Okay, so I don't typically write movie reviews, because we all know I showed up for the big name here: Chris Evans. And if you didn't, well, now you do.

That being said, I don't think this movie is what I expected. Nor do I like it just for him.

I knew it was a romance. I saw the trailer yesterday, and wanted to see this more than ever before. I expected a typical romance--the guy and girl meet, they go through stuff to help each other, they fall in love forever. And those traits can apply to this movie, but in that same breath, it was so different from typical format. The ending threw me, the events weren't everyday. Everything about it was familiar, yet unexpected.

Nick is pining for this woman he's loved for a long time. Brooke is married and having issues of her own. They meet as Nick is trumpeting in Grand Central and Brooke is running to chase down a train and drops her phone as she passes him, effectively breaking it and missing her train. And so begins a journey through a night in NYC where old loves are confronted, issues arise, a lifetime opportunity is revealed...they find they don't have to have sex or make out every three seconds to see flickers of love beginning to spark.

That's where this is so different. You get to know the characters through their own stories as well as their story together. It's not rushed or forced between them. It's almost infuriating that it seems to be moving so slow at times, but I think that's what makes it more a true-to-life experience. So refreshing. Evans as Nick was almost heartbreaking at some parts, because I swear he seriously looks on the verge of tears himself--the sad eyes he naturally has, I'm sure, help with that. Alice Eve's Brooke was played well. She made her character strong when she needed Brooke to be, weak when Brooke had to be. Both were fantastic together as though maybe Nick and Brooke could be a couple, but maybe it could never work between them.

This is also Chris Evans' directorial debut. And don't let thoughts of his RomCom goofiness, his pompous Johnny Storm or Lucas Lee rolls, or stints as the GREATEST Captain in all of America cloud your judgment about this. He brought a feel to the movie that I hadn't experienced before...or maybe in a really long time. The camera work was brilliant, keeping the focus on Nick and Brooke, quite literally. On long shots, the world around them was not perfectly clear, but they were. Close-ups were them and a very blurred background/foreground. It felt like a very intimate setting where it's just you watching or spying on these two characters. It was really a great way to make it seem more personal. The score works well with the story, the soundtrack as well. The way the music was pieced into the movie reminds me of Bright Lights, Big City...Recent updated music, mixed with the old, mixed with something jazzy. It blended with the story very well.

All in all, I am very surprised that I loved this more than I thought I would. I mean, with the exception of Johnny Storm (because he was so pompous and arrogant...Chris Evans did that one a little too well), I admit to liking the majority of Chris Evans' projects. (Fangirl, what can I say?) But even if I had neutral feelings about him, I would love this movie all the same. The story and the characters alone should win it, and I think here, they did. I recommend at least one watch. I also recommend keeping a box of tissues handy for when you watch, because it did make me cry. You have been warned.

Been sitting at home during the pandemic watching all the Marvel movies I've ignored for years and began to wonder - can Chris Evans actually act? Decided to watch this and was quite pleased. Not only was the acting solid from the entire cast, but it nailed that mature yet quirky sensibility of those late 90s/early 2000s indie films with Campbell Scott, Hope Davis, Parker Posey, etc. If you know NYC beyond Times Square and Central Park, it'll remind you of the warm familiarity and abject desperation of downtown nights in the city. Tears, hope and spontaneity fill every frame as a not-too-on-the-nose shoegaze-y soundtrack guides the characters through Chinatown and the L.E.S. Idk if Evans has directed anything else, but this is a sensibility I'd be glad to see more of.

Before We Go is a 2014 film directed by Chris Evans who also stars with Alice Eve. The screenplay is genius, enough so that we're shocked to learn that five people share the credit. Filmed in real time, Nick and Brooke stumble onto each other as strangers at Grand Central Station at 1:30 in the morning after her purse is stolen and we've already seen that Nick is there with his trumpet wrestling with some heavy life decisions. He decides to help her return to Boston by 7:00am and the two embark on a night time quest in Manhattan at first with cautious self protection then slowly a rarely seen humanity begins to bond the two.
It's wonderful to see Chris Evans spreading his wings as the gifted actor and director that he is. These elements were visible decades ago in work like "London", "Puncture", and "Loss Of A Teardrop Diamond." But Hollywood's penchant for flying spiders, torch heroes and crime fighters dressed as bats has filled his dance card. Evans is one of our best actors, singers and dancers and now-it's clear-directors. It's refreshing to be given a work that is of this calibre with a screenplay worthy of Tracy Letts and direction worthy of Jonathan Demme.
The brilliance with which they bring Nick and Brooke together is beautiful.
Nick: Don't feel badly.
Brooke: I don't feel badly. (Smile) I feel bad.
Nick: (almost laughing.) Did you just do that? Did you correct my grammar?
Brooke: I've been silently doing it all night. Don't make that face!
Nick: Well, glad to know that were at that point in our relationship where you feel comfortable doing it out loud.
Brooke: it's all downhill from here.
Nick: I feel like I missed all the good uphill stuff.
It's not just the dialogue, it's the comfortable, superb acting and the fact that this exchange occurs in the very place Nick has been dreading all night, a technique of scripting meant to relax us and keep us guessing simultaneously; to feel exactly what the characters are feeling.
Maybe that's why it took five writers. (They are: Ron Blass, Jen Smolka, Chris Shafer, Paul Vicknair)
This isn't a "chick flick". It's active and adventuresome but from the human condition. Before We Go is a rare film about well defined characters and how people need each other. This is a beautiful film. "You don't have to believe it for it to make an impact."

Delicious Chris Evans offers us yummy acting and tasty directing in this feature about two people learning about the realities of love and friendship (and money)!

Chris Evans' character Nick is down-to-Earth; witty; whimsical; and caring and it all seemed to unfold naturally for Mr. Evans. Beautiful Alice Eve's performance was wonderful! Her character Brooke was genuine, complex, easy for many to relate to, and lovable. Both Chris Evans and Alice Eve were perfectly matched, for both their characters and one another.

I was shocked when I learned, at the end, that Chris Evans directed the whole thing. Cheers to Chris! I like the focus on the characters' faces; I liked the mood that was maintained throughout the film; and I like the light-hearted approach to two complex characters faced with the complexities of love, emotions, friendship, and money.

The film kept my attention until the end. I am waiting for Chris Evans to direct again. I am waiting for Before We Go 2, hoping that Nick and Brooke find one another and again find true friendship, true love.

I'm an Evans fan, and I keep hoping he'll hit the sweet spot of a defining role outside the MCU (CE's seemingly a nice, hard-working man who I'd wish the kind of success he wants). His Steve Rogers is amazing, but time-limited and not something Evans initially wanted in his life. He gave an outstanding (little seen in the US- per Weinstein/Bong Joon-Ho 'disagreement')) performance in 'Snowpiercer,' but seems to want to hit the sweet spot in a rom-com/drama with a twist.

I can't help but think of 'Playing it Cool' as I watch 'Before We Go'. While Evans lights up both, neither movie has a nice, likable female lead.

In BWG, Alice Eve has striking good looks and a lovely figure, but she's not relatable for most women. The final scene is the best of the movie (mostly from his performance, but also because it's one scene where she contributes to the chemistry), and her story about the letter she wrote and the feelings it represents is well-written and well-played. The scene where she's frightened by approaching strangers is palpable. But for most of the rest of the movie, I don't like her and don't understand why Nick does. The girl who rejected him shows more feeling for Nick than Brooke does. Brooke is nicer than Her from Playing it Cool only in that she apologizes for her abrasiveness at one point. Playing It Cool's HER is funny, but lost me entirely when she said 'I nothing you.' You don't come back from a line like that. end/done/over/bye

This movie also brings 'Before Sunrise' to mind. There's plenty of room for a sequel here, too, as the movie leaves one with lots of questions. Did Brooke and Michael reconcile? Did she realize that writing angrily about how his betrayal made her feel wasn't as grievous as his betrayal? How did Nick's audition go? Did he hit it big? Did he go to lunch w/his pregnant ex? Did he end up marrying her in a misguided rescue attempt? (I hope not!)

Anyway, I enjoyed the movie, and Evans' performance. If you want a thoughtful, soft mood piece about relationships, watch this. I hope Evans has more chances to direct... and that he finds that sweet spot that puts him in the niche he wants in his career path.

Really enjoyed this movie...touching and sometimes funny. Great first time directorial outing for Chris Evans. Would watch again and would recommend.

Just discovered and watched “Before We Go,” and I think it’s underrated. Sweet and simple, but not boring or shmaltzy—I’m already impressed. You want to say it's a fairy tale, but it really isn't: it's believably inspiring in the end; a tale about bittersweetness in real life. I loved the pacing, and the way the backstories of the characters came out naturally through their interactions was, in my albeit amateur opinion, well executed.

In our fast-paced, “instant gratification” culture, the minimalistic presentation is a great way to grab the attention of viewers and force them to slow down and LISTEN to what the movie is TELLING you. It’s not about lights, colors, sounds, thrills, chills, or sex—it’s a movie that has something to SAY. I think the message is the real pearl of the movie, and I personally think it was set effectively. Something more complex would have been distracting.

And what is the message? It's about love: about the beauty that is inherent in any true love, regardless of whether the circumstances are beautiful and regardless of whether it is requited.

And it's about death and resurrection: it's about facing your own "passion and death" knowing that if you do it with courage and love, "new life" is what REALLY DOES come next.

Before We Go, the directorial debut by Chris Evans, leaves me a bit conflicted. While overall the film never manages to impress, Evans shows signs of a director with a good eye and sense of solid storytelling being held back by the material.

The story centers on Nick Vaughan (Evans) and Brooke Dalton (Alice Eve) and their unlikely relationship. Nick, a musician in New York for an audition, is passing time in Grand Central Station when he meets Brooke. While rushing to catch the train back to Boston she drops her cell phone and it shatters at the feet of Nick. He returns what’s left of the phone as we learn she has missed her train and, because her purse was stolen, is now stranded in New York. Nick spends the night trying to get her back to Boston before her husband returns home in the morning. A budding romance builds as they share their personal struggles and fears with each other.

Evans and Eve on screen together certainly make for a ridiculously good looking couple but the relationship never quite feels strong enough to justify buying in to it. It’s a shame too because Evans is charming (if not a little flat) and Eve clearly shows moments of what Brooke could have been. One scene in particular, while telling Nick why she needs to get back home so quickly, brings out real emotion from Eve and I truly felt for her character…but it wasn’t enough throughout the entirety of the film to really make me invest in like I should. To say it was a little uneven would be an understatement but for all the things the film gets wrong, there are moments that are very well done.

Style wise you can definitely tell that this was an independent film with a modest budget. With that said, Evans and cinematographer John Guleserian chose and framed shots beautifully that tended to enhance the storytelling. Certain devices used, like framing shots outside of buildings looking in at characters, while the dialogue was spoken and then mixed with closer shots of the actors worked really well. As the film is shot almost entirely at night it brought with it the opportunity for some really beautiful camera work and the film delivered.

While far from a perfect film, Before We Go isn’t a bad film. Clearly it could be improved but Evans shows he’s got a keen eye and it will be interesting to see where his directing talents take him over the next few years. Give this, his debut behind the camera, a shot.