STORY STUDY - MEDIUM: FILM “Before We Go”

Time to take a stroll through Manhattan, and ponder why one small decision always turns out to be the biggest decision of your life.

Directed by Chris Evans, screenplay by Ron Bass & Jen Smolka and Chris Shafer & Paul Vicknair, and story by Bass & Smolka, Before We Go is the story of a trumpet player performing in Grand Central Station, and a woman who has missed her train to Boston.

With her resources gone, having her purse stolen, and her phone broken, the trumpet player tries to find other ways to get her back home before morning.

Throughout the night, they learn more about each other, and try to console each other through their relationship troubles.

To be honest, the film isn’t really the most profound film to explore the topic it’s talking about, which are relationship problems and the hesitancy to resolve and/or confront it. The film has a proper arc for the two characters, so take a guess what happens in the end.

What the film does exceed is the acting and the directing, specifically showing off New York at night. The two are damaged, but aren’t above taking shots at each other, playfully and for real. Anytime one leads into a bizarre bit, like one involving a payphone, the other isn’t repulsed by it, they play along.

The film isn’t just a glossy look at New York, there’s also a brief glance at the seedy side of New York, shown in the beginning involving the retrieval of the woman’s purse at a sweatshop. The city provides one obstacle after another, and the characters have to just get through it.

I was aware of the film by accident on Netflix, having been available for streaming. The plot sounded cute, and it was a nice surprise that it was one of those one-night, walk-and-talk films. I was and still am interested in those.

Before We Go takes us on a wild and calming stroll through a beautiful, flawed city through the eyes of two adequately written characters performed to the best ability of their actors. Very simple, but absolutely engaging.