Original subtitles

Not such a tough man now, are you, Snowy?

Kill him.

You ain't ever coming back.

You don't know me.

Go!

I'm in jail.

Not for much longer, mate.

We're gonna bust you out.

I can take that for you.

Last chance, I said, give me the case.

The bank manager was shot.

Leslie Taylor, you're under arrest.

What the hell for?

Harboring a fugitive for one.

I'm having a baby.

Gus isn't getting off, is he?

Not a chance.

Even if he does, he's stuffed anyway.

Between hard labor and what the Whitings

will have in store for him, he's better off hanging.

- Did you see Les? - Oh yes.

He knows his responsibilities.

But he's putting us on the street.

He wouldn't do that.

He's selling it from under us.

You'll never know her.

And I'll make sure she never knows you.

And you haven't been in to see Gus?

I did everything I could for him.

Managed to save your own skin.

I would've followed you anywhere, Les.

Anywhere.

Don't come looking for me now.

Tank.

Tank!

♪ I've got a little red rooster ♪

♪ Too lazy to crow 'fore day ♪

♪ I've got a little red rooster ♪

1927 was a pretty shitty

year for Squizzy Taylor.

Mind you, 1924 wasn't a whole lot better.

In April '24, he'd lost his second-best mate,

Angus Murray, to the hangman's noose,

and even worse, his very best mate

and right-hand man Albert Tankbuster McDonald

had turned his back on Squizzy for good.

In fact, all things considered,

1924 was turning out to be

an annus horribilis for the Little General.

♪ And the house begins to howl ♪

Hey, fellas.

Here. This is for your mother.

You look like you need a feed. And it's not for gin.

Cripes. ♪ Oh the dog begins to bark ♪

You know what? Here, take the lot.

Cripes! Thanks.

♪ There aint no peace in the barnyard ♪

♪ Since my little red rooster been gone ♪

You... are shit.

♪ Since he been gone ♪

- Go get help! - Is she alive?

Someone get a doctor!

♪ It's a jungle out there ♪

♪ It's a jungle out there ♪

Court today.

I should be a divorced man by dinnertime.

What?

Shit.

Was it you?

Who says it was me?

The tram driver spotted your car making a fast getaway.

Yeah, of course he did.

Every crime in Melbourne

Squizzy Taylor gets the blame for.

How come the Hudson's got a broken headlamp, then?

Are you accusing me of killing that poor girl?

Go on, spit it out, Ida.

- Did you? - Of course, I didn't.

How could I sleep at night,

if I did something like that?

What's sort of man do you think I am?

Ides, I'm that sort of man...

that wants to marry my best girl.

Just a soon as the judge

gives me the "all clear".

Which is hopefully today.

You promise?

"Something old, something new,"

"Something borrowed, something blue"

"And a silver sixpence in you shoe."

But if someone asks,

I was with you that day.

We went to the races, didn't get home till late.

Did we back any winners?

That's my girl.

I declare "Decree nisi",

that the marriage be dissolved by reason that the said

Joseph Theodore Leslie Taylor

did desert his wife

and did commit adultery

on far too many occasions to list here and now.

Amen.

No hard feelings, Lorn?

Pay me the 3 pounds a week

maintenance you owe and we'll see.

Uh, 2.10 pounds a week.

10 pound a month he said, that's 2.10 pounds a week.

How's little Lesley?

Patsy.

I've changed her name to Patsy.

- "Patsy"? - Mm-hm.

Ides, come on. Get a wriggle on.

Isn't it bad luck for the groom

to see the wedding dress before the wedding?

Well, I count my good luck

every time I see your pretty face.

You remember when we first met?

Les.

Apologies, Mr. Taylor.

I am Lady Margaret Stanley's chauffeur.

Her Ladyship desires a word with you.

Sorry, Lady...?

Governor Arthur Stanley's wife.

Former Governor Stanley, that is.

About what?

I couldn't say, sir.

I am but a humble spear carrier.

Well, we were just on our way

to the church to get hitched.

Do me a favor, mate.

She gets awfully bloody cranky when people say no.

Thank you for coming, Leslie.

May I call you "Leslie"?

Well, if I can call you "Margaret".

"Mrs. Stanley" will do nicely.

Would you look at something for me?

Thank you.

It's a scrapbook.

I've got one exactly the same

with all my articles ever written.

Yes, I've been following your... career.

Look at this,

the Kilpatricks jewelry job.

When I think of the planning that went into it,

the imagination...

Yeah, that was good, very good.

But imagine if you tackled a legitimate career

with the same verve and vigor.

Yeah, I'd just be like all the other

bloody mugs in the street.

Excuse my French.

You could be wealthy

and admired for all the right reasons.

Well, I'm sorry, darling,

but I wasn't born with a silver spoon in me gob, alright?

I... I'm sorry, but why are you

wasting your time on me for?

We've lost too many young men.

I don't want you to be one of them.

Right, I get it.

So this is your good deed for the day, is it?

You're bored with the starving kids in India, are ya?

I'm late for me wedding.

Let me drive you.

♪ I'm gonna write what I want you to do to me ♪

♪ In a letter ♪

♪ Aye yeah ♪

♪ I'm gonna write it for good or for bad ♪

♪ Or for worse or for better ♪

♪ Aye yeah, love letter ♪

Mm, I could lie here forever.

Sydney.

What?

The city.

We should move north.

Why?

Oh, to make a new start.

Do you mean do something straight?

Well, the jacks don't know us up there.

The town's ripe for the picking.

Plus, all the gangsters up there are sheilas.

- Never. - Yeah, I read all about it.

It's... it's pussy town up there, soft as butter.

We could be running that joint inside six months.

What do you reckon?

Where you go, I go.

First I gotta get off this bloody

harboring a fugitive charge.

I really wish that bank manager hadn't died.

Oh, it's the jury. That's the key.

Gotta get them to see my point of view.

I mean, what sort of bloke would turn down a mate

when he needs some shelter?

Do you miss Angus?

Before the murder of bank manager

Mr. T.R.V. Berriman was committed...

You can't be serious.

You gave me an iron-clad guarantee

my fee would be paid in advance.

Well, I'm just a little short this week, Eugene.

Oh, how droll. How very droll.

Mr. Gorman!

Mr. Taylor has elected

to dispense with my services, Your Honor.

Good day to you all.

I'll be representing meself, Your Honor...

may that please the court.

Gentlemen of the jury, friends,

I am entirely innocent of these outrageous charges.

This is an ongoing and false

police conspiracy against me.

That's all it is.

Not now, Mr. Taylor.

You know what? Mateship is at the heart of this.

Shut up, sit down and wait your turn!

Squizzy hadn't done serious jail time

since he was a kid.

He was famous for his ability

to wriggle out of custody.

So he didn't waste a single second

imagining this time would be any different.

All rise.

Let's get this over with.

Taylor, on your feet.

How say you?

Is the defendant guilty or not guilty?

Guilty as charged.

No.

- No... - No.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no!

That's absurd. I'm an innocent man!

Your time has run out at last, Squizzy Taylor.

Take him down.

I'm an innocent man, Your Honor!

That's ridiculous! - No! No!

You can't do this!

Oh!

This woman is in labor!

Squizzy Taylor's luck had run dry.

Convicted of harboring the murderer Angus Murray,

he was sentenced to six months hard labor

in Victoria's harshest prison, Pentridge,

another word for "hell".

"My dearest love,"

"I'm happy to say our beautiful baby daughter"

"arrived safely after all the rumpus in the courtroom."

"I call her Gloria"

"and she is truly the loveliest

creature in all of God's earth."

"Be strong, my love."

"Dear Ida, don't fret on my account."

"I am healthy and well"

"and looking forward to being

reunited with you one day soon."

"P.S. Tell everyone I'm doing just fine."

"Tell them all."

Who knows what outrages Squizzy suffered

at the hands of his enemies

in the months that followed?

He was alone

and had no protection,

so it doesn't take too much imagination.

What do you want?

You don't look so pretty, Les.

I'm having the time of me life.

Is this part of the, uh,

the happy future you mapped out for yourself, is it?

But you're lucky.

You're gonna be out in a few months.

Next time it'll be five years.

It doesn't have to be like that, Les.

You could walk away from here

and never come back, if you're smart.

And I've known you since you were a kid.

I know you're smart.

You got kids. You got two beautiful little daughters.

You wanna see them grow up, don't ya?

Hard labor doesn't mean I have to listen to that shit.

Leslie was bottle-fed.

Didn't do him any harm.

Do you want to go and sit with Grandma?

Are you, um, able to burp her?

Well, what are you doing?

Where are you going? - I just need some air.

I lock up at seven!

G'day, mate.

Drive me to the nearest pub.

Your mum reckons I'm to take you

straight home to her joint.

Who's the fucking boss here?

Righto, Les, whatever you say.

Les is dead.

Call me Squizzy.

What are you going to do with yourself?

I don't know.

Go back to the racecourse?

Don't know.

I expected better from you.

Why don't you learn an honest trade like your father's?

Ma, drop it.

Look, you're never too old to learn,

you're never too old to change.

- Ma, drop it! - Alright, fine.

I'll speak with you in the morning,

when you're sensible.

Sorry, kid.

How is she?

I'm not a kid. I'm your wife.

She's fine.

She needs to be baptized, though,

and she needs her father around.

I don't want you going back to prison. Promise me.

Oh, I'm not going back there.

I'm never going back there.

"Dearest Ida,"

"the moment I first saw you, I was yours."

"That night at Henry Stokes's club"

"my heart skipped a beat..."

Ida, you fucking little whore!

So whilst I'm locked away,

you go out and play? - We had a dance and a drink

and George took a liking to me.

"George"?! Jesus Christ.

How long have you been fucking him?

I haven't been fucking him!

Then why did you keep his fucking letters?

Oh, I don't know. 'Cause he told me I was pretty.

That's only for me to say,

you fucking little slut.

How dare you, you despicable man!

How dare you strike a woman!

My God! How did I bring up such a vicious

little bully like you?

♪ God is getting tired ♪

♪ Got plenty on his mind ♪

♪ Keeping up with the mere ♪

♪ Trying to keep things calm ♪

♪ Just trying to keep order ♪

♪ On the flannelette border ♪

♪ Just trying to keep order ♪

♪ On the flannelette border ♪

Hold onto your hats, gents.

Squizzy Taylor's gone straight.

Bullshit.

He's bought a barber shop.

A barber shop?

It's gotta be a front.

Well, let's keep a close eye on him.

A wrong move and...

Eh.

Be very careful, Les.

You just hold still.

Cut my throat, I'll never forgive you.

Oh, you bloody idiot!

Hey, no need to be rude now, Henry.

Mate, that's...

that's on the house.

No, no, no.

Good luck. You're gonna need it.

Lady Stanley.

Sorry, I only do gentlemen.

Even that's a bit beyond me.

I've always wanted to try out one of these.

Oh, well, then I'll give you a ride.

What does a straight razor feel like?

Surely it must hurt.

Why don't you hold very still?

Thanks for popping in.

I...I wanted to say

I'm proud of what you're doing, Les.

That's why I came.

And to give you this.

It's a cigarette lighter.

A small gesture to say keep it up.

I know it's not easy to change.

Thank you...

Margaret.

This is it. You're welcome to stay as long as you like.

Oh thanks, Dolly. You're a brick.

Well, it might get a bit noisy when I got customers,

but bang on the floor with a shoe.

I'll just tell them it's me husband up here

writing his life story.

Hey, thanks, Doll.

You never deserved a shit like me.

No.

Are you really going straight?

I owe it to the girls.

Well, don't do nothing to hurt them.

You'll have to answer to me.

Squizzy Taylor, you sly little shit.

Long Harry.

Relax. You don't need a weapon.

What are you doing back in Melbourne?

- Business. - Business?

Yes.

In fact, I thought that we might do some business together.

I'm out of your business, Harry.

I cut hair now.

It does make a change from diluting liquor, I suppose.

You know what this is, Les?

Cocaine. You can buy it over the counter at any chemist.

Correct, but not for much longer.

You see, the government's gonna outlaw it any day now.

You know what happens when they do?

- The price will go up. - Through the roof.

I have got myself a steady supply in Sydney,

contacts on the wharves.

I am going to distribute down here.

That's where you come in.

No, I'm not in this anymore, Harry. I'm out.

It's good to see you.

It's a sort of stew.

I used the last of the corned beef

and some Brussels sprouts that Dolly gave me

and a dollop of Vegemite for flavor.

Oh, it looks lovely, darl.

Thank you.

Les, if we save hard and watch our pennies...

What?

We could afford a flat...

with a separate kitchen

and an inside lavatory.

Yes, something to look forward to.

I'm really proud of what you're doing.

I mean it.

When was the last time I told you I love you?

Will you do something for me?

For your daughter?

Anything.

Throw away your gun.

Squizzy Taylor's good intentions

to go straight couldn't last.

He was sick of being a mug.

He just wasn't made for the square-head life.

♪ I've got a little red rooster ♪

You've lost a pound or two, sir.

Yeah, I'm down to me fighting weight.

Just so.

Long Harry Slater had made Squizzy

an offer too good to refuse.

No surprise, he grasped it in both hands,

plunged headfirst into the cocaine trade

and embraced his destiny.

♪ I ain't had no peace in the barnyard ♪

♪ Since the rooster, he been gone ♪

♪ He been gone ♪

Mate, Harry's on the warpath.

Oh, pfft! Who gives a fucking shit?

You should, you little prick!

Have you forgotten our agreement? Have ya, Leslie?

Net profit split 60-40 my way.

Which I'm sticking to like shit on a blanket.

Right, so how do you explain the fact

that I'm shipping more and more

gear down here every month

and you're putting less and less in me pocket?

"Overheads", Harry.

The cost of doing business in the big city's gone up.

I told you, "do not stiff me".

You don't get a third warning, Leslie.

Do you remember me?

- Slater. - You do. I'm touched.

Now remember this, Stokes.

That mongrel terrier of yours gyps me again,

I am going to come after the both of you.

This time you're no gonna walk away.

Don't you threaten me, you bloody pissant.

That is not a threat, Stokes.

That's a deadset fucking guarantee.

Keep him in line.

Taylor's been out on his own.

I've had nothing to do with him since he went to jail.

Thanks, Charlie.

So what do you reckon, love, eh?

Home sweet home.

We're gonna be happy here.

- Do you promise? - Promise.

I think we should get a dog.

Or do you reckon a cat?

Maybe a pony.

You just be careful, okay?

There's nothing to worry your pretty head about.

Well, then, what's he doing here?

A moment of your valuable time, Mr. Taylor.

Just go in.

- Mrs. Taylor. - Go in with Mummy, hmm?

Let's go in.

What are you doing here?

You had a chance to do the right thing.

You made a good start of it

with your barber shop and that.

That took guts, Les.

I respected you for that.

What's all this bullshit about?

I'm a businessman.

Bullshit.

You're on thin ice!

"Dear Sir, I feel I must bring to your attention"

"the unsatisfactory conduct"

"of this city's senior police detectives."

"I speak, of course, of Messrs Brophy and Piggott..."

"who falsely accused me

"of involvement in the cocaine trade."

"I can only presume they are creating a smokescreen"

"to cover their own nefarious activities."

"Yours most sincerely,

Leslie 'Squizzy' Taylor, Esquire."

That's straight-out libelous.

Clever. He's just nobbled any future jury.

We're the real villains.

It says so here in the newspaper in black and white.

It's a lie, James.

The little blighter's out of control.

He needs to be stopped.

Permanently.

♪ Me and my big friends ♪

♪ We been travellin' a-far from my born house ♪

♪ Sideways and mentioning bars ♪

Give me your wallet! Fuck off!

Give me your wallet now! ♪ Gonna spend like nothing ♪

♪ Based on anything ♪ - Go!

♪ Whether it be shadow or fall ♪

♪ Now typically, there was a time when ♪

♪ There was a time when I had it all figured out ♪

♪ But it all gone, all alone ♪

♪ Rock and roll got me wanting more ♪

♪ I need a cause of reaction ♪

♪ You got it all but you ain't got nothing ♪

♪ You got it all but you ain't got nothing on ♪

- That was you, wasn't it?! - You don't come down here-

Do you wanna get yourself killed?

Your place is at home with...

What about us, Les?

- Can you please- - What about us?

You go back to jail and what happens to us?

You do as you're bloody told!

Drive her home now.

Don't you dare treat me like Lorna!

Jesus Christ.

The stuff that comes out of that woman's mouth.

I treat her like a fucking queen

and she talks to me like that.

Ahhh!

Hey, Billy, I want 50 to win,

number four in the plate.

Oh, you're gonna send me broke, Squizzy.

Oh, well, you can suck my dick.

Snowy Cutmore.

You thought I was dead, didn't ya?

I oughta be,

except our old mate Tankbuster

turns out to be a decent cove.

Never had the stomach to do your own dirty work.

Hey, hey.

- Get out of my way. - Hey.

You should have done it yourself, mate,

made sure I was good and dead...

because the only reason I've come back to Melbourne

is to return the favor.

Enjoy every breath, mate.

Could be your last.

I don't mind living in a cold-water flat.

I don't mind what happens as long as I'm with you.

When was the last time I told you I love ya?

Don't go.

I have to.

- Stay here with me. - Nah.

I gotta go see a mate.

Please.

Nah.

It's gotta be now.

And everyone has to know it was Squizzy Taylor.

On the morning of October 27, 1927,

Squizzy Taylor made the worst decision

of his short, brutal life.

He decided to go looking for Snowy Cutmore

to kill him before Snowy had a chance to get in first.

But it was more than self-preservation.

He was making a statement to the world:

"I'm back, and I can deal with anyone who gets in my way."

Sometime that afternoon,

Squizzy found Snowy at his mother's house.

As luck would have it, Snowy was ill

with a heavy dose of the flu.

Bless you.

Tankbuster just postponed the inevitable, mate.

Squizz, please.

Give me a chance.

A chance to do what?

Kiss my arse?

We're mates.

We used to be.

I loved you once.

Squizzy was shot four times.

That's beyond debate.

But was it really Snowy Cutmore who fired those shots?

Well, the coroner of the day returned an open verdict.

In the decades since,

several alternative scenarios have been proposed.

Bless you.

Tankbuster just postponed the inevitable, mate.

Squizz.

Give me a chance.

What are you waiting for?

The gun was found in the lane behind the house,

which some say supports the vengeful mother theory.

But there's another, more sinister, scenario:

that someone else was present that day,

a third party who wanted to see

the last of both Squizzy and Snowy,

took advantage of their feud

and brought a hired gun down from Sydney

to help things along.

Bless you.

What are you waiting for?

Which one are you, Stiffy or Mo?

Sorry, ma'am.

But if there was another gunman involved,

who hired him?

There's nothing new in crims ganging up on other crims,

unless it wasn't criminals at all.

In the end, does it matter?

The man died as he lived.

He was a remarkable man.

Talented.

Yeah.

He was.

He was!

I know he wasn't always a good boy. I do know that.

I'm not a fool.

Poor Leslie.

He, um... he had this cigarette case

and he wanted me to give it to you.

For me?

He wrote a card.

"To one who understands

from one misunderstood."

I loved him.

So did I.

And me.

♪ Lonely days are long ♪

♪ Twilight sings a song ♪

♪ All the happiness that used to be ♪

"When you live, live in clover"

"'cause when you're dead, you're dead all over."

♪ Soon I'll find repose ♪

♪ And in dreams ♪

♪ You're always near to me ♪

♪ I'll see you in my dreams ♪

♪ Hold you in my dreams ♪

♪ Someone took you out of my arms ♪

♪ Still I feel the thrill of your charms ♪

♪ Lips that once were mine ♪

You make the most of your chances. Isn't that right?

Absolutely.

♪ Tender eyes that shine ♪

♪ Ooh ♪

Squizzy Taylor was 39 years old when he was shot dead.

Pickpocket, armed robber,

jury rigger, fraudster,

thief, sly grogger,

actor, street poet.

He was clever enough to do anything

and yet he left behind a trail of misery.

In fact, Squizzy was probably responsible

for the violent deaths of as

many as a dozen men and women,

most of them honest citizens.

And yet a hundred years later,

we treat him like a folk hero,

an urban Ned Kelly.

So I suppose in the end,

Squizzy got what he most wanted.

♪ It's a jungle out there ♪

♪ It's a jungle out there ♪

♪ It's a jungle out there ♪