A young man and woman meet on a train in Europe, and wind up spending one evening together in Vienna. Unfortunately, both know that this will probably be their only night together.
Box office $ 5.5 million
This was the first time I saw a movie that had nothing close to a human antagonist, yet it kept me glued to the screen. Sure I've read a few novels of the kind but surely they weren't "oh I'm glued" stuff. Everybody at least once in their life dreams of something like this and this movie makes it believable. After watching the movie I really thought that Ethan & Julie must have dated 'cause their conversations were just flowing. Definitely a must see.
A very simple but very human film, with very good feelings and dialogue.
Contrary to what I like to do, I saw this film after seeing its sequel, Before Sundown. It's a very nice story about an American tourist who is enchanted by a French student he meets on the train on the way to Vienna, and invites her to spend some time with him. The rest of the film is an intense dialogue between the two through the streets of the city, as emotions and feelings develop.
The best thing this film has to offer is the surprising and intensely credible interpretation of the main actors. Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy are both young, elegant and seem to make a nice couple (of course, the characters, not the actors). I don't know if I'm the only person...