwind tour of Europe and Celine, a young idealistic French student, a quiet daydreamer. After sitting opposite each other they get talking, initially about how relationships ware thin with time, which relates to the central theme of the film, and after some nervous stutters a chemistry begins to grow between them. This is pretty much how the film develops, the pair share each others views on the world around them, the after life and the little idiosyncrasies in American and European cultures as the train hurtles on. Not everyone will be able to cope with such a duologue based story, I took time adjusting but unlike Waking Life I managed to do so because the words were delivered by characters as conversation, not monologue by random folk, and it had a context which made the experience easier to relate to. Some of the discussions connected with me, others made me recoil. Some of the philosophising and conversation was elegant in a manner, such as the talk of visions of the dead other times it was grating like Jesse's awful TV idea, made me cringe. This is only to be expected when you are watching 2 characters talk for extended periods about a wide range of issues. Sure these are conversations you would rather engage in than watch but it is the context that really matters, this does not really take hold until later in the film. The characters were not the sort of people I would spend time with personally, they were sorta whiny youths who seem slightly rebellious and perhaps overly sure of the validity of their own views, however although I did not really relate to them (usually not a good thing) I began to enjoy the situation. This is the sort of situation you always hope will occur, you start a conversation with stranger and you get to know each other and find you have an instant connection. Watching these two connect just by talking, the most simple thing, was strangely captivating. I think because it is so believable a situation because the 2 actors who just play it like normal everyday folk having a chat, it made it easy to relate to.
On the spur of the moment Jesse, who has to get off the train in Vienna, asks Celine to spend the day with him instead of continuing her journey. She accepts and off they go to talk some more against the backdrop of one of the world's most beautiful cities (after Edinburgh of course), the shots of Vienna really show it off accurately in all it's wonderfully intricate grandeur contrasting with that almost desolate, sleepy continental atmosphere. You start to see slight signs of conflict between the pair's views on life, Jesse dismisses the palm reader who pesters them and has a generally sceptical view on life while Celine (being European) has a very open mind about such things. These subtle differences seem to draw them closer together rather than push them apart, they gradually and visibly become more and more comfortable and relaxed with each other.
The film does drag at times, especially in the section where they first get off the train, and it took it's time to work it's magic on me. As their evening wore on though I did finally begin to get absorbed, as I knew the two would soon have to part. That is the beauty of the film, in the fact that for the couple's time is very limited however this means that their relationship will not have the chance to be stretched and eroded by time. Time won't allow for them to grow tired of each others company as it is time itself that will simply dissipate, not their connection. They are able to let go before that bond grows old and fizzles out. That is what makes the film a success, you feel you have had an insight into something most people can only dream of occurring, yet one that is entirely possible if we have the will and desire to act on our instincts. As I said not a film for everyone but one that contains a rare hidden beauty for those that can connect and persevere with it.