Movie Review: Before Midnight

WOW. I usually can't stand films that focus just on dialogues and nothing more, but Before Midnight - well, all three Before films to be exact - had that right mixture of charismatic characters, engaging story, and an expertly written script that even a simple movie about two people in love talking can become the most beautiful of films. Yes, it's painful, at times brutal, but it impressively gave an honest exploration of the characters' relationship. The sharpness of their confrontation in a hotel room, in particular, was probably one of the most powerful scenes I've seen in cinema for a while and the ending was just sublime. There was just a brutal realism to the whole film. Somehow, the movie even articulated all the anxieties I have about life, love and the world general in a more profound way that I could not have achieved in my lifetime. I laughed. I cried. I got frustrated. Before Midnight was a quiet masterpiece. 9.5