Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy in Before Sunrise

"Isn't everything we do in life a way to be loved a little more?"-Celine, Before Sunrise

This is one of those small, artsy films that never made it to most theatres and what a shame because it so much fun to watch.

Two strangers meet on a train; one French, a student heading back to school at the Sorbonne (Celine, played by Julie Delpy); the other, a young American (Jesse, played by Ethan Hawke) who's been bumming around Europe following a visit to his girlfriend which resulted in a break-up. He's planning on getting off the train in Vienna to walk around sight-seeing until the following morning when his flight leaves for America and he asks her to join him. She agrees and the rest of the movie follows their intimate conversation as they tour Vienna, Austria.

These two characters comprise most of the movie, there are very few other roles except for the occasional passerby or bit role of three-four lines. In a script like this, the writing better be good and the characters well cast because that's all that the viewer can focus on. Before Sunrise's script writers, director Richard Linklater and co-author Kim Krizan create an interesting and accurate portrayal of the process of two people who are attracted to each other getting to know one another. We see how 20 something's Celine and Jesse relate, their turn-ons and turn-offs, their fears, their optimism or pessimism about love and the world. It is as though as viewers we are present for this couple's first five dates except that their first five dates all occur within less than 24 hours.

Time is a big part of the plot in Before Sunrise, it forces the main characters, Jesse and Celine to leave behind the traditional male-female games that begin a relationship: playing hard to get, pretending to be something you're not, etc. and instead to be forthcoming with each other.This short time period also gets the viewer involved-we are routing for them, we want them to fall in love, we want them to see each other again and if not, we at least don't want sunrise to come. Sunrise is the end of the film and when the director can get the viewer to not want the film to end he's done his job.

Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy both play these roles subtly - he is cynical and brokenhearted, she is hopeful and open to all that love might bring; each is wide-eyed with curiosity about life and philosophical on their perspective toward it. Delpy and Hawke's performances along with the honest artistry of the writing keep these characters from diving into the common pitfall of generation x'er stereotypes.

Cinematographer Lee Daniel paints a beautiful backdrop for Celine and Jesse in Austria, incorporating some of the city's historical landmarks and picturesque views. One of my favorite shots is a scene in which Jesse and Celine are sitting in a narrow cobblestone alleyway at night, talking. The two are talking very openly about what love means to them, they are vulnerable and the shot emphasizes that by leaving little space around them. Another of my favorites is a montage at the end of the film of all the places that Jesse and Celine visited together, many that we only saw at night, now lit by the dawn, and all devoid of people. The places, though still visually appealing, somehow without Jesse and Celine in the frame, seem cold and bare. What a beautiful way to show that a place or a moment is made more beautiful when it is
shared with someone that you love.

This is a great Valentine's Day film.

Look for my coming DVD review of the sequel Before Sunset.