Leaves you with this depressing notion that no matter where life takes you, you will always be disappointed and unsatisfied...

Rating: 6/10 (24 December 2005)

The sequel to the adorable and dreamy Before Sunrise from 1995, Before Sunset meets the original film's characters, American writer Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and French social activist Celine (Julie Delpy) nine years in the future, in the year 2004. The turn of the century definitely made it's impact on our two heroes, as did the turns of time. Now being 32 years old (as opposed to 23, the character's age in the first film), they are both much more mature and much less naive about what life has to offer them. Sure, on the outside they both made it well: Jesse is married with a child he thinks the world of, and is just visiting France during a PR tour for his recent published best seller (loosely based on his night with Celine, by the way). Celine, on the other hand, is engaged in a meaningful relationship as well, and after living several years in the states, where she finished her second degree, she is now an active member in several environmental organizations. Alas, underneath the surface, they are both aching inside. Neither of them is happy with the life he or she is leading, and they both find themselves compromising in cozy relationships and careers, with the memory of that mid-90's night still very much alive in their hearts and minds.
This time around, Jesse and Celine stroll around Paris rather than Vienna, and as much as this city is beautiful and filled with inspiration perhaps even more then Vienna, it is something we have seen in many films as well, and the cinematography doesn't really indicate something new about the city. As opposed to Sunrise, the two lost souls now only have time until Sunset to catch up with each other, when Jesse's flight back to the states leaves. They spend their few hours together talking about their 1994 rendezvous and how it altered their lives, then exchanging their mutual disappointment from the twists and turns of life, touching numerous social ideals on the way.
Sunset deals with some interesting concepts of second chances and becoming sober from all sorts of promiscuous ideals one might have as a young individual. It is a mature, self-aware film, that meets our heroes now leading a much more realistic, yet extremely disappointing, life style. While all this might add up to a positive overall viewing of this feature film, I myself found it to be quite anti-climatic in comparison with Before Sunrise. Since I know real life is often depressing, and rarely leads one to his true calling of his heart, I often turn to movies in search of a more escapist experience, that'll shed some light on my life, rather than paint my future in very bleak colors. As a 25 year old young adult currently writing this review, I would like to think that life has more to offer than yearning for some old sweetheart while watching my years fade away. Whilst Jesse eventually gets his second chance to meet Celine in Before Sunset, the movie never really lets you know what happens with them afterward, and instead leaves you with this depressing notion that no matter where life takes you, you will always be disappointed and unsatisfied for large periods of times. Being such a stubborn dreamer, you would have to excuse me for not buying into this perspective of life (yet?).
For what it's worth, I could have been much more satisfied have I had only seen the first installment of this love story, being left with much hope and desire, rather than being faced with the biting reality in the second installment.