Original subtitles

THE COUNTERFEITERS

- What was that book about? - It is a guide of Algeria.

- Too expensive. - How much?

Two francs fifty.

Go buy it, I'll wait for you.

Nothing is more difficult than to observe beings growing.

It is only possible to watch as an outsider.

What do you want to do with it, it's too old...

I don't care... What I like the most is geography.

- And do you want to go there? - Well, Yes…

- Do you live with your parents? - Yes…

Don't you like them?

- Why do you ask me that? - No reason…

Do you like going after high school boys?

Edouard goes to his sister Pauline Molinier to have lunch with family

You see, Oscar, I feel good in London...

much more available than here, and time to write.

Sometimes I miss Paris and that's why I keep my house here...

But you came for the wedding of Laura Azaïs with this...?

Douviers, Félix Douviers...

Laura loved you a lot, or am I wrong?

No, you are not mistaken, I also loved her very much.

I love her so much.

Poor Azaïs, I think our Georges will be the last to get home...

He's old fashioned, no one sends their children to study after school.

Not to mention that Protestants are only a minority,

so what's the point...

And then the cost,

it's difficult to make ends meet.

And you, Olivier, what do you think about Azaïs Pension?

Oh, me. I also go there, even more time than George...

Mum?

In here, speaking of the devil...

Won't you kiss your uncle Edward?

My uncle?

Yes, your uncle, that's what you call your mother's brother, I think...

How odd to think that you know Vincent and Olivier, but not Georges.

I was traveling when Georges was growing up...

No, I don't know, chance...

But I saw him in the cradle, he doesn't remember...

We'll sit at the table in 3 minutes, darling.

I have to work, I'll be in the room next door...

In fact, I especially came to Paris to see the new edition of my first book.

Terminus?

Did you read it?

Yes, of course…

Too bad, I brought you a copy...

Oh well. Can I have it anyway?

If you tell my parents about the book, I'll say you tried to touch me.

"Whether he reads me or not, I hope to see Olivier again soon".

It's a funny title - Terminus - for a first book...

It is, isn't it?

Here!

And Vincent, where is he?

Always studying Medicine...

He lives here but we don't see him anymore.

He spends his spare time looking after the father of a writer, like you...

Robert De Passavant.

I don't like this man's reputation...

Do you like Passavant's books?

Well, I really have to say...

I don't.

And you?

Asthenic but interesting.

Well, I have to leave you, I'm very late...

Well, Olivier,

show your uncle Edouard the poem that you showed me the other day,

I am curious to know his opinion...

I'm going to see what Georges is doing...

Show me this poem, will you?

I gave you my book, show me your poem...

I follow you?

It is very bad.

I know.

That's good.

At the Luxembourg Garden.

Edouard arranged a meeting with Félix Douviers, Laura Azaïs's fiancé.

Douviers!

Hello!

I asked Laura the other day if you minded me marrying her,

she told me that on the contrary you had advised her to do it,

I would like to thank you,

that you don't think it's ridiculous, I do it very sincerely...

Why did Laura have to tell you about me?

Wedding at the Temple Laura Azaïs and Felix Douviers,

celebrated by the bride's own father, Pastor Azaïs.

Duvois!

Grace and peace are given to you by God, our Father,

from whom every family receives its existence, and from Jesus Christ,

our Lord.

The church is welcoming with those who are joyful.

Felix and Laura,

at this decisive hour of your life,

she surrounds you with all her affection.

With you, it expressed its gratitude God.

Lord, we come to thank you.

You gave life to the man and woman here, Felix and Laura.

You have led them to this hour when they unite

before you their existence in freedom and joy.

He looks like that shepherd

whose photograph I have on my desk.

To share your gifts now and to form the couple

by which you pursue the work of your creation.

You are the witness of their union and you now address his word.

You want to be with them today...

I don't care, I'm Catholic.

As you want to be with them every day, forever.

We praise you, Lord.

Everything about him attracts me and remains mysterious to me.

Shall we meet at the Pension? I'll leave Olivier with you...

Good. Are you coming?

I did not think you knew the Azaïs so well...

I lived with them for two years...

It was binding for you, wasn't it?

At that time, it was convenient...

- Laura? - Exactly.

They are still there, I think nobody noticed them...

It's been ten years...

Ten years?

Yes! Listen, I wanted to tell you...

Maybe we won't see each other in a long time...

I'd like to know if I can count on you...

count on you as a friend...

Whatever happens…

Uncle Edward, do you remember my brother?

How are you, Vincent?

Do you know each other?

Not quite…

Go see the pastor, he is in his office,

it will give him great pleasure...

You see these flowers,

they know how to transmit the glory of the Lord better than men.

Laura's choice surprises me,

I doubt that Felix Douviers is the right man for her...

What do you think?

Who knows...

Anyway, I think he's an honest boy.

- Isn't he? - Certainly…

Stop it!

Stop, what are you doing?

Sir, what are you doing! Oh, my God!

They're gonna catch...

I'm going to see Monsieur Lapérouse.

I let the stove go out...

I had to empty it...

You can tell I've changed, don't you?

When I replay a Bach fugue, I have to resort to the notebook...

I'm losing my memory...

Many would be satisfied with it, I'm sure.

And then, when I walk,

it seems to me that I still walk fast enough,

but in the street now, all the people surpass me.

We are walking much faster today...

Is that so?

The students here are all faster than me...

Today, everyone is in a hurry...

You'll get cold...

- Let's light up your fire. - Oh no...

You have to harden up...

I've always struggled with myself...

It's good as long as we have the victory, but if the body succumbs...

I was afraid you would leave without seeing me.

Leave where?

You're still traveling...

I wanted to tell you...

I'm also going to leave soon.

Do you intend to travel?

You understand what I mean.

There is a point I have promised myself not to exceed.

I never understood why religion objects to that.

God rolled over me...

God takes revenge on us...

Why does he want that?

I never told you about my grandson...

- How old is he? - Thirteen years old.

He is very delicate.

His name is Boris.

I didn't even know you had children...

A child, my son... He's dead, he's dead...

And Boris, where does he live?

I don't know, I don't know.

He's in college in Poland...

in Warsaw, I think...

He travels a lot with his mother...

Doctors take care of him...

Say,

is it possible to love a child we've never seen?

Today, it is most valuable thing I have in the world,

and he doesn't know anything about me...

Leave quickly...

don't leave for so long without coming back...

It is only when he doesn't see me that I dare to contemplate him at leisure.

I am sometimes in the street without him knowing.

Where are you going so fast?

Oh, nowhere...

I never look as rushed as when I have nothing to do.

I am embarking tomorrow for London.

I suddenly decided to leave.

It's time.

Ah, if only I could take him!

Some months later. Vincent, Olivier's elder brother,

bets and loses all he has in the company of Robert De Passavant,

whose father he has just treated.

Make your bet, gentlemen...

Make your bet...

Make your bet...

The game is on...

No more...

Ah, Pedro!

24, black, even and pass.

- When are you seeing my father again? - Tomorrow evening…

Stop sulking...

I told you about this young woman, Laura...

The one who's fond of you?

I lost everything I intended to give her to help her...

And now, you're feeling guilty...

You'll see how it all turns out...

- Should I drop you home? - Yes…

I lost everything...

I gambled, I have nothing...

Vincent...

Vincent...

Vincent...

Vincent...

Vincent...

Vincent...

Calm down, my brothers are asleep...

It's my fault, but listen...

I can't do anything for you...

You should go back to your husband...

You should come clean...

Bernard Profitendieu, Olivier's best friend, alone

at home, discovers a secret of his...

Hey, Dhurmer!

He's talking about a woman,

I don't even know if her dress is red or white.

For me, it's simple, when there is no color, I see nothing...

The Republic, in France, is the reign of the foreigner...

What did the Republic ever do to you?

I don't like it...

You shouldn’t read the papers, it's affecting you.

As soon as we talk about Maurras, you turn green...

Tell me, quickly, I'm in a hurry.

You told me you don't sleep in your parents' floor?

Yes, why?

- You told me Georges sleeps there. - Yes.

- Will he keep quiet? - Who?

The little one…

If it is necessary, yes... Why?

Listen, I'm going to leave home.

I don't know where I 'll go yet.

Can I stay with you for a night?

Don't come before eleven o'clock.

Mom comes to say goodbye every night, and then she locks the door...

So?

I have another key.

You will come in gently so as not to wake Georges.

Well, I'm off...

They're looking you...

What I want is to tell the story, not of a character but of a place.

Take, for example, a garden path like this,

narrate what's going on - from dawn till dusk...

- Hello sir. - Hello, Antoine.

Before leaving, Mr. Bernard left a letter on your desk.

What do you mean?

Very well...

Where did you say this letter is?

On your desk.

Sir, following up on a recent information I learned this afternoon,

I must stop thinking of you as my father,

and it gives me immense relief.

Feeling so little love for you,

I have long believed that I was a deranged son,

I prefer to know that I am not your son at all...

I sign with your ridiculous name,

which I would like to be able to return you, and I long to dishonor.

Cecilia, darling, you can stop playing, please...

Are you suffering?

No, no...

Is your mother home yet?

No, not yet...

Here: read...

I can't...

I can't...

You have to read.

You should not have told him... Why?

You see, I didn't tell him anything...

But how did he know, how? You see...

You see...

Why did you forgive me...

I never should have come back... never...

That same evening. Vincent at Passavant's...

Come in!

Ah, it's you, Vincent!

I am writing a manifesto for the journal of your friend Dhurmer...

But of course, I didn't sign it...

Especially as I write my eulogy...

How do you call your brother?

Olivier?

Ah, Olivier, that's it , that's it!

Grab a chair...

He writes poetry, doesn’t he?

It should do me well, it would surprise me if they were bad...

Tell him to come see me, huh?

Good…

Listen, Vincent...

I don't know why, I'm thinking of that poor girl you told me about...

That sum...

it was five thousand francs, wasn't it?

And this sum... I consider that I owe it to you...

You'll give it back to me if you win, otherwise, tough luck!

Go to Pedro's,

the car will drive you, then come back to fetch me

to take me to Lady Griffith's where I ask you to find me...

So, let's count the money, shall we?

The car will take you back to Pedro's...

Two, three, four and five...

Go quickly!

And your father?

Ah, I forgot to tell you... He's dead, he had...

Sapristi, it's late!

Yes, he died about four hours ago.

- And you didn't stay... - To watch him?

No, he's up there with his maid,

she gets along with him better than me...

Come on, go fast and come join me at Lilian's...

And return the car quickly...

As agreed between them,

Bernard finds Olivier in the room he shares with Georges

his little brother.

Will you return back home?

Never.

Why are you leaving?

That, my friend, is a family matter...

And where are you going to live?

I don't know.

With what?

We'll see.

Do you have money?

- Enough to eat tomorrow. - And after?

I'll see, I will find something...

Anything rather than going home...

Well, anyway, to that place...

And the ferry, you thought about that?

Well, I'll get it...

Worst case scenario, I'll take it in October...

I'll be fine, you'll see...

Well, go back to bed, you'll get cold...

- It's you who's going to bed... - Are you crazy? Go on...

Come with me, you will not sleep on the floor...

Yes, well I'll have to get used to it...

Do you think Barrès will be elected?

- Does that worry you? - Well...

No, I don't care...

Say...

My brother has a mistress...

Georges?

Vincent!

- Did he tell you? - No.

I figured it out without knowing it...

Not even my parents know...

What would they say?

I don't know...

My father would tell him to break up or marry her...

Yes, respectful citizens don't understand that

one can be honest in a different way...

How did you know?

I usually don't notice when he comes back, but last night I didn't sleep...

What time was it?

Oh, three maybe...

I placed my ear against the door, and he was talking to a woman...

- she was telling him stuff... - What stuff?

Stuff like " Vincent, my love, don't leave me,

where do you want me to go,

what do you want me to become". Stuff like that, you see...

and then after he came in,

she stayed there, close by, and I heard her crying...

In your place, I would have opened the door...

You do everything that goes through your head...

Do you know who this woman was?

How do you expect me to know?

Are you sure Georges didn't hear us?

No, he's sleeping...

besides, he wouldn't have understood.

You idiot, I heard everything! And now, be quiet, I'm tired...

Shut up...

What are you doing tomorrow?

It's Thursday, there's no school...

Anyway, I go back, and I'll prepare myself...

Tomorrow I'm going to Gare Saint-Lazare at 11:30,

I have to get my Uncle Edoard who's coming back from England.

Your uncle Edouard?

Yes, it's my mom's half-brother,

I hardly know him, but I like him a lot.

He writes...

Novels?

Yes, kind of...

Why didn't you tell me?

You would have read them and if you had not loved them...

What…

Well, that would have hurt me!

At half past eleven...

How do you know?

He told my Mom on a postcard...

He doesn't know that I'm going to meet him...

Will you have lunch with him?

No, I have to be back here by noon...

When will I see you?

Not until I get out of trouble.

I could help you...

No, if you help me, I would feel like I'm cheating.

Well, come on, sleep well.

Passavant and Lady Lilian Griffith, at her place,

are waiting for Vincent.

Baldness will affect you, my friend.

You take life too seriously.

Not near you, I assure you.

Did you tell Vincent to come?

You asked me to...

Did you lend him money?

The five thousand francs he will lose again with Pedro...

Why do you want him to lose?

He's rushing it, he's playing crookedly.

He will win tonight. Do you want to bet?

If you want to...

If he wins, the money is yours,

but if he loses you'll pay me back, okay?

If he doesn't lose nor win?

That never happens.

It's funny how you take interest in him.

It's strange that you do not find him interesting.

You find him interesting because you are in love with him.

That's true, my dear!

But I can't tell you that.

We will drink first for the bet, then we will drink again with the winner.

I think your Vincent is childish.

It was not you who brought him to me!

You have all the qualities of the man of letters:

vain, hypocritical, selfish...

You overwhelm me...

Yes, it's charming, but you'll never make a good novelist.

Why?

Because you don't know how to listen.

I know in advance everything he could tell me.

Do you know his story with this woman

that he put in an 'embarrassing' situation?

The ordeals of the heart, one of the most boring things in the world...

I also like it a lot when he talks about natural history...

It's even worse, natural history...

Don't you find it boring?

I told you that I love him.

And he... Does he love this woman?

He loved her...

Hurry, before he comes...

My father is dead now.

What would you say about becoming Countess of Passavant?

But, my dear, I've already told you...

I think I forgot a husband in England...

No, let's stay the way we are.

Friends, huh?

He lost his bet!

- He lost his bet! - What bet?

How much did you win?

I left the game at fifty thousand...

Bravo! Bravo!

You owe them to Lady Lilian now.

Go out with him and come back in a quarter of an hour.

Are you coming?

I think I'm walking back, I need the fresh air...

Goodbye then...

Open your hand, show me that...

It's Thursday.

Your brother is not in,

tell him to go and see me at four o'clock.

In the morning, Bernard leaves Olivier's room.

You think I don't know what you're thinking...

You're disappointed about leaving Laura...

I understand you pity her, but then what are you doing...

Edouard on the train that brings him back from London to Paris,

where Olivier awaits for him.

I received a letter from Laura the morning of my departure for Paris.

She writes to me that she is pregnant,

and that it's Felix Douviers', her husband,

whom she has left and who knows nothing of her condition,

that the father of the child abandoned her

and that she depends on me.

She is in Paris without any money, in a small hotel...

The novel I am preparing must look nothing

like what I have written so far...

I am not sure that The Counterfeiters is a good title.

I was wrong to announce it.

I was sure you would be here...

I had a few errands...

I'm going to put this in a secure place, I'll get it back later...

November 12th.

I sometimes follow him in the street without him knowing.

Yesterday, I was walking behind him,

he turned back abruptly, I didn't have time to hide.

"Where are you going so fast?" I asked him.

"Oh, nowhere...

"I never seem as rushed as when I have nothing to do" he answered...

To your success...

When is the exam?

In...

in ten days.

Do you feel ready?

I think so.

- Are you still writing verses? - From time to time...

I need advice...

A senior's advice is worthless...

I'm sure your parents are waiting for you to have lunch.

Goodbye.

The father of the child is leaving me.

I am in Paris without any money at the hotel Git Le Coeur,

17 rue Git Le Coeur, I depend on you.

Farewell, I don't know what am I writing anymore.

Come in.

Excuse me, ma'am...

Your friend Edouard arrived in Paris this morning...

I have something urgent to communicate...

I thought you might give me his address...

But I don't know his address...

If he is in Paris, he will come to see me, I hope...

Tell me who you are, I will tell him...

I am...

I am a friend of Olivier Molinier...

Vincent's brother, the one who left you...

Sorry...

I knew you were in need.

I wanted to help you...

Did you hurt yourself?

No... Thank you...

This chair is ridiculous...

If you...

if you allow me to stay, I will prevent you from falling...

You didn't tell me your name.

Bernard.

Yes... but your last name?

I don't have a family.

Good... your parents' name...

I don't have parents.

I am a bastard...

like the child you bear.

But how...

You don't have the right to know...

I know what my friend Olivier knows

and what your friend Edouard knows...

Each of them knows half of your secret

and I am the only one, along with you, who knows it all...

You see how I must be your friend...

Was it Edouard who send you?

No.

Come in.

Excuse me, Laura, I must first say a few words to Monsieur...

If he would follow me to the hallway...

I thought I would find you here.

I was hoping I'd meet you...

First, you will go down and settle Madame Douviers's bill

with the money you found in my bag and which you must have on you.

Come back in ten minutes...

Since you're here, I guess you read my papers?

Let me cry a little, it makes me feel good...

You must know what you're going to do...

But what do you want me to do? Where do you want me to go?

How many days have you been here?

I don't know anymore... I was waiting for you...

Now, I think I will not be able to stay here one more day...

Take me, take me...

I promise you we'll come up with something...

But stop crying,

when I see you cry, I can't think...

Here he is... what's his name?

Bernard...

May I ask you, sir, when can I have my belongings back?

Whenever you please, sir...

I must explain...

Yesterday I became homeless,

without a family and ready to be thrown overboard had I not met you.

I followed you this morning when my friend

Olivier came to pick you up at the station...

He told me about you...

I was looking for a way to approach you...

When you lost your registration slip, I blessed my luck...

If I took your suitcase, it was mainly to get in touch with you...

And now?

And now...

do you need a secretary?

Yes, Yes...

Let's see...

Come see me tomorrow at the same time, here,

if Mrs. Douviers allows it...

Yes? So see you tomorrow...

Ah, and leave my suitcase at the reception as soon as you can...

See you tomorrow.

Olivier at Passavant.

I asked you to come firstly for the pleasure of seeing you again...

What you told me the only time we saw each other, interested me a lot.

Don't you remember?

Yes, yes…

Well, today, I have something specific to tell you...

I think you know a certain someone named Dhurmer...

I just saw him.

Ah, you saw him?

We had to talk about a magazine

of which he is going to be the director...

Ah, the director! It's that what he told you?

He has been telling me that for a long time.

Yes, I asked him to read the manuscripts with me,

that's what he immediately defined as being the editor, and that's...

- It's true, you don't smoke... - No, no, thanks...

Is it ok to call you Olivier...?

Olivier,

let me tell you that I have more confidence

in your taste than in Sidi Dhurmer's.

Would you accept to be literary director?

Under my supervision, naturally...

I'd prefer it if my name wasn't on the cover...

My exam…

The magazine will not be published right away,

but we need to have several issues ready before October,

and it would be necessary to meet this summer, to talk about it...

What are your plans for the holiday?

Would you mind rearranging a bit?

My mother will not like it.

I could talk to your brother...

Vincent? It would be worthless...

Yet, if there were good reasons to tell your mother...

- You don't plan to become a critique. - No.

Verses?

I know what you're doing, your brother betrayed you...

Olivier,

this review must become a rallying platform for youth.

This is its reason for being.

I would like you to help me write a kind of manifesto, eh...

We'll talk about it again.

You have to choose two or three epithets,

old, very used words, you see,

we will load them with a brand new meaning

and we will impose them...

"Vital " for example,

"Unconscious and Vital", Huh?

"Elementary, Robust and Vital "...

Yes...

we can do even better than that...

Outside Paris, a restaurant where Lady Griffith

and Vincent are having dinner with Passavant

We brought back a number of strange animals from the seabed,

where the light doesn't penetrate.

We thought they had no eyes and we found that almost all of them had.

Why "eyes"? If you can't see anything?

In fact, each of these animals

emits and projects its own light around itself... in front of itself.

Each of them illuminates...

illuminates...

It seems that when we brought them back from the bottom, at night,

and that we poured them on the deck of the ship,

the night was all illuminated...

Those who saw it speak of a unique splendor.

I had a pleasant conversation with your brother Olivier...

I really like him...

I offered him a position as editor...

Editor-in-chief of a magazine, at his age, it's extraordinary...

So unusual I'm afraid it will scare my parents...

Precisely, I'd like to take him with me this summer...

I don't have the honor of being known by your parents,

they will not let Olivier go with me if you don't actively intervene.

Your parents must understand that at his age,

he needs to see the country...

You will arrange all this, won't you?

At the Pension Azaïs,

Edouard comes to visit Mr. Laperouse.

I know where he is...

Who?

Boris...

my grandson... I know where he is...

Wait...

I have his address here...

Saas-Fée, do you know it?

It is in Switzerland...

I searched on the map but I couldn't find it.

It is a village in the Matterhorn.

Is it very far from here?

Not so far, I could go, maybe...

Would you do that?

You are good...

Me, I am too old...

Yet it seems to me...

It seems to me that I would go away more easily

if I could see him...

Anything that can be done to bring him, I will do...

You'll see your little Boris, I promise you.

Thanks, thanks…

But you, promise me you'll stop thinking about...

going away...

Ah, that is a different matter...

If we could rediscover the intransigence of youth,

what we would be most indignant about, is what we have become.

High up in the Alps, full summer,

Edouard accompanied by Bernard and Laura.

I didn't have a hard time finding little Boris.

He doesn't leave the girl of the doctor who takes care of him,

little Bronja.

Hello!

Doctor...

I beg you, call me Sophroniska...

I read your book...

Already?

I only did that, you know...

It's very interesting...

They are rare, I believe,

novelists or playwrights who are not content with a ready-made psychology.

Thank you,

but I'm afraid this psychology is the only one that satisfies the readers...

You were watching Boris...

Yes, I watched Boris, I listened to him...

What exactly does he have?

Is it the name of his illness that you want to know?

You will be well off with a beautiful scholarly name...

Tell me just what he is suffering from...

He suffers from a number of small troubles, tics, manias,

which make one say he is a nervous child...

He is very delicate and his mother's presence is worthless to him.

I only agreed to take care of him if she

left him entirely to my care...

What sort of care?

Just let him talk...

Every day, I spend with him an hour or two.

I question him, but very little.

He begins by telling me what he dreamed during the night.

How can you tell he is not making it up?

If he is, any invention of an unhealthy imagination, is revealing.

Revealing for you or for Boris?

For him, of course...

But for me before him...

I think a fresh look cleans the conscience

like a ray of sun purifies dirty water.

I already know many things, and I sense many others...

The Inquisition she was talking to me about seemed,

at this point, intrusive but I could scarcely hold a protest.

Look, she is Boris' real doctor...

It's my daughter...

Would you mind telling us about your future novel?

Not at all, but I cannot tell you.

What will it look like?

Like nothing else...

Why rewrite?

But...

the subject...

I would like to put what I see, what I know,

everything that I learn from the lives of others and mine, without sorting...

You will make your readers die of boredom...

Not at all...

I'm creating a central character who is a novelist,

and the subject of the book, if you will, is precisely the struggle

between what reality offers him and what he claims to do with it.

I see very well what will happen, this novelist, it will be you...

No, I will make sure he is very unpleasant.

But that's it, everyone will recognize you...

And... are you very advanced?

It depends on what you mean by " very"...

Actually, I have not written a single line of the book itself...

but I work a lot.

I can see that you will never write it, this novel...

Well, I'll tell you one thing, I don't care.

If I don't write this book, it means that the story

interests me more than the book itself,

and it will be so much better.

Forgive me, it is by indiscretion that I know the title of your book...

But hey... I know it...

It seems to me that...

it seems to me that this title announces a story...

Come on, tell us the title...

If you want...

but I may change it. It's true, it's deceiving, I think...

Tell them, Bernard...

May I?

The Counterfeiters...

but tell us, these counterfeiters...

who are they?

I don't know...

Are you afraid?

No, I'm never afraid.

You know, I've changed a lot since I left home...

since I met you, actually...

But maybe you don't understand?

What?

You know...

Why do you want me to tell you?

My little Bernard...

you won't tell me you're falling in love with me...

Oh, but I have...

It was nice not to be suspicious of you...

Soon, I will be deformed and swollen, it will cure you...

If it's a sickness, I prefer not to heal.

Here, read that...

When did you receive this letter?

- This morning. - I thought he knew nothing.

- You wrote to him? - Yes. I told him everything.

Is Edouard aware?

What do you plan to do now?

Return to him.

It's with him that I have to live...

You believe that you can love another's child as much as your own,

you really believe it?

I don't know if I believe it, but I hope so.

Me, now, I believe it.

Stay with Edouard.

You will help him.

And let yourself be helped by him.

He is good.

He's the one you love.

I am not jealous of Douviers or Vincent, I am jealous of Edouard.

Why jealous? I like Douviers, I like Edouard, but differently.

If I have to love you, it will be another love...

Doctor…

I think Boris is healed...

Aren't you rushing it?

No...

I'm a bit worried.

Bronja is almost mystical, you know...

She influences Boris a lot...

It may be more childish than anything else...

Souls like Boris' and Bronja's cannot do without chimerical nourish,

they would succumb.

I don't have the right to damage the confidence of these children...

What confidence?

They talk with the angels, look...

I don't believe in the dogmas of the church

but I believe in the effectiveness of faith...

I told you about the pension Azaïs...

Ah, Laura's parents, yes...

I think Boris would be fine there,

with boys his age, near his grandfather...

He's waiting for him, he's just waiting for him.

And you think he'll know how to take care of him?

I especially believe that an academic

atmosphere will be very beneficial for him.

It may be a good idea.

I hope his mother will agree...

Yes, I think she will agree.

Meanwhile, Passavant takes care of Olivier.

You want a glass, darling?

Boy…

I'm listening to you...

A glass for these ladies...

And these gentlemen?

We? Oh, we'll have champagne...

I hate whores.

I've never been to a brothel.

- I hope you haven't either... - No...

I would be very angry with you...

Have you heard about these marine animals

in the deep waters that have their own light?

No...

They can do without natural light.

I call it "perpetual lights", something like a revelation, grace...

It's very beautiful, you should write about it...

Oh no, that's my secret jewel.

There are only Rasta people to display their finery especially when it's fake.

At least he graduated from high shool.

What is this postscript all barred?

Remorse, I guess...

Good night, gentlemen.

Did Laura show you the letter she received from Douviers?

He will adore this child...

Listen, Bernard, I'm afraid having started with the left foot with you...

I feel a lot of affection for you,

but I have the impression,

that you are wrong in accompanying me further on.

I think I understand...

but I would like to ask you to wait...

Look, maybe it's stupid...

Little Boris is going to attend Azaïs pension,

if I'm correct...

And Sophroniska says that she is afraid he will feel a little lost...

So,

with Laura's recommendation,

I could find a job as a handyman or something like that, can't I?

Sophroniska likes me and Boris gets on well with me,

I could help him, I would protect him

and I would work for you in the meantime...

What do you think?

Well, we'll see...

But don't skip your Bach...

I would like to ask you again...

What do you think about Count Passavant?

Oh God! You can imagine...

And you?

Me...

I could kill him.

As promised, back in Paris,

Edouard reunites Monsieur Lapérouse with his grandson Boris.

It was a mistake to leave them alone for too long.

Back to school at Azaïs pension.

As in past years, you can count on the precious help of Mr. Lapérouse...

And I present to you Mr. Profitendieu who will also be at your disposal

to support you in your effort...

After these long months of vacation,

you will have at heart to face the new year of a common outburst

with the youthful ardor you owe to your future.

On October's catch-up,

Bernard obtains his baccalaureate.

Is it good?

Yes, it's ok...

Well, I didn't see you, you're so chic, huh...

Shall we go?

Tonight, the Argonauts will give a banquet,

Passavant wants to attend,

he wants the magazine to be in good terms with his elder audience...

You should come, you should also bring Edouard...

Where is it?

It's at Bouillon Racine...

The first issue is almost ready...

Why didn't you send anything for the magazine?

Because I didn't have anything.

I don't know what, but at least something...

I'll put your name next to mine...

Well, we will wait a bit if necessary...

Listen,

I don't know if I could get along with this Passavant...

But it's me who's in charge, he leaves it all to me!

I don't want to write, regardless.

Anyway, I know that "regardless" of you will always be good...

I don't even know if I will write...

if I will ever write again...

To write a novel,

I have not yet known enough about the lives of others

and I myself have not yet lived...

And the poetry annoys me, except for Rimbaud's.

That's what I say in the manifesto...

So, it's not worth saying it again.

No, no, I don't know if I 'll ever write.

I have the impression that writing prevents one from living,

that one can express oneself better by acts than by words.

Works of art are actions that last...

So, tonight? At what time?

Oh, I think ten o'clock is pretty early.

But will you come?

I will try to convince Edouard.

He doesn't like Passavant much, he will go only to see you again...

Come on, two by two...

Hi, Bernard, I'm Sarah,

Laura told me about you in all her letters from Switzerland.

Ah, you came from England?

Yes, this morning...

Can you help me finish my homework?

Now?

In my room, if you please...

Go, I'll join you...

Are you busy tonight?

Not exactly, why?

You could come with me to a party...

I'm going with Edouard, he 'll be happy to see you...

At what time?

Let's say I'll pick you up at half-past nine, okay?

All right.

Edouard is waiting for us around the corner...

That's it...

Quiet please, my parents don't know I'm going out...

Let us toast, then,

to the beginning of a new star in the firmament of our literacy...

Let us toast to the light of our friend Robert De Passavant...

Finally, let us toast to the very young and talented Olivier Molinier,

infant of the true poets,

who will like to plunge us in the bottom from the abyss...

hell or sky, what does it matter, deep in the unknown to find new...

All right? I'll introduce you to Passavant.

No, not worth it, I'm good...

I have the impression I know you already,

by hearing about you...

And vice versa.

Olivier made me hope that you would come,

I was happy because precisely...

I wanted to ask you,

do you have news of your other nephew, my friend Vincent?

No.

I only know that he was traveling.

Yes, I introduced him to a friend,

I wanted to distract him from his sad adventure with this Madame Douviers...

this...

Laura Douviers... whom you know, according to Olivier...

But what is this delicious child who accompanies you?

It's Miss Sarah Azaïs, the sister of my friend Laura Douviers...

You would be very kind to introduce me...

Give me the bottle, so that I will burst it...

With it's little sharp polyhedron,

the nice lady will effortlessly obtain a perforation of her insides...

Who is this clown?

It's Alfred Jarry, the author of Ubu Roi.

I think he is still drunk...

He should be, I saw him drink two big full glasses of pure absinthe.

Do you want a cigarette?

You have to smoke to avoid being asphyxiated...

Ah! You know each other, I think...

Lucien Bercail, Bernard Profitendieu...

If I ever write, I'll have a pseudonym...

Will you?

A name like that is too cumbersome!

Oh! Little Bercail will poison himself, I put poison in his cup.

Is that Jarry? I took him for a servant...

I assure you, he is charming when you know him...

I prefer not to know him. He looks fierce.

Basically, he is very sweet,

but tonight he drank a lot, nothing but absinthe.

Passavant fears that...

What?

No, nothing...

Why didn't you give something to the magazine?

Because I had nothing ready.

Thank you for coming, it's nice...

This afternoon, I rang your door...

I was at your mother's house...

You drink too much...

You plan to live in this environment, now?

I won't let myself go...

Are you sure?

You think I'm wrong to patronize these people?

Not all, perhaps, but some of them, surely.

Master Passavant flirting... for a change...

And now we are going to study Little Bercail.

Repeat this out loud.

And now we are going to study the little Bercail...

It could end badly, hide under the table...

Look at Molinier, timid as a woman!

Come!

Come on, you seem crazy...

Take me…

Your parents?

They don't know that I'm back in Paris...

The next morning, at Edouard's house.

You talked about suicide...

One day, yes...

Yes, he told me that...

he understood that he could one day commit suicide, but...

but only after reaching such a peak of joy that...

going down is the only way...

Can I see him?

It's better to leave him alone, he's resting...

Come back tomorrow, will you?

It is through him, it is through him that I feel and breathe.

Monsieur Profitendieu follows Bernard who goes to Edouard's to see Olivier.

This morning, he asked me if you didn't come yesterday...

I thought he was unconscious but he must have heard you...

I installed him in my room, so I don't bother him...

I was coming to hear from you...

I was waiting for you…

I'll leave, if I tire you...

Stay...

Will you come back tomorrow?

It's stupid... what I did...

I'll explain...

I'll explain...

How beautiful he is...

I don't want to wake him... You'll kiss him on my behalf...

I'm already reassured to know he's at your place...

He would heal better with you than with me

I feel that you love him as much as I do...

You're wrong to be embarrassed...

I really believe that you can do him good, it's up to you...

You make me better than what I am...

It's Olivier who will make you better.

Edouard...

Promise me...

Promise me...

never ask me why I wanted to kill myself...

I myself don't know anymore...

I think...

if I wanted to say, although I couldn't...

Edouard goes to Passavant to take Olivier's belongings.

And his mother is your half-sister or something?

Olivier told me that in time.

Indeed.

So it's natural that he will live with you...

At home, his presence was more...

scabrous,

you understand...

This is one of the reasons that made me wish he left...

- Yes... it was in his interest... - And Vincent? Do you have any news?

He didn't write to me, but I got a letter from Lady Griffith...

After all, you can read it...

Here...

Thank you, I don't need to read it.

How is he?

Lady Griffith doesn't talk about him...

Ah yes, I wanted to tell you,

you know that I had thought of Olivier for the direction of a review?

Naturally, there is no question...

Naturally.

Olivier's belongings are in the room he occupied...

- Are you taking a taxi? - Yes, he's waiting.

- Good... By the way, how is he doing? - Very well.

At the Jardin Du Luxembourg,

Edouard exchanged a few words with Félix Douviers, Laura's husband.

It's a shame, loving and giving up...

Without this abandonment, Laura would not have come back to you...

In any case, I will love this child as mine, I promised myself.

Finally, the simple happiness is more meritorious than the torment,

the simple happiness is very difficult to reach...

Maybe you envy me?

Why not…

Inconsequence of the characters.

The characters who act from one end to the other of the drama,

exactly as planned...

We propose, to our admiration, this constant,

to which I recognize, on the contrary, that they are artificial...

Mr. Profitendieu approaches Edouard in the street.

You see, you see, sir...

a child can make us very miserable...

If Bernard sees you, his heart would melt...

I'm sure...

Use me if you think I can help you...

He has a good heart...

Yes, I know...

You can do a lot...

I know he was with you this summer...

I know he passed his baccalaureate...

You know a lot of things...

The police has done well...

If he suspected that since he is gone

I have not stopped thinking about him,

I have not stopped following him...

don't go and tell him that,

he is naturally so proud, so suspicious...

But still,

what you can tell him is that you saw me...

You can tell him that I don't blame him...

that I love him as a son...

You can also tell him that

his mother left me...

Yes, this summer, for good...

and if he wanted to come back...

Yes, I'll talk to him...

I don't deny that it still hurts to explain why

Bernard deserted his home to join you...

that which kept me at first to seek you...

We got connected because he's friends with my nephew, Olivier Molinier...

Ah yes...

I must confess that his conduct has attached me to him,

despite the pain he caused me...

I see

evidence of courage, value...

I'll talk to him, I promise you...

It's going to get cold!

At the Pension Azaïs,

Edouard and Monsieur Lapérouse.

I sleep very badly.

When I finally reach the point of falling asleep...

I don't lose the feeling of sleepiness

That's not really sleeping, is it?

And then there is something that bothers me...

don't say it, it would be pointless...

Imagine that against my bed, in the wall,

there is something that makes noise at the height of my head…

Let's go to your room, if you want, show me...

Yes, yes, let's go, you may be able to tell me what it is...

How is Boris?

Oh, you know, he doesn't talk to me much...

I think he gets on well with your friend Bernard...

Boris is very withdrawn, you know...

I'm afraid this boy's heart is dry...

No, come on... He loves you...

Then he could show it a little more...

Here, in the morning, when he goes to school with the others,

I lean on the window to watch them go.

He knows it...

he doesn't turn around...

Because he doesn't want to show it to his classmates...

Yes, yes...

Obviously,

I was not entitled to hope that this little one is happy to see me.

His mother never spoke to him about me.

Give him time to know you...

Here, listen...

Put your ear against the wall...

Listen!

Do you hear that?

The din of the street covers the noise...

For you, I hear it anyway...

like a nibble...

I tried everything, I moved my bed, I put cotton in my ears...

Oh I should not tell you these things,

I'm just an old man...

I'm keeping it close to me now...

What?

My gun, there...

The other day, I loaded it...

Yes, I loaded it, there you can see, it is still...

I wore it to my forehead,

I kept it long against my temple.

But I didn't shoot.

I couldn't.

I have not had the courage to shoot...

It's shameful to say...

The truth is, though I am not dead, I am not free...

It is as if God didn't want me to go...

You don't understand...

You are not free in order to understand...

I realize now that God has fun,

he makes us do things,

he likes to let us believe that we wanted to do it,

it's his ugly game...

Give me this gun, you don't need it.

Don't worry, I didn't, I know I could never do it...

I need to remind myself that I'm just a toy in the hands of God...

I myself am alive, but I'm dead...

Listen...

here they come...

These kids scare you?

No... but... Why do you think that...

I must go down...

I am looking after them...

Silence! Shame on you

He is curious...

Do we tell him?

Not worth it, he would not understand.

She was naked, my God, completely naked...

You know what it means? A naked woman?

Well, it's...

a bearded woman...

We will constitute a brotherhood...

With whom?

Well, us three...

plus Boris.

Are you crazy or what?

Not at all, he will do what we want...

We must find a name...

The Brotherhood of Strong Men...

Alright...

"A strong man does not hold back when facing life"...

Does that suit you as a motto?

We'll say it's Cicero...

Should we have a tattoo...

in the right arm.

It hurts...

Tattooers are all in the ports.

Yes, it leaves traces...

No, a solemn commitment will do the trick...

By cons, those who bluff, will be rejected definitely, they're traitors.

Who bluff about what?

There will be some sort of test...

Of course, we will make sure that it falls on Boris...

What is the test?

Well, I told you that I saw a pistol in Father Lapérouse's room...

I'm not going...

Are you stupid? it's a joke...

If you don't want to, you just say it, we don't need you...

But say it now, because once you have signed...

Okay, give me the sheet...

You take care of Boris...

Put the signature on it...

I'm fine with it, but it is Ghéridanisol who doesn't want you.

- Who? - Ghéri...

He doesn't trust you, he says you're going to flinch.

What does he know about me?

He says you'll go out on the first test.

We'll see.

Would you dare?

Yes.

You know what's the...?

No...

I want to know...

The motto of the brotherhood is: " The strong man doesn't hold back".

Is it true that you signed?

- Is it… - What is?

No, nothing...

Tell Ghéri that you can count on me.

Did you sign?

If you want to.

Boris.

You have no heart, my poor old man...

Five steps.

If you're nervous, you won't even take one step.

I will not have the jitters.

Well, well, see you tomorrow.

Ten minutes.

"You're sure the gun is not loaded?"

Another five minutes.

Mister, Mister!

Mr. Boris, I ask you to return immediately to your pl...

After the tragedy, Georges returns home.

Mum!

The return of Bernard.

Sir, sir! Mr. Bernard is back...

"Could be continued"...

it is with these words that I would like to finish my Counterfeiters.