Preparations to be Together for an Unknown Period of Time 2021

At a conference in New Jersey, acclaimed neurosurgeon Márta finds herself captivated by fellow doctor János. Their brief yet profound encounter convinces her that he is her soulmate, prompting them to arrange a second meeting at the iconic Liberty Bridge in Budapest a month later. Determined to follow her heart, Márta abandons her job in America and returns to her homeland of Hungary, only to be left disheartened when János fails to show up at their designated meeting spot.

Driven by confusion and a sense of longing, Márta goes to Budapest Medical University to confront János. To her dismay, the man she believes to be János denies ever having met her. Torn, she decides to remain in Budapest, where she secures a modest apartment and accepts a position at the same hospital as János. However, her colleagues are quick to criticize her for her unconventional methods and her tendency to propose alternative diagnoses for patients.

Her fixation on János intensifies as she becomes consumed with watching every video of him she can find online and follows him during his off-hours. As doubts creep in about her earlier meeting, Márta starts attending therapy sessions, seeking clarity on her mental state.

During a surgical procedure, Márta is frustrated with a fellow surgeon and insists that János take over the operation. This leads to an official introduction between them, and later that evening, Márta receives an invitation to János’s book release. Excited, she returns home with a copy of his book, and in a moment of intimacy, she finds herself aroused by his words.

A young man, the son of one of Márta’s patients, expresses gratitude by offering to take her to dinner. However, when he attempts to enter her apartment, she declines. Shortly after, Márta finds a message from János requesting to talk. They go shopping together, during which he offers to buy her a loudspeaker for her apartment. This sparks a more intimate encounter when János later visits, but in the morning, he mysteriously disappears.

Márta’s friend and former colleague, Helen, comes to visit her in Budapest, encouraging Márta to reach out to János. During this meeting, Helen accidentally discovers János’s jacket and phone in Márta’s apartment, leading her to return these items to Budapest Medical University. Intrigued by what she finds, Márta secretly follows János home but retreats when she is confronted by a young woman claiming to be his daughter.

As János attempts to reconnect with Márta, he finds himself unable to enter her apartment. He confesses that he indeed remembers their New Jersey encounter, but he didn’t take the meeting in Budapest seriously, fearing it might jeopardize his relationship with his daughters as a single father. In a poignant morning scene, János and Márta witness delivery men hoisting the loudspeaker up to her apartment, signifying their tangled lives and unspoken emotions.