“Step Back, Doors Closing” - Film Review
For many film lovers, there’s nothing more romantic than Richard Linklater’s Before Trilogy. These films have served as a blueprint for many filmmakers to explore the way relationships are born, grow, and potentially die out when the magic of a chance encounter fades. To some, it’s a thrill to watch two strangers meander around a city, becoming something more than strangers but less than friends. To others, like my mother, it’s a movie where they talk too much and nothing happens. From the inspiration of the Before Trilogy comes Carter Ward’s Step Back, Doors Closing. In Ward’s film, the dreamy cities of Linklater’s Europe have been traded in for Washington, D.C., but the heartfelt story of human connection is alive and well.
It’s a tale as old as time: two strangers meet on a train and decide to spend the night together, aimlessly wandering around a city. In the case of Step Back, Doors Closing, the strangers are Julisa (Carmen Berkeley) and Ryan (Reilly Walters). Both have flown to Washington, but for different reasons. Ryan is returning home, while Julisa is attending a conference. Julisa plans to stay with her friend, but when she drops her phone in a toilet at the airport, her means of finding her friend are gone. Nevertheless, Julisa hops on the Metro, not knowing where she’s going to end up. Ryan also boards the Metro and notices her discomfort, so he offers to DM Julisa’s friend on Instagram. While they wait for a response, Ryan offers to keep Julisa company, and the rest is history.
courtesy of Arden Pictures
Comparisons to the Before Trilogy are immediate, and writer/director Ward cites Linklater as a main inspiration. Step Back, Doors Closing is Ward’s first feature film, and it would have been very easy for him to attempt to recreate Linklater’s magic, rather than crafting something of his own. There are moments that lack the ease of Linklater’s films, mostly when Ryan and Julisa transition from one topic to another or when they move locations, but it’s nothing that fundamentally undercuts the story. Some of the supporting characters Ryan and Julisa cross paths with are stronger than others, with Julisa’s friend (Michelle Macedo) being a standout and others feeling like they exist solely to spur the two leads to have debates about their beliefs. What smoothes over these stumbles is the genuine electric chemistry between them. They’re awkward, yet charming, desperate to cling to the ephemeral magic they’ve found in this chance encounter, while recognizing the absurdity of the situation they’ve found themselves in.
courtesy of Arden Pictures
Part of what makes the Before Trilogy so enduring is the lack of technology. When Céline (Julie Delpy) and Jesse (Ethan Hawke) part ways, they have no real means of tracking each other down. When their whirlwind night ends, if they don’t show up at the train station in six months, there’s little chance of finding one another again. Step Back, Doors Closing has the burden of being set in modern times when we all walk around with supercomputers in our pockets. Julisa’s phone is broken for most of the film, but Ryan still has his. One of Step Back, Doors Closing’s strongest choices is not ending where the first installment of the Before Trilogy ends. We see Julisa and Ryan’s morning after, where reality sets in to a certain extent. The enchantment of the night has faded and they see each other in the stark morning light for the first time. It adds an interesting layer to the genre of two strangers wandering a city that other films lack.
Speaking of cities, it’s nice that Washington, D.C., is finally being given its time to shine. While it’s often the location for political thrillers, it’s hard to think of a film that shows the city in such a romantic light. Instead of stealing the Declaration of Independence, Step Back, Doors Closing is stealing hearts while wandering through the Smithsonian museums.
Follow me on BlueSky, Instagram, Letterboxd, & YouTube. Check out Movies with My Dad, a new podcast recorded on the car ride home from the movies.