Before Midnight

Before Midnight is a 2013 American romantic drama film and the sequel to Before Sunrise (1995) and Before Sunset (2004). Like its predecessors, the film was directed by Richard Linklater and stars Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy.

We meet Celine and Jesse nine years after their last rendezvous, in Before Sunset. Almost two decades have passed since their first encounter on a train bound for Vienna in Before Sunrise, and we now find them in their early forties in Greece. Before the clock strikes midnight, we will again become part of their story.

Director Richard Linklater continues his enchanting tale of a chance meeting between two strangers, bringing to it a nuanced perspective only gained by years lived. As it does in each film in the series, life carries with it new responsibilities and attitudes, forcing the two dreamers to reassess what they want next.

Bolstered by an increasingly refined onscreen chemistry between lead actors Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke, Before Midnight is a fitting third chapter in one of the great love stories of American independent cinema.

Critic Reviews:

• " Before Midnight's journey is not only an intellectual one. " – David Bax

• " Done with humor, heart and pathos, often in the same scene, it is a poignant farewell to two characters who grew up in front of us. " – Richard Crouse

• " A refreshing counter-point to Hollywood's typical happily ever after stories. " – Oktay Ege Kozak