This was the very first "Coffee and Cigarettes"-short film by Jim Jarmusch. It features the usual components. Random chit-chat between two people in a café and of course coffee and cigarettes. However, I feel that this was inferior to what came afterward. I don't really remember the second, but I found the third entry with Tom Waits and Iggy Pop more interesting. Nonetheless, it's nice to see Benigni 10 years before "Life is Beautiful", which I'm a huge huge fan of, and Steven Wright earlier in their career and still a couple years away from their Academy Award wins, although Wright's didn't follow much later.
Benigni is the always-talking Italian and Wright is the calm reserved counterpart. "Strange to meet you" is a fitting title as occasionally we even get to watch a piece of uncomfortable silence (the one we always dread so much in our own conversations) solved by completely random questions like "Do you know my mother?". As the first of the series, I'd still recommend it in a reserved fashion. If you already end up liking this one, you may love everything that comes afterward.
Benigni is the always-talking Italian and Wright is the calm reserved counterpart. "Strange to meet you" is a fitting title as occasionally we even get to watch a piece of uncomfortable silence (the one we always dread so much in our own conversations) solved by completely random questions like "Do you know my mother?". As the first of the series, I'd still recommend it in a reserved fashion. If you already end up liking this one, you may love everything that comes afterward.