Before the Sunrise, and its sequel Before the Sunset, are some of the best romantic films to ever be written. The dialogue of these two films is the best I seen in years, and will probably see in years to come. The screenwriter duo Richard Linklater, Kim Krizan do an AMAZING job. These two romantic films never have to resort to the action-packed sequences, cheap humor and gag laughs exploited relentlessly in mainstream Hollywood romances.
What I truly enjoyed about these two movies is that they talk about something that´s very difficult to talk about: LIFE.
These are not the type of movies that one watches to just laugh and have a good time. Watching these two movies promotes indenpendent thinking and they add meaning to your life.
Here are some memorable quotes I remember from the films:
“I was having this aweful nightmare, that I was 32, and then I woke up and I was 23! So relieved… then I woke up for real, and I was 32”
“We still have to deal with the same shit our parents had to deal with. But this time its different… This time we don´t know who the enemy is”
“There’s an Einstein quote I really, really like. He said: “If you don’t believe in any kind of magic or mystery, basically, you’re as good as dead”
” Anyway, I was in the backyard, playing, and my sister had just taught me how to take the garden hose, and do it in such a way that, uh, (holds his hand up to demonstrate the garden hose technique) you could spray it into the sun, and you could make a rainbow. And so I was doing that, and through the mist, I could see my grandmother. And she was just standing there, smiling at me. And uh, then I held it there, for a long time, and I looked at her. And then finally, I let go of the nozzle, you know, and then I dropped the hose, and she disappeared. And so I went back inside, and I tell my parents, you know. And they, uh, sit me down give me big rap on how when people die you never see them again, and how I’d imagined it. But…I knew what I’d seen. And I was just glad that I saw that. I mean, I’ve never seen anything like that since. But, I don’t know. It just kind of let me know how ambiguous everything was, you know, even death.”
These two movies are PACKED with memorable quotes, the acting is SUPERB and the storyline is REALLY touching. If you want to see a fresh, creative take on romance: I HIGHLY recommend these two films. (this coming from someone who isn’t a fan of the romantic genre)
If you on the other hand, just want to watch lame jokes and laugh: then I would recommend watching another forgettable Hollywood rom-com in theathers.