Original subtitles

Wh-- Why are you looking at me like that?

The illness left your daughter, and now I'm infected.

What haven't I done?

I fasted. I prayed. I stood naked in the cold.

Tell her, Gavriel. Tell her what I did.

You haven't told everything.

There's still poison inside you.

My son is here and my daughter-in-law.

Tell her, Gavriel, what a righteous mother I am.

Huh, Gavriel?

Tell her.

Rosa?

Oh…

I need you to give me your rings.

Oh…

They say, "The voice of a groom and the voice of a bride,

the voice of joy and laughter."

When you married your wife…

was there joy?

Genuine love?

Genuine love?

Why did you marry Rosa?

My father.

My father, may he rest in peace, he told me to.

How did he tell you?

In a dream.

He came to you in a dream?

He came to my mother.

He told her in a dream that Rosa and I should get married.

Would someone living in the hereafter who wants to visit his son

deviate like that?

Why didn't he come to your dream instead?

Why would a loving father, living in Heaven,

want to destine his son to such a fate?

A union without love?

It's here.

What?

It's here with us.

It's here with us.

My precious.

My precious.

My precious.

My precious.

My precious!

My precious!

He used to call me that.

My precious.

My precious.

-My precious. -And Raphael.

Raphael?

Raphael, my love?

Raphael, my love.

My precious…

My precious.

Tell the truth! You're lying!

Lying! Lying! Lying! Lying!

-Raphael! -Lying!

-Raphael, my love. -Lying, lying, lying!

Raphael, my love.

Answer me, Raphael! Answer me!

Answer me, Raphael!

Answer me, Raphael!

Ima!

Ima.

There was no dream.

What do you mean there was no dream?

I lied.

There was… that Ashkenazi woman that possessed you like a demon.

If I hadn't lied, you'd--

You lied in Abba's name, may he rest in peace, so that… so that--

I lied so you wouldn't marry that Ashkenazi witch.

And to punish you for what you did to your father.

There.

That's your punishment.

It's stopped itching.

Because the lie has left you.

Go now.

Go. Go.

I'm your punishment, Gavriel.

You have ruined my life, Ima.

You've ruined the lives of us all.

Take them off.

Everything.

Praised be the Lord.

Praised be the Lord.

If it pleases our King and Savior to have mercy on Mercada, daughter of…

If it pleases our King and Savior to have mercy on Mercada daughter of…

-Hanna. -Hanna. Amen.

-Hanna. -Hanna. Amen.

Cure her of her ailments and illness,

Cure her of her ailments and illness,

just as Moses did for Aaron…

just as Moses did for Aaron…

Amen.

Amen.

Praised be the Lord.

Praised be the Lord.

If it pleases our King and Savior

If it pleases our King and Savior

to have mercy on Mercada, daughter of… Hanna.

to have mercy on Mercada, daughter of Hanna.

Amen.

Amen.

Cure her of her ailments and illness,

Cure her of her ailments and illness,

just as Moses did for Aaron…

just as Moses did for Aaron…

Amen.

Were there others?

The Ashkenazi, I know about. I just wanna know if there were others.

One other.

In Beirut.

A Gentile?

An Arab.

Where did you meet her?

-What difference does it make? -I wanna know. So?

Some club.

And what is her name?

Aisha.

Is she a prostitute, Gavriel?

You were with her when the Arabs attacked us.

That's it? Or were there more?

That's all.

I'm sorry, Rosa.

No, Gavriel, I'm sorry.

I'm sorry that this is your life here.

Living with a woman you don't love.

But I've been blessed by God, because I love you.

That's why I'm setting you free.

You're a good man. You're still young.

You deserve to live with a woman you love.

It doesn't fit her!

-It does fit her! -She's too fat!

-Come on, please! Draw a thin woman! -I don't want to!

-I'm telling Ima! Rat! -I'm telling Abba.

You're a rat!

Rosa…

I will never leave you.

I will never leave.

Did the girls fall asleep easily?

Yes.

Becky too?

They're asleep.

This is good.

-What? -Well, the meatballs and rice.

It's good.

Thanks… Enjoy.

The rice tastes a little, um…

…different.

I don't make it like your mother does.

I add some oil to the chicken.

Ah.

Well, yours is better.

Much better.

Rosa.

Can you forgive me?

I need time for that.

Shh…

Go to sleep, my love.

Shh…

Shh…

Go to sleep, darling.

Shh…

Is she hungry?

No. She ate 30 minutes ago.

Shh…

Give her to me.

Shh. Duh, duh, duh, duh, duh…

Go back to sleep.

Shh, shh, shh, shh…

Sleep, sleep, my little darling

Sleep without fear or pain

Close your beautiful eyes

Sleep, sleep in peace

You will graduate school

And then, my dear daughter

You will have your own children…

Fight the Nazis! Join His Majesty's Army!

Fight the Nazis! Fight our common enemy!

Fight the Nazis! Join His Majesty's Army!

Join the army! Join the army!

We have a common enemy. Fight the Nazis! Fight the Nazis!

Fight the Nazis! Fight the Nazis!

Join His Majesty's Army!

What are you doing here?

I have to talk to you.

-I have nothing to say to you. -You can just listen.

Or you can go back to your house.

JOIN THE ARMY

JOIN THE ARMY

-What's that? -You can't read and you won't believe me.

Maybe you should tell your mother

what this says and what you have to do with it.

What is it, David?

David, answer me. What is it?

The British want Jewish men to help them fight the Nazis.

And how is that your concern?

Tell your mother what you told me.

I…

I thought I would.

What did you think?

I'd fight the Nazis, go to war.

You are not going to any war! You hear me?

-Ima… -You won't do that to me, David.

I buried your sister!

You're not going. Do I make myself clear?

You heard your mother.

You're going to stay here and marry me.

Why?

-Because I've had enough. -That's no reason to get married.

-That's precisely the reason actually. -But why David?

-The other option is Yehoram Ben Shabat. -A million guys--

-They're all losers. Stop. -Have you tried?

-Not all of them. -Thank goodness.

Rachelika… there was one.

He's dead.

Now it doesn't matter anymore.

Every time I think you've forgotten him, you suddenly--

I will never forget him.

Okay.

What will David do? I mean…

He doesn't have a degree or ambition.

Not even a job.

See why I don't wanna live here anymore?

Even you are starting to sound like Abba and Ima.

You interfere with everything I wanna do.

-Ima, I'm 21. -You're all I have, David.

What do I have in my life? I wash and iron clothes all day.

When I brought you money, you didn't want it.

'Cause it was dirty money, money the Armoza family gave you.

They didn't give it to me. I worked for that money.

You know very well that your sister's blood

is on the hands of that family.

Enough with that!

Whenever you run out of things to say, you start talking about Matilda.

And you start crying!

When your mother cries,

you should come and kiss her hands and feet,

and not act like some wild man.

Who raised you, huh?!

Ima, I'm sorry, Ima.

And why do you suddenly want to go to war? What for?

You know what they're doing to Jews?

We have it rough!

You didn't let me join the British to fight the Arabs.

-You were 16 years old, David! -Younger men fought back then.

What happened though?

Some died and never came back to their mothers.

Haven't I given enough?!

Haven't I given enough, David?! You tell me!

Promise me you'll never leave me. There's nothing for you in Europe.

All right.

But if I stay, I'm marrying Luna.

I see what you're doing.

You're making me choose whether to cast my son into a pit of fire

or a pit of serpents.

Is that what you're doing, David?

Rosa.

Rosa, I'm talking to you.

And I am not listening.

Don't you care about who your daughter hangs out with?

My son.

David won't listen to me, but a girl who doesn't obey her parents?

It's a shame.

Where is your honor, Armoza family?

Where?

How much do I owe you?

God will repay me for what I've done,

and you for what you've done.

Gavriel?

Rosa?

-Gavriel-- -Shh…

-She's falling asleep. -What are you doing?

Changing Becky's diaper.

-But why? -Shh!

Where is Rosa?

-Resting. -Resting?

Yes… resting.

I've returned, Gavriel.

I can see that.

I've recovered.

That I can hear.

What are you doing?

Cleaning the kitchen.

Is Rosa ill?

Healthy, thank God.

Resting, I told you.

Stop it, Gavriel, please. Grab a chair and sit down.

Changing Becky's diapers, cleaning… What are you going to do next?

I'm going to hang the laundry outside.

No, Gavriel, you won't hang laundry

so the neighbors can see Gavriel Armoza hanging laundry.

Ima… what do you want?

I'm afraid that if you go on like this, you'll grow tits.

You'll be able to give milk to the baby.

It's not funny, Gavriel.

When you're here, working like a woman, who manages the store?

-Matzliach and Lieto are doing just fine. -Oh!

And Rosa, instead of taking care of her daughters, is resting.

Sending them off to play with Victoria's children

so they can get lice, God forbid.

Because we don't have enough germs in this house, huh?

Since when do you even change diapers?

I used to change Luna's diapers, and Rachelika's too sometimes.

Luna and Rachelika are Armozas. My granddaughters.

Need I remind you what she is?

Ima…

I thought that after everything that happened, you'd change a little.

You'd come back different.

I come back after being very sick, and my son and my daughter-in-law,

instead of welcoming me back and saying, "I'm happy that you're doing well--"

I'm happy that you're doing well, Mercada.

You look not so bad yourself, Rosa.

I heard that you got some rest.

Now you will have strength to clean the kitchen.

I'm going to do the laundry.

Take it easy! So you don't tire yourself!

No, no, leave that. Leave it.

Get out of here. Get out of here. Get out.

Get out now.

Didn't I tell you, never put the oil from the chicken in the rice?

Why not?

Interfering with the cooking too?

I don't know anything about cooking,

but I know what tastes good, and this tastes very good.

You like the way I make rice since your childhood.

But this is better.

Rosa, could you give us a minute? I need to talk to Gavriel alone.

Whatever you have to say, you can say to both of us.

I'll go to her.

Excellent. The work of the righteous is done by others.

You're not righteous, Ima. Neither am I.

Your father and I built this house from the ground up.

We made a family here, we raised you.

Lately, I walk around here and feel like I'm not in my own house.

Maybe this house is getting a little small for us all.

Small? There's a room for me, a room for you, and a room for the girls.

Yes.

I'm not talking about that, Ima.

Maybe we should consider moving out.

-Who are you talking about? -Rosa, me and the girls.

And you'd leave me here alone?

Or you move out.

Where would I go?

We'll find something. We will.

This, what I'm hearing, sounds like a bad dream.

No, no, the bad dream is my life, which you have ruined with your lies!

And you've ruined Rosa's life too.

Jilda may have taken the poison out of you,

but the poison you bring into this house, no one can remove.

So either we will leave…

or you will.

She's asleep.

-What's that? -Open it.

I went today to see Avram.

It's a ticket…

for a ship to Spain.

Do you remember my cousin Stella?

Yes, yes, vaguely.

Yeah, yeah. She left when I was a child.

She went to Spain. She lives in Toledo.

She has a big house there.

What are you talking about, Ima?

Didn't you tell me that this house was too small for all of us?

-Yes, but I didn't mean that… -Suddenly you didn't mean it?

I meant we'd find you a place here, in Jerusalem.

With all the poison I spread everywhere, maybe Jerusalem is too small for us all.

Maybe the whole of Israel.

I don't want to ruin your family, Gavriel.

Ima, listen to me.

The situation in Spain is not good now.

It's dangerous.

If anyone has killed me, it's you, Gavriel.

You can only kill a person once.

You won't forget Grandma Mercada?

Do you promise?

And you will remain a good pupil,

and remember that Grandma Mercada loves you always, always.

Hmm. And you, don't forget to write your mother, okay?

Tell me about the girls growing up.

Oh, that's, uh… That's my car for the station.

Come, Ima, I'll help you.

For nine months, I carried you, and another two years in my arms.

-What are a few suitcases to me? -Isn't it too heavy for you, Mercada?

The heaviest thing I have right now is my heart.

Yeah.

Thank you for telling your mother.

You made it easy for me.

I heard you fighting.

Were you eavesdropping?

The whole neighborhood heard you.

You let her decide for us.

I only did that to calm her.

When I get back, we'll get married, Luna.

I promise.

I'm so afraid that something will happen to you.

You know, I once read a book about a soldier who went off to war.

The only thing that had kept him going was his sweetheart back home.

He had someone to live for.

And how did that end?

One day, she sent him a letter,

saying she'd grown tired of waiting,

and she'd met someone.

He died that day.

I'll wait for you.

-If not-- -No, shut up.

I love you, Luna.

I'll wait for you.

So what, Luna?

You haven't dumped him yet?

Don't. I'm having a good time. Don't let him ruin it, please.

Luna, come here.

I need to talk to Rachelika.

Come here. Rachelika and Becky aren't home.

-Where were you? -Nowhere.

-I asked where you were. -At the kiosk.

Who were you with?

With David.

Your father told you he didn't allow you to be with him.

Aren't you tired of telling me the same thing all the time?

Wait for your father to come home.

What, Ima? What will he do to me?

What he should have done more with his belt when you were little.

Abba never touched me with that belt. He would whip the pillow, and I would cry.

Such a liar.

Ask him when he comes home.

Oh, before I forget, David and I are getting married.

-What did you say? -Let go of me!

-What did you say? -David and I are getting married.

Well, I'll die first.

Just not on the wedding day, because then I won't come to your funeral.

-I hate you so much! -You're hitting your own mother?

Whore!

Putana!

How dare you! Are you hitting me?

-Shut your mouth! -You're disgusting!

The one who gave birth to you! Putana!

Whore!

What's this? What's this?!

What's happening?!

What is this?

It's for you. Open it.

It's a set. The best they had at the shop.

It's from England, for the cold in Europe.

You're right, David.

Young men your age should save Jews in Europe.

Maybe if you're far away, you'll forget about her.

Look, David…

On the one hand, I'm sorry you are leaving us.

On the other hand, the reason you are leaving is important.

On the third hand, we all hear what's going on over there.

It's a terrible war, David.

Although, on the fourth hand, a little bird told me

that the ladies across Europe are absolutely beautiful.

Here, take this. All the money I owe you is in there.

Plus a little bonus.

David… come here.

Give me a hug, son.

Take care of yourself.

-All right? -All right.

Hello there. Is Luna here?

No… But she told me to give you something.

I see. So now you're her messenger boy?

What did she say?

Whoa!

You startled me, David.

-What's that? -It's for you. Open it.

Yick! It's a tooth!

From the mouth of Yehoram Ben Shabat.

He won't be bothering you anymore.

David.

Be careful over there.

You don't have to be a big hero.

You're already a hero for going.

And write every day to me.

-Every day, David. Promise me. -I promise.

-Go say goodbye, Luna. -In front of everyone?

Go to him, Luna. You'll regret it later.

In front of Victoria, Abba and Ima?

Since when do you care?

Just go.

David…