How Before Midnight Captures the Harshness of Love in the Most Resounding of Manners (Film Analysis)

Director Richard Linklater's Before series is both a fictional and realistic look at growth between its characters and actual writers over the course of time.  

The continuous examination of a fictional couple's relationship every nine-years both in and out of universe gives the series a natural growth as the characters advance alongside the writers (Linklater being a core writer since the beginning and co-stars Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy being writers since the second film).  Out of the three current films existing, it’s the third one Before Midnight that resonates with me the most on an emotional level—and the reason is a curious one for a romance story.  Within the trilogy’s numerous displays of love, passion, and romance, what stands out to me the most is the heated thirty-minute argument between its lead couple.  Great couple’s quarrels have been done in fiction before, yet the way it's staged here ironically feels incredibly genuine.

The genius of the fight scene is how naturally it ebbs and flows throughout its course.  There's a lot of underlining tension between the protagonists Jesse (Hawke) and Céline (Delpy) throughout the film’s first half.  Their differing goals for the future are very subtly displayed, especially for a film—enough to be noticed, but not enough to immediately cause any red flags to go off.  Neither one of them initiates the tensions to flare—the pair are actually caught in a moment of passionate lovemaking—but rather from an outside phone call interrupting their blissfulness.  Had the phone call not occurred, it’s very likely the couple would have had a happy night—pushing any disagreements to another time.  I love how it’s a little, unexpected spark that ignites the fire.  I've experienced fights such as these where my wife and I are having a great time and then some out-of-the-blue occurrence causes us to bicker and get mad.  The argument starts off a losing battle of them trying to remain calm and “rational” in an ever-increasing emotional situation.

It’s a slow build as both try to make a point and prove their view correct while disregarding the other as foolish.  These issues have been simmering within their minds, growing and molding to fit their perspective.  Because of this inner-escalation, neither one is willing to give any leeway—they’ve already made up their minds and are baffled that the other can’t see their perspective.  The passive-aggressiveness escalates into verbal aggression and hits a boiling point before the pair burn out from mental exhaustion and the argument dies down where they almost reconcile.  Yet one slip of the tongue—an unassuming remark the other takes as belittling—causes the fight to escalate once again.  The film has a double hitter here, capturing the mental exhaustion of long-running arguments and the devastation of unmindful comments that can reignite the flames.  I love how twice Céline leaves the room furious, only to angrily come back to vent her frustrations that she just needs to let loose rather than allow simmering in her mind (I been in that position so many times).

It’s these traits that really makes the fight feel genuine, relatable (albeit for those that have been in similar situations, like me), and profoundly engaging to watch.  The fight gets to the point where their arguments become moot in a standstill and they resort to simply trying to hurt each other with exaggerated jabs at their weak points.  The fight ends on a harsh note as Céline angrily leaves the room for real, giving the pair time away from each other to cool off.  The battle concludes with a now more levelheaded Jesse going out to find and try to reconcile with Céline.  The film does not end with a complete resolution as many of their issues remain unsettled.  Instead, Jesse and Céline find solace that they love each other’s company despite having reached a difficult crossroads.  Their future is left uncertain, as with all real relationships—the writers opt for a more humble, realistic, yet effectively pleasant ending over a happy-ever-after finale.

It's the film’s last third that elevates Before Midnight as my favorite in the trilogy.  The quarrel is just that good—a beautiful representation of a genuine, loving relationship at its most testing, from the escalation, to the anger, to the exhaustion, to the character quirks, to the reconciling.  The film strikes lightning with the fight that envelops the strange, true-to-life elements in a manner that’s natural, yet also feels grandiose.  It's invigorating to watch and satisfying to see play out to its serene ending.  The 2010s has had many couple’s quarrels, but Before Midnight showcases one of, if not the finest of the bunch.