Original subtitles

This is basically a very nasty tale.

But if I've managed to learn one thing in my 35 years of story writing, it is

this.

Nastiness and horror must be handled with great circumspection, because if

on their own, they will always taste bitter in the end.

But if humour is added to the mixture, then the tension is relieved by

and the bitterness is banished.

In this story, we have an actress who knows a tremendous lot about the

importance of humour.

So I don't think you need worry.

Come along, ma 'am.

For the best. Happy release.

Would you like to come into sister's office?

That's right.

Quietly now, dear.

In midst of life we are in death.

Of whom may we seek for succor but of thee, O Lord, who for our sins art most

justly displeased.

For as much as it hath pleased almighty God of his great mercy to take unto

himself the soul of our dear brother here departed.

Mary.

My dear.

Hello, Arthur.

I'm sorry you'll have to forgive me. Oh, I understand.

It's nice to see you again, Arthur.

It's very nice to see you too, Mary.

I wish you could have been under happier circumstances.

You mean William didn't leave me very much?

It's a joke, Arthur.

Just a little joke. Oh, yes.

Yes, of course.

Won't you sit down?

Yes. Yes, of course.

Well, life goes on.

Yes. Yes, of course.

Poor William.

I've been his lawyer and his friend for almost a quarter of a century.

Great loss.

Both to you and to the university.

The university.

Yes.

Well, all that was in the obituary notices.

I'm sure you must have felt extremely gratified.

The greatest academic brain of his day.

Academic. Yes.

Well, it's all fairly straightforward.

But I'm afraid you're quite right, my dear.

William didn't leave a great deal.

This house and about 3 ,000 pounds.

I see. I'll just have to go on living in the style to which I have been

accustomed.

That's another joke, Arthur.

Oh, yes.

Yes.

There is something else.

A sealed letter.

It's addressed to you, but I'm instructed to open it and to read it

your presence.

I expected something to do with the college.

Some wives compete with other women, Arthur. I had to compete with the

university. Ah.

Well.

Yes.

To be read to my widow.

Mary Luella Pearl by my lawyer, Arthur Baxter, exactly one week after my death.

I hereby instruct my widow, Mary Luella Pearl, to telephone Dr.

John Landy and to make an appointment to see the said doctor.

This is to be executed in Mr. Baxter's presence.

Dr. John Landy, he works at the hospital where William died, doesn't he, I

think. Do you know him?

No, I don't.

He's some kind of neurosurgeon.

Rather distinguished.

Nothing odd.

And Mr. Baxter is further charged with making certain that my widow keeps the

appointment.

Signed, William Pearl.

Good gracious me. Why would William want me to see a neurosurgeon, I wonder?

I've no idea.

This letter was sent to me through the post some two or three days before

William died.

I've suddenly got a kind of nervous feeling.

Sort of chivalry.

P .S. I also urge my widow to continue to observe those precepts which have

guided our life together.

Do not drink alcohol.

Avoid television at all costs.

Do not use make -up. Do not smoke cigarettes. Keep my rosebeds and rockery

weeded in the summer. And incidentally, I suggest that you have the telephone

disconnected now that I have no further use for it.

He really did genuinely care about me, didn't he, Arthur?

Well, like the dead man says, in the presence of Mr. Baxter,

I have to make a phone call.

Show them in.

Mrs. Pearl?

Dr. Landy?

Well, I have discharged my duty.

I've seen to it that you have kept this appointment.

I bid you good day.

You sit.

Thank you.

It was good of you to see me, Dr. Landy, at William's request.

Would you like to tell me why he wanted us to get together?

He told you nothing about me?

No. Well, yes.

He may have mentioned your name once or twice.

His research into criminal psychopathology brought us into contact.

I had developed a new prefrontal lobotomy technique.

In certain cases, to remove the abnormal portion of the brain.

It was not unsuccessful.

I'm glad to hear that.

Did he tell you I'd been to see him about six weeks before he died?

No, he did not.

I admired him enormously.

First -class brain.

Yes, he was clever, all right.

William, I said, you're just the one I want.

Want for what?

Do you believe in life after death?

Dr. Landy, you're making me very nervous. I didn't mean to do that.

Yes, well...

It's just that ever since Mr. Baxter read me William's letter, I've

had this feeling.

Yes?

About William.

Yes?

I've had this feeling.

You'll probably laugh at me, but I have had this feeling that William is

watching me.

Extraordinary.

Thank you.

I expect it's the after effect of grief.

Perhaps.

Perhaps not.

You'll understand more when I tell you about the agreement William and I

reached.

Agreement? Shortly before his death.

About what?

What would you say if I were to tell you that William is alive?

Well,

I'd say that you were in need of one of your prefrontal lobotomies. That's what

I'd say, I think. I'm not joking.

We buried William, Dr. Landy, remember?

Nevertheless, he's alive.

He's in there.

I didn't mean to upset you.

Feeling better now?

Dr. Landy, may I ask you a question? Please.

If William is alive and behind that door, why don't you ask him to come in

It's not quite like that. Oh?

Don't you think you ought to tell me what it is quite like?

Now, does that look like you?

I don't know. It's a... It's a dog. On a plate.

On a plate?

Dog's head is on a plate.

Name is Igor.

It's Russian.

The head has been completely severed from the body. Oh, gosh.

But it is alive.

As you can see, Normal blood supply is being maintained from an artificial

heart. The brain is functioning.

Now, as you can see, food is being offered.

The dog's tongue comes out. Lick it away. Wait a minute.

Wait a minute.

What in God? Not so fast.

What in God? I put it to William.

I said if it is possible for a dog's brain to remain alive, why should the

experiment not be perfected upon a human being?

Oh, my God.

You've got William's head in there. I put it to William.

I said what I need is a guinea pig, a human guinea pig, of course.

But he agreed.

He what? He agreed.

Don't believe you. I don't believe you. William would never have agreed to

anything, so he was much too... Cautious.

And I put it to him exactly how I would proceed.

First, I would have to enlist the aid of an artificial heart.

Second, I would have to step in at the right moment, just before death, and

remove the brain from the skull.

Because the object, you see, was to keep the brain alive.

But William is dead. How can his brain be alive?

It was rather tricky.

We only had three minutes to complete the transfer of blood supply to the

That's all we had, just three minutes.

God, what about the pain when you started... William asked me that

So I agreed to give him a shot of procaine, just in case.

You gave it... You gave a dead body an anesthetic? No, no.

At that moment, the body was not yet dead.

So William insisted.

Well, I won't go into the vast amount of technical problems we had to overcome,

but suffice it to say that the experiment was a complete and

success.

But I don't understand.

What is the point of just having a brain?

Because it continues to function.

It continues to function?

He put it hooked up to an encephalogram.

The slightest response is recorded.

Now, I have transferred it to a basin containing what we know as Ringel's

solution. It's used for irrigation and neurosurgery.

The stubs of the arteries and the veins.

are connected to the heart machine, and all its thinking processes are working

beautifully.

You mean to tell me that this brain, I mean,

William, can talk?

I knew I'd forgotten something. I hadn't told you about the eye.

The eye? Yes.

We kept one of the optic nerves intact, together with the eye.

William wanted an ear as well, but that wouldn't have been practicable.

Now, we know it's him, because the slightest response is recorded

through the deflections on the encephalograph.

Now, he's in there.

Yeah.

And now... I want you to go in and talk to it.

No. No, Doctor. I want to do all we can to keep it happy.

What do you mean, it? You mean him, don't you? Oh, keep him happy. I beg

pardon, of course.

Yes, yes, it would do him good to see you. You could smile at him, blow him a

kiss, that sort of thing. Oh, God. Look, you mustn't be too surprised by what he

looks like.

It's bound to be a little bit of a shock at first.

He's not very attractive in his present state, I'm afraid.

I didn't marry him for his looks, Dr. Landry. Good, good.

Well, then.

All right, this way, then.

Look, he won't be able to see you when you come into the room until you put

face directly above his eye. The eye is always open, but he can't move it, so

the field of vision is narrow.

No, he's what? Come along then.

Where is he?

No need to whisper.

He can't hear a thing.

All right.

Move a little closer.

That's right, this way.

Now, you see?

It's his eye.

Right eye.

Now, the brain, the ring of solution in the basin is contained by this box which

leads to the artificial heart.

His eye is floating, ring of solution again, in this plastic container with

lens attached.

Similar to one that he had in his own spectacles.

So at the moment, he's looking up at the ceiling.

Not much to look at, is there? Oh, don't worry about that. No, no.

We're going to rig up another device.

Widen his vision.

Working out an entire program to keep him amused.

Books to read.

Television.

Not television.

He disapproved... I mean, he disapproves of television. I'm most grateful for

the information.

You don't want to upset him, do you? No.

Now, shall we come quite close?

There is William.

Now, you'll have to put your face right above his eye.

I can... I can see me.

Yes.

And he can see you.

You can smile at him.

Of course, he can't smile.

Hello, William.

It's me, Mary.

We've seen you.

He's recognized you.

Look, look, look, looking well.

He can't hear.

Where'd you say?

But he can, he can see me.

Perfect.

Must be wondering what's happened to him. Not at all. He knows perfectly well

where he is and why he's here.

You mean... He knows he's in... in this... in

this box? But of course.

William is his brain.

There's no difference between this William here and the one you were

Quiet now, isn't he?

Naturally, he's quiet.

Odd, William, quiet.

It's not like him.

Not like him at all.

You'll get used to it.

I don't know.

Funny feeling.

That I...

Still watching me after 22 years.

Exactly.

You know something, Dr.

Landy? What?

I'm beginning... I'm beginning to feel a... an affection for William.

I mean a... an enormous affection for William, like...

Like this.

Now, does that sound strange to you? Not at all. I'm delighted to hear it.

He's like a baby, isn't he?

He's just like a little baby.

We never had any children, Dr. Landy.

William didn't like children.

Did you, dear?

Well, never mind.

Mary's going to look after you from now on.

When can I take him home, Dr.

Landon?

I beg your pardon?

I said, when can I take him home? To my home. To our home.

Oh, he couldn't possibly be moved.

I don't see why not.

This is an experiment, Sister.

One man's experiment is another woman's husband, Dr. Landy. You're joking.

No, I'm not joking.

But this entire equipment.

I have plenty of room in my house for all this. I couldn't possibly permit it.

Dr. Landy, you mustn't come between a husband and wife.

But... You're a widow.

That's not what you said.

William is alive.

There is no difference between this William here and the one you were

to. But... No more buts, Dr. Landy. He bequeathed his brain to me.

Not Dr.

Landy.

He's my husband.

I want him home.

Now, come on, William.

Admit it.

Perfect, isn't it?

The two of us.

Alone.

Here. Together.

Take it easy, William.

You'll do yourself an injury.

I don't know about you, but I feel one way.

I mean, we don't argue anymore.

You don't criticize me all the time.

I don't have to wash an eye on your shirt.

I don't have to cook your meals.

All I have to do is to listen to the throb of your heart.

You know it's a rather soothing sound, actually.

And not loud enough to interfere with the television.

Oh, I'm sorry.

There. You see all right?

I don't know.

Cross with him. It's no good looking cross.

Cheer up.

Here's mud in your eye.

I just have to stay away from heaven having you home.

It's like they say.

Life goes on.