Great films set over one night

Movies set over one night. 

They have a unique appeal as a result of their constrained story time. It's an immediacy that puts us into the characters' journey in a way that feels tangible and authentic. 

For example, there's Before Sunrise. Richard Linklater is the master of the single night film and his 1995 effort Before Sunrise is one of his best. Jesse (Ethan Hawke) and Celine (Julie Delpy) meet on a train in Europe, decide to spend the evening together, and explore Vienna through the night. Their relationship quickly blossoms as they discuss life, love and the city.

The best films set over one night manage to condense scale, scope and dramatic character arcs into a small amount of story time. As these examples showcase, a good "one nighter" can get close to cinematic perfection.

There are no lost hours to days without conflict or interest, nor to periods of sleep, no need for flashbacks and back-story, and no time for extraneous exposition.

The audience is finely tuned to the characters, joining them for every step of the ride.