Review of Before Midnight (2013) by Diego T — 09 Jul 2014

If there's anything to be learned from Richard Linklater's Before trilogy, it's that romance movies don't have to be chick flicks. I've sat through three movies of people "just talking" now, and that's the kind of thing that would bore fans of The Notebook to tears. Fuck 'em. If you want a beautiful, poetic, and funny love story for the modern era, this trilogy is where you should turn to. And this final chapter, which some could probably argue is the best of the three, is an utterly dazzling showcase of why both critics and audiences have come to like these movies so much. Hawke and Delpy need to take a bow, because they've just finished portraying two of the most achingly realistic and human characters ever put to film.

Before Midnight starts off kind of rough, I must admit. The film takes place in Greece, where Hawke and Delpy have been visiting a writer's house for the summer. They aren't married, but Hawke separated from his wife to be with her and they have two kids, twin girls. The structure of this film is slightly different from the others, in that it actually has scene cuts. Before Sunrise had only one serious time jump, and Before Sunset didn't have any, but I suppose that Linklater figured that, this being the grand finale, things should be shaken up a bit.

That works to a point. This film's story is far different from the other two, in that Hawke and Delpy are no longer lovers doomed to be apart but are instead together and growing more and more tired of each other by the minute. By reformatting the film's classic style, Linklater tells us from the get-go that we shouldn't expect the same thing over again. However, I have a few complaints, the first being the inclusion of the other writer characters. There is a scene at the beginning of this movie where Hawke and Delpy sit down to dinner with six other people (this comes as a shock to me solely because they barely interact with other characters throughout the other films), and talk about life and love. This scene was insufferably pretentious, and the dialogue felt forced and expository, but as soon as the two of them got away from the other characters, this movie got amazing... FAST.

I would love to give exact quotes from the argument that Delpy and Hawke have in their tiny hotel room as evidence of how great the writing in this movie is, but I'm afraid that doing so would rob the movie of its humorous and emotional punch when it's actually viewed. All I can say is that these two had better be dating in real life, because nobody should be able to act this good. While watching them bicker, I stopped being aware of the fact that I was watching a movie. That's how immersive the dialogue in this film is. Linklater slightly compromises the film's edginess, however, by focusing more on Ethan Hawke's character than Delpy's. Perhaps it's just because I'm a dude, but I can't imagine anyone watching this argument and taking her side, mainly because she's out of her fucking gourd. This turned him into more of the main character than having the two of them share that role. Not really a complaint, just more of an observation.

But the place where this movie succeeds is the same place where the other films did-- in its portrayal of life as both funny and heartbreaking, often in equal measures. Even in life's most bitter moments, Hawke's character can find a silver lining. And that's another great thing about this film: It finally completes the character arcs begun in Before Sunrise. Remember way back in the day when I said Hawke was a romantic disguised as a cynic and Delpy was the exact reverse? Well, in their forties, they've stopped pretending. And as they try to adjust to that new reality, they piss each other off. The main message of these movies, I think, is that love is something worth working for (as weird as it sounds coming from the most cynical reviewer this side of the Mississippi). Things never work out like you want them to. So it's best to face that disappointment with someone else.

Final Score for Before Midnight: 8/10 stars. This movie is engaging, wonderfully filmed, impeccably acted, and remarkably written. Despite the fact that a lot of its opening scenes are somewhat less inspired than I had been led to expect from a Linklater film, but any faults are soon made up for by a series of scenes that will truly knock your socks off. Some have said that Linklater could possibly make a fourth installment, as he hasn't really said that he's calling it quits yet, but I personally hope he doesn't. He's left these characters off right where he should have. I hope it worked out well for them.