I'm sure I've had the literary equivalent, but I just realized that I've certainly had this experience when watching a movie. The best example would Wim Wenders' "Paris, Texas," which I rented without realizing I'd seen it before. As I watched, I began anticipating the final sequence, which without giving too much away makes wonderful use of two-way mirrors. Same kind of thing--I watched the rest of the film relishing this shot sequence.

I also had this experience watching Wayne Wang and Paul Auster's "Smoke," waiting for the sequence in which Auggie (Harvey Keitel) shows Paul (William Hurt) his photo album, with the beautiful use of dissolves between Auggie's photographs beautifuuly conveying passing time.