Before Sunrise

I think everyone would secretly love meeting a stranger on a train and telling them the entirety of their life story. Its kind of a romantic concept – a relationship on short notice – but entirely impractical. They jumped in head first with their self-disclosure, which cultivated what I perceived as a false sense of comfort and intimacy.

Jesse and Celine are both extremely whimsical people, but it seems as though they’re both stuck in their memories. Jesse acknowledged this tendency to dwell on the past when he said, “I’ve heard all of my stories. I’m sick of myself.” For him, especially, it seemed like a new person was his excuse to relive the past and retell his stories.

The beauty of a pick up romance is that they can completely construct their image of the beloved to suit their own desires. They were able go create their own ideas of where the other has been and where they are going. With a twenty-four hour romance like this, there are no preconceived notions or judgment – just validation.

This film was focused on learning another person through conversation, but it took a very different approach than most. In Annie Hall, we didn’t learn the truth about the characters’ personalities until we watched them fight. In the scenes from early in their relationship, we see them trying to squeeze themselves into gender roles and make intelligent comments and observations. It wasn’t until their fight and therapist scenes that we get a better idea of who they truly are. Before Sunrise, on the other hand, shows the early stages of the relationship with shudders on. It’s almost as if we see their relationship how they see it – completely blinded by their infatuation and oblivious to logic. The film portrays them as strangers who come to know each other intimately in twenty-four hours, but how well can you know someone after a single day with them? In a day, you only have time to learn the image of the other person that they put forth, not the little crevices of their personality – the way they quiver when they’re angry or how they always leave the empty milk carton in the fridge. It generally isn’t until later in the relationship that true colors begin to shine through. Jesse and Celine are simply affected by the illusion that they know each other intimately, which contributes to their attraction and desire for one another.

I wish they had been able to stay together, but if they had, the film would have been exactly like every other chick flick known to man. I think it was better that they parted ways – the image of the beloved was unshattered and perfectly preserved. I think both will hold onto the image of their ideal beloved and for this reason, they will see each other again.