Before Sunset
2004 film
Bill Simmons · Chris Ryan · Sean Fennessey · Mallory Rubin
Aired February 4, 2025
‹ All people
High Fidelity
Before Sunset
Before Sunrise
The Gambler
The Purge
Alive
Superbad
Insidious
Film credit
Ethan Hawke
Also referred to as Hawk, Ethan Hawking
Stats
- Episodes featuring their films
- 7
- Movies in this archive
- 7
Rewatchables episodes featuring Ethan Hawke’s films
Displaying all 7 episodes
Mentioned in discussions
Probably Unanswerable Questions
Ethan Hawke casting, Rob’s partners, Marie, Penny, DJ prospects, and name variants
In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 01:56:18Read transcript
- Whether Ethan Hawke would improve the film as Rob is debated, with Cusack’s likability defended.
- Ethan Hawke in the Ian role is considered as a more grounded rivalry between two icons of the era.
- Who Rob should end up with is asked; nobody and the Chicago Reader critic are proposed.
- Why Rob never calls Marie DeSalle again is questioned and defended as mutual recognition that the encounter was temporary.
- A better response to Penny’s story is proposed as a path to a relationship with her. — Joanna Robinson
- Rob’s plausible ceiling as a DJ is questioned.
- The shift between Rob, Robert, Bob, and Bobby becomes a question about identity and nicknames.
Who Won the Movie?
Julie Delpy; shared Hawke–Delpy win proposed
In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:38:32Read transcript
- Whether this film belongs more to Delpy or Hawke is debated through whose perspective frames the other. — Bill Simmons
- Delpy receives an explicit choice because the ending depends on the waltz working. — Sean Fennessey
- The counterargument credits Hawke’s listening reaction equally and concludes that both should share the win.
Podcast choices
- Speaker not identified
- Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy
In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:41:53Read transcript
- Richard Linklater is the first proposed winner, while Ethan Hawke is the initial alternative. — Bill Simmons
- The case for Linklater is that Hawke already had Reality Bites while this film creates the trilogy central to Linklater's identity.
- The Hawke-Linklater collaboration is compared with De Niro-Scorsese and Paul Newman-George Roy Hill partnerships. — Sean Fennessey
- The trilogy's crowd-pleasing, formally inventive scope supports the final Linklater choice. — Sean Fennessey
Podcast choices
Casting What-Ifs
Jennifer Aniston; Gwyneth Paltrow; Sadie Frost; Michael Vartan
In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:12:23Read transcript
- Jennifer Aniston and Paltrow are reported as auditioning for Celine. — Sean Fennessey
- Michael Vartan was the other finalist for Jesse opposite Ethan Hawke.
- Sadie Frost is identified as the other female finalist. — Bill Simmons
- Vartan is judged blander than Hawke and less suited to the role's strong personality. — Sean Fennessey
Recasting Couch
Jon Bernthal; Ethan Hawke; Oscar Isaac disputed; Jake Gyllenhaal qualified; Mark Ruffalo
In the discussion (7)
Approx. transcript time · 00:07:48Read transcript
- Jon Bernthal is the ideal replacement proposed for the lead. — Bill Simmons
- Oscar Isaac, Ethan Hawke and Mark Ruffalo are further possibilities, especially for believable teaching scenes. — Bill Simmons
- Jake Gyllenhaal is another appealing replacement, imagined reacting with greater anguish at the roulette loss. — Bill Simmons
- Jon Bernthal is reaffirmed as the desired Wahlberg replacement. — Bill Simmons
- Oscar Isaac and Ethan Hawke are proposed for a more bookish lead; Isaac is challenged for lacking the unintentional comedy the film needs. — Bill Simmons
- Jake Gyllenhaal could supply comic excess, although his intensity and potential weight loss might go too far. — Bill Simmons
- Bernthal and Ruffalo are reaffirmed as performers who could deliver the classroom speech more convincingly. — Bill Simmons
Who Won the Movie?
Blumhouse; Ethan Hawke
In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:18:17Read transcript
- Blumhouse is selected; another speaker had intended Hawke for his pay and performance but acknowledges Blumhouse’s breakthrough. — Bill Simmons
Podcast choices
- Bill Simmons
- Blumhouse
In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:08:07Read transcript
- The lead is the default selection, with Grace suggested for supporting actress. — Bill Simmons
In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 00:57:21Read transcript
- Hawke’s 2012–14 run is proposed over the earlier Training Day choice, stressing original projects and upcoming Boyhood. — Bill Simmons
- Home-invasion films favor The Strangers instead. — Bill Simmons
- Lena Headey receives a yes because she leads a successful movie while Thrones becomes a phenomenon. — Bill Simmons
- Blumhouse’s peak is placed later with Get Out and the Halloween revival; this period is its ascendance. — Bill Simmons
- Pre-Trump political commentary and bizarre evil boyfriends are raised without a settled affirmative answer; more Henry material is desired. — Chris Ryan
- Anger at listener movie complaints is jokingly proposed as another Apex. — Bill Simmons
In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 01:23:23Read transcript
- Hawke wins: the first response transcribes Talk, immediately followed by I have Hawk as well and a third me too, establishing three final choices through the explicit second response. — Bill Simmons
Podcast choices
Apex Mountain
Uruguayan rugby movies; Andes film setting
In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 01:07:16Read transcript
- Plane crashes receive a top-three assessment rather than a definitive Apex. — Bill Simmons
- Ethan Hawke is rejected for Apex. — Bill Simmons
- Survival films lose to Cast Away; The Revenant is also discussed, and a preference for group-survival stories is retained. — Bill Simmons
- Cannibalism movies are discussed without a settled Apex, comparing Bones and All, an unclear Cannibal Hall title, Sweeney Todd and Lecter; Alive may be unusual as non-horror.
- Uruguayan rugby movies receive an affirmative Apex choice. — Bill Simmons
- The Andes as a film location receive an affirmative Apex choice. — Bill Simmons
- Josh Hamilton is rejected for Apex. — Bill Simmons
- Cigarette movies are rejected here in favor of The Verdict, with Mad Men, Goodfellas and The Godfather Part II supplying other screen-smoking peaks. — Chris Ryan
Probably Unanswerable Questions
Are Michaels and Slater still cops; what Seth and Evan do now; Jules and Becca; Cera and the sensitive male; organ donation
In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 01:19:35Read transcript
- Are Michaels and Slater still cops? They probably moved to private neighborhood security with tasers.
- It is funny to imagine the cop character becoming Barry. — Bill Simmons
- At 32, Evan is probably more successful; Seth might be an assistant GM of the A's or a creative director at a porn site, Evan an accounting consultant; they still hang out and their 15th reunion is next year. — Bill Simmons
- Asked whether Jules and Becca ever talk to the guys again, the guess is two dates; Evan and Becca have a better chance to last. — Bill Simmons
- Cera did not create the new-age sensitive male but platformed it; kids absorb such movies, unlike those raised on Animal House, as with early Ethan Hawke films like Reality Bites.
- Did the McLovin ID help or hurt organ donation? — Bill Simmons
Casting What-Ifs
Ethan Hawke in the lead
In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 00:44:15Read transcript
- The film was originally going to be named The Further; Insidious is judged the better horror title. — Bill Simmons
- Ethan Hawke turned down the lead, then made Sinister a year later, which is judged not as good as Insidious but not far off. — Bill Simmons
- Asked whether the movie is better with Ethan Hawke, one answer is yes because all movies are better with him, and another agrees; it is also called a tough one because everyone loves Hawke. — Bill Simmons
- Patrick Wilson being subtly off, staying at work grading papers while his wife is chased by a demon, is effective on a rewatch. — Bill Simmons
Displaying discussions 1 - 12 of 29 in total
Films in the archive
Alive
1993
Before Sunrise
1995
Before Sunset
2004
Dead Poets Society
1989
Reality Bites
1994
The Purge
2013
Training Day
2001