So I recently had the synchronicity of re-watching Before Sunrise and reading Guy Debord’s Theory of the Dérive in the same week.
https://rohandrape.net/ut/rttcc-text/Debord2006e.pdf
One of the basic situationist practices is the dérive [literally: “drifting”], a technique of rapid passage through varied ambiances.
It strikes me that Before Sunrise captures a dérive of:
- Vienna (only a bit interesting here)
- Dérive as conversation
If you look at dérive as conversation then it’s an exploration of:
- a Cross cultural dérive between Europe and US and France and US (meandering through stereotypes and perspectives on life generally)
- A dérive through (cis hetero) relationships
- When seen alongside the entire trilogy of films — and watched three decades later — it is an exploration of youth and young adulthood as well.
I also linger on this idea/instruction from Debord:
One can dérive alone, but all indications are that the most fruitful numerical arrangement consists of several small
groups of two or three people who have reached the same level of awareness, since cross-checking these different groups’ impressions makes it possible to arrive at more objective conclusions.
There seems little counterargument that the two characters – Celine and Jesse – have reached the same level of awareness for their own cultures and places in the world (though arguably not across all areas) and much of the dialogue almost seems to be cross-checking each others impressions. And from the point of view of Jesse at least, his trip of seemingly aimless backpacking around Europe only becomes a dérive – and thus more interesting — when two equals go on a walk cross checking their impressions.
The average duration of a dérive is one day, considered as the time between two periods of sleep.
This also seems to fit. What became a trilogy, all consist of timeboxed moments. The key to each of course being in the title of the film.
In any event, I believe there may be some interesting framing as a sort of cultural psychogeography (or psychogeo-ethnography?) and exploration of this topic as well.
If there happens to be anything out there related to this idea or research, please do let me know!