Before Midnight is a satisfyingly euphoric capper to the Before Trilogy, director-co-writer Richard Linklater’s exploration of marriage, empowered by now-series-typical conversations between its deceptively ordinary couple, environmentalist Céline (Julie Delpy) and her author husband, Jesse (Ethan Hawke). Nine years into marriage (following the events of this writer’s new favorite film ever, Before Sunset), the pair spend an author’s retreat within the white walls and pristine seas of a Greek beach town with their twin daughters, Ella (Jennifer Prior) and Nina (Charlotte Prior), and Jesse’s son from his first marriage, Hank (Seamus Davey-Fitzpatrick). Once Hank departs back to the States to live with his mom and attend school, Jesse feels the guilt of his absence in Hank’s life and thinks of moving to Chicago to be with him—an idea which Céline, slaving away at her own dream job and taking care of the kids, instantly shuts down. The pair goes on with their day, going to dinner with friends who set them up for a nice getaway from the kids in a hotel room. However, their night turns sour, exploding into conflict rooted partially in Jesse’s guilt towards Hank that tests their relationship, self-respect, and love for each other.

Just as in Before Sunrise and Before Sunset, Midnight relishes in naturalized writing and a simple but profoundly insightful premise reliant entirely on its emboldened stars. While they’ve been together for nearly a decade now, they act as young and vivaciously relaxed in each other’s presence as they did before. With every wisecrack from Céline’s ever-thickening French accent, Jesse’s eyes dance and his lips curl; with every similar joke from Jesse, Céline rolls her eyes before laughing along as well. The pair isn’t afraid to explore all sorts of emotionally varying topics, from the mundanity of day to day life and life’s funny moments to the issues they face. And it’s all organic; after a missed-chance and another almost-missed-chance, the Before duo is finally together, and they see the reality of marriage: an imperfect, trying journey.

Even as they get tested along their lives’ routes, they face what they can. Céline, for example, asks Jesse at different points what’s annoying about her and what should be changed for them to live “another 56 years together.” While mostly romantic and light in responses earlier, when argument ensues, Jesse gives it to Céline the way most people would or at least think of: “I am giving you my whole life ok? I have nothing larger to give, and I ain’t giving it to anybody else…. But if what you want is like a laundry list of all the things that piss me off, I can give it to you.” Such moments, while uncomfortable and pain-inducing, are natural to even the best marriages. People conflict, change, and grow in unexpected ways, leading to them needing to re-learn how to live with and for each other from time to time. Each party gets pissy and nasty, but they also each have valid points that neither one is entirely ignorant to—making their closing argument not only the film’s most grounded moment, but one of the Before Trilogy’s most insightful ones as well. No corny one-liners or overblown monologues appear to shove the messaging into viewers’ faces; it is simply obtained from watching a couple live.

With such conflict arising on top of their vacation where they juggle their kids and Jesse’s other kid, enjoy Greece, ponder life in general and even discuss the pros and cons of technology in romance with their friends amongst other intriguing subjects, Before Midnight is the most calamitous entry of its trilogy in the best way possible. It can feel a bit repetitive at times, as Jesse and Céline every so often almost say line for line ideas they’ve discussed in previous films, but these moments are mere fine grains of sand in a larger desert of love, life, longing, loss, and happiness. As Jesse himself pleads to Céline “You want love, then this is it. This is real life. It’s not perfect, but it’s real.” Love is not easy, and Before Midnight demonstrates that with powerful ease. For fans of romance, Richard Linklater, the cast or the other two Before films, Before Midnight is another consistently grandiose set of conversations to lose oneself in.

Screens in 35 mm Monday, 6/16, 8:00 p.m. @ The Brattle Theatre
Co-presented with A.R.T.
Part of the ongoing repertory series: Special Engagements