Living the life we want

The other day I rewatched the Before trilogy (Before Sunrise/Sunset/Midnight). All three films are brilliantly done in my opinion, however the second film has always irritated me somewhat, and the third film I practically hate. I didn’t understand why the later films annoyed me so much when I first saw them so many years ago. In the rewatching however, it all became clear (or at least a layer of it became clear.

(If you haven’t watched the films, spoilers are to follow. Read on or not as you see fit.)

In the first film we are witness to the briefest of love affairs, one occurring over the course of less than 24-hours. We watch as the main characters become vulnerable, share of themselves, and mostly stay in the present moment of completely enjoying each other’s company. The film ends with them promising to meet again, but in ending of that film we don’t know if they ever do, or what became of them - individually or as a couple.

This first film always felt beautiful and magical to m…