Friday Night In #3: A romantic-ish trilogy that did No Plot, Just Vibes before it was a thing

Settle in for some vibes and epic amounts of dialogue

Happy New Year!

Over the last couple of years, there’s been an uptick in the popularity of books that are “No Plot, Just Vibes”. These are books that are character-driven, often slower and more introspective, and just have a feel to them. Normal People by Sally Rooney falls into this category for me.

I think the appeal of these types of stories, especially lately, is that they’re often calming or soothing in some way. You can just relax into them and spend time with the characters (as opposed to something like a page-turning thriller that has your heart beating faster.)

As a reader, I think there’s a place for both. No Plot, Just Vibes doesn’t work for me if I’m in a distracted state. In that case, I need something to move more quickly. But when I’m in the right mood, a vibe-story can be just right.

This applies to movies, too. And a movie trilogy that was doing No (well, little) Plot, Just Vibes way before it became a term was the Before trilogy with Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy.

all the vibes

If you’re not familiar with this trilogy, it started with Before Sunrise in 1995, continued nine years later with Before Sunset in 2004, and then concluded nine years later again with Before Midnight in 2013.

What’s remarkable about this is that you get to follow these two people from the start of their romance and then watch them age and mature in real time as if you’re really checking in with them and seeing how their life has been since you last saw them. I think that’s a beautiful thing—that these two actors and the director were patient enough to let the story unfold in that way and trust that viewers would come back. We didn’t get the fast-forward to the happy ending and epilogue (which, of course, as a romance writer, I’m not opposed to, but this gave a unique spin to the story.)

Now, I will say that I really loved the first movie and liked the second. I appreciated the third and what it was trying to do, but for my romantic heart, I wish it would’ve been different. However, I’m glad I watched all three.

So what are they about?

Before Sunrise

On a trip to Vienna, American Jesse (Ethan Hawke) meets a French woman, Celine (Julie Delpy), and convinces her to spend the day with him. The movie takes place over 24 hours (all the movies use this timeframe) and is probably 95% dialogue. Like, I’m not kidding. If you’re not into long talks, this movie may not be for you.

They are young and beautiful and asking all the big life questions as they start their adult lives. They have long, philosophical conversations rife with existential angst. They are attracted to each other—I mean, of course they are, have you seen these two?—but more than that, they are falling for each other’s minds. I think that’s what got me about these movies. Brains are sexy. Deep thoughts are hot.

Remember those meandering conversations you could get into with friends or partners late into the night when you’re young and have nowhere to be? When the world is laid out ahead of you but you’re scared because you have no idea what you’re getting into? That’s this movie.

Both of the characters are flawed, which of course makes them interesting, and those flaws will continue to manifest as the trilogy goes on, but this start is a strong one and will leave you wanting more in the best way. (Warning: Don’t expect a neatly tied-up bow at the end.)

Before Sunset

I’m not even going to give you the minimal plot points for this one. I think it’s better if you go into each movie after the first one blind because each leads to the next and has spoilers.

Just know that it’s nine years later and we’re going to spend another day with these characters. There were some aspects of this one that bothered me (just a personal aversion to a certain plot point) but I still really enjoyed the time I spent with these characters as they wandered around Paris.

Before Midnight

Okay, so if you are a hopeless romantic (as I am), you may want to stop with the second movie. I’m not mad that I watched this last one. I think it would’ve bothered me not to be a completist. But in my brain, I’m going to file this as a separate movie from the other two. I feel like this one was trying to do something a little different.

Before Midnight is currently streaming on the Criterion Channel service, and it included a great interview with Ethan Hawke that I watched afterward. He said that the one rule when they wrote the movie was to have the characters not tell one lie (he and Delpy wrote much of all three movies). So it was trying to be a realistic portrayal of a midlife relationship.

I appreciate what they were trying to do, but I found it too cynical (and often too mean) for my taste. Maybe that’s because I’m in a midlife relationship and, even after being with my husband for almost 26 years now, he’s still my favorite person and I still want to have long, philosophical late-night talks with him (okay, admittedly they’re probably morning or early evening talks now, lol. Who has the energy to stay up late?) All that to say, I’m still a hopeless romantic and believe things can stay romantic over a long time, so this movie was a tougher hang for me.

So, I’ll leave it to you to decide if you want to stop at part two or complete the trilogy. :)

If nothing else, you get some truly gorgeous settings in each: Vienna, Paris, and Greece. The locations definitely add to the vibe. And why not enhance your own Friday Night In vibe…

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Add to the vibe of the night

If you want to add to the “just vibes” marathon, cook something French (or Austrian or Greek.)

Need a suggestion? Grab My Paris Kitchen by David Lebovitz (Amazon | Bookshop.org) from your library or favorite bookstore and choose a recipe with all the Parisian vibes. I recommend the Steak Frites Au Beurre De Moutarde (Steak with Mustard Butter and French Fries). It felt fancy but was easy to make and delicious. Plus, the book has great food writing and is one of those cookbooks that can be read like a novel.

Hope you found something worth watching. :) Whatever you decide to do this Friday night, I hope it’s a good one for you!

How do you feel about the No Plot Just Vibes thing? Not for you, definitely your thing, or you have to be in the right mood? If you have other suggestions for movies or books that fall under this category that you enjoyed, share them in the comments!