Before Sunrise & Before Sunset
- Thread starter Ally M
- Start date
C-is-for-cookie
New member
Love them! Watching Before Sunset were some of the best couple of hours I spent last year. Two brilliant actors and some excellent film-making.
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Bob Sanchezel
Guest
I saw Before Sunrise when it first came out at the cinema in 95 - thought it was a really charming movie...the kind that makes you want to go off and have your own little sponteneous adventure.
Haven't seen Before Sunset though. Should I?
Haven't seen Before Sunset though. Should I?
Speedy Boarder
New member
Hurray someone apart from me saw Sunrise on its theatrical release! 
Hardly anyone I knew had even heard of the film before, and it was not even previously available on DVD here (had to get the R1). Until now, with the release of Sunset which seems to been better promoted this time, happily.
Sunset is a worthy sequel and if you liked Sunrise then I think you should definitely see it. Some ambiguous questions from Sunrise are resolved, e.g did they or didn't they do 'it', and did they meet up in six months as they promised?
Sunset is similar to, but not merely a reprise of, Sunrise. Because Jesse and Celine, like all of us, have ten years of living behind us since that time, and cannot be the same person they, we, were. Less innocent, different perspectives of life, the hopes and dreams of youth fulfilled or disappointed, the what-might-have-beens, etc.
Strikingly, Hawke as Jesse looks shockingly gaunt in Sunset, compared to his youthful, fresh-faced optimism ten years earlier, but this actually I think works well in reinforcing the point. It also I think has an added poignancy and informs his performance when one considers his real life marital problems at the time... there's a memorable line in Sunset, when Jesse confides that "I feel like I am now running a nursery with someone I used to date", and one can't help thinking if he's talking about himself.
On the DVD there is a short 9 minute featurette on the making of it. The director, producer and two leaRAB talking about it interspersed with on-set snippets. Which is quite interesting but doesn't add terribly much. (We learn Hawke likes to juggle balls on set, wooh!).
On the whole I still prefer Sunrise, but Sunset doesn't disappoint.
Hardly anyone I knew had even heard of the film before, and it was not even previously available on DVD here (had to get the R1). Until now, with the release of Sunset which seems to been better promoted this time, happily.
Sunset is a worthy sequel and if you liked Sunrise then I think you should definitely see it. Some ambiguous questions from Sunrise are resolved, e.g did they or didn't they do 'it', and did they meet up in six months as they promised?
Sunset is similar to, but not merely a reprise of, Sunrise. Because Jesse and Celine, like all of us, have ten years of living behind us since that time, and cannot be the same person they, we, were. Less innocent, different perspectives of life, the hopes and dreams of youth fulfilled or disappointed, the what-might-have-beens, etc.
Strikingly, Hawke as Jesse looks shockingly gaunt in Sunset, compared to his youthful, fresh-faced optimism ten years earlier, but this actually I think works well in reinforcing the point. It also I think has an added poignancy and informs his performance when one considers his real life marital problems at the time... there's a memorable line in Sunset, when Jesse confides that "I feel like I am now running a nursery with someone I used to date", and one can't help thinking if he's talking about himself.
On the DVD there is a short 9 minute featurette on the making of it. The director, producer and two leaRAB talking about it interspersed with on-set snippets. Which is quite interesting but doesn't add terribly much. (We learn Hawke likes to juggle balls on set, wooh!).
On the whole I still prefer Sunrise, but Sunset doesn't disappoint.
Classy Clarissa
New member
Sunset is a worthy sequel and a wonderful film in its own right.
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lookadistraction
New member
Brilliant films.
I love the small, subtle touches. In Before Sunrise, there are two great moments that really stand out for me. The first is when Jesse tries to flick Celine's hair out of the way so he can see her face while she's talking. The second is when they're in the record store listening booth and both try to steal furtive glances at each other.
There's a great moment in Before Sunset too. It's when they're in the back of the cab and Jesse starts talking about his nightmares. As he looks away, Celine goes to comfort him and then pulls back her hand at the last second.
I think Before Sunset strikes the right tone between having the characters feel like they've been going through the motions in the intervening nine years and being completely bitter about the way their lives have progressed.
I love the small, subtle touches. In Before Sunrise, there are two great moments that really stand out for me. The first is when Jesse tries to flick Celine's hair out of the way so he can see her face while she's talking. The second is when they're in the record store listening booth and both try to steal furtive glances at each other.
There's a great moment in Before Sunset too. It's when they're in the back of the cab and Jesse starts talking about his nightmares. As he looks away, Celine goes to comfort him and then pulls back her hand at the last second.
I think Before Sunset strikes the right tone between having the characters feel like they've been going through the motions in the intervening nine years and being completely bitter about the way their lives have progressed.