News 2004

"Before Sunset" on several "Best of 2004" lists

December 2004: "Before Sunset" is included on several "Best of 2004" lists:

Salon: "Before Sunset" is so beautifully written, and so simply constructed, that it could easily fool you into thinking it's inconsequential. But this evocative, haunting romance (in addition to being very funny) is adult enough to recognize that disappointment is not only a fact of adult life but also, sometimes, a component of love. There have been bigger movies made about smaller things. This one is modest, fine-grained and close to perfect."
Newsweek: "Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke reunite in Richard Linklater's breathtaking romance. Great talk. Great ending."
Time Out: "Richard Linklater ties up loose ends, reuniting lovers Celine and Jesse in Paris, while at the same time giving the Time Out team a lump in our collective throats."
LA Weekly: "Under the assured hand of Richard Linklater (in tandem with co-conspirators Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy), what started out as a melancholic study of missed opportunity gradually evolved into the most elating movie romance of its era. And oh that talk, that glorious talk."
LA Weekly: "Julie Delpy, adorably neurotic, verbose and improvising with mad brilliance in Before Sunset."
Detroit News: "Surely the smallest film on this list, yet the one with the biggest heart and most daring idea. Two people who fell in love for one night 10 years earlier are reunited, and they walk about Paris for an hour and a half, discussing romance, the world and the passage of time. Done with such natural ease the entire film feels improvised, but director/writer Richard Linklater is actually just so meticulous you never notice it's a movie. Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy simply are these characters. Linklater, who made my list last year with "The School of Rock," may be America's most unheralded director."
Metro News: "And Richard Linklater's Before Sunset, which catches up to Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy's star-crossed lovers nine years after their first life-altering conversation in Before Sunrise, is - quite miraculously - everything you want it to be, and more."
USA Today: "The conversation is so wide-ranging and honest that it feels as if we're eavesdropping on the lives of real people. Richard Linklater's script achieves a unique blend of romance, humor, melancholy and authenticity."
Seattle Weekly: "They're too old and wary to believe they're falling in love again (if they were in the first place), and Sunset is too wise to offer any happy endings or easy conclusions. The movie's beguiling if - like Delpy's slow, knowing surrender - you let yourself be beguiled."
Canada.com: "The sequel answers some questions from the first film, but leaves new ones. It's frustrating on one hand, but completely realistic and captivating on the other."
INQ7.net: "The film has no big revelations to make, but the interest of the audience is sustained because of the refreshing naturalism, Richard Linklater's sure direction, and the incredible chemistry between the actors, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, who have literally grown old but wrinkly beautiful, and wiser, in their characters. The end is inconclusive, and the audience is thankful that there's no sunset yet to what is emerging as a most intriguing film series."
Monterey County Herald: "Not all sequels are bad is the clear message of Richard Linklater's follow-up to the 1995 "Before Sunrise," about the one-night romance between a young couple who meet on a train in Europe. Here, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy get together in Paris to discuss their lives and missed opportunities, and their dialogue is priceless."
Arizona Daily Star: "Rarely is movie dialogue so superb as in Richard Linklater's minimalist tale of two lost lovers reuniting in a Paris walkabout. Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy are incandescent. The film floors you on your first viewing and somehow improves the more times you watch it."
Las Vegas Mercury: "More sensual and more mature than its predecessor - whose mood of breathless infatuation has mellowed to a wistful nostalgia - the movie plays like a celebration of the erotic power of conversation. And Linklater has given us one of the sweetest, most perfect endings ever filmed."
FilmCritic: "Richard Linklater's follow-up to his terrific 1995 drama, has reunited lovers Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke walking and talking. It's a stirring reminder that great characters and great words make movie magic, and that time and mistakes can't destroy what true love builds."
MTV: "Linklater tells this story in real time, and shoots his peripatetic couple in extraordinarily long, unbroken takes. The stars, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, are exquisitely attuned to one another, and their marathon conversation, although it was in fact tightly scripted, seems to arise directly out of the moment. (Hawke and Delpy wrote the dialogue in collaboration with Linklater.) "Before Sunset" is a luminous example of how little is really required to make a sublime movie, as long as you have talent, if not money, to burn."
Cincinnati.com: "One long conversation between two no-longer-young romantics weaves a hypnotic spell. Who knew mere talk could be so rich? Kudos to director Richard Linklater and stars Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy who devised the vine-like dialogue."
1590 Broadcaster Online: "There weren't any car chases or CGI explosions in Richard Linklater's follow-up to 1995's Before Sunrise, but it was one of the most exciting movies of the year. Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, as Jessie and Celine, reconnect in Paris nine years after their single romantic summer night in Vienna. It's talky, well-acted and enhanced by one of Europe's most picturesque cities."
SouthFlorida.com: "Richard Linklater returned to his indie roots with this sequel to 1995's Before Sunrise, and in the process somehow managed to make smarmy philanderer Ethan Hawke appealing again. But it's Julie Delpy who owns this gorgeous, bittersweet, pitch-perfect film."
IndieWire: "Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke don't just reprise their roles from "Before Sunrise," they have simply never left them. And for those of our generation who have never let go of Celine and Jesse, even after nine years, this miraculous meditation on time and mortality in the guise of a romantic comedy was a reaffirmation of everything we hoped these characters could almost, perhaps, try to become. For all the political, psychosexual, and philosophical (pseudo or otherwise) banter, what resonates most are the moments that only Bazin's God's-time cinema can capture: the aged crease in Hawke's furrowed brow, the pangs of doubt that flash across Delpy's beautifully aging face like lightning-bolt transmissions direct from the heart. For myself, and at least ten other people I know, the film's casually abrupt, Nina Simone-enhanced fade-out elicited literal gasps of exhilaration, of awe at the wondrous fragility and resilience of the human soul, and the capabilities of cinema to capture what we're all feeling, somewhere, deep down inside."
Cinema Confidential: "Richard Linklater's film is an unlikely masterpiece, but then again the iconoclastic filmmaker always overrides expectations. Who else could make a 90-minute talkathon into an enthralling movie? This is a film for those who value intelligence and unique human experience above all else."
Kamera.co.uk: "To make a sequel to such a little gem looked, at first, foolish and desperate. But Before Sunset picks up the story nine years later and extends it superbly. Richard Linklater isn't afraid to direct a film consisting largely of conversations between his two leads, and Hawke and Delpy have grown beautifully before our eyes."
Nashville City Paper: "When it was announced Richard Linklater, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy were reuniting to make a sequel to 1993's Before Sunrise, it seemed like a mistake sure to dilute the magic of the original. But the result actually topped it. Seeing Hawke and Delpy's awkward reunion dissolving into regretful laments before dovetailing into an absolutely perfect ending, all the while pulling you into the picture just through dialogue and the beauty of Paris - yeah, the magic’s still there."
ReelViews: "For an early summer Valentine to all of us romantic movie-goers, Richard Linklater not only formulated a worthy sequel to his early-'90s love story, Before Sunrise, but he crafted 2004's best English-language motion picture. Although the tone of Before Sunset is a little darker than that of Before Sunrise (youthful exuberance has been replaced with a kind of world-weary pessimism), the ending of the second film is less ambiguous and just as optimistic. Before Sunset is a chance to once again fall in love with these characters. One can only hope that Linklater and actors Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy will give us another opportunity to meet them in the near future."
More "Best of 2004" lists on fimoculous.com

Julie Delpy to play the female lead in "The Da Vinci Code"?

December 2004: The Boston Herald talked to Julie Delpy who is on the short list to play the female lead opposite Tom Hanks in director Ron Howard's adaptation of Dan Brown's best-seller The Da Vinci Code. "I'm praying," Delpy told the newspaper. "But we'll see. You never know until there is a solid cast, but I am going to meet them." Delpy will get a sit-down with Howard and producer Brian Grazer, who are currently casting the film and say they are committed to hiring foreign actors to play the book's foreign characters. She is up for the role of Parisian cryptologist Sophie Neveu who helps Hanks' character - Harvard professor Robert Langdon - find the Holy Grail. "I don't know what their idea for it is," she said, "or if I am right for it. The character is French, in her 30s and has a shade of red in her hair. I can become a redhead!" Sources: Boston Herald - Coming Soon

Interview in Pop Entertainment

November 2004: From an interview in Pop Entertainment: "I really think people don't know what I'm capable of as an actress," Delpy admits. "I was quickly put into the pretty girl kind of section. Pretty, but not pretty enough to play the bimbo next door. It's limited for people like me. I realized a long time ago that Hollywood is not about good actresses. It's difficult. That's not about my career. It's in general. In general, people don't care about good acting, or good films, or whatever. People just care about a film that they can discuss with as many people as possible..." Read the interview

Interview in San Francisco Chronicle

November 2004: From an interview in San Francisco Chronicle: "Nothing that Delpy has done - and possibly nothing she'll ever do - can match the impact of "Before Sunrise" and "Before Sunset," a pair of films so affecting, so smart, so sweet and full of yearning, that many fans regard them not only as movies but as emotional touchstones. People look at Celine and Jesse, fall in love with either one or both of them and then fantasize making a connection so deep with another soul, and communicating so fully that one's sense of isolation evaporates. "We tried to capture something true," Delpy says. "It's a romantic movie but it's not like a romantic comedy that follows codes and has funny things here and funny things there and a happy ending. It's more bittersweet. And I think people really relate to them because they're real people..." Read the interview

Vienna Before Sunrise

November 2004: Duncan J D Smith is a freelance travel writer currently researching a guidebook to Vienna. He has recently written an article entitled "Vienna Before Sunrise" based on the film starring Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke. It is a travel article that takes the reader around Vienna in the footsteps of Celine and Jesse with special reference to the hidden corners of the city. Read the article here (PDF) - Visit www.duncanjdsmith.com

"Frankenstein" on DVD

October 2004: "Frankenstein" is now available on DVD. The movie is directed by Kevin Connor and stars Donald Sutherland, William Hurt, Alec Newman, Luke Goss and Julie Delpy. Read more: Hallmark Entertainment - Amazon - IMDb

"Before Sunset" on DVD

August 2004: Warner Home Video have announced the Region 1 DVD release of Before Sunset for 9th November 2004. A double-pack featuring Before Sunrise and Before Sunset will also be available. Source: DVD Times

Interview in Times Online

July 2004: From an interview in Times Online: "I wanted to represent a woman who can be emotional, sexy, all that, without being a male fantasy. Strong, capable of thinking for herself, totally independent. That's what I wanted to capture, and I think that's why women really like the film, because they don't feel it's some kind of male representation, fantasy. She's not even a feminist any more. Her mother was a feminist - she's digested that, she's beyond that. She feels totally equal to men. I wanted to capture a lot of women of my generation that I feel close to - independent but also emotional, totally in touch with their feelings, but at the same time very strong..." Read the interview

Julie Delpy likes to sing

July 2004: From an article in IGN Music: "Given the troubadouric tendencies she displayed in the film, one can't help but wonder whether or not Delpy lugs her guitar with her wherever she goes. "Not all the time," she admits. "But I try to carry it with me when I can. I have a guitar in Paris. I have a guitar in LA. And I've been very bad lately because I haven't had the time to write music." One of the reasons that Delpy hasn't had as much time to write music as she'd like is because she loves to be involved in various artistic endeavors. "I like to explore so many different things. I'll definitely do another album if somebody wants to put it out. I mean I've had offers, so it's not like it won't happen. But I like to take my time, you know? Because I'm doing so many different things it won't happen in the next two months, but it will definitely happen. I mean I've already written many more songs and I probably have enough to do another album, but I want to look for certain sounds more and stuff, you know, before I do another one?" Read the article

Amazing reviews for "Before Sunset" in the U.S.

July 2004: "Before Sunset" has been getting amazing reviews after its US release:

Village Voice: "Summer sequelitis is upon us, but the season is unlikely to bring anything more remarkable than Richard Linklater's sweet, smart and deeply romantic Before Sunset..."
CNN: "It's a lovely, beguiling little film. It's also an unusual example of a follow-up that doesn't seem forced, but expands effortlessly on the original. Delpy is even more naturally beautiful than she was in the original. Who hasn't had an instant spark with someone new and wondered long afterward, what if? Everyone has - and they'll find that sentiment depicted here, with insight and delicate charm..."
MetroWest Daily News: "Delpy has never been better. It's fair to say that until this film, she has never had the chance to show the extent of her range. Her Celine is turbulent, beautiful, a little crazy, funny, brilliant and never for a second less than fascinating..."
USA Today: "Linklater knows how to shoot abundant dialogue without the result seeming static. And neither Hawke nor Delpy has ever quite connected so stirringly with a role. A movie this diminutive can be easily oversold, but we might see it on some year-end best lists. It eats at you, just like renewed love..."
Combustible Celluloid: "This is cinema of the most personal and heartbreaking order. It's as true as movies can get. Hawke and Delpy are credited with the screenplay alongside Linklater, and the dialogue is instantly brilliant and perfectly sustained. It's all high-quality conversation, covering such topics as religion, life, death, mortality, music and literature but still sounding unforced and unwritten. We never question for a second that two intelligent friends would sound like this. I seriously doubt that anything left on 2004's roster can compete with this remarkable new masterpiece from Richard Linklater. It's easily the film of the year..."
Chicago Sun-Times: "Before Sunset is a remarkable achievement in several ways, most obviously in its technical skill. "Before Sunrise" was a remarkable celebration of the fascination of good dialogue. But "Before Sunset" is better, perhaps because the characters are older and wiser, perhaps because they have more to lose (or win), and perhaps because Hawke and Delpy wrote the dialogue themselves..."
AlterNet: "Working with the very rudiments of movies, Linklater, Delpy and Hawke have sustained a flawless performance - one that's warm, thoughtful, funny, sexy, charming and in all ways alive. I could watch this picture twice a day for the rest of the summer..."
Seattle Post-Intelligencer: "The dialogue here is deft, intelligent and laced with a sense of humor that is both defensive and revealing, and Linklater's graceful direction flows naturally and easily, giving it all an understated authenticity. Romantic, real and as generous as it is vulnerable, the art of conversation has rarely been so acute, honest and revealing..."
Santa Cruz Sentinel: "Delpy and Hawke are brilliant as Celine and Jesse. Their thoroughly convincing performances might have something to do with the fact that they co-wrote the script with Linklater. The first film was good. This one is better. Yes, it is, finally, a matter of taste, but "Before Sunset" is the most exhilarating movie I've seen this year. A million cheers and my gratitude to Richard Linklater, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy..."
San Diego Union Tribune: "For those of us who love the 1995 romance in all its Viennese succulence, the new film is quite an extra gift. Maybe there has never been a more justified sequel, and for nongreedy motives. Delpy opens this up with such subtly true and female power that it may be her best acting ever. Hawke is a wonderful reactor, his face reflecting all her words and implications brilliantly. The end, perhaps not an ending, works. I choose to feel so, because I love these people. Even though Celine's charming waltz song is a bit convenient, it's funny and apt. And her sexy impression of Nina Simone is an absolute ace (and a bit of a joker). By the end, you are either in love again or you never were..."
San Diego Channel: "Before Sunset" is the rare sequel that adds depth to its predecessor. It is a character-rich, dialogue-driven delight in which we accompany these two remarkable people during one sunny afternoon in Paris and, occasionally, are removed from their conversation long enough to realize just how beautiful they, their connection and their flaws really are. The deeper issues of destiny, love and regret do not detract from this affection, but rather make it more meaningful, and immediate..."
Philadelphia Inquirer: "Delpy, one of those actresses whom critics invariably describe as radiant (hey, she is!), offers up her own array of quirky tics, teasing jabs and tender revelations. And, in one heartbreaking scene, she sings! Grown men will weep, believe me. It's great to see an American filmmaker - and a successful one at that - willing to simply train his cameras on the actors and let them, and their characters, come to life. And in Before Sunset, Jesse and Celine come to life again in ways that are sad and beautiful, funny and profound..."
Boston.com: "The acting is haunting, funny, invisible. Better than invisible, actually. When I saw the first film, I was never able to decide whether it was Jesse or Ethan Hawke I found annoying; in "Before Sunset," the character's pseudo side is still there, but drily and subtly commented on by the actor. Delpy, by contrast, just breaks your heart, especially in a scene where she sings an improvised little nonsense song about lost love that keeps skidding into pain; it's the kind of incandescent found moment that crops up once in a thousand movies..."
Boston Herald: "Delpy, who does an amusing impression of Nina Simone, composed three charming original songs for the film, including a waltz Celine plays on guitar and sings for a captivated Jesse. "Before Sunset", like its predecessor, has many of the virtues of vintage French new wave films. Viewers may be reminded of Jean-Luc Godard's "Breathless". Shot on location in 15 days, "Before Sunset" captures the reality of two people falling in love in a way no vacuous, titanium-clad, polished-to-within-an-inch-of-its-life Hollywood romance can..."
Denver Post: "Before Sunset" makes a compelling addition to two other films that have recently given romance an emboldened yet truer flavor: "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind," and "Lost in Translation." As comparatively simple as it appears, "Before Sunrise" is both the most delicate and robust of this romantic triumvirate..."
Detroit Free Press: "Before Sunset" achieves an intimacy and honesty that is rarely found in American film these days, without ever resorting to melodrama. That's not to say the film isn't rife with conflict and humor and sexual tension, only that it is recognizably and refreshingly life-size..."
Chicago Tribune Metromix: "This may be one case where the star performances seem so effortless and spontaneous (though nothing was improvised) that some viewers may underrate Delpy's and Hawke's high achievement. Linklater, too, is a great moviemaker underestimated. Taken together - which they should be - "Before Sunrise" and "Before Sunset" make up one of the supreme movie romances of the post-'80s era, an affair of the film and flesh to make the heart leap and the mind dance..."
FilmJerk: "Like any good sequel, Linklater's "Before Sunset" picks up in spirit right away from his 1995 film, "Before Sunrise." Both films are true dialog decathlons, with the two actors, Hawke and Delpy, spitting out mountains of conversation as they stroll around Europe and flirt endlessly. That alone is impressive (the film is tightly scripted, which is shocking to learn). Both Hawke and Delpy are incredible in their roles, effortlessly picking up the rhythm from 9 years earlier, and flowing off each other like a married couple. Their chemistry is crucial to Linklater's vision, and the actors don't disappoint in their long overdue return to the screen..."
FilmStew: "As terrifying as the thought of revisiting perfection may be, however, Linklater somehow pulls it off brilliantly. By the end of the movie, you'll find yourself in love with this couple again, in love with the notion of finding a soul mate, and reminiscing about their past as if you're looking back on a lost romance of your own. Somehow, improbably, Linklater has now made two of the most romantic films of the last decade, both featuring the same characters..."
MSNBC: "Before Sunset is a gem of a sequel. They've both become more interesting people, and it quickly becomes impossible to view them as fictional creatures. They seem to be playing themselves nearly a decade later; it helps that Jesse, like the off-screen Hawke, has become a novelist. Of course they ARE playing other people, but Linklater does such a superb job of blending characters and actors that you almost feel you're watching a non-fiction film..."
The Detroit News: "Before Sunset is a simply amazing film - touching, sexy, smart, sad and, beyond all, passionate about the value of time and love. It is an absolute triumph for all three of the main talents involved - director Richard Linklater, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, who all share the screenwriting credit - and perhaps the most organic-feeling and natural-looking film in memory. Delpy is absolutely breathtaking in this film - endearing, neurotic, fiery and in pain. It's unimaginable that she's not one of the most sought-after actresses of her time..."
NY Newsday: "What does surprise is the steadfast chemistry between the two leads. Hawke's ruefulness seems more than earned here (and, thus, genuine); Delpy's callow winsomeness has ripened to a ruddy sheen. Her impersonation of Nina Simone in live performance deserves to be canonized among great movie moments..."
New York Daily News: "Richard Linklater's "Before Sunset," a sequel to the 1995 "Before Sunrise," may be the easiest movie of the year to recommend. If you liked the first film, you'll love this one. Nine years later, the conversation is deeper, faster, smarter and more to the point. The naturalistic dialogue is a masterful bit of writing, credited to Linklater and his "Sunrise" co-writer Kim Krizan, as well as to the two stars..."
The Broadcaster: "The conversation is full of laughs and secrets that the movie holds closely and skillfully. But I can safely report that the script, which is a collaboration between Linklater, Hawke and Delpy, is astounding. Hollywood can throw together camera-ready screen couples all they want, but for my money Hawke and Delpy are the most romantic movie duo around. There's a sense that each of them is pulling real-life experience into their on-screen conversation, and the result is a chemistry that is honest, convincing and indelible, just like the movie..."
Premiere Magazine: "If you have any kind of affinity for either of the characters, you're bound to find the picture a kind of miracle. And for good reason: By the time Jesse, who's due to fly out of Paris that evening, arrives at Celine's apartment, Linklater has built up this incredible sense of, well, suspense - even though these are just two people talking - but the things they say to each other could literally change their lives, in a heartbeat..."
The Sun Herald: "Hawke may have earned an Oscar nomination working for another director, but Linklater has coaxed the most soul-searching performances out of him. Delpy has a neurotic charm that recalls Diane Keaton during her Woody Allen days. It's a great mystery why Hollywood hasn't found a place for an actress of her beauty and verve..."
HeraldNet: "The blond, almond-eyed Julie Delpy is bright and emotional, and she contributed two beautiful songs to the soundtrack."
Alameda Times-Star Online: "Hawke and Delpy are splendid. They love these characters, and why not? They wrote them. In a way they've switched roles, with Hawke now conveying more of a romanticism and Delpy a cynicism borne from hurt..."
The Globe and Mail: "You sense that, in contributing to the script, Hawke and Delpy have drawn on their own experiences, and the result is a rarity - a fictional romance with a factual feel, a near-documentary quality that makes it difficult to distinguish the actor from the role. Linklater enhances that illusion with his hand-held camera and his sedate pacing - seldom has a shortish feature been given so much breathing room..."
FilmCritic: "All three of the film's primary collaborators take advantage of their own opportunities with this one, layering Jesse and Celine's 80-minute conversation with a freshness, a surprising urgency, and two characters full of desire, faults, and - still - hope..."

New interviews

June 2004: Lots of interesting stuff in these new interviews:

LA CityBeat - After Sunrise: "Of course there's a bit of me in the character, because I wanted to capture women of my generation who are hardworking and passionate at their work, but still are emotional and full of vulnerability. In that sense, I relate to her 100 percent, but at the same time it's not autobiographical. It represents a lot of women I know, more than just me. Actually, I based Celine on two or three friends of mine more than on myself..."
Netzeitung: "Wenn sie einfach nur zusammenbleiben, weil ihnen nichts Besseres einfällt, und sich so durchhangeln, ist es vielleicht ohnehin besser, alleine zu sein. Alles andere ist Scheiße, eine Lüge. Lieber alleine als in einer nicht funktionierenden Beziehung..."
Julie Delpy Likes To Sing: "I like to explore so many different things. I'll definitely do another album if somebody wants to put it out. I mean I've had offers, so it's not like it won't happen. But I like to take my time, you know? Because I'm doing so many different things it won't happen in the next two months, but it will definitely happen..."
MSNBC: "I was more grown up and serious then than I am now. And actually that's part of growing up, becoming less serious about everything. I was so intense and I was suffering so much over anything and I was in pain constantly. Luckily I grew into having more a sense of humor. I think writing has been essential to me in feeling better..."
MSNBC: "I think people should go see this one, then go back and rent "Before Sunrise", then go back and see this one again, and take their friends and their mother..."
The Divine Miss Delpy: "At some point you realize the idea of completely merging with someone in a relationship may be impossible. Is there anything worse than being next to a lover and being lonely?"
Gerald Peary: About appearing with Ethan Hawke: "We have very similar kinds of acting patterns. The first take is OK. The next takes are a bit less natural, then we get into a zone where we both lose the sense of time. When I don't remember what I've done, when I get myself into the character completely, that's the best. Rick would never stop a shot in the middle, and I would never stop. If it's a good take for Ethan, why would I interrupt him?"

More great reviews for "Before Sunset"

May 2004: "Before Sunset" continues to get great reviews:

eFilmCritic

"Before Sunset is a beautifully filmed, wonderfully performed, infinitely matured sequel to the original that doesn't just capitalize on a little earlier success; rather it turns the earlier work into something even more important. Delpy is, as ever, extraordinary. Credit her for bringing this character back in a way that few could, developing layer upon layer of added depth, as well as a super-sized helping of nervous panic that maybe she made the wrong move way back when. With Before Sunset Linklater proves he can package it all in one beautiful film, the likes of which most in the audience will have never seen before and are likely to never see again. This is no cheap spin-off, it's perfect conclusion for a near-to-perfect original."

Stylus Magazine

"There's something uniquely life-affirming about the resounding success of Before Sunset, the most intelligent romantic film in quite some time. Life is too short to dismiss hyperbole: this is one of the most heart-wrenching, deeply felt films I've ever seen. As sequels go, Before Sunset should serve as the prototype."

Interview with Richard Linklater

May 2004: From Filmmaker Magazine: A rare "indie-film sequel," Before Sunset reunites director Rick Linklater with actors Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, who reprise the idealistic lovers they played in his Before Sunrise nine years earlier. Older, wiser, but still hot for each other, the couple meet by chance in Paris and spend the afternoon pondering life's essential "what-if's?" Matthew Ross speaks with Linklater about collaborating with his actors, long-take filmmaking, and the possible next volume in the series. Read the interview

Interview in New York Times

May 2004: Interview in New York Times: "Those Strangers on a Train, Nine Years Later"

Karen Durbin, film critic for Elle magazine:

"Before Sunset" is also a reminder of what an underused resource Ms. Delpy is; smart, gifted and, at 31, more beautiful than ever, she deserves a place on every director's A list, not just his. Ms. Delpy's confident, unadorned screen style is a refreshing alternative to the perky-versus-pouty choices on offer these days from too many young French actresses. She delivers Celine's intricate, emotionally conflicted dialogue (much of which she wrote herself) with deceptive ease, and you see that Jesse loves her not least for her quickness of mind. In this candid, funny, deeply moving portrait, Ms. Delpy shows us a passionate woman marooned by her own self-sufficiency and using everything she's got to break free." Read more in New York Times

Talent Cannes

May 2004: "Talent Cannes" is an operation organized by the Adami (Administration des Droits des Artistes et Musiciens Interprètes) in the fringe of the Cannes festival (since 1992). Each year, a few young actors that write short length films are offered the possibility to have their films shown during the Cannes International Film Festival, at the Cinéma des Cinéastes in Paris and at many film festivals. The performances are recorded on video tape and sent to professionals of cinema and television. This year, the theme chosen for this 12th edition is "Arrête d'avoir peur" (stop being afraid). After selecting 31 young actors among 1.000 candidates, 10 film makers have been asked to make a short film of less than 6 minutes, in less than a day, in coproduction with Agora films. Julie Delpy is one of them. Her short "J'ai mal, j'ai peur, je meurs" (It hurts, I'm afraid, I'm dying) will be screened during the Cannes festival and broadcast on French TV. JD's short is said to be a comedy, that talks about a young woman who's taken to the hospital for an undefined disease. En route, she yells with fright, then with anger, at the ambulancemen that don't manage to find their way (to the hospital). It stars Albane Fioretti, Guillaume Carré, Jean-Baptiste Puech and Clément Rouault. More information (in French). Thanks to Fabrice for this info!

Official trailer for "Before Sunset"

May 2004: The trailer for "Before Sunset" is now available:

Do you like the music? The song is "Edge of the Ocean" by Ivy.

Release dates for "Before Sunset"

April 2004: The following release dates have been announced:

Germany: 17 June 2004
Austria: 18 June 2004
USA: 2 July 2004
Czech Republic: 15 July 2004
More release dates

Great reviews for "Before Sunset"

February 2004: "Before Sunset" has been getting great reviews after the premiere in Berlin. Well done - Julie, Ethan and Richard!

The Village Voice: "Hawke's Jesse has lost some of his narcissistic pretensions (and the actor gamely leaves his novelist alter ego open to mockery), but as in the first film, Delpy's the heartbreaker. Her grown-up Céline - at turns spontaneous and self-conscious, given to righteous tirades and goofy balladeering - is a heroine Jacques Rivette would adore. (In a presumable homage, Céline and Jesse even go boating at one point.) From Slacker to Tape, Linklater has always worked well with compact durations, and in this ultra-brief encounter (a mere 80 minutes), the director and his actors (all three share writing credit) thrillingly orchestrate an entire movie's worth of real-time momentum. The basic tonal difference between original and sequel is what gives Before Sunset its enormous poignancy - the twentysomething Céline and Jesse viewed their chance meeting as ripe with endless possibility; their wiser, sadder, older selves understand that the unexpected reunion leaves them with finite options, none of them easy."
Reuters: "Many other films, such as a widely applauded love story "Before Sunset" between an American novelist played by Ethan Hawke and a French environmental worker played by Julie Delpy, evenly balanced their male and female lead characters. "Any actress will tell you 'I'm tired of being the girlfriend who laughs at stupid jokes from guys'," said American director Richard Linklater in an interview. "A lot of things are seen through a male perspective. This movie, I'm proud to say, is 50-50. Julie's character is so strong." Delpy, who also co-wrote "Before Sunset", told Reuters she believes women will ascend even further in the near future. "Definitely," Delpy said. "For example, my next project I wrote, direct and star in is a very strong role. It's so strong that some men are terrified when they read the script. It's vital for women to be more active, and show how strong women are."
Variety: "Before Sunset" is a savvy sequel that should speak to anyone who's let that one great love slip away. Cleverly playing on his real-life rep as a sometimes scribbler, Hawke deftly balances glimpses of the goofy, grunge-era Jesse from the original with the more successful, if no less satisfied, adult he's become. Delpy infuses Celine with a mixture of coquettishness and gravitas that makes her seem still somehow wiser and more mature than Jesse. It's a credit to both thesps that their intervening stardom hasn't diluted their comfort with these characters and each other..."
Hollywood Reporter: "This is one of the most wildly romantic movies in ages. Few American films have the courage to rely entirely on dialogue and subtext for story. These filmmakers make certain they have nothing else to fall back upon. To be sure, the two actors are pleasing to watch indeed, a brief flashback to the first movie establishes they may be better looking now than then. The trio has made a wise film about how age works on people. Life has taught each a few things in the intervening years, so they look at people and options in a different light. Shot in just 15 days on a tight budget, this is an accomplished bit of guerrilla filmmaking. Cinematographer Lee Daniel's long camera takes are smooth and unobtrusive, the actors appear relaxed, and the chemistry between them is excellent. Even Delpy's songs are not bad at all..."
Backstage: "Berlin Film Festival goers got a welcome relief from the wet gray weather and the mostly underwhelming movies of offer in this year's competition when Richard Linklater's "Before Sunset" screened Tuesday to an enthusiastic and grateful Berlin crowd of journalists and critics. Linklater and the film's stars Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, received a standing ovation at the press conference following the screening, with international journalists welcoming the talent like old friends..."
Telegraph: "Like Before Sunrise, it's almost all dialogue between them, and it's fascinating to see them together again, nine years older, like a fictional version of television's 7-Up documentaries. The chemistry between them remains strong, but it feels richer and deeper now, illuminating the ways that their lives have changed. In their twenties, they were full of dreams about the future; in their thirties, they're already looking back on regrets, wrong turns, disappointments..."
Reuters: "Julie Delpy not only stars in one of the hottest films at the Berlin Film Festival, she also co-wrote the screenplay for the French-American love story and performed the music too. In an era when "auteur" films are losing ground, Delpy has bucked the trend and said she enjoyed the writing so much she has now scripted another film that she is directing and starring in..."
Indie Wire: "Above all, though it's been tightly scripted, "Sunset" is a tour de force of spontaneity and naturalness. Hawke, looking slightly worn about the eyes, talks about being "bummed," and unhappy "24/7" and sounds uncannily like the Jesse we've met before. As for Delpy, she doesn't speak lines - she pours out language with a quicksilver charm. The film is a must-see if only for her seductive enactment of a Nina Simone performance that holds the viewer - and Jesse - in her thrall. In fact, the whole film plays like performance - improv in a theater. In that sense, it pushes Linklater's interest in innovative form in yet another new direction. The actors ride the energy and live in the moment - just as the characters aspire to live in the moment - hit the ground running and never let up. It's filmmaking as one gorgeous uninterrupted gesture..."

Press conference and red carpet entrance in Berlin live on the Internet

February 2004: The Berlinale is broadcasting press conferences and the entrance of the stars at the premieres live on the Internet!

See schedule and read more about live streaming from the festival
Watch press conference for "Before Sunset": 56K - 300K
Watch premiere entrance for "Before Sunset": 56K - 300K

Before Sunset press release

February 2004: "Jesse and Celine - the main characters in Richard Linklater's film, "Before Sunrise" - once met in Vienna and spent a night together roaming the empty streets of this city. Now, almost ten years on, they meet up once more - this time in Paris. Jesse and Celine first met by chance on a train where they discovered their immediate liking for each other. Fourteen hours later, they parted on the platform of Vienna's main station, promising to meet again six months later. Nine years have passed since then. Jesse is on the last leg of a tour presenting his new novel when he spots Celine in the audience at a Parisian bookstore. It transpires that she has been living in Paris for quite a while; Jesse is now living in New York. Jesse immediately decides to drop everything in order to spend time with Celine roaming the city on the banks of the Seine. They spend the entire afternoon in the city's cafés, in parks and alongside the river, soon resuming their old attachment for each other. Few words are needed to discover that they get on as well as they did back then. Nevertheless, they still have a great deal to say to each other - just like nine years ago..." Download press release (PDF)

Before Sunset

January 2004: 22 films from around the world are to compete for the Berlin Film Festival's Golden Bear, to be presented at a gala ceremony February 14th. US independent director Richard Linklater will enter the running with "Before Sunset" starring Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy reprising their roles in "Before Sunrise" which claimed the Berlinale's Silver Bear prize in 1994. Sources: Channelnewsasia - Reuters - IMDb

Concert review and photos from Krefeld

January 2004: Julie's German tour started in Krefeld on January 15th, and there's a great review in the magazine Gaesteliste. Excerpt: "Besonders erfreulich war eigentlich der Umstand, dass hier kein Produkt präsentiert wurde, sondern eben lebendige Musik - mit allen Ecken, Kanten und Warzen, die dazugehören. Und geschauspielert wurde auch nicht. Julie Delpy könnte also tatsächlich so was wie eine Karriere als Sängerin vor sich haben." Read the review (in German) and see photo gallery (review and all photos by Ullrich Maurer). Check out AltaVista's Babel Fish or Google's Language Tools for web page translation.