Original subtitles

10th FLOOR - AUTO AVIO MOTORS PROJECT MANAGEMENT

9:00 - Meeting with the designers.

10:00 - Meeting with the Soviet representatives

for modifications to the bodywork of the 1400 model.

13:00 - Report to Engineer Harker.

Valle? This is Harker.

Come up to me right away.

15th FLOOR - AUTO AVIO MOTORS - MANAGEMENT

Good morning.

Ah, it's you, Valle.

Thank goodness you're here.

They want you upstairs.

- Me? - Yes, you.

Upstairs?

The vice president.

But I've got a meeting with the designers in a quarter of an hour.

I've already canceled it.

Go.

To the 19th floor?

Never been up there before?

19th FLOOR - AUTO AVIO MOTORS - VICE PRESIDENT

Yes?

Mr. Alberto Valle.

Ah.

Come with me.

20th FLOOR - AUTO AVIO MOTORS - PRESIDENT

Come in.

Come in, Mr. Valle.

Thank you, Helsing. You can go.

Pour yourself a drink.

Thank you.

Delighted to meet you.

We've never met.

No.

I work downstairs.

Please.

Yes, you were on the 10th floor.

Would you be able to leave immediately?

Yes, of course. But--

The owner of Auto Avio Motors

wishes to see you at his mountain villa.

The owner?

- Isn't that you? - I'm only the president.

The owner is

Engineer Giovanni Nosferatu.

Excuse me, is there a gas station around here?

Good morning.

I've run out of gas.

Is there a gas station in the village?

Motor.

Gas.

Hey!

White man!

If you give me lift, I'll take you to gas.

Tarzan take Jane on metal horse.

Jane has tired feet.

Where did you appear from?

I came from over there and I'm going that way.

Come on, let's go.

Vroom! Vroom!

Wait a minute!

For starters, who are you?

Okay, I get it.

Jane's walking.

"Rule 17:

Never pick up strangers

who don't have their parents' permission."

Come on, Jane, get in.

I need gas.

There's a gas station a mile or so up ahead.

A deal's a deal.

Come on, get in.

Okay.

Aren't you cold?

Maybe.

Thank God you turned up.

There are hardly any cars on this road.

Where are you headed?

I told you, I'm going over there.

Over where?

What does it matter where?

You're an odd girl.

Fill her up, please.

Is it always foggy here?

Could you tell me the way to Nosferatu's villa?

They're not very talkative in these parts.

I bet

he only talks if you get an oil change.

And then?

That's it.

No, hang on a minute.

Here...

There's a strange sign here.

A sign I don't understand.

Good or bad?

No!

An important sign.

You must be a company president!

No, I'm just an office worker!

I work in a factory.

A factory?

Mm-hmm.

Ah, one of those places where all the rooms are identical

and people do the same thing every day?

Well...

If you put it like that!

And what do you make?

Cars, planes...

What's your name?

Alberto Valle.

What about you?

Laura.

I swear,

seeing you there in the middle of those houses...

That's because you're bourgeois!

I just needed a lift.

It's a very effective system,

though a bit dangerous.

Oh, come on, don't be so serious all the time!

I just felt like doing it.

"Engineer G. Nosferatu."

Wasn't that who you were asking the gas station attendant about?

Yes.

He must not be the cheerful type.

Why not?

It's cold here.

And the birds don't sing.

Given that we've established he's not the cheerful type,

why are you visiting him?

Because he told me to.

So?

Can't you refuse?

I don't think he's expecting you.

He's expecting me

and no, I can't refuse.

Go then.

Of course.

Don't you want to come with me?

Where?

Who cares?

What a pity.

Bye.

Alberto!

Are you happy?

Do you want to make love to me?

Not now.

I can't.

Alberto!

I'll wait for you.

When you're sick of waiting,

leave them on the dashboard.

I'm Mr. Valle.

Engineer Nosferatu is expecting me.

Mr. Valle?

I'm Engineer Nosferatu's secretary.

My name is Corinna.

Did you want to go outside?

No,

thank you.

I...

I just wanted to bring the car up the drive.

Don't worry about that.

Even though it's outside the gate,

your car is perfectly safe.

Nobody ever comes near our boundary wall.

Why not?

There are cigarettes on the table, and here are the liqueurs.

If you'll excuse me,

I'll tell the Engineer that you have arrived.

Ahhh!

When you're tired,

nothing beats a Plastic Comfort pressurized armchair.

Because it's soft,

it embraces you, it envelops you...

Sit back.

Plastic Comfort furniture

costs less and lasts longer.

Yes, because woodworm slide off

and fall to the ground and die.

Remember!

Plastic Comfort furniture:

the plastic that isn't plastic.

Need a light?

Thanks.

The Engineer asks that you make yourself at home.

If you'd be so good as to follow me, I'll show you to your room.

When will I be able to see him?

Not before dinner.

He spends all day shut up in his office

and doesn't see anyone.

Dinner will be served promptly at 10:00.

Is there anything else I can do for you?

Nothing that would be fall under the duties of a secretary!

The duties of a secretary can sometimes be...

Terribly elastic.

I'll see you at dinner.

A shower isn't a shower if,

in addition to water,

your pipes don't contain

A-1 Tonic.

With A-1 Tonic, you're younger,

stronger.

With A-1 Tonic, you're happier to live

and to love.

A-1 Tonic

caresses your skin.

I'd like to have my skin caressed by...

A-1 Tonic.

You can't,

unless you surrender without shame,

young and naked.

I am young,

and I'm--

Good evening, Corinna.

Has Engineer Nosferatu already come down?

Good evening,

Mr. Valle.

Welcome to my home.

Thank you.

I'm glad you had a pleasant trip,

even though you perhaps had some trouble finding the house?

Well, a little!

The local people aren't very talkative.

But, in any case, this valley

sometimes offers pleasant surprises.

Please.

Don't worry,

no commercials this time.

I'm in the habit of trying out the slogans for my products

on my intercom.

It's an interesting test market.

I can imagine.

I've worked in advertising, too.

I know.

From December 1960

to March 1963.

You're very well informed.

But I'm certain that your current career

will be much more satisfying.

Careful!

Tsk-tsk!

That's the fruit, Mr. Valle.

Ah, excuse me!

The first course is yellow,

the second course is red,

the fruit is orange,

and the dessert is brown.

Thank you.

Each section contains the nutritional value

of a complete and satisfying meal.

And there's no risk of indigestion?

People who have liver problems or ulcers...

There are special containers for them,

exactly the same as the others.

I have created the first perfect example of gastronomic socialism!

I am certain you'll appreciate it.

May I ask what I'm eating?

Of course.

That's veal medallions in Madeira sauce.

Ah!

But I think some of the flavor of the original dish

has been lost in the chemical processing.

It was eliminated deliberately.

As Freud once noted,

the stimuli provoked by taste and smell,

just like sexual stimuli,

results in pleasure for its own sake,

resulting

in a pointless waste of energy.

Yes, but you can't assess pleasure in terms of productivity.

Why not?

Productive energy is too precious

to risk wasting it.

Please forgive me, Mr. Valle.

There are some urgent matters that require my attention,

but I will see you later.

The night

is long.

If you'd like to walk, I'll take you to see the gardens.

Please do.

And when you come back,

we'll discuss important matters.

You don't like the night, Mr. Valle?

Quite the opposite.

And being in it with you is marvelous.

I was thinking about Nosferatu.

He's...

A very strange man.

All talented people are.

No, it's not that.

I've worked for him for many years,

yet I never even knew he existed.

But apparently he knows everything about me.

He prefers not to be the center of attention,

but he loves people.

He lives for people.

Corinna,

do you know why he had me come here?

No.

He'll tell you himself very soon.

What a strange place.

It looks like a lake.

It is a lake.

It's empty at the moment, but it fills in spring with the thaw.

Be careful!

Don't trip over on the roots.

Strange...

Such a modern villa

in such an old garden.

Past and present are all the same thing to us.

It's true!

It feels as if it's outside of time.

It makes you want to be outside of time.

What's that?!

I wouldn't go down there, Mr. Valle.

Why not?

It might be dangerous.

But there's something down there!

It's just a tree trunk.

Let's go back inside. I'm cold.

What are those cars here for?

They're guards.

The gardens are so vast that it's impossible to patrol them on foot.

Let's go back inside, please.

When I arrived, I tried to speak to the drivers,

but they didn't answer.

Of course not.

They don't need to talk.

Goodnight, Mr. Valle.

Did you like the gardens, Mr. Valle?

Come over here.

It's time for us to talk about your career.

Would you like to become president of Auto Avio Motors?

I...

I don't think I understand.

You understand perfectly.

I asked you if you'd like to become president

of Auto Avio Motors.

Myths never die.

They only transform.

For centuries, men sought the philosopher's stone,

which could turn iron into gold.

I'm offering you the opportunity

to take part in a transformation which will be no less grand.

Changing slavery into freedom.

Poverty into wealth.

The philosopher's stone

which can do this is technology.

It's not we who choose power,

it's power that chooses us.

That's the way it was

for me, too.

Our society needs men who know how to lead.

How to advise.

Basically, people don't know what to eat,

what to read,

where to go on vacation,

what party to vote for.

I help them to understand

their real needs.

Their real desires.

And I satisfy them.

All of them.

You're thinking that this discussion is disproportionate

to the offer I'm making you.

But it isn't.

I don't just own a certain number of factories,

companies, and department stores.

I also own newspapers,

political parties,

opposition groups,

banks.

Their bosses work

under me,

Mr. Valle.

I'm offering you the chance to become one of them.

Why me?

You have all the necessary prerequisites.

When you come to understand a few things,

you'll be a wonderful boss.

Do you know how to shoot?

A little.

You can decide when you're ready.

In the meantime,

I hope you'll consider yourself my guest.

Thank you.

Real civilization is based on the constant repression of human instincts.

Attention to secret aversions.

Attention to secret aversions.

How to cultivate optimism.

How to cultivate optimism.

Your secret needs.

Your secret needs.

They oblige men to work and then say "thank you."

Advertising and sex.

Advertising and sex.

Alice in Consumptionland.

Alice in Consumptionland.

The sale of indulgences.

The sale of indulgences.

The future occupation of all children

is that of specialized consumers.

The return to the cradle.

The return to the cradle.

The psycho-seduction of children.

The psycho-seduction of children.

Recruitment of new consumers.

Recruitment of new consumers.

VALAN, GIULIA FILM CRITIC

POSITIVE REACTION TO RELATIONSHIP WITH FATHER

ANALYSIS FULLY SUCCESSFUL

VALLODOLIT, ENRICA WRITER

VALLE, ALBERTO PRESIDENT, A.A.M.

I saw your door was open,

so I came to see if you needed anything.

No.

You look upset.

You should try and rest.

I'd better leave you alone.

No!

No.

Let's smoke. Would you like a cigarette?

I need to sort my head out.

There are too many things I don't understand.

What's happened?

I saw some monstrous things.

What?

Babies.

I don't much like babies myself!

Don't you think you're overreacting?

They were probably some employees' children.

Engineer Nosferatu very generously lets them stay up here.

The mountain air is particularly good for children.

Didn't you know?

You're sweating!

I'll take a shower.

Goodnight.

Wait!

Where are you going?

To bed, of course.

Don't go.

A shower isn't a shower

if, in addition to water,

your pipes don't contain

A-1 Tonic.

With A-1 Tonic, you're younger,

stronger.

With A-1 Tonic, you're happier to live

and to love.

A-1 Tonic

caresses your skin.

I'd like to have my skin caressed by

A-1 Tonic.

You can't,

unless you surrender without shame,

young and naked.

I am young,

and I'm naked, too.

Come, then.

Come closer.

Together, we'll be wrapped

in the sweet embrace of

A-1 Tonic.

On my skin...

On your skin...

I love you.

And I love you.

And we both love

A-1 Tonic.

A-1 Tonic

is a United Cosmetics Industry product.

No, let go of me!

No!

Help!

Alberto!

No!

Alberto!

No!

Let go of me!

You know something?

What?

There's something strange about all this.

I'm glad you think so, too.

I mean,

when I kiss you,

when we make love,

I really like it.

Not like with all the others.

What others?

The other guests.

You mean you sleep with everyone who comes to the villa?

No, no!

Not all of them.

What's the matter?

Are you alright?

Don't be angry.

Love is a marvelous thing,

but it entails risks.

Only Nosferatu Pharmaceutical Industries birth control

guarantees peace of mind.

Remember!

Face to face

with Nosferatu!

Open this door, let me out!

Alberto!

Laura!

Good morning, Alberto!

Good morning, Corinna!

Did you sleep well?

Very well!

This mountain air is wonderful!

Your breakfast is ready.

Can you play golf?

A little.

Do you have a course here?

More or less.

You can play on the edge of the wood next to the lake.

Get the clubs. They're in the hall.

I'll wait for you on the course.

It's not right, though.

What isn't?

The perfect secretary ought to know how to lose at golf.

I'll bear that in mind.

Where did it go?

It's not here.

Maybe it's in the woods.

Alberto?

Alberto!

Where have you gone?

Ah!

Are we playing golf or hide and seek?

I was just having a quick look at the crypt.

Fine, if you'd rather wander about underground on your own

than walk through the woods with me...

Sorry.

Just a second.

Lose something?

I hope not.

You've lost your queen.

Is a perfect secretary allowed to win at chess?

I haven't lost yet.

No.

But you have lost your queen.

I get the feeling my king's destined for a quick death.

Unless...

Hmm?

Checkmate.

Well played!

Who taught you to play so well?

Engineer Nosferatu.

I should have guessed.

He's a very rational man.

Perhaps too rational.

Do you know what's in the basement?

Of course. The employee files.

And two photos

of Mr. Alberto Valle as a baby

and a

prediction

about my future job:

president of A.A.M.,

otherwise known as Auto Avio Motors.

And what's the problem?

It's a very flattering prediction.

I might find it flattering for the baby,

not for me.

I think you must be a little mad.

Where's the harm in wanting to know everything about your employees?

Nosferatu loves them.

Is that a crime?

Nosferatu predicts...

Nosferatu wants to know...

Nosferatu loves...

And what about the crypt in the cemetery?

What about it?

Nothing.

It's been abandoned for a long time.

How old is Engineer Nosferatu?

He's ageless.

Have you seen what a pretty village there is down in the valley?

Shall we go together?

It's nice seeing everything with you,

through your eyes.

Shall we, Alberto?

Just give me a moment to get ready.

HISTORY OF THE POPES

Alberto!

You're not playing hide and seek again, I hope.

I'm ready. Shall we go?

I know a shortcut.

- But it's so rocky! - Are you scared?

Have you seen her?

Has she been back?

You aren't being very nice to me.

I'm sorry.

Look! A church.

It's very pretty.

Come on, I want to see inside.

No!

I'm too tired.

I'll wait for you in the car.

Why did you look at her like that?

Holy Mother of God!

- I don't know anything! - Calm down!

- I didn't see anything! - I'm not trying to hurt you!

What didn't you see? What don't you know?

Leave her alone!

She's very old.

We are humble people.

We have nothing to do with the people from the villa.

Who are they?

The Bible says,

"He does not know

that there be giants,

and that their guests sit in the depths of Hell."

Go.

I beg you.

Get out!

It wasn't a good idea.

Was it?

No.

Good evening, Mr. Valle.

I'm sorry, but I won't be able to spend this evening with you.

I'm expecting guests for a business meeting.

Dinner will be served in your room.

Thank you.

That's why I feel

that the sublimated sexuality of modern man must...

Thank you!

Must today be promoted

exclusively through the use of mass media.

Science fiction has reached the level of art.

Marcuse, for example,

is far ahead of Asimov.

I try and make you understand Bergman and Godard--

No, I don't agree.

All slaves! The real problem...

The only real free cinema is advertising.

Advertising cinema is cinema vérité.

I don't care about the problem of the male sex.

The real psyche of man--

--a productivity index that grows, swells,

gets hard,

becomes large, one might say,

is much more interesting!

...a strong personality.

But then, great men are never understood.

Take Adolf Hitler, for example.

You're right!

Pius XI

called Benito Mussolini

"the man of providence."

Ladies and gentlemen.

Meeting Zero Two Two,

chemical industries sector.

Group A,

report on increases in weekly production.

Please.

Pharmaceutical factories:

23 percent.

Birth control factories:

36 percent.

Chemical warfare group:

125 percent.

Washing powder factories:

0.09 percent.

Reason?

Worries over water pollution.

Housewives are worried about their children's health.

Solutions?

A new biodegradable detergent.

Our chemists--

You forget that we have 500,000 tons of stock.

And in any case, our chemists have more serious problems to solve.

We'll put the old washing powder in a new packet.

Ladies and gentlemen,

think of a new name.

The direction of consent.

How to cultivate optimism.

How to cultivate optimism.

The consumer should be attacked when he least expects it,

in the privacy of the living room, the kitchen, the bedroom.

Mass narcissism.

Mass narcissism.

Attack on the unconscious.

Attack on the unconscious.

The caprices of the consumer.

The caprices of the consumer.

The material we work with

is the same substance of which the human mind is made.

The symbols of prestige.

The symbols of prestige.

The bait is lowered.

The bait is lowered.

Tinned soul.

Tinned soul.

Immaculate!

Virgin!

- Clean! - Gaga!

Non-Biologic!

- Candor! - Cheers!

Fresh!

No, ladies and gentlemen!

This name must eliminate

any worries about water pollution.

It will be called

"Clean Water,"

and the slogan will be,

"Looks after clothes and oceans:

It's Clean Water."

- Wonderful! - Genius!

- On-brand! - Sublime!

- Aggressive! - Subliminal!

Divine!

Bergmanesque!

What about the packaging?

"Clean Water preserves life."

There!

A phallic packet.

Ignazio.

Any moral objections?

Quite the opposite.

It's biblical.

Be fruitful and multiply.

Issues with censorship?

If it's okay with the Church,

none.

Chemical industries sector, Group A.

Social life.

No disciplinary proceedings have been taken against employees

for over three weeks.

And I'm happy to say it wasn't necessary.

Our intense monitoring has turned discipline into a lifestyle.

Really?

Are you aware that employees are forbidden to read during breaks?

Of course, and I can guarantee--

Watch.

There's more.

Do you recognize these people?

Unless I'm mistaken,

they're employees of

the Nosferatu birth control factory.

You're not mistaken.

I don't see the problem.

Nosferatu employees are only forbidden from procreating,

not from having sex.

In fact, I think these would be excellent advertising photos.

And what about these?

You have failed in the assignment you were given.

Please leave this villa immediately.

On foot!

Get that woman an abortion and have her husband sterilized.

Chemical industries sector, Group A.

Opening of new markets.

Legal report on the unregulated sale of drugs.

I'm delighted to announce that

the clerical member of parliament, the honorable Mr. Santamaria,

has withdrawn his objection

to the law on the unregulated sale of hallucinogens.

He no longer opposes it.

You manage to succeed in the most difficult assignments.

Oh, it wasn't difficult.

The honorable Mr. Santamaria

has his vices,

just like all defenders of morality.

Forgive me, your eminence.

Is that all?

No.

He asked for a monthly supply

of 500 packets of LSD for his poor constituents.

Very well.

Forgive me...

Yes?

If I might...

The three pilot commercials are ready,

if you would like to choose.

Let's see them.

Thank you!

"The screen rips itself

to disseminate

with every shot

the truth

to the four winds!"

These are the words of

Jean-Luc Godard!

The permanent revolution,

as it was defined by Marx,

is a revolution which doesn't compromise

with any form of class domination,

that doesn't stop at the democratic phase,

but passes to socialist measures

and open warfare against external reaction.

A revolution

every phase of which is contained in an embryonic form

in the previous phase.

A revolution

that only stops

with the total liquidati--

It's no good.

"I learned the essence of comedy in the pages of

the Corriere dei Piccoli

These are the words of

Federico Fellini!

Dad!

Mom!

"Murder,

incest,

rape,

will only be punished

among slaves."

These are the words of

the Marquis de Sade!

Stop!

I'm tired of it!

I want a new ecstasy,

something different!

Well, well, well!

Something new is here!

Really?

What is it?

Shall we tell him?

Yes. yes, yes!

L-S-D.

It's finally on sale?

Of course!

Starting today in all Nosferatu supermarkets.

Here... we... are.

Here... we... are

with L.S.D.

With L!

S!

D!

Normal size

and family size!

L.S.D.

L.S.D. is a product of Nosferatu pharmaceutical industries,

a name that we trust.

L.S.D.

Available in all Nosferatu supermarkets.

This one works.

Bravo!

Wonderful!

Truly marvelous!

Ignazio.

Any moral objections?

Noooo!

Just a recommendation.

While he is whipping her,

it would be perfect if we could see,

reflected in that mirror a--

Very true.

Goodnight!

Good evening!

Goodnight, Engineer!

Goodnight!

Goodnight!

'Night!

Good evening, Engineer.

Have a productive night.

Thank you, Corinna.

Goodnight.

Take a seat, Mr. Valle.

Why don't you have something to drink?

Don't you feel ridiculous?

The meeting with the chemists has upset you.

You knew I was listening?

If you are going to join my organization,

I need to know everything about you.

I'm not going to join your organization!

I'm leaving!

You can't leave, Mr. Valle.

No?

You told me I was free to choose what I wanted.

Whenever you wanted.

Not what you wanted.

Listen.

I...

Don't make me waste any more time,

Mr. Valle.

Are you afraid of time?

Or just of the dawn, like vampires?

It's the 20th century

and you still believe in vampires?

Myths never die,

they just transform.

You taught me that yourself.

You might have changed your faces

but you're still sucking people's blood.

Are you done?

No.

Now I'll tell you what I'm going to do.

Hammer a stake through my heart.

I'm going to leave here.

I'll go to the newspapers,

to the police!

I own the newspapers.

I own the police.

Then I'll throw bombs into your factories.

I'll burn down your warehouses.

I'll smash the windows of your supermarkets!

Please.

Back so soon, Mr. Valle?

Stop the cars.

Don't be a fool.

Put that gun down.

Stop the cars!

Killing me won't help you in the slightest.

I'll count to three.

You...

One!

Will be my most faithful collaborator.

Two!

I have big plans for you.

Three!

Alberto!

Why?

If you want,

I'll take you to the gate.

Thank you.

Corinna...

I had to do it.

Come away with me.

Laura!

Laura!

Hi.

I've been waiting for you.

What are you doing?

We're leaving together!

No, no, I can't.

I only came back to say goodbye.

Came back?

Yes.

I've been taken on as head secretary of a large company.

Just think, finally a calm, relaxed life.

- Maybe a husband, children, security... - But...

But you wanted to be free.

You wanted to travel the world

and see beautiful things!

Isn't that what you said?

Yes.

I was silly, wasn't I?

But then I realized that you were right.

Bye, I have to go.

Welcome, Mr. Valle.

"Today, the name of terror is technology." Herbert Marcuse