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Before Sunset poster

Movies that feel likeBefore Sunset (2004)

Nine years later, Jesse travels across Europe giving readings from a book he wrote about the night he spent in Vienna with Celine. After his reading in Paris, Celine finds him, and they spend part of the day together before Jesse has to again leave for a flight. They are both in relationships now, and Jesse has a son, but as their strong feelings for each other start to return, both confess a longing for more.

If you loved Before Sunset, the closest films we have are Veer-Zaara (2004), Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008) and Two Lovers (2008). All three share Before Sunset's contemplative and romantic feel, which is what we rank on before quality.

Seen the big three already? The under-the-radar pick below is Dil Chahta Hai (2001).

πŸ… 95% Rotten Tomatoesβ˜… 8.1 IMDb β†—TMDB β†—dir. Richard Linklatercontemplativeromantictender
7 of 12 streaming nowNetflix Β· HBO Max

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See it on the Mood Map

If Before Sunset hit the spot, these will too

Looking for the series itself? Also in this series: Before Sunrise (1995) Β· Before Midnight (2013)

Veer-Zaara poster
Veer-Zaara
2004 Β· dir. Yash Chopra
πŸ… 94%β˜… 7.8drama Β· romanceNetflix

Contemplative and romantic in the same breath

Squadron Leader Veer Pratap Singh, a pilot in the Indian Air Force, rescues the stranded Zaara, a woman from Pakistan, following a bus accident, and their lives are forever bound.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona poster
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
2008 Β· dir. Woody Allen
πŸ… 80%β˜… 7.1drama Β· romance

Common ground in both: author and romantic

Two girlfriends on a summer holiday in Spain become enamored with the same painter, unaware that his ex-wife, with whom he has a tempestuous relationship, is about to re-enter the picture.

Two Lovers poster
Two Lovers
2008 Β· dir. James Gray
πŸ… 81%β˜… 7drama Β· romance

Tender drama in both cases

A depressed man moves back in with his parents following a recent heartbreak and finds himself with two women.

The Dreamers poster
The Dreamers
2003 Β· dir. Bernardo Bertolucci
πŸ… 59%β˜… 7.1drama Β· romance

Both lean on stillness more than on romance

The difference: The critics' underdog of the pair

When Isabelle and Theo invite Matthew to stay with them, what begins as a casual friendship ripens into a sensual voyage of discovery and desire in which nothing is off limits and everything is possible.

Head-On poster
Head-On
2004 Β· dir. Fatih Akin
β˜… 7.9drama Β· romance

Drama built on romance, twice over

With the intention to break free from the strict familial restrictions, a suicidal young woman sets up a marriage of convenience with a forty-year-old addict, an act that will lead to an outburst of envious love.

Dil Chahta Hai poster
Dil Chahta Hai
2001 Β· dir. Farhan Akhtar
πŸ… 100%β˜… 8.1drama Β· romanceNetflix

Tender romance, and it commits to that

Three inseparable childhood friends are just out of college. Nothing comes between them - until they each fall in love, and their wildly different approaches to relationships creates tension.

The Bridges of Madison County poster
The Bridges of Madison County
1995 Β· dir. Clint Eastwood
πŸ… 90%β˜… 7.6drama Β· romance

Drama with a pulse of stillness, in both cases

Photographer Robert Kincaid wanders into the life of housewife Francesca Johnson for four days in the 1960s.

In the Mood for Love poster
In the Mood for Love
2000 Β· dir. Wong Kar-Wai
πŸ… 92%β˜… 8drama Β· romanceMax

Romance built on romance, twice over

In 1960s Hong Kong, two neighbors form an intimate bond after making a discovery about their spouses in this visually stunning tale of unrequited love.

One Day poster
One Day
2011 Β· dir. Lone Scherfig
πŸ… 36%β˜… 7drama Β· romance

Common ground: author

After spending the night together on the eve of their college graduation, Dexter and Emma are shown each year on the same date to see where they are in their lives. They are sometimes together, and sometimes not.

The Wrestler poster
The Wrestler
2008 Β· dir. Darren Aronofsky
πŸ… 99%β˜… 7.9drama Β· romance

A streak of tenderness through both

Aging wrestler Randy "The Ram" Robinson is long past his prime but still ready and rarin' to go on the pro-wrestling circuit. After a particularly brutal beating, however, Randy hangs up his tights, pursues a serious relationship with a long-in-the-tooth stripper, and tries to reconnect with his estranged daughter. But he can't resist the lure of the ring and readies himself for a comeback.

The Notebook poster
The Notebook
2004 Β· dir. Nick Cassavetes
πŸ… 55%β˜… 7.8romance Β· dramaRent or buy

The same preoccupation in both: soulmates

An epic love story centered around an older man who reads aloud to a woman with Alzheimer's. From a faded notebook, the old man's words bring to life the story about a couple who is separated by World War II, and is then passionately reunited, seven years later, after they have taken different paths.

The Reader poster
The Reader
2008 Β· dir. Stephen Daldry
πŸ… 63%β˜… 7.6drama Β· romance

The same drama instincts

The story of Michael Berg, a German lawyer who, as a teenager in the late 1950s, had an affair with an older woman, Hanna, who then disappeared only to resurface years later as one of the defendants in a war crimes trial stemming from her actions as a concentration camp guard late in the war. He alone realizes that Hanna is illiterate and may be concealing that fact at the expense of her freedom.

In the mood for more contemplative?

all contemplative movies β†’

The best-reviewed films that share Before Sunset’s defining feeling.