Blind Chance

Medicine student Witek Długosz from Łódź decides to take some time off after the death of his father. He wants to take the train to Warsaw, but has to rush to catch it. In the station, he (almost) collides with a beer-drinking man and from that point on there appear to be three scenarios: one in which he just makes it to the train and two in which he misses the train. It seems insignificant, but it becomes clear that the consequences are dire.

'Blind chance' or 'dumb luck' is the driving force in this film. It doesn't take much, as Kieślowski shows through Witek's fortunes, to change the course of his life completely. It is this film that made Kieślowski's international breakthrough, a film that also inspired other filmmakers. Think of Tom Tyger's Lola rennt and Peter Howitt's Sliding Doors, both from 1998.