In 1995 Richard Linklater released Before Sunrise, confirming his status as the voice of Generation X after the cult successes of Slacker and Dazed and Confused. His 1995 film told the story of two young travellers, played by Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy, who spend one romantic evening together in Vienna.

I had forgotten how well-loved Before Sunrise was, until I saw a trailer for Before Sunset a few weeks ago and heard girls in the audience gasp with recognition, turning to their neighbours and saying, “God, I loved that film!”

Before Sunset is the sequel, and I think they’ll love it just as much. At the end of the first film, Jesse (Hawke) and Celine (Delpy) parted without swapping any personal details, but agreed to meet six months later. Before Sunset picks up the story nine years on, as the pair are reunited in Paris at a signing of Jesse’s book.

The book is based on their night together in Vienna, and it’s only the attendant publicity that has brought them together. Initially they are tentative, as questions hang in the air. Did either of them go to Vienna six months on as promised? Are they single? Did they really connect the way they remembered?

Gradually, these questions are answered as Jesse and Celine  spend the 75 minutes they have together before Jesse has to catch a plane. Told in real time, the story -- like the first -- is made up of long dialogue scenes in which the characters discuss their feelings and politics in the broken, fractured style of real conversations.

This type of storytelling won’t appeal to everyone, but there’s certainly a lot to admire. The film is simply and beautifully shot, with long, demanding takes as the characters wander the streets of Paris. Hawke and Delpy wonderfully capture the pauses and gestures of everyday speech, so it’s a real surprise to learn that the film is tightly scripted, with no improvisation.

The actors’ input is also impressive. The pair wrote most of the excellent dialogue themselves, corresponding with Linklater and each other for months by email. And, as if there weren't enough reasons to fall in love with her, Delpy performs three self-penned songs on the soundtrack. 

With all this in mind, I wish I liked the film more, but even nine years on, Jesse and Celine still strike me as a pair of self-involved, faux intellectuals spouting empty platitudes. They admire Buddhism but have no religion. They rail against consumerism but go through semantic cartwheels to justify the social merits of expensive shoes.

Still, Before Sunset aims for realism rather than heroism, and in this it succeeds, as few of us live up to our ideal selves, and Jesse and Celine are essentially likeable characters. Besides, what could be more realistic than two people who fancy each other talking complete rubbish?

(Released by Warner Independent Pictures and rated "R" for language and sexual references.)