*posting my 4-year-old write up from my private tumblr acct hehehe thought of sharing it out there after seeing a cute IG reel about the series heheheh
Post-Before
I came across a Facebook post about a fourth installment entitled Before the End on the widely-acclaimed Before series which has long been part of my watchlist. This prompted me to immediately start binge watching the trilogy -- Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, and Before Midnight -- and I didn’t regret choosing this over the You series which I’ve bookmarked a site for since I don’t own any Netflix account as of this time. Most of us know how minimalistic the movies are since it revolves and highlights conversations which made the trilogy famous. The first (1994) and second movies (2004) highly focus on the two main characters’ conversations but on the third movie (2013), there was more improvement since there were multiple characters present. What makes the trilogy also special are the topics being covered throughout the dialogues which ranges from love, politics, music, books, movies, dreams, memories, and any other aspects of life.
The story starts with an American tourist meeting a French student aboard a train after the latter transferred a seat across the former to stay away from a fighting couple. It was the summer of ‘94 when the conversation between a cynic Jesse and a romantic Celine started. The two walked around the streets of Vienna, talking and reminiscing, after Jesse convinced Celine to get off the train with him and continue their conversation. They only had an evening since Jesse will be returning to the US the next morning and Celine needs to return to Paris for school. They didn’t exchange information but planned on meeting six months after on the same place. Call my cynical but I believe this sort of situation only happens probably 20% in real life (???) because you may never know but the person you’re talking to is actually some kind of psycho killer or thief but I’m not denying that it’s romantic though. It’s just that the world is not a safe place to live in and we all have to be vigilant if we want to live.
On the second movie, nine years after the events of the first, you could really see the drastic changes between the two main characters. Jesse, a now successful writer and a married man with a son named Hank, writes a book on his experiences nine years prior while Celine becomes an environmentalist and an activist with a long distance war photographer boyfriend. Everything was fine until Celine read his book and decided to attend his last book tour at her favorite bookshop in France. Sparks fly and their feelings once again reignited upon meeting but they only have an afternoon since Jesse is to fly back to the US in the evening. It was also known that Jesse actually went back to Vienna as planned. However, Celine was not able to make it due to her grandmother’s death which happened on the same day of their plan. In this movie, you could see how both characters were unhappy with their current situations despite their excellent contributions to their respective careers. Personally, I somehow relate myself with Celine and her unluckiness in her love life after having several ex-partners who each got married after breaking up with her and calling her thanking her how she helped them in knowing what love is. I mean, wow, are we grooming men to be the future husbands of other women??? Hahahaha I just can’t with the idea.
The third film is set another nine years after the events of Before Sunset. They are now together here with twins after Jesse divorced his wife in the US. They had a deal to have their son, Hank, visit them every Summer. This movie made so much improvements compared to the previous ones because it touched so many topics with multiple characters and conversations present and also highlights the conflict between Celine’s career and Jesse’s frustration in being a father with his elder son. The family are invited in Greece by a famous writer for a six-week vacation. The infamous fight between Jesse and Celine marks the climax of the movie and people were wondering if they would really end up 56 more years to match the 74 marriage years of Jesse’s grandparents. I can’t also help but relate with Celine, not as a mother but as a woman. Because of the patriarchal principles established in our society wherein women are expected to stay at home, tend to the children and the house -- the woman is capable and wants to do the things she loves to do that would empower her as an individual but finds it hard to do it because of being tied with her family. I understand Jesse’s dilemma as well since he is aware of the effects of their divorce to his son and there is this constant pressure of saving him from the impending effects who lives miles away from where they are based. Jesse wanting to be with Hank means Celine giving up her career thus, starting a conflict in their married life. If I were them, they can settle a schedule where Jesse travels to and fro to stay with Hank for a couple of weeks perhaps without neglecting his father and husband duties with Celine and Nina and Ella and then Celine can now go on with her plans and aspirations for her career. It may be hard but marriage and love consist of compromises and sacrifices for the ones you love and yourself. They just have to meet somewhere in between.
Remember when I said I started watching the trilogy after seeing snippets of Before the End with Jesse and Celine in a video call, separated? I probed a fan and apparently that wasn’t real and they were pieces of interviews put together to make it look legit. God, I was so relieved because I think I couldn’t bear yet the idea of them eventually separating given with that tense events in the third movie. It was a nice try for the fans though. At least it fooled me to finally start watching it hahahahahaah
The Before Series taught me so much about life that it really is not always magic and butterflies. The transformation of Celine from being a romantic French girl to a careful, fearful woman got me a lot and made me realize that it’s actually hard to find someone to spend your life with and appreciate mundane stuff with. Jesse’s cynical and depressed personality made him write books as a way of channeling his inner emotions and make them alive. People with deep emotions are usually the ones inclined to arts and I could never agree more. And of course, the connection established among people is something the series showed me and it’s one of the most important foundations in building relationships as long as you are honest and genuine within yourselves.
The storyline was actually based on a real life event by the director of the trilogy himself. Apparently, the real woman inspired by Celine’s character died before the release of the Before Sunrise in which the director only knew of this in 2010.
