I still remember how much I enjoyed watching Before Sunrise (here‘s my previous post on the movie). It portrays the kind of relationship I’d like to be in, not to mention the beautiful, idealistic encounter. I equally enjoyed Before Sunset: a more realistic take on relationship and life. Nevertheless it’s still a short encounter with the two main characters having a lovely conversations and stroll around Paris.
Another 9 years we learn that Jesse and Celine stayed together. They continue to share great chemistry and enjoy each other’s company, but these alone might not be enough to keep their relationship going. The old saying that it’s easy to fall in love but hard to stay in love rings true. I used to think if two people love each other and are willing to communicate calmly then any problems can be resolved. But things don’t always work that way. Men and women tend to approach things differently. Differences in personality, values, and objectives also make communication more difficult, and people are bias and not necessarily truth seeker. The biggest obstacle to the “if we communicate then everything will be fine” is emotion. Emotion is necessary for a spontaneous and fun relationship, but it also makes the kind of communication needed to resolve issues more difficult. I guess to maintain a relationship, we need to know when to be rational and when to be emotional. Some self-deception or illusion about the relationship and more tolerance would probably help as well.

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