Celine and Jesse come again ‘Before Midnight’

Meet Celine and Jesse again, this time in Greece.

After its very successful world premiere at Sundance Film Festival in January, the follow-up to the famous “Before Sunrise” (1995) and “Before Sunset” (2004) is finally arriving in theaters in Korea next month. Its well-loved protagonists ― Celine and Jesse, again played by Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke ― are now on a vacation in Greece, talking about all kinds of things including aging, kids and careers.

Like its predecessors, the film, titled “Before Midnight,” is directed by Richard Linklater, who first introduced us to Celine and Jesse almost two decades ago. The young dreamers’ first encounter took place on a train bound for Vienna. The American man and French woman are now in their 40s, and it turns out ― as unveiled at this year’s Sundance and Tribeca Film Festival ― many things have changed in their lives. 

After Vienna (“Before Sunrise”) and Paris (“Before Sunset”), the upcoming sequel also takes place in Europe. Jesse and Celine are invited by a British author who lives on the Southern Peloponnese in Greece, and decide to spend their summer there.

Jesse has continued to find success as an author ― in “Before Sunset,” he ran into Celine in Paris during a promotional tour of his book, which he wrote based on their brief romance in Vienna ― but is having a difficult relationship with Hank, his teenage son from a previous marriage.

Just like “Before Sunset,” Delpy and Hawke reportedly participated in writing the script for the upcoming movie, along with director Linklater.

“Before Midnight” opens in theaters in Korea on May 23.

By Claire Lee (dyc@heraldcorp.com)