Before Midnight

Richard Linklater's ‘Before’ Trilogy Joins the Criterion Collection
Richard Linklater's ‘Before’ Trilogy Joins the Criterion Collection
Even for a guy whose films are unified by their pervasive sense of chillness, Richard Linklater’s never been lacking in ambition. He’s pulled off formless philosophical rambles (Slacker, Waking Life) and a bildungsroman twelve years in the making (Boyhood), but his grandest project has to be the Before trilogy of romance films. Across three decades and three pictures (1995’s Before Sunrise, 2004’s Before Sunset, and 2013’s Before Midnight) Linklater has tracked what could justly be named one of cinema’s great love affairs as it’s progressed from infatuation at first sight to a long-awaited reunion to adult life and the domesticity that goes with it.
Reel Women: ‘Before Midnight’ Is the Beautifully Honest Relationship Film You Need to See
Reel Women: ‘Before Midnight’ Is the Beautifully Honest Relationship Film You Need to See
Richard Linklater brings his 'Before' trilogy to close this week with 'Before Midnight,' in which we pick up with Celine (Julie Delpy) and Jesse (Ethan Hawke) 10 years after the second film. 'Before Sunrise' found our characters making an unlikely, serendipitous connection; 'Before Sunset' examined how they evolved 10 years later, and whether that initial connection could stand the test of time; a