Before Sunset

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Before Sunset

R

2004

1h 20m

Romance

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

95%

Tomatometer

180 Reviews

91%

Popcornmeter

50,000+ Ratings

A sequel to Before Sunrise, this film starts nine years later as Jesse (Ethan Hawke) travels across Europe giving readings from a book he wrote about the night he spent in Vienna with Celine (Julie Delpy). After his reading in Paris, Celine finds him, and they spend part of the day together before Jesse has to again leave for a flight. They are both in relationships now, and Jesse has a son, but as their strong feelings for each other start to return, both confess a longing for more.

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Critics Consensus

Filled with engaging dialogue, Before Sunset is a witty, poignant romance, with natural chemistry between Hawke and Delpy.

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Adam Kempenaar

Filmspotting

May 23, 2025

5/5

...I was perfectly content to let Jesse and Celine live on forever in my imagination. The possibility of that affair to remember future meet-up was satisfying enough. Or so I thought.

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Christy Lemire

Associated Press

Aug 8, 2012

It's a lovely, beguiling little film a rare treat during this overheated season of blockbusters. It's also an unusual example of a follow-up that doesn't seem forced, but expands effortlessly on the original.

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Joe Morgenstern

Wall Street Journal

Aug 8, 2012

The reunion has some lively moments, but a great deal of slow walking and fatuous talking about love, married life and sex.

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Gautam Anand

The Cinemaholic

Sep 13, 2026

5/5

Before Sunset is an understated masterpiece—a film that achieves extraordinary emotional depth without ever seeming to try too hard.

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Dave Giannini

InSession Film

Feb 20, 2024

There are any number of times where they could leave each other’s sights (again), but this time for good. But they don’t, and the audience is treated to love at first sight a second time.

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James Croot

The Post NZ

Nov 29, 2023

4.5/5

This would all be dreary and forgettable fluff, were it not for the charm and chemistry of the leads.

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SIMAS C

@simas_eros Oct 23, 2026

(Literally) Nine years after the first film in this trilogy, the same characters reunite for another outing and deeper conversations about life and intimacy—this time with a shared past that includes things left unsaid. While it retains the narrative structure of the first film—where the story unfolds organically through conversation—there is a clear sense of greater maturity, both in form (direction) and content (the themes), all while the extraordinary chemistry between the protagonists remains intact.

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Jaiver A

@JavierSoy Oct 22, 2026

Brilliant movie. The best of the 3 for me. Touching, very romantic, with incredible dialogs. I can not believe there are people who doesn't give it 5 stars. I have seen it about 8 times through my life.

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Mickey B

@Mickerdoo Oct 5, 2026

I liked that their lives weren’t on pause and had relationships and when Celine gets real in the van. But felt short and less spontaneous.

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Some R

@RT00331823 Sep 26, 2026

Strays away from the run of the mill movie formula, while also being deeply touching.

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Ron J

@RT47696882 Sep 23, 2026

Before Sunset is a film about love, time, regret, and the lives we imagine when the road takes us somewhere else. Jesse and Céline meet again after years apart, and every word carries the weight of the time they lost. Their conversation feels intimate, funny, and full of longing, with each pause saying as much as the dialogue. There is no grand romance here, only two people trying to understand what happened between them and what might still be possible. Before Sunset understands that some love stories do not end when people part. They live in the years between meetings, in the questions we carry, and in the quiet hope that one day, we might find our way back to the person who still feels like home.

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Robert P

@Superbad Sep 20, 2026

Before Sunset = a 4.5 star Movie!

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Richard Linklater

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Synopsis

A sequel to Before Sunrise, this film starts nine years later as Jesse (Ethan Hawke) travels across Europe giving readings from a book he wrote about the night he spent in Vienna with Celine (Julie Delpy). After his reading in Paris, Celine finds him, and they spend part of the day together before Jesse has to again leave for a flight. They are both in relationships now, and Jesse has a son, but as their strong feelings for each other start to return, both confess a longing for more.

Director: Richard Linklater
Producer: Anne Walker-McBay
Screenwriter: Julie Delpy, Richard Linklater, Ethan Hawke, Kim Krizan
Distributor: Warner Independent
Production Co: Detour Filmproduction, Warner Independent Pictures, Castle Rock Entertainment
Rating: R (Sexual References|Language)
Genre: Romance, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Feb 10, 2004, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Oct 3, 2008
Box Office (Gross USA): $5.8M
Runtime: 1h 20m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby SRD
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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