Before Midnight

2013

USA

Director: Richard Linklater 
Writers: Richard Linklater, Julie Delpy, Ethan Hawke, Kim Krizan
Stars: Ethan Hawke, Julie Delpy, Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick 

My Thoughts:

They drive. They talk. They walk. They fight. They say hurtful things to each other. They apologize. They make up. All against a gorgeous Grecian backdrop.

Nine years after we last saw Jesse and Celine, and almost two decades after they first met on that fateful train to Vienna, we catch up with them in Greece. They've been together all this time, although still not married. They have twin daughters, Jesse has a fourteen-year-old son from his first marriage. At one point I think they say something about an older daughter of Celine's too, but I didn't really get that. Actually, a lot of this film went by before it could really register with me. It's a lot like eavesdropping on a conversation at the next table in a restaurant -- some of it is fascinating, some is not so much, and some of it you just don't really grock. But I  believe that's the feeling Linklater and his crew are trying to achieve.

OK, I know it's not fashionable or hip to say this, but I've been mostly bored by this whole series of films, and I think this latest one has the least to offer. I do appreciate what Linklater is doing, and I'm gratified that there's someone out there making films for adults, with real actors and settings, and not just turning out CGI schlock. I just wish there was a little more to the films -- more than just two fairly ordinary people talking and talking and talking. And talking some more. At least in this third film, there are a few other people doing some of the talking.

Also, the two stars seem much less natural in this one, more like actors trying to be natural. Especially Julie Delpy -- she even seems to have lost all that French charm that kept her from being totally unbearable in the earlier films.

But if you've loved the other two "Before" movies, you should love this one too -- it's more of the same.

My IMDb Rating: I'm giving this one 4 stars out of a possible 10, mainly because the scenery was so attractive.

To Rome with Love

2012

USA
(Watched the DVD from Netflix)

Written and Directed by Woody Allen
Cinematography by Darius Khondji
Cast: Woody Allen, Alec Baldwin, Judy Davis, Roberto Benigni, Penelope Cruz, Jesse Eisenberg, Ellen Page, Ornella Muti
MPAA Rating: R for some sexual references

Story (from Sony Classics):

To Rome with Love is a kaleidoscopic comedy movie set in one of the world's most enchanting cities. The film brings us into contact with a well-known American architect reliving his youth; an average middle-class Roman who suddenly finds himself Rome's biggest celebrity; a young provincial couple drawn into separate romantic encounters; and an American opera director endeavoring to put a singing mortician on stage.

My Thoughts:
For me, To Rome with Love had a couple of strikes against it right from the start.  First, even though I do love foreign films, I have to be really interested in a film if I'm going to spend more than a few minutes reading subtitles. I used to have more patience for that sort of thing, but the older I get, the more irritating I find them.  And since I lost interest in this movie after about the first ten minutes, the subtitles made it even less likely I'd enjoy it.  Also, I'm not a Fellini fan, and this is something of an homage to the Italian director.  I have to admit, Allen does a fantastic Fellini imitation here -- right down to the annoying Nino Rota-style background music permeating almost every scene.  But if I'm going to have to watch Fellini, I'd rather just see the real thing.

But the city was certainly beautiful, and there were one or two rewarding moments -- several bits of slapstick were very funny.  And Alec Baldwin and Penelope Cruz were very watchable, as always.  But in the end, the characters and stories were uninteresting and forgettable.  Not one of Woody's better efforts.

My IMDb rating: Two stars out of a possible Ten.