Before Sunrise | Critique | Unusual Love stories - Part 1

Rating – 5/5 Stars

“Jesse: OK, well this was my thought: 50,000 years ago, there are not even a million people on the planet. 10,000 years ago, there's, like, two million people on the planet. Now there's between five and six billion people on the planet, right? Now, if we all have our own, like, individual, unique soul, right, where do they all come from? You know, are modern souls only a fraction of the original souls? 'Cause if they are, that represents a 5,000 to 1 split of each soul in the last 50,000 years, which is, like, a blip in the Earth's time. You know, so at best we're like these tiny fractions of people, you know, walking... I mean, is that why we're so scattered? You know, is that why we're all so specialized?
Celine: I don't know. Wait a minute, I'm not sure... I don't... ”

Insightful lines aren’t these. Bet you have this feeling, ”Yes he’s right, I never thought of it this way.” This is also true for the film, you would have never thought a love story could be told just two people talking. In a continuous stretch. In space of just one day.

It is story of Jesse and Celine who meet each other in train and decide to spend time ‘before sunrise’ with each other. All throughout the movie all they do is just talk and walk around city of Vienna. That is it. Whole of the plot. The film has turned up as a classic.

While watching this film with a friend, my friend noticed two guys on the dark street ogling heroine. The friend asked, “Will they follow her.” In any other movie, that would have happened, followed by some action scene in which hero rescues the damsel. But not in ‘Before Sunrise’.  It does not go for any cliché to spice up the film sticks to its simple premise and keeps on exploring it. That’s the beauty of the movie. It remains honest to its promise, never once wavering from its path.

Have you noticed how each thread in general conversation starts with some part of original conversation. This movie captures it. And that is what it is all about.

One more astonishing thing about the film is apart from these two characters, there are hardly any characters with screen presence of say 2 minutes. 6-7 characters appear but they are their just for seconds. Both the leads ( Ethan Hawke and Julie Delphy) have such a great chemistry that you know that they mean each word. You know they are in love. Both these performances deserve separate essays on their own. (May be I will write it someday.)

The film ends with both promising to meet after six months. It is left to viewer to decide whether they will meet or not…

PS – In the same series I will cover Love Stories that are unique and unusual. ‘Before Sunrise’ had its sequel as ‘Before Sunset’ which was equally brilliant film. Will also cover it in this series.

Written by – Ali Naqvi.