ABSTRACT
This chapter argues that Richard Linklater’s “Before” trilogy engages in an ongoing dialogue with the problems of independence and authenticity. Focusing specifically on Before Midnight, Tryon demonstrates that Linklater and his collaborators, Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, use the film’s conversational style to reflect on the ways in which the idea of independence, coded as being true to yourself in artistic endeavors, often depends on categories of identity and social class. Hawke’s character, Jesse, in particular, has the freedom to embrace the label of an authentic artist, in part because Celine (Delpy) takes greater responsibility for household responsibilities.
Using single continuous takes – including a ten-minute car ride filmed in a single, claustrophobic shot – Linklater captures the intimacy of a married couple that has become iconic figures for Generation X audiences who were engaged through marketing and publicity materials to view Linklater, Hawke, and Delpy as expressions of an independent film movement. Before Midnight questions whether that idea of independence still functions two decades after the original film.
