BEFORE SUNRISE

It’s just so surprising how quickly todays become yesterdays. And “today” after many, many days of procrastination and blaming the so-cold weather for not stepping out in the morning for a walk, I went out. As I sat down on my bed today with the same excuse, my dad told me to go out today just like he does every other day but today I knew I couldn’t slip away inside my bed with the same excuse as I could see the light orange tinge behind the trees which meant the fog wouldn’t be able to hide the sun and it would rise today. Though my best friend never agrees that the sun doesn’t rise some days; it does, just not in your visible field of view, which always leads to a never-ending argument.

The period before the sunrise feels like a piano symphony playing in the background, in tune with my footsteps. As everyone is still in the captivity of slumber, it does seem serene but if you stand still, you can hear the soft rustling of the leaves and the almost silent chirping of some birds. The morning air as it kisses my face when I make a run feels like I am flying (almost making me live my dream of being a bird). It’s truly magical.

And then the whole expanse gradually changes from reddish-orange to bluish-white and people start stirring to begin their day. In the midst of children waiting for their buses and dogs barking at each other, it soon becomes a chaotic din.

Would there be anything in the world without words? Imagine a world where words didn’t exist, neither in speech nor thoughts, would people fall in love? Yes maybe eyes are enough but the idea of conversations through words, just words, and no avalanches of twists and turns, no surprises….just extended conversations, just words; could that be a succulent recipe for a movie? I never imagined I could ever come to enjoy or love such a movie but I did. It was like something was bubbling inside of me, like the thrill of going down an endless hill.

Two strangers (two people are always strangers before they fall in love): Jesse and Celine. Jesse is an American and Celine is French. They are both travelling from Budapest in the Eurail. They aren’t sitting next to each other but a bickering couple forces Celine to move out of her seat and she ends up sitting across Jesse. Both are reading books and striking up a conversation. And that’s what the movie is all about……words and conversations. They are seemingly like two people with polar opposite thoughts but that’s intriguing for both of them. As they hear each other’s points of view, a sudden unexpected connection is built up.

Reaching Vienna, Jesse has to get down and as strangers would naturally do, they decide to go their ways but Jesse gets a feeling he might never feel connected to any woman as he just did with Celine, he asks her to get down with him in Vienna and just spend the day with him in the city Before Sunrise. They meander through the city streets and every scene is them having a conversation: sometimes it’s in a bus or at times a riverside or a club. They have conversations on life’s simple things along with some serious ones, each being equally engaging and maybe even more.

If there’s any kind of magic in this world it must be in the attempt of understanding someone, sharing something. I know, it’s almost impossible to succeed …. but who cares really? The answer must be in the attempt.

Celine

I always feel this pressure of being a strong and independent icon of womanhood, and without making it look my whole life is revolving around some guy. But loving someone, and being loved means so much to me. We always make fun of it and stuff. But isn’t everything we do in life a way to be loved a little more?

Celine

You know what drives me crazy? It’s all these people talking about how great technology is, and how it saves all this time. But, what good is saved time if nobody uses it? If it just turns into more busy work. You never hear somebody say, “With the time I’ve saved by using my word processor, I’m gonna go to a Zen monastery and hang out”. I mean, you never hear that.

Jesse

Maybe it’s just me, but to have someone who can make conversations on the impending doom of death, the chaos of war, the beauty and sin of reincarnation, the ever-deepening essence of truth; just like Jesse had Celine and Celine had Jesse. To have that person talking to me would be my perfect ideal of what I define love as.

I think I can really fall in love when I know everything about someone – the way he’s going to part his hair, which shirt he’s going to wear that day, knowing the exact story he’d tell in a given situation. I’m sure that’s when I know I’m really in love.

Celine

Strolling through the majestic and romantic city of Vienna, just as beautiful as it’s name, they find themselves inside a music store listening to “Come Here” by Kath Bloom on a Gramophone in a booth in the store. I won’t attempt to describe this scene because it demands only to be felt. All I can say is it’s in the eyes, it’s the eyes where it all begins.

They wander along the banks of the Danaukanal and find a roadside poet of sorts rolling a cigarette. He tells them that he would write a poem for them on any word they like and if they liked the poem, they could choose to pay him. Celine prompts him to write the poem on “Milkshake”. The poem was so surprising and totally caught me off guard. It’s the essence of their feelings.

The Street Poet’s Poem:

Daydream delusion, limousine eyelash Oh baby with your pretty face Drop a tear in my wine glass Look at those big eyes See what you mean to me Sweet-cakes and milkshakes I’m a delusion angel I’m a fantasy parade I want you to know what I think Don’t want you to guess anymore You have no idea where I came from We have no idea where we’re going Lodged in life Like branches in a river Flowing downstream Caught in the current I carry you You’ll carry me That’s how it could be Don’t you know me? Don’t you know me by now?

Before Sunrise (1995) is filled with moments, beautiful moments like these: fragile, magical and heart-pounding. It’s these simple moments that make up this beautiful amalgam of conversations. It’s a magically crafted tale that feels so real, it’s as if the lead actors are in their own natural conversations. For a change, this is one of those romantic movies that doesn’t compel you to tears even though you know how it might end. It’s not a great tragedy, it’s just two people talking and that’s what makes it so real while being funny at the same time. It’s about meeting that one person with that “connection” and knowing that it’s them.s them.