Original subtitles

In the beginning there was nothing at all.

Nothing, except God.

How long had God existed? No one is old enough to know that.

God's environment was, by the way not exactly densely populated.

That turned out well, because God looked at nothing and desired nothing.

God was interested in nothing.

Even being God left God cold.

God can best be seen as... a tube.

Yes, a tube.

I'll explain why.

God's only business was ingestion, digestion and excretion.

God's heavenly food only passed through Him

God held nothing within Himself. Just like a tube

LITTLE AMÉLIE GOD'S INTELLIGENCES

TO 'GOD'S INTELLIGENCES' BY AMÉLIE NOTHOMB

Having people's eyes an amazing feature.

They are viewers.

But ears are not listeners.

And nostrils are not nosegays.

But eyes, they are viewers.

What is the difference between eyes those that look and eyes that do not look?

This difference has a name: life.

God had no viewers.

Your child is a greenhouse plant.

Disturbing, isn't it?

But God's parents were optimistic.

They liked the situation fine for now.

They already had two other children, which were as lively as could be.

So they didn't say no against a peaceful greenhouse plant.

And this was God's greatest power: God was unperturbed.

The many pilgrims who visited God, tickling, volcanoes...

...melodious symphonies...

...could not disturb Him.

Many would envy such power.

The power of peace.

Yet all wanted Hearing God's first sound

Seeing his first gesture. Experiencing his first anything

But God remained steadfast His first doing nothing.

And interest slowly died out.

God was almost completely forgotten.

Days, weeks, centuries passed.

JAPAN AUGUST 13, 1969 Stop. Here it is.

What happened that day, remains a mystery

Some say there is no such thing as coincidence. They want to explain everything

Yet a speck of dust can make the difference.

One tiny speck of dust...

...can change everything.

Long will she live in Gloria

Can I blow now? -It's my turn.

What's happening? -I'm scared.

Calm. Earthquakes happen often in Japan.

Under the table, kids.

God finally had a look. And a body.

What could He do with it?

Was this good news?

My baby. Everything okay?

Baby?

Who is 'baby'?

God is not a baby.

God immediately spoke to determine the true circumstances.

He uttered in His heavenly voice...

Exactly, yes.

It's a miracle.

Well done, darling.

No. This is not good at all

Their lips form words. God's lips only make sounds

What do we do now?

I know. I'll call mom. -What? Patrick.

No matter how hard God tried, He could only shout his despair.

This body was His cage.

She throws her toys again. -Through the window.

André, stop it.

If she stops too. -Mom, she's packing my things.

Come on, Juliette.

I'm tired of these girls.

Ohayou gozaimasu.

Arigatou, Kashima-san. Would you like to come in?

Sorry, it's been hard lately.

It's mine.

Stop it, stop shouting.

I can't anymore. This cannot continue.

I can't even rehearse anymore And you...

Like a stranded consul.

Guess who brought this back. -No.

Yes. Our dear landlady.

I was scared to death. She stood by me waiting behind the window.

Did she see the window? What must she think of us?

She offered me the help of a woman

to whose family it used to be her family served.

I'm so ashamed.

Excellent idea. Call her.

Just fine.

Stop it or I'll throw you stuff out the window.

Patrick, will you open the door? -I'm going already.

Ohayou, Ni... Mom?

And or. How glad I am to see you.

Although you apparently this young lady was expecting.

Nishio-san.

Grandma. -My darlings.

How big you are. -My tooth is moving.

A dazzling smile. -Who is that lady?

Mommy, children, this is Nishio-san.

She's coming to help us.

Come in. Douzo. Don't stay outside.

I'll wear that.

Grandma, did you bring chocolate? -Naturally.

And comics? -Of course.

You don't look well.

We weren't expecting you anymore.

I had to prepare anyway on this event.

Look what a nice suit.

But six months...

I am Daniële. Thank you very much for your help.

Stepmother?

Hello darling. You look exhausted too.

There is my little miracle.

Monster.

I'll show you the house. It will have changed since your youth.

Look in the bed.

Wait for me here, children. I do the necessary.

Hello.

I'm your grandma. Glad to finally meet you.

What a grouch. I know exactly what you need.

I always have a little pick-me-up with me.

It is white chocolate from Belgium. Your homeland.

Just taste it.

And the miracle happened.

Mom, come and see. -Dad.

What's happening?

Because of the pleasure of the white chocolate I experienced it: God, that was me.

This is my great friend Amélie.

Thus I was born, when I was two and a half...

...in the Kansai Mountains...

...in the presence of my grandmother, through the miracle of white chocolate.

Do we celebrate this with champagne?

The pleasure, that was me.

From now on I would be everywhere where pleasure could be found.

Pleasure pleased my body finally in operation.

The chocolate had awakened my senses.

In a few days I made up for lost time.

Although I didn't really waste it.

A human of two and a half must be able to walk.

Walking is not that difficult: fall forward,

move one foot forward and start again.

But...

Run...

Running sets you free.

It's what bandits and heroes do.

And it's more tiring.

But with two and a half above all, a person must be able to... talk.

What was that long-necked beast?

And what was the wondrous power which replaced 'something'...

...by 'nothing'?

That was the wonder of a God.

What could be more divine than this destruction?

On that day I met a brother.

Come, Amelie. Leave Nishio-san dust... -Vacuum cleaner.

I want my snack.

Patrick, Amélie just said her first word.

Great. What is it? -Vacuum cleaner.

Vacuum cleaner?

What a heavenly word. Bravo, Amelie.

Try to say something, Amélie. Try 'ma-ma'.

It obviously meant a lot to them.

Mom. -Good for you, Amelie.

That's me, your mom. -My turn now.

“Pa-pa.”

Dad. -Exactly, bravo. Dad.

What a strange reaction.

As if I had to mention them to confirm their existence.

Stop it.

Juliette. -She said my name.

Grandma. -Sweetheart. What a wonder you are.

My brother liked to tease me.

He read comics all afternoon on my back

She won't say your name. -It's a baby.

She only knows a few words.

No, I know many more.

Can you talk? -I've always been able to talk.

She talks like an empress.

What a wonderful child. She chooses her words.

Honey, don't sulk now. Champagne.

Luckily you were there, grandma. You were the only one who saw me for who I was.

We're going to miss you, grandma. You'll be back soon, right?

Yes, but next time you will have grown again.

Take care of your parents they need it.

Where is Amelie? -Yes, where is she?

I want to say goodbye. -I'll look for her.

Sit in the car, we are already late.

Heaven.

What are you doing here, rascal? -Where are you going, grandma?

To the land of white chocolate.

I'm going to miss you so much.

I can't find her. Oh, there you are.

Come on, grandma is still missing her plane.

Just drive.

Mom, is grandma coming back soon?

Not right away. She goes to Belgium. That's very far.

At the end of the world. -The end?

I don't want that.

Why doesn't she stay? It's not fair.

She has to go home anyway. Don't be such a baby.

Ouch.

Fie, André. And Amelie, don't kick.

My device was almost broken. -She can't know that, she's small.

Stop it. -That's enough.

To your room.

They didn't understand.

That damned Belgium had me white chocolate,

but taken from my grandmother.

The only one who didn't see me as a baby.

It was unbearable.

I am a youkai.

Come on.

This is Otoroshi.

A youkaiwho protects the gods.

He's mostly alive in an abandoned shrine.

And when someone behaves badly...

...he makes a thunderous sound.

He can even move from a high place drop to crush that person.

His role is to teach people a lesson.

Again. -There are a lot of youkai.

For next time.

Will you help me?

Arigatou, Ame-chan.

Bloom.

All flourish.

The first spring of my existence.

Nature celebrated my arrival.

The plants bloomed at my command.

Nishio-san. Nishio-san.

What are you doing here? It's early.

I wanted to read the sequel. But the book is still in the kitchen.

We're going to make it.

Hello, Kashima-san. I'm glad to see you.

I wanted to thank you for this work.

Hello, Nishio-san. What are you doing with this child in the garden?

We were at the pond. Amélie was looking for me.

Don't waste your time with her.

You must be the honor of my house maintain.

Do what my tenants do can't handle.

Don't forget that.

You're right. But caring for Amélie also helps them.

How sad that lady looked.

Just go home. I'll be right there.

What did she have?

Such a stiff mouth, such a gloomy look.

I only saw one explanation: she didn't want to love me.

She had to follow Nishio-san's lead.

Loving me was good for her.

Poor Kashima-san.

She must have been suffering to restraint-disease.

Amélie, where are you from?

What is that, daddy?

A carp. The symbol of the boys. May is boys' month.

Why May?

I don't know.

Why Boys' Month? -That's a good question.

And when is Girls' Month? -There isn't one, I don't think so.

Why a carp?

Why do babies always ask why?

I'm done, daddy. -Come on, baby. We're going back.

It wasn't fair. Why not a girls' month?

Not even a day or a flag for us yet.

And why a carp?

I want to see them in real life.

That should be possible.

Nishio-san probably knows a place where that is possible.

I left my sanctuary reluctantly, but it had to be done.

I had to know why carp looked more like my brother than me.

How beautiful.

We're almost there.

So this was the house of the carp.

Come along, Juliette.

Where are the carp? -Hurry up, Dad.

Calm. I don't know, honey.

Look there.

This way, Ame-chan.

Thank you, Nishio-san. We'll follow shortly.

Some of these carp are a hundred years old.

Are you okay, Amelie?

Carp are very ugly.

I don't like them that much either.

That's why it is the symbol of the boys.

The stupidest fish.

Or maybe because they have large whiskers.

That stupid fish was a good symbol for the ugly sex.

Amelie, Nishio-san.

We're going back, it's raining. -We're coming.

Come, Amelie, you will melt.

Not yet. I want to stay in the rain.

That doesn't surprise me. You are the rain.

The first part of your name, Ame, means rain in Japanese.

That name suited me so well.

Just like the rain I was precious and dangerous...

...harmless and deadly, quiet and noisy.

And above all, I felt invulnerable.

If we go now, I will teach you how to write.

The rain, that was me.

The last one in the kitchen is a pussy.

Socks off.

Nishio-san, teach me my name writing in Japanese.

Want to change clothes first?

When we were home, you said.

I said that, yes. Well... Raise your finger.

Like this? -Yes, very good.

Stand by the window and give me your hand.

First a horizontal line for the air.

Then you sign the beginning of a square...

...then a vertical line between air and earth...

...and finally four small drops.

This is how you write ame, the sign for rain.

I can't see it well. -Just wait.

Better this way? Come on, let's get changed.

I had always known it. Now I had confirmation.

I was Japanese.

I had my father never seen me cry.

He looked like a giant baby.

Why are you crying, daddy? Are you afraid of the thunder?

Honey, daddy is crying because his mommy, your grandmother, left us.

She's gone to Belgium but she will come back.

No, Amelie. This is different. Grandma has left forever.

She died, Amélie. I'm so sorry.

Died?

Yes, love. You cannot understand that yet.

Go play a bit. We'll talk about it in a minute.

Death. I knew what it was

Darling...

But that's why I didn't understand it yet.

My grandmother freed me from it and so shortly afterwards it was her turn.

Just an exchange.

But why?

What is this?

A koma. That means toll in Japanese.

Try it with yours.

Look. This is how you do it.

Heavy precipitation is forecast in the south...

...with possible flooding in the Kobe area...

Nishio-san, why are we dying?

Why we die?

Maybe because God wants it?

God? But I never wanted to that my grandmother would die.

What? Did your grandmother die?

Yes, that's what Mom said.

Damn right. I'm so sorry. I didn't know that, Amélie.

Why do we die?

If you lived long, like your grandmother, then you are tired.

It's just like going to sleep.

That's...that's good.

And if you die young?

Yes, look...

I've seen a lot of people die during the war.

Tell me about the war.

I don't think so that you want to hear such stories.

Yes. Please tell me.

Okay then. I'll try.

...grieving families...

It's been a long time. I was only little.

I was having breakfast with my parents and my sister...

...when it started raining bombs.

And not for the first time in Kobe.

But that day I felt that the bombs were for us.

And I was right.

Found next to me a huge explosion takes place.

Miraculously I was still alive.

I tried my arms and legs to move, but that didn't work.

Only then did I understand that I was buried.

Strangely enough, I felt safe.

Then the air became scarce. So I started digging and digging.

Not knowing where to go.

I started listening.

I thought: where there is sound, there is life.

On the contrary: death reigned there.

That day I lost my family.

Didn't I scare you too much?

Were you sad like my daddy?

Yes. But time heals many wounds.

And their memory lives on and guides me through life.

Do you still see them?

Not the way you see me now.

They follow their path in a different way. Perhaps they will become something new.

I try to imagine them and talk to them.

That does me good.

There will be an important celebration soon. An important event in Japan.

We put candles on the river, just like for a birthday.

To honor those we no longer see and accompany them on their way.

Can I come?

Maybe.

If mom agrees.

Then you help me prepare.

How long will dad stay in Belgium?

Two months. But they will soon be over.

She can't take him. -To me.

No, to me. -Here, Juliette.

Arigatou.

Can you bring us some chocolate? -No, nougat.

That's fine, I'll take both.

Don't you daddy have anything? to say otherwise?

Get out of here. -You're stupid, André.

Amelie not there?

You just missed her. She is at the river with Nishio-san.

They put their lantern on the water.

Oh yes, the festival of the dead. It's great that she experiences that.

Thank Nishio-san that she shares that with her.

Yes, they love being together so much. They are very attached to each other.

Your flight is tomorrow, right?

Luckily. It's sad without you.

As soon as I get there, let's go to the sea for a day.

When are we going now? -We're in a hurry.

Where are daddy and Amelie? -Patience.

I want to stay with you.

Well, you shouldn't miss this.

And your father just returned from Belgium. He wants to see you too.

Then why don't you come along?

You know, a long time ago I was on that same beach with my family.

It was very beautiful.

I was barely older than you.

It's like the end of the world. You have to see it.

Come here, baby. I missed you.

I'm waiting for you here.

Hello, Nishio-san.

See you later. -Itte rasshai.

A sunny day to enjoy from Tottori beach

Here is 'Love Vacation' from The Peanuts.

Too bad Nishio-san wasn't there.

Mom, can I have that glass jar? -The glass jar? Of course, dear.

Was this the end of the world?

Maybe my grandmother was there?

Mom.

Dad.

It's over, it's okay.

André came to warn us. He saw your pot standing by the water.

Without him...

Thank you, André.

She said my name.

I saw my brother like a mathematical equation.

I wouldn't be there without him.

Would I have liked that?

I would never have known that anyway.

Good evening, Nishio-san. -Good evening.

Can I help you, sir?

Please. Can you get Amélie out of the car?

It was an intense day. -Please.

What a beautiful pot.

He's for you.

You can open it. -Thank you.

Nishio-san, hayaku oide. Come quickly.

Ame-chan, arigatou.

Juliette, wake up. It's my birthday, I'm turning three.

Hello, Kashima-san. Thank you for receiving me.

It's too late for an explanation.

Forgive me. I spend a lot of time with Amélie and...

That's exactly the problem. She robbed you of your senses.

They had a death. She wondered about death.

That's none of your business. You cannot mix our cultures.

Forgive me, ma'am. I didn't mean to be disrespectful.

It was disrespectful towards our ancestors

that your hair brought to the river.

I was just taking care of one child.

You don't understand. By you to them to attach, you betray your people.

You forget what they did to us. -That's not their fault.

I try to help them. And I love that child.

How dare you say that?

Have you forgotten everything? After the war they took everything from us.

What are you doing here?

It's my birthday.

Forgive her, Kashima-san. I'll take her back.

Getting attached to her is a mistake.

The war is over, Kashima-san. For thirty years.

Her parents were children. -My husband.

And my son.

Do you accept that your father, your mother and your little sister...

Don't scare her.

You should never have come. Go, I don't want to see you anymore.

One day she will grow up and forget you. The way you forgot everything.

Which side are you on?

There's nothing left of your vile attachment.

Forgive me, Amelie.

Nishio-san... -Nishio-san, Nishio-san.

No, Nishio-san. -Nishio-san, wait.

Nishio-san, no.

Nishio-san, come back.

These are adult problems. It's not your fault.

Kashima-san is being mean to Nishio-san.

They have experienced things that you don't understand yet.

But it's not up to you.

I'm sorry, Amelie. I couldn't stop her.

Congratulations, Amelie. -Easy, Juliette.

That's true. We have to blow candles Today. Three years is not nothing.

We bake a delicious cake. -First in the kitchen.

I'm taking a photo. -I light the candles.

Out of the way, André.

What a dessert you are.

Dad, daddy.

Happy birthday, Amelie.

Blow, honey. Blow.

Can I do it?

Congratulations.

Congratulations.

A surprise awaits you.

Here, honey.

Just open it.

Surprise.

We saw how much you liked it found among the carp.

You get one for each year.

Be careful, you have to take them every day of their lives to feed.

Patrick, those animals can live for centuries.

Until we get back go to Belgium then.

Back to Belgium?

Yes.

We are Belgians.

But I'm Japanese.

We don't always do what we want. Dad works for Belgium.

If Belgium recalls us from Japan, we have to leave.

He shouldn't listen, Belgium is far away.

I want to stay here, it's my home. -No, Amelie. Our country is Belgium.

We'll have to go there. It's our home.

On my third birthday everything has changed.

Everything I loved, I would lose.

But for now we're staying.

You can still enjoy it and prepare for it.

Had I been naughty?

Was this a punishment?

Or does everything just disappear one day?

Would I also forget everything?

Nishio-san, my shrine, Japan...

...the flowers, everything?

Was this life?

A ravenous maw who swallows everything?

Carpe diem.

The day of the carp.

Kashima-san.

I'm beginning to understand your sadness.

You have lost everything.

I will never feed the carp again. I will never leave Japan.

At the age of three I returned to the beginning

When there was nothing.

What are you doing here, rascal?

I'm dead, I believe.

Not yet.

Well almost, because I see you.

That's true. But this is no place for you.

You're bored to death here. The world is big.

And sad.

Everything disappears. -No.

I'm no longer here, but you see me right?

Memories persist.

Since I will be leaving Japan...

...Nishio-san and shall lose the mountains...

...will be driven out of my garden...

...and what I have will be lost...

...I have to remember everything.

When we were home, you said.

I said that, yes. Well...

Raise your finger. -Like this?

Ame.

...and finally four small drops.

Amelie, come back.

Baby. Look, Amélie is waking up.

Hi, Amelie. -Are you okay?

You scared us again.

She must be in pain on her forehead.

Calm down, kids.

You're in trouble hit the bottom.

Do I have a gap? -Yes, they sewed it up.

With needle and thread? -Yes.

Stay off it or you'll bleed.

There is someone special came for you.

Are you happy, baby?

Kashima-san saved you.

Kashima-san?

And she called Nishio-san, who came immediately.

Ame-chan.

You're back.

You're back too. Will you stay with us for a while?

I'll stay with you as long as you're here.

Amélie, where are you? -Come on.

Come on, Amelie.

Here. Are you okay?

As a three-year-old you notice all kinds of things and you don't understand anything.

After how many swallows can you believe that spring will return again?

Disappear scars like snow in the sun?

My dear Nishio-san, my sun.

Wherever I go, I will keep this precious cherish the years by your side.

I want to see everything, feel everything. Giving all the love you can.

Every chapter is full of passion writing about my existence.

With eyes wide open.

Well, so I'm not God.

And believe me: it's much more enjoyable this way.