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The hype surrounding this film by local wunderkind Richard Linklater has been hitting Austin for the past month, and I was really expecting Before Sunrise to be a great movie. The story is simple: Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Celine (Julie Delpy) meet on the Eurail. They talk awhile, then Jesse woos her into getting off the train, where they spend his final night in Europe together in Vienna. Their relationship develops into a deep friendship, perhaps even love, over the course of the night. The next morning, Celine returns to the train station, and Jesse heads for the airport, and the movie's story is complete.
I have scarcely seen such genuine emotion portrayed on the screen, and the blooming romance between the two actors is absolutely believable. Unfortunately, often the dialogue is not. The hallmark of any Linklater film, people talk out of character as often as not, causing a number of the vignettes to fail with the audience. Also, the film's gruelingly slow pace made me check my watch far too many times. Thankfully these flaws don't detract from the film overmuch, but there are a few blemishes on this otherwise nice work.
As usual with a Linklater film, the Austin press has embraced Before Sunrise as a masterpiece. Don't believe everything you hear.
