In
1995, Jesse and Celine met on a train. A lively and handsome American boy and a chic and artistic French girl, because of the quarrel between the husband and wife next door, Celine switched to Jesse's side, and the two caught up with each other. Jesse talked about traveling around Europe, interesting stories in Paris, seeing her deceased grandmother in the rainbow when she was a child, and talking about the TV program she designed to broadcast a person's daily life. They chatted very speculatively and kept talking.
When Jesse arrived in Vienna, he invited Celine to get off the bus and travel with him, "Suppose that after a few years, your marriage will lose its vitality, think back to the men you met in this life, and what would it be like to marry them. Now it is like a time travel, let You see what you will miss." On the
tram, they played a quiz game, and the two who fell in love at first sight began to test; in the record audition room, the music of "Baby, let's put aside our restraint" fueled the flames; on the Ferris wheel, they let it go Kissed naturally. That night, they wandered the streets and alleys of Vienna, watching street performers, listening to wandering poets writing poems, letting women in the square read their palms, and chatting about their exes while playing games and drinking beer in the bar. In the cafe, they pretended to call their friends, expressed their sincerity, and showed their hearts; on the cruise, they stubbornly did not exchange phone addresses because they were afraid of no longer in contact; Jesse asked for wine from the bar, and the two spent time on the grass. A beautiful night; in the early morning, they walked hand in hand on the empty street, dancing to the sound of the piano; the train was about to start, they hugged hard, made a 6-month agreement, and parted in a hurry...
At that time, Celine "has always wanted to be an independent and strong woman, and not let her whole life revolve around a certain man". Jessie "doesn't want other people's ideas to be imposed on herself" "dreams of being a good father and husband, but is afraid they will ruin me. I'm afraid I don't know what I'm really good at, not just in a warm and mundane family relationship live this life." Young they are afraid of the boring, mediocre, day-to-day life, and it seems impossible to try to understand a person and to be with him. At that time, they thought that a happy marriage was mutual deception, that it was sad to be married but to love another person all their lives, that "love is complicated" and "love is the shade of two people who don't know how to be alone".
In an interview nine years later, Jesse said his intention in writing the book was to record a moment when he met someone, because the two had a heart-to-heart connection. This can be seen as the footnote of the first movie - the beginning of love is the moment when the heart is connected.
At that glance at the second
signing ceremony, he saw her, and he didn't know how his heart was surging, so he was so at a loss, so nervous that he was incoherent. But they are rusty after all. They don't know what happened in each other's life in the past nine years, and they are not sure where they are in each other's heart, so in the first half of "Love Before Sunset", they kept testing, joking, Just kidding, talking nonsense.
One said "I always thought you had forgotten me" and one said "I didn't expect you to think about me all the time". The topic will always go back to that night nine years ago, one is pretending, the other is testing.
Celine still cares about the power of women, as the palmist said, doing environmental protection work that can change the world. Jesse still has a good sense of humour and writes imaginative novels. This time, in the streets of Paris, they were discussing whether the world could be better or worse, about American law and order, about each other's changes, about beliefs, and about desires. At this time, they believe that happiness comes from the process, not the result. Jesse said "I like getting older because I can appreciate more".
On the park bench, it was also a quiz game, but the content turned into a sex questionnaire. They exclaimed, "I didn't expect it to be so realistic after nine years."
On the cruise ship, the gap between the two gradually disappeared. Jesse said this book was written to tell me that I did see you, lest I forget you. And Celine said that she was never so free and easy, "I will never forget everyone I interact with. Because everyone has different characteristics, you can't replace anyone, lost is lost... I miss someone. Ordinary things, like those details, I remember your red beard, how the sun lit it up the day you went. I always remember it, I miss it so much,"
said Jesse, who wrote the book to find She, she was still thinking about her before the wedding, and she seemed to be seen on the way to the wedding. He pressed forward step by step, pouring out his love. Celine sighed, "When I was young, I always thought that I could meet many people, and then you realized that the so-called chance is actually only a few times."
In the car, the two hearts finally opened to each other. Although his wife is a good teacher, mother, and beautiful and smart, Jesse feels that life is unsatisfactory and that his wife is far away from him. Celine stumbled through paragraphs of mediocre and failed relationships, unwilling to give in order not to be hurt, feeling that "even being alone is better than being alone with a partner". They complained and talked, and the longing, resentment, jealousy, and longing that had accumulated in their hearts over the past nine years exploded.
That night was the most romantic memory in their lives and a knot in their hearts. Celine said, I was fine until I saw that damn book of yours and it reminded me that I was romantic too. Jesse said, I always dream of you, and since I didn't see you that day, I stopped believing in romance. That night reminded them that there was once a person who knocked on each other's hearts. Once there is such love, I don't want to let it go.
They hate each other and love each other. So Celine said, "Memories are beautiful, if you don't have to face the past." And when Celine reached out to touch Jesse, the unpleasantness all dissipated. Because they know that they are not alone.
The hug in front of Celine's house came too late. Jesse insisted on taking her upstairs to hear her sing a song, and so there was the final waltz. "That night lingering, you were all my dreams in my life..."
Fortunately, when we met again, you were still there, waiting for me. Even if I miss the plane, I don't want to miss you again.
After nine
years, Jesse and Celine have reached middle age and become parents of two children. They are not exempt from the custom, and they have reached a stage where they are disgusted with each other, their passion is no longer, and they are riddled with trivial matters.
"Before Midnight" begins with Jesse dropping off his son Hank at the airport. The son is about to go to high school in a blink of an eye, but because of the bad relationship with his ex-wife, he can't accompany the child to grow up. Feeling guilty, he came up with the idea of moving to Chicago.
On the way back from the airport, the twin daughters were sleeping, and Jesse and Celine, like all teasing parents, ate their children's apples and photographed them sleeping. Celine was talking about childhood anecdotes, joking that Jesse likes to wink at young girls. The atmosphere was very happy, but when suddenly talking about Hank, Celine guessed what Jesse was thinking, and made it clear that "I won't move." to Chicago". The differences between the two arose.
At the dining table, old, middle-aged and young couples spoke freely. The young couple talked about their love process, like a copy of Jesse and Celine. When discussing invisible machismo, Celine imitates a woman with big breasts and no brains, and the two are still as interesting as when they were young. Speaking of moving to Chicago, Celine expressed anger.
The young girl said: "Is eternal love still related to us?" The middle-aged woman said: "Only a spiritual partner can make us whole." The old man said: "We are never alone, but independent. Two people." The old woman said, "I feel safe and complete when he is around. I remember many details, sometimes I seem to forget him, sometimes it is very clear. He appears and disappears like a sunrise. And the sunset." Every sentence is a proverb of love, telling us what love is: romantic and sweet when young, dependent on each other in middle age, until it melts into each other's life, everywhere.
In the evening, Jesse and Celine were walking to the hotel, chatting freely as in the first two films, but the topic was no longer parents, society, ideals, etc., but replaced the insights of life and the growth of children.
Jesse said that when you were young, you felt like this was our time, but when you grew up, you lost the enthusiasm, creativity and ambition. Celine said that men are always compared to great people, so there is a lot of pressure. Women just don't compare, because it's so hard for women to gain social status, they're always stuck at home with husbands and children. She herself has put all her energy on the child, so she can't achieve success in her work. A conflict between the two seemed inevitable.
When Celine asked, "If you lived another 56 years, what would you most want me to change?" Jesse replied, "I hope you don't try to change me again." He said, "I know your routine, I know everything about you." Celine said: "But sometimes I think you breathe nitrogen and I breathe oxygen."
They watched the sun go down little by little by the sea, and the afterglow was shining, and they smiled at each other.
In the hotel, the two who were making out had a quarrel over Hank's phone. The matter of Chicago, which had moved to during the quarrel, was brought up again. Celine said angrily, "Why do I always compromise?" "I don't want to be that kind of woman!" She recounted her contribution to the family, "You have time to think and take a walk, but I have to go to work and take care of the children, and I have no idea what to do. Time to think!" Then the quarrel continued to escalate, and they began to accuse each other of cheating, digging out old accounts, and Celine ran out the door several times.
But in the midst of this quarrel, Jesse said "let me leave you and my daughter, I can't do it." "I gave you my life. Crazy you, smart you, I know you won't change, I Accept you as you are. I will take responsibility for you, for my daughter, and for the life we have created together. It's all because, I love you."
Vienna, they walk and kiss but don't say "love"; Paris, they try and joke but don't say "love"; Greece, they quarrel but say "love".
After Celine left the room, she sat angry while watching the sunset. Jesse pretended not to know and came to strike up a conversation. He said that he was the person Celine met in 1994, came to her in a time machine, and brought her a letter written by the 82-year-old.
When Celine thinks life sucks, Jesse says "you've entered the best years of your life", "you're prettier than I remember", "you're my only hope". Celine thought his behavior was ridiculous and did not accept this move to ease the relationship.
After a long silence, Jesse said, "I told you you're beautiful, I love you unconditionally, I try to make you laugh, and I put up with your bad temper. If you want true love, this is love, this is life, no Perfect but true."
Celine turned her head away, tears still in her eyes. After a while, she asked, "What's the time machine like?" Jesse took a look and knew the quarrel was over. So he began to describe this time travel journey vividly. Celine exclaimed, "You are so smart!"
Isn't that what love is like? Although many problems are unsolved, and it is useless to argue again and again, but no matter what, I love you, and I am willing to coax you after every fight, and No matter how fierce the quarrel is, they will never say parting.
Maybe we will turn into what we hated when we were young and lead a boring life, but as long as we have you by our side, as long as we remember what love looks like, then no matter how the years pass, we will not be afraid.
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