Original subtitles

Right, let's begin.

- Release of Stroszek, Bruno. - Correct.

OK, let's compare the lists - one jacket, one pair of trousers, one jumper, one shirt.

- One pair of socks, one pair of shoes. - Correct.

- One Scandalli accordion. - Correct.

- Five packets of cigarettes. - Hang on.

- Correct. - One handkerchief.

- One passport. - Correct.

- One bunch of keys. - Correct.

And one bugle, probably used by track workers.

Probably, yes.

- Right. Name? - What?

- Name! - Have you been dropped on the head?

You've known my name for two and a half years.

Bruno, you know the formalities. It's silly, but what can you do?

- We have to do it. - Stroszek. First name, Bruno.

Five foot six. Eye colour, brown. Oval. No distinguishing features.

Fantastic. Right, Bruno, let's get to the formalities.

- OK. - First of all, your passport.

- Your money. Please check it later. - OK.

- Your bugle. - OK.

- Your accordion. - It's all there, as it should be.

Fantastic.

Bruno will now give a signal.

Because Bruno...

is now entering freedom.

You can have my television set as well now.

Bruno, look. I've made the smallest ship.

I've won. I'm giving it to you.

Ah, the smallest ship in the world.

I'll take that home with me.

Bruno, listen, I've got a farewell surprise for you, too.

But first I'll have to set off a bomb.

I want you to have a surprise from me, too.

Right, Bruno, now watch.

Bruno... farewell.

Take care. See you outside.

- I don't want to leave. - Good luck, Bruno. Good luck.

I won't see you again because I have to go back to Turkey.

Bruno, come closer.

The time has come. Today's the day of your release.

You can imagine that these moments give me great pleasure in my job,

a job that entails a great deal of disappointment and bitterness.

Before you leave our institution...

and return to freedom, I'd like to ask you a few questions.

Where are you going to live?

I live at 5 Flottwell Street.

My neighbour, Mr Scheitz, has kept my flat for me.

One more thing, Bruno.

Do you still like your beer?

Yes.

Bruno, I have to have a very, very serious talk with you about this.

All your offences go back to alcohol. They're alcohol offences.

If the court ever convicts you of another crime...

- Please be quiet, Bruno. - Then he will be swept away.

It started with the homes, and it ends with the prisons.

- He'll be swept away. Away, away, away. - Bruno.

- Bruno, please be... - Into the closed asylum.

Bruno, you're absolutely right.

Bruno, if you don't stop... Please be quiet for a second. If you don't stop drinking...

- How can I be quiet about things like this? -.. and if you commit any more crimes,

they'll say, "Bruno is addicted," and put you in a detention centre.

- Away. - Away, yes.

- Like this. - Bruno, I'd like to give you... Look at me.

I'd like to give you some good advice.

Firstly, if you should ever enter a pub, an inn,

then do as I would do and order coffee and cake.

Secondly, dress properly.

Zip up your fly. Make sure you wear decent clothes.

Look at yourself. We've been working on you constantly.

Practise some personal hygiene. Groom your face a little bit.

- And another thing... - it's going round in circles.

No, it isn't. That's what I'm trying to prevent.

I never want to see you here again. I want you to promise me something.

Promise that you will never touch another drop of alcohol.

Cross my heart and hope to die.

Bruno, please hear me out before you overexert yourself again.

There's one thing I ask of you. Never touch another drop of alcohol.

And also, never set foot in a pub again.

Cross my heart and hope to die.

BEER Heaven

- One beer, please. - Oh, Bruno, you're back.

And here's Eva. Hello, Eva.

Get lost, you tramp.

Come on, come on.

- How dare you harass his blonde bimbo? - I didn't.

George saw it, mate.

- You fucked her, didn't you? - So what?

- What? Did you pay? - No.

- You've bought her. - Bernd said she had nothing to do with him.

I don't give a shit what Bernd said.

Burkhard, don't leave me standing here like this.

Did you hear anything? Did somebody just say something?

Burkhard, look how I'm crying. Does it leave you cold?

- Got any savings? - How could I have any savings?

- From your granny, perhaps? - I had no idea about any of this.

- Who cares? Don't you have rich parents? - No, I don't.

Don't you? But I'm sure your granny still has some savings for her little nephew.

- How am I supposed to get the money? - You can do a burglary, for all I care,

but you will cough up ten grand.

Burkhard, look at me crying.

Don't leave me standing here. I want to stay with you.

- If you cry a lot, you need to piss less. - But I really want to stay with you.

- Hey, you've got to tell us something. - What should I tell you?

Hey, don't do anything stupid. What are you doing?

There's no need to go over the top every time, but this time it costs you ten grand.

And if you ever pull another trick like that, it'll cost you 15.

And if you don't pay, I'll stick a blade up your arse, all the way up to your throat.

Is that clear?

Burkhard, please. Please.

Eva, come on, sit down. Sit down here.

Come on, sit down here.

It's all right.

Everything's going to be all right.

Where have you been, Bruno?

I was on holiday.

Where am I supposed to go now? What am I supposed to do?

I've got a flat.

Mr Scheitz has kept the flat for me.

You can crash at mine.

I'm starting a new life today, anyway.

Exactly.

That's what we'll do.

Ah, this one works. Now let's see what our black friend says.

Right, this is what I've got.

A romance.

Bruno, I've made you a cup of coffee.

A cup of coffee.

- This is the first cup of coffee that I... - Perhaps we should...

- Without sugar or anything. - We should put something under it.

- Oh, yes, you're right. No water stains. - There are so many stains as it is.

Right, now the question is...

All my friends have waited for me. This one is my best friend.

A black one.

What will become of it when Bruno dies?

Where will these things go? Where will these instruments go?

What will become of them?

I'd like someone to give me an answer to this question.

- Well, this grand piano is a little battered. - Yes, it is.

There are stains on it, and we don't know how to remove them.

I'll see if I can pick up a few things from home and earn some money.

Then I'm sure this place will be quite nice, but you have to look after it a bit better.

Yes. Well, I'm here now, aren't I?

- The stains won't... - This isn't working.

- Oh, Mr Scheitz. - I've brought your good little mynah bird.

I've fed it and looked after it.

How nice that it's still alive.

Let's get it inside. It can't stay out here.

Bruno's got his heating on.

I'm getting to go to America in my old age.

My nephew wants me to come over. He's already sent me a plane ticket.

But I don't fly. Aeroplanes are all built the wrong way.

I'm going by boat.

Come here, come. Come here.

My, aren't you good at talking, mynah bird?

Well, taking a boat to New York and Florida...

Isn't there a park there? What's it called? Where the bears run around free.

That's the grizzlies.

- Come here. - Judith.

- Eva. Eva. - That's Eva.

- Eva. - She's your new friend.

A bird comes flying...

Well, I'm amazed.

Ladies and gentlemen, Bruno will play something for you on his glockenspiel,

because Bruno has Eva with him now.

Sabine was a woman who was very pious and virtuous indeed

She was always a loyal and honest servant to her masters

Up to a certain day

Then a young man came from Treuenbriezen

With false hopes

He was keen on making Sabine his own, and he was a shoemaker

A labourer, a proletarian

The trouble starts

He'd spent all his money on schnapps and on beer

Cheers, cheers, cheers

So he came running to Sabine and asked her to give him some more

And he went like this...

She couldn't give him any money

Because there wasn't any

So he stole six silver tablespoons from her masters

He filled his pockets. Before, he'd always kicked her arse

But it didn't take more than 18 long weeks for the theft to be discovered

Sabine was chased out of the house in disgrace

- Come here. Come on. - Yes.

- Come here. Come on. - Come here. Come on.

Come here.

- Little Jacob. - Violin.

Violin.

Eva, what are you doing here?

The plague's breaking out. This place stinks.

That must be the dogs.

There aren't any dogs here.

Then the dogs are yet to come.

I guess I'll have to open the door, then.

Come on, little snail.

You bitch!

I'll plant that midget in the ground for you, over there.

As high or as deep as you want.

- As a Christmas tree. - With lametta and Christmas tree balls.

But please, please rid me of this cretin.

Please, please.

- Where do you think Eva is? - I'm sure she'll come.

I wonder if I should go and ask the neighbour if he's seen anything

or if she's left a note with him.

Or do you think she's in the pub?

This piano is hard. The sound is dull.

Better than no instrument at all.

Who knows where I would have ended up without it?

Come on. Come up here.

You can't even make enough money to get your stuff back from the pawnbroker's.

- You bastards! - Come up here. Come on.

Let's see what you've got.

No!

Come on, you dirty old slut.

You bitch!

Look at this rubbish bin. There you go.

Grab this and then pull.

Heave-ho!

And here we've got the little hat for our little star.

Yes.

The rubbish collection's done.

Eva, get up. Don't be scared. it's Bruno.

Eva, get up. Come on.

Come on.

Eva, I've made you a cup of tea, and there are some biscuits for you too.

Go on, take it.

Eva, please take it. Have a little sip at least.

What was the matter, Eva?

Don't ask, Bruno.

One kilo of grapes, please.

And one kilo of tangerines for Eva.

The artist as the tramp, and the tramp as the artists.

Play!

Now stay here. I've got something for you.

Turn around a little. Turn around.

Right, and now...

Here we go.

Kneel down, you tramp.

Kneel down! Come on.

Kneel down!

Where's the whip? Kneel down, arsehole!

Put your head down there. Stretch out your hands. That's it.

Draw up your knees.

For God's sake, stretch your hands out eastwards.

You are living in the Turkish neighbourhood, aren't you?

- Answer me. - Yes.

- Speak up. - Yes.

Well done.

Keep your nut like this. Keep it straight. Careful.

There's another one.

Another bell.

Are you out of your mind, you idiot?

Oh, the bottle.

The most important thing in life. Right.

I want you to stay like this, do you hear me?

- Yes, I heard you. - Speak up!

- Yes. - Well done.

Bruno, don't be so dejected.

It's going to be all right.

You can come back any time, even at night, if necessary.

Only on Tuesdays on Thursdays, I'm at the prison hospital ward, as usual.

Your girl is roaming around, and she's run away from you again.

And you say you can't defend yourself.

You know you've spent many years in homes.

They've knocked your ability to defend yourself out of you.

You should look for a permanent job.

Singing in courtyards might not be the right thing.

You see, Bruno, we would be much more advanced in this world,

if we knew the answers to all your questions.

I keep on wondering.

There are many things in my job that I find disconcerting

and many things that I find disturbing.

We simply know so little about us human beings.

Come with me to the premature baby ward.

I'd like to show you something.

You see, Bruno, even we doctors have many problems

that we cannot solve, many questions that we cannot answer.

Look at this premature baby...

and this strong... grip reflex.

Perhaps...

this child will become chancellor one day.

- Bruno, we should call the police. - What's the matter?

Hadn't I better go to the police?

No.

We'll go away from here, Bruno.

I'll stay with you. I won't run away again.

OK.

- Where is Wisconsin, anyway? - I don't think it's on this map.

- There it is. North America. - Oh, yes, there it is.

This is where Wisconsin is. It's near Canada.

Mr Scheitz, Bruno is way too old.

Take a look at the top of my head. You can see the scalp shining through.

Oh, Bruno, I'm much older than you, and I'm going.

If you want something, you're never too old.

You're never too old.

We could just go, and if we don't like it, we'll come back.

- Well, we can try. - And look, Chicago, New York, California...

Everyone makes money there. We'll manage too.

What about the crossing and the visa?

We don't even have the money to get there.

I'll raise the money. That's no problem.

- Hello. - Hello. Let me kiss you.

- Hello. - Hello.

- Fucky-fuck? - Yes.

- How much? - How much are you asking?

- Fifty. - No, expensive.

- Fifty. - Twenty-five.

Look at this. Fifty.

- Thirty. - Fifty.

- No, expensive. - Fifty is cheap.

- No, expensive. - Have a look.

- Thirty-five. - Fifty, come on.

- Thirty-five. - Come on, fifty.

- Thirty-five. - Come on.

Right. Bruno, what do you say now? I've made all this money.

- I can't believe it. - That'll be enough. We'll start a new life.

We will indeed. And it's about time Bruno left Berlin, too.

- The place gets on my nerves anyway. - I have good news from my nephew.

He wrote to me that you can work in his garage.

I can?

And you, Eva, can work as a waitress in a restaurant.

It's similar to our motorway service areas.

There are truckers passing through all the time.

- Very good. - Look, this is my nephew.

That's his assistant, an Indian.

As far as accommodation is concerned,

he writes that it's no problem to put up a mobile home, there's enough space there.

Eva? What kind of a country...

would confiscate Bruno's mynah bird?

- This is it. I think we're there. - Yes.

Yes, that's the Indian.

He knows this German sentence, "Was ist los? Der Hund ist los."

He was in the air force in Ramstein. That's where I first saw him.

They call this place Railroad Flats because trains pass through all the time.

An ungated level crossing.

Bruno, Clayton suspects that there have been not four, but five murders in this town.

Some time ago, a man went out into the field on his tractor,

and that was the last anyone's seen of him, there hasn't been a trace of him since.

Even the police haven't found anything.

Now Clayton has bought a metal detector

because he thinks that the man might have been shot

and drowned in the pond together with his tractor.

Clayton goes out every weekend to look for him with his metal detector.

And now that it's so cold outside, he can step onto the ponds

to see if the tractor has indeed been sunk.

Let's see what's here.

Cheers.

Bruno, Clayton says you should stay away from that fence

while the two farmers are ploughing out there.

They've been arguing about this strip of fallow land for ten years.

As soon as one of them turns up, the other one comes too,

and they watch each other to make sure that neither of them ploughs that strip.

One day, there'll be a shoot-out.

I've noticed that the two farmers carry guns.

And they pass each other very closely.

- Mr Scheitz, we even have a bathtub. - Oh, fabulous.

Fantastic, fantastic.

- How lovely. - Very nice.

- Marble. - Like marble.

- It's marvellous. - There isn't any water yet.

Oh, no. I'm no good at that.

It's like a birthday.

- You are good at this. - No.

In Friedenau, the sky is blue

And the goat dances with his wife.

That's enough dancing now. Let's get serious.

- We must establish ourselves here. - How do you do that?

- Now we've made it. - Shall I make something to eat?

Now we've made it.

So, little Eva... do you like it here?

- Do you? - Yes, I like it very much.

Hello, gentlemen.

I have made an important discovery about animal magnetism.

May I take some readings of your car?

Gentlemen, I apologise for keeping you.

I've made an important discovery about animal magnetism.

May I take some readings of you?

As you can see, the needle is swinging.

And now the animal.

The animal's gone cold. The needle is no longer swinging.

I really appreciate your help,

and I wish you all the best, goodbye.

- Goodbye. - Goodbye.

Bye.

May I come in?

- Hello. - Hello, Mr Scheitz.

Hello, Bruno.

I have... Would you hold this, please?

I have managed to make an exciting discovery.

Animal magnetism, as described by Mesmer,

can now be measured by me, which was previously impossible.

Even as a child I knew

that one day I would succeed in measuring this animal magnetism.

What is animal magnetism?

Animal magnetism is now called hypnosis.

Perhaps not quite rightly so.

The fact that it can be measured is also indicated in Schopenhauer's book

On The Fourfold Root Of The Principle Of Sufficient Reason.

Let me demonstrate the measurement on you, Bruno.

- See how the needle is swinging? - It really works.

- Eva, I'd like to try it on you as well. - Yes, please go ahead.

- The reaction is weaker than with Bruno. - Yes.

- Why is that? - Bruno is somehow more highly charged.

I've got it.

This could be a part of the missing tractor. What component is this?

It might be in one of the ponds.

- How will we pay the installment? - Please stop it.

- Yes, I'll stop. I've only just started! - I'm sick of it.

The TV, the house - and then there's the contracts.

Everything's written in English, and there's so much small print.

I can read English, don't worry.

I imagined that things would be different in America.

I thought I'd get rich quick through my work.

Stop it, Bruno. I'm really fed up with this subject.

As I've said before, everyone can make money in America.

It's no problem at all. I'll manage, you'll see.

- You'll manage. I'm sure. - Yes, I will.

Eva, look at that.

He's doing it without a tape measure, without a ruler or anything.

To the millimetre.

Can't you do this somewhere else? I can't see.

- Do you think you're transparent? - Can you see it now?

OK. Everything's fine.

Hello.

Eva, this is the gentleman from the bank.

He says that we have to pay the money because we're behind with the installments.

And if we don't pay, he has to take away the television.

See, Eva, what did I tell you?

There we are. And the other stuff's right there.

- I'll cope with this guy. Don't worry. - Yes, you'll cope with him.

I'll manage, you'll see.

He needs the money.

How did you get this much money, Eva?

- I earned it. - You don't earn that much as a waitress.

- How and where did you earn it? - How do you think I earned it?

You earned it somehow.

Your visit has honoured us very much.

Goodbye. What a friendly visit.

Eva, I have constructed a schematic representation

of how Bruno feels

when they're gently closing all the doors to him.

We're in America now.

I thought that in America everything would get better

and that we would finally reach our goal.

But no.

Bruno is being chopped off, as if he'd never existed.

You wouldn't recognise me any more.

Bruno, nobody kicks you here.

No, not in that way. Not visibly. But they do it mentally.

How? In what way?

In the homes, it was just the same as it is here.

If anyone wet his bed - this was during the time of the Nazis -

in order to spare the washing line that you stretched out and hung your laundry on,

they used to make that person stand in the yard like this with his sheet all day.

And the teacher would be standing behind him with a stick.

And if the guy's arms got tired so that he dropped his sheet,

- he got a thrashing immediately. - Sit down.

Right, now I'll sit down again.

- Did you have to do that too? - Yes, but that was visible.

These days, things are different, of course.

They no longer do it like this or like that,

they do it the gentle way, and that's much worse than it seems.

And there's more.

Who knows what fate has in store for you?

- What? I didn't understand that. - Yes, that's right.

Who knows what fate has in store for you?

The prison doors are open.

We're no longer in Germany. Over here, you have to be careful.

- Bruno, don't be so cross. - Cross?

Cross? Why shouldn't I be cross?

When people are despised... I mean when they're grown-up,

and they long for love and they're banished from the bedroom...

He's not supposed to sleep with you any more.

- Yes, but look... - He has to sleep in a separate room

- like somebody in a cage. - Bruno, listen to me.

- Look, I need to be alone once in a while. - Do you?

And this is what it looks like when a man is writhing with painful longing.

And that's the emotional pain. This is what it looks like.

And if you think that you can make it on your own, here in America...

then please go ahead and try.

Bruno, look, you have to understand.

I need to be alone once in a while. I need a room to myself sometimes.

I've never had a room to myself before. I just need it.

And when you're sleeping in the other bedroom, we're still in the same house.

That doesn't mean we're separated. And we're together all day.

But then I don't know what to do any more.

Then I'm really at the end of my tether.

Yes, Bruno, Bruno, yes. Written off, written off.

Bruno was so stupid, stupid, stupid to have done this in the first place,

to have come to America, where my whole world is collapsing again.

I might as well have stayed where I came from.

No. No. No.

I'm really pessimistic about all this.

I don't need any more good advice.

One learns by experience.

If it's not too late.

Where's Eva?

- What are you doing here, Eva? - Are you crazy? How did you get here?

- Go away. Make yourself scarce. - You want me to go away?

Yes, beat it. I'm going to Vancouver with these two. it's fun there.

- Beat it! - OK, I'm beating it.

No, sit down over here.

This language is a little unfamiliar to me,

but there's something nasty going on.

I guess I could do it. There you go. Just so you'll maybe get some peace.

So now you're shoving off, eh? When's your next visit due?

Bye.

He wanted money.

- Money? - Yes.

She's gone.

The installment contracts... Like this...

He's hanging from the gallows tree, and the devil takes the hindmost.

Well, this is the hindmost. The devil will take him.

Gentlemen, you can't do this to us. Not to us.

This is a conspiracy.

I will contact my friends in the secret service.

And then you'll see. You will burn your fingers.

This conspiracy will be stopped now.

- They're all in cahoots. - Yes, they are.

I know that you're in cahoots with all the others too.

10... 20... I'll start again.

10... 15... 20... 22... 32.

Come on, come on. Let's go.

10, 15... Wait.

So you're involved as well? May I ask who's sent you?

My last three dollars.

Indeed.

- Cheers. - Cheers.