All language subtitles for Fire down below. 1957. English

Hey, Tony?

- A friendly word?
- What?

If youd been more flexible
with that lady...

...shed have kept on hiring this boat
at 100 bucks a day tI'll next Christmas.

- StI'll not too late, you know.
- No.

- All I said was 'fflexible. "'
- I'mm not in that line of business.

I have to be cursed
with a fastidious partner?

Youll keep me a poor man
all my life.

If youre so anxious, why don't you
do something about it yourself.

Dont think I wouldn't
if I thought it would work, man.

The lady just aint interested.

Whats she gonna do with a beat-up
old bum like me?

Shes blond, she's pretty,
comes from a good family...

...and shes got a rich husband.
She wants only the best.

Tall, blue-eyed, straight-limbed boys
with curly hair and pearly teeth.

If you played your cards right, we
could have had a new cabin cruiser...

- ... by the time she left.
- Stop dreaming.

But youre driving us
to a life of crime.

Okay, lets not waste
any time about it.

That lady sure was icy.

Yeah, but just not icy enough,
Jimmy Jean. Not icy enough.

Well, on to crime.

Next time we smuggle anything onto
this island, we ought to wear tuxedos.

What wI'll it be?

- Brandy.
- Beer.

Theres Miguel.

You have to walk right up to the bar?

Make yourselves conspicuous
like two elephants in a ballroom?

Do you find it impossible
to wear jackets?

Miguel, be polite to your colleagues.

- Its all delivered?
- All delivered.

A friend left this note for you.

Our friend didnt have
much to say, did he?

- What do you mean by that?
- I mean, he wasnt very generous.

There are many expenses,
you know that as well as I do.

Palms to be greased and
people paid to turn the other way.

Tell our friend if he cant be more
communicative, this is the last trip.

- Come on, Tony...
- Please take your money.

This drinks on the house.

- My heart is softened.
- Listen...

...I can put a little easy money
your way.

- How easy?
- Without so many questions.

Do you or dont you want
to make some money?

No.

I'll talk to you, you'rre reasonable.
Your friend is a barbarian.

Youll sit here and hear your friend
called a barbarian?

Miguel, I forbid you to call
this barbarian a barbarian.

Youre a true friend.

Once again, I'll disregard the jokes.
I'mm talking of a small act of kindness.

All you have to do is take a passenger
from here to Santa Nada.

The American line runs a good boat.
Tell him to try the American line.

Youre so clever and so rich.
It isn't a him.

- Her.
- A woman on a little boat like ours?

You dont think she'd find it
a trifle restrictive?

She cant afford to worry
whether it's restrictive.

- Police?
- I know nothing of police.

Im trying to compose myself.

Theres a rich American patron
making inquiries for her...

...and with infinite generosity,
I thought of you.

And Im rewarded with contempt.

- Yeah, how rich an American?
- I have not asked to see his tax return.

Lets get out of here.
I don't like the smell of this.

- Money doesnt smell.
- How much?

- Five hundred dollars.
- And for you?

Me, I merely seek to oblige a friend.

Yeah, but how many dollars do you
seek to oblige yourself, 1000?

Thats enough. You demean me.

Leave my bar.

Five hundred has a nice, wholesome
ring to it, doesnt it, 500?

Yeah, 700 rings even better.

Its too risky.

A couple of cases of brandy
or cigarettes, thats one thing...

...but an I'llegal dame...

If they catch us, theyll take the boat,
lock us up and throw the key away.

They wont catch us.

Ive got a hunch.
I don't feel so lucky.

I feel lucky. Well use my luck.

The markets rising.

My last offer, 600. Im disgusted.

Well, be disgusted for 700.

Very well.

Wait here.

Two boys in caps
at the end of the bar.

- Shes not impressed.
- I am.

- I dont like this. Let's get out of here.
- Wait. Nobody's fired a shot yet.

- Ask if theyll have a drink with me.
- Sure.

The gentleman invites you
to his table for a drink.

Is it beyond the limits of possibility
to take off your hats?

You make too many conditions.
Im changing my mind.

Youre driving me mad,
authentically mad.

Now, let him suffer, Felix. Come on.

Here they are.

Wont you sit down?

Have a drink?

- Brandy.
- Beer.

Did Miguel explain
the situation to you?

Yeah, a little.

- Not enough.
- How much do you have to know?

Everything. Slipping passengers
past Immigrations is no joke.

Tell them everything
they want to know.

Incidentally, how much money
was mentioned?

Twelve hundred dollars.

Well, some days you win,
some days you lose.

I think theyre calling for me
at the bar.

The lady a relation?

No.

A friend.

- And she has no papers, huh?
- No.

No papers, no passport, nothing.
Shes stateless.

Its a long, confused story.

I imagine we could spend a number
of long, confused months in prison.

Why no papers?

- Irena, maybe you had better...
- I'll tell you all that's necessary.

Im coming from nowhere I'llegally.

Im on my way to nowhere
equally I'llegally.

- Are you satisfied?
- No.

- Theres no need for you to...
- Don't be delicate about my dignity.

- Tell him what he wants to know.
- Come on over to the bar.

Where did you meet her?

Here, about a month ago.
I feel sorry for her. I want to help.

- Yeah, whered she come from?
- Havana.

Oh, another rich friend?

I guess so.

- And before that?
- Florida.

Some Army sergeant smuggled her
over from Europe in a bomber.

Naturally, they caught up with him.
She moved on.

Speaks awful good English.

Shes been around Americans
for 10 years.

This stuff is kI'lling me.

Look, this is the picture.
She came originally from Lithuania...

...or Estonia or someplace.
The story changes.

The Germans
transported her to Berlin.

mother, father, brothers, the usual.

She got mixed up
in the black market.

There was a holdup.

The police say she had a gun.
She swears she didnt.

It was a frame-up, she says.

And so far, shes always managed
to find somebody to take care of her.

I dont doubt that.

Look, I want to do all I can for her,
but Ive got to get back to Detroit.

Twelve hundred bucks,
take it or leave it, thats all.

Actually, I dont...

I dont like it.

What have we got to lose?

Now, you know, I do not make
Immigration officers very happy.

An Immigration officer presumes
that a woman who looks like me...

...should be kept.

And they prefer citizens
of other countries to do the keeping.

You understand, Irena,
that this is not the Queen Mary?

There wI'll be no steward aboard
to bring you your morning tea.

Ive put up with worse.

Youll be alone on a not very
large boat with three men...

...with low, brutish manners.

- One man with low, brutish manners.
- All right.

Twelve hundred dollars.
A thousand for us, 200 for him.

You know No. 3 Pier
by San Antonio?

- I can find it.
- Okay.

Be there at sunup.

Come on, lets go.

Im sorry, Irena.

Sometimes you wonder
what God had in mind...

...when he invented the male sex.

Well...

...hello there.

If I knew you were wearing
your Paris clothes...

...Id have had the bridal suite
cleaned up.

Sun lounge is on A-deck.

What happened
to your gentleman friend?

I left him in the hotel.

Any other questions?

I might think of some
from time to time.

WI'll you do me a favor?

Occupy yourself
with your own business.

I dont think I'mm going to care
for your attitude very much.

All right. I dont think I even care
for my attitude very much.

Yeah, well, I'll...

...show you where you can keep
your things.

Well, its nothing much...

- ... but if theres anything you want...
- I don't want anything.

That port engine again.

Its that port engine again.

Lets see what we can do with it.

You know, when I get rich,
Im going to buy myself a crowbar...

...and come aboard this boat
and beat that port engine to scrap.

I hung around the house
for three months...

...after I got back from Korea,
doing nothing.

And my father read me
the riot act.

Hes a big man in the community,
my father.

Said it gave him a bad name, having
a son who was turning into a bum.

So I went to New York
and met a guy I used to know there...

...went to college with.
He had a 30-foot sloop.

He was looking to take someone
to the Caribbean...

...so we had a drink,
and I signed on.

- Just like that?
- Just like that.

The Caribbean seemed like
a nice, long distance from Indiana.

Came down here and I liked it,
and my pal went home. I met Felix.

We had some laughs.
He had a little money, I had dough...

...and one night we were drunk,
and we bought this boat.

When it runs,
its a pretty good little boat.

- Two and a half years?
- Yep.

Cant think of a better way
to spend two and a half years.

- What happens when you tire of this?
- Well, I'll move on.

I told my father the day I saw
the first white hair on my head...

...Id come back home.
It hasn't shown yet.

What a country America is.

All the luxuries.

- Even rebellion.
- I got an idea.

Hey, Felix?

How much longer
we gonna be here?

Seven years and two months.

Good, weve got time for a swim.
How about it?

- Arent there any sharks?
- Well, of course.

Why not?

- Everybody works but Father.
- Thats right. That's the general idea.

Do the guests have everything
they want? Cocktails?

- Just ring the bell.
- No cocktails.

Ask the lady.

No cocktails.

I was glad to see you swim so well.

Its a pretty sight,
you handsome young people...

...cleaving through the warm water
with a nice, steady, eight-beat crawl.

Where did you learn? Berlin?

What do they use in those
swimming pools, blood?

Wait a minute. What is this?
Whats it for, persecution or fun?

- For fun.
- Well, youre crazy. Leave her alone.

Whats the matter, you appointed
yourself her new protector?

Go to the end of the line, kid.
Its a long, long line.

- Let up on her.
- She doesnt need protection.

She can take care of herself with
any weapon youd care to mention.

Ask the MPs name in Berlin.

Ask about the gun
they found in her bag.

I dont know what's wrong with him.
I'vve never seen him like this before.

Dont worry. It wI'll blow over.

No guns allowed on this boat, madam.

We have a naval limitation treaty
with the Algonquin Indians.

Youre crazy. Anything you don't like,
you just throw into the sea!

I turn the other cheek.

Careful, Ive only got two cheeks.

Why dont you stop them.

Not for the time being, maam.
Ain't no quarrel of mine.

I'll let them work off
a little bad blood first.

Hell kI'll him!

Stop it. Stop it!

Now you just calm down a little,
then we all stop choking our friends...

...and we continue this cruise
on a nice, peaceful basis.

All right, Jimmy Jean,
you can let go.

The wars over.

- Is that a promise?
- Thats a promise.

See?

A thousand dollars for carrying you
just isnt enough.

- Im sorry.
- You play rough, don't you?

For a minute, I thought
you were trying to kI'll me.

Dont be sI'lly. All over?

All over.

We ought to do this more often.

Breaks up the trip,
entertainment for the ladies.

Greco-Roman style wrestling,
college rules.

Any time we get bored
with each other...

...I'll just remember to throw something
of madame's in the sea.

Whats going on there?

Carnival time.

- Mardi gras. You ever been to one?
- No.

- Well, do you like to dance?
- Sometimes.

Well, how about that.
Do you want to go take a look at it?

No.

Come on,
I'll take care of you.

You wont get mixed up
in anything you don't want.

Perhaps some other time.

We dont guarantee
there wI'll be another time, lady.

This is a luxury cruise, but we only
furnish one Mardi gras per trip.

Yeah, come on, lets go.
These things can be fun, you know.

Whatever you say.

You want to go, Felix?

I have to be in the mood
for a Mardi gras.

I'll see how I feel when we dock.

Irena?

Irena?

I cant stand waifs. Come on.

You hate me. Why?

- Drink your rum.
- What have women done to you?

I dont regard women in the plural.
I regard women one by one.

What have they done to you?

Some of them have done good,
some of them have done bad.

Drink your rum.

- Have you ever been married?
- Yes.

- For a quick six months.
- What happened?

I deserted her.

Why?

She was the most desertable woman
on the North American continent.

She was pretty. Beautiful.
Maybe even as beautiful as you.

I had a wonderful time with her.
Six months.

- TI'll I got to know her.
- Is that why you came down here?

- Thats one of the reasons, yeah.
- Are you wanted by the police?

Oh, I wouldnt go so far
as to say that.

Put it this way, if I presented myself
to the police, they would not reject me.

No, no, none of that.
Lets not fool ourselves.

Lets not sit laughing it up
like two nice people out on a date...

...on a Saturday night.
Were not nice people.

And were not out on any date.

Youre a tricky bit of cargo...

...that I contracted to carry
from one island to another.

A danger to navigation.
Lets keep the channel clear.

Dont worry about me.
I'vve had enough trouble as it is.

I'll bet you have.

Im not asking for any pity.
I don't want to bother you.

Youre stuck with me for a little while,
and I'mm stuck with you.

But we dont have to make it
any worse than it already is.

Tell me what you want me to do,
and I'll do it.

Keep away from Tony, thats all.
He's not for the likes of you.

- Why not?
- Ive known women like you.

Youve had bad luck.

Youre pretty enough to make
everybody you touch pay for it.

What makes you think
hed be interested?

I saw that gay frolic
on the beach today.

A siren should have gone off
for Tony right then:

'EEnemy approaching, take cover. "'

Hes a big boy.
He can take care of himself.

Nobody can take care of themselves,
so stay away from him.

Stop probing him with those
sad, pitiful, calculating dark eyes...

...and keep those
sweet, poisonous hands off him.

Youve got nothing for him.

He came down here
to sow a few wild oats, thats all.

- What about you?
- I sowed my wild oats a long time ago.

Been living off the crop ever since,
not very nourishing.

And if youve got any ideas about me,
forget them.

You stick to the kind of men
women like you were made for.

That nervous fella from Detroit
back there in San Juan.

The Russian colonels in Berlin,
the black-market sergeants.

No, I do you an injustice.

Youre a field-grade operator,
black-market generals.

Theres plenty of the usual game
for you around here.

Lots of sugar planters with fat bellies,
rum factories...

...wives with mustaches...

...bank accounts in Havana,
New York, Zurich.

Stick to them.
Leave Tony alone.

I beg your pardon,
would the lady like to dance?

No, the lady would not like to dance.

On the contrary, the lady
would like very much to dance.

That was wonderful.

Was it?

I beg your pardon,
would you like a dance?

- Get out of here.
- I was talking to the lady.

I was asking her to dance.

Its a very simple dance.
I'lll show you.

You want to dance, huh?
Come on, I'll dance you.

Whos there?

Its me, Felix. That's Latin for "'hhappy. "'

You should have danced with that
fella. He was a real good dancer.

What is it? What are you waiting for?

Im waiting for someone
to touch me with kindness.

Im proud.
I don't make love to the dead.

Oh, youre beautiful.

Marry me,
and well sail the seven seas.

And well see the tombs
of the Pharaohs.

And well pull in at Hong Kong
and Bangkok...

...and Indianapolis, Indiana.

And I'll be faithful to you
from here to the last distI'llery.

And I'll cover you with jewels,
and I'lll drown you in champagne.

Our song. Shall we dance?

Do you mind if I have a drink?

You have to go now
because your family is calling you...

...but I'll be waiting.

All right. Here we are
in the Rose Bowl, folks!

And hes fading back.
He's looking for his receiver!

Hes gonna pass. 100,000 people
are going wild out there.

Last two minutes of the game.
Hes gonna pass!

Hes getting ready. He's set.
He's found his receiver. He'lll pass!

And there he goes down the field,
and hes getting ready to catch it!

There it goes, 10 yards, 20 yards,
30 yards!

He caught it! Oh, great show.

Irena?

Irena?

Yes?

Everything okay?

Yes.

Well, can I get you anything?

No, thank you.

Good night.

Good night.

Well, this is far as we take you.

At the end of the jetty,
youll see some stairs.

At the very top by a church,
youll see a taxi.

You go to the American bar
on the Rue Joliette.

The barman wI'll tell you
where to find the hotel.

If you happen to see any of us
around...

...it might be advisable for you
to pretend you dont know us.

We cant just drop her like this
in the middle of this forsaken hole.

Why not? That was the bargain,
wasnt it?

We were to take her to Santa Nada,
responsibility ended.

You do have a mean streak,
dont you?

I said Id bring her here and I did.
What's so mean?

Somebody has to see the girl
into the town.

You defeat me.
I dont know what you'rre aiming at!

You trying to get chosen for the Brute
of the Month Club or something?

- Joke. Push off, Jimmy Jean.
- No, hold it.

Youre on your own from now on.

I'll leave my stuff on the boat.
I'lll pick it up later.

Push off.

Its not what you might call
a happy voyage.

No, sir, Ive had happier trips.

- Youre not satisfied?
- When I'mm paid off, I'lll be satisfied.

Any other complaints?

- I might strike some.
- You want to quit?

I do believe I do.

Okay, thats fine with me.

We could stand some fresh faces
around here.

- You didnt have to come with me.
- Forget it.

I apologize for Felix.

Nobody has to apologize to me
for anything.

I apologize for the whole human race.

- Good evening, madam.
- Good evening.

- Are there any messages?
- The young man called.

The young American.
Hell be here at 7, he says.

Thank you. My key, please.

I would not be a friend
if I didnt tell you your presence...

...for the last few days has not gone
completely unremarked.

- What do you mean?
- Its, of course, not surprising.

A woman who looks like you
even in a great city...

...Paris even,
all eyes would be attracted.

Omit the flowers,
who was talking about me?

In a place like this, there are certain
people who owe things to the police.

Who must present the authorities
with information...

...of an interesting character.

Now, they see a lady like you arrive,
they make a few inquiries.

They find that your arrival did not
coincide with the landing of a plane...

...the docking of a steamer.

They discovered that you seem to be
settling down for a long stay.

That you have no visible means
of support.

That you are friendly with
a young American...

...of a rather brash
and reckless character.

They begin to see some making of
profit in this situation for themselves.

Why are you telling me all this?

None of this, of course, is crucial.

The right words spoken
at a certain place.

A delicate hint that too much curiosity
is a bit improper in this case.

A genial reminder that the lady
in question is regarded benevolently...

- ... by a good friend of the authority.
- Yes?

I dont like to sound immodest...

...but I, myself, might answer
to such a description.

If it were to my interest,
perhaps I could be prevailed upon...

...to drop a word in a proper quarter.

If it were to your interest?

If it were to my interest.

Your key, madam.

Yes?

Hi.

- Hello, Tony.
- Got something for you.

Thank you.

- Tony...
- Well, open it up, open it.

Native blouse, see.

I just thought with your color hair
that it might...

- Its very gay, isn't it?
- Very gay.

Go ahead, try it on.

I wasnt too sure
about the measurements.

But go ahead, try it on.

The lady in the shop says its bound
to have a stifling effect on a redhead.

Tony?

- Have you seen Felix?
- Only once, in the bar for a minute.

All we said was hello.

Hes conducting
a personal experiment.

Hes trying to drink the entire output
of rum on this island in a week.

Did he say anything about me?

He was in no condition
to say anything about anybody.

Startling.

- Thank you.
- You like it?

I like it very much.

StI'll it would have been more useful
if youd found something else.

A different kind of cloth.

Do they have anything
in the shops...

...thats guaranteed to make a woman
invisible?

What a waste that would be.

Come on, lets go out. We'lll have
a great dinner and dance, celebrate.

Celebrate what?

Celebrate the fact
that youre not invisible.

- Not tonight, Tony.
- Whats the matter?

- Ive got to get out of here.
- What are you talking about?

The owner.

Its the same old thing.
Sometimes it takes only a day.

Sometimes, like now,
it takes more than a week.

- But it always happens.
- What always happens?

They close in.

'Keep moving. "'

Did that slob tell you
you had to get out of here?

No, they dont quite say that either.

They always make it clear
I could make arrangements...

...and be permitted to stay.

- Im tired of those arrangements.
- What did he say to you exactly?

He said Im conspicuous.

The authorities have begun
to show an interest in me.

Where I came from,
what Im doing here.

And that he could put in a good word
for me if I made it worth his while.

- I'll beat his head in.
- What good would that do?

It would only bring the police down
that much sooner.

Forget it. Forget me.

I always get by somehow.

As your friend Felix would say,
Ive become an expert at getting by.

Well you better start teaching me
some of the tricks.

- What do you mean?
- Were gonna get by together now.

'RRomantic young
American anxious to ruin his life.

- WI'll accept any unreasonable offer. '
- WI'll you marry me?

What good would that do?

I dont know about you,
it would do me a lot of good.

And then what?

Think theyll leave me alone
because you married me?

Well, if they dont, we'lll move on.

Have you an unlimited island supply?
Youll need it.

Not necessarily,
well be able to settle somewhere.

- Where?
- Well, here, Cuba, Venezuela.

Venezuelas hopping now.
Or Mexico, finally the States.

- Dreams.
- Theyre not such dreams.

It can be arranged. Theres papers
you can get if you know people.

Nine times out of 10 they may not be
perfect papers, but theyll pass.

You just need a little money.

- A little money?
- All right, then, a lot of money.

And then whatll you do?

Write to your father in Indiana?
And whatll you say?

'dear Father, please send me
$ 10,000 airmail.

I want to buy the future of a lady
in trouble with the police'?

I can see him rushing to his bank
soon as he gets the letter.

- Daddy isnt the answer.
- Who is?

- I'll find...
- Why are you saying this, out of pity?

If I was going to pity anybody,
Id pity myself if I lost you.

You dont know me.

Go to Felix.
Ask him to give you his lecture...

...on the subject of women like me.

- Then see what you have to say.
- I dont need any lecture from Felix.

Im no good. I'mm all worn-out.

Ive been passed from hand to hand.

Ive had to submit to things
nice young American boys...

...couldnt conceive of
in their wildest nightmares.

Ive lived among the ruins.

Armies have marched over me.

Armies.

Ive been debased.

I look in the mirror
and I say, 'What a lie. "'

At the first glance, the face
looks like the face of a human being.

A wonderful face.

Inside a year, youll get to hate it.

Youll look at it, and you'lll remember
everything behind it.

No, I'll look at it,
and I'lll think how beautiful it is.

If I remember anything,
itll be how you looked...

...sitting on the pier, waiting for us.

Brave, quiet, shining,
ready to defend yourself.

In a while, youll forget everything
before that morning.

I guarantee it.

What a wonderful thing it is
to be an American.

You believe you can
forget everything.

Irena.

Hi.

Welcome. Hang around.

Next number on the program
is the Beethoven Ninth.

Yeah, I want to talk to you.

Ive got a date to a cockfight
in 10 minutes.

If you leave your name
with the secretary...

- ... she might arrange something later.
- I have to talk to you, Felix.

- Have a drink.
- I dont want anything to drink.

You want to listen to a medical fact?

In this climate, sobriety kI'lls
more people per year...

...than heart trouble, motor accidents
or crimes of passion combined.

- Stop being so gay. Im serious.
- Gay, me?

Im so sad that little dogs howl
in despair when they see me.

I have a proposition to make to you,
Felix.

To passengers. To tall,
long-legged, dark-eyed passengers.

I want one more trip with you
in that boat. A big one.

Miguels got something for us.

No more passengers.

Ive discovered I'mm a freight carrier
at heart. I'mm gauche.

I dont know how to mingle
with passengers.

Dont worry, it's only freight,
but they'rre in a hurry.

Theyre wI'lling to pay.

One more trip and then what?

Then well sell the boat, and
we'lll split the proceeds and go alone.

- Alone?
- Not quite alone.

- Not quite alone?
- Im gonna marry her, Felix.

Of course.

Shes no good. She'lll cheat you,
she'lll pull you down.

Everywhere you go, youll find men
who look at you and laugh...

...and say, 'GGet a load of what our
old friend Irena's gotten ahold of now. "'

Shell ruin you. When she gets
a better offer, she'lll leave you.

So naturally, youre gonna marry her.

I made up my mind before I came
I wasnt gonna hit you.

I see shes got you domesticated
already.

In order to start this marriage
on the right foot...

...we want to make a little trip,
do we?

Well, you take it yourself.

Im gonna stay right here
and listen to the music.

Go ahead. You dont need me.
You know the way.

You get ahold of Jimmy Jean and
go sailing off on the calm, blue water.

Go ahead, consider it a gift,
a wedding present.

The use of the boat by yourself
and all the proceeds.

Consider it a dowry for the bride.

- You dont want to go?
- Nope.

Well split it down the middle.
You get your share.

I dont want it.
I'mm gonna stay here...

...and see if I can find a buyer
for the boat.

I was getting tired of that boat anyway,
that port engine.

Port engine was wearing me down.

- When are you leaving?
- Tomorrow night.

- Give my best to Miguel.
- Yeah, what if something goes wrong?

Nothing wI'll go wrong.

The usual arrangements.
00.

Two lights wI'll be showing.

If anything has gone wrong,
there wont be any lights.

Good luck.

Tony. Tony, were ready.

- Let me come with you.
- Are you crazy?

After all of the trouble we had
getting you out of there?

- I dont want to be left alone.
- It's only six days.

Three days out and three days in.
Its nothing.

- I dont want to be left alone anymore.
- Only six days more.

Then I'll never leave you alone again,
I promise.

There they are.

Ahoy! Ahoy, there.
Heave to!

- Coast Guard!
- They were laying for us.

Heave to!

- Somebody must have tipped them off.
- Heave to!

- What you doing?
- Im gonna beach her.

Coast Guard coming alongside.

Youll never make it, Tony.

We want to inspect your cargo
and see your papers!

Ahoy!

Heave to, or we wI'll fire!

- Tony, Im waiting on you.
- It's a long swim in.

Its a long time in the jug.

Come on, lets get out of here.
Make that fast.

Wed better separate from now on.

If you get back before I do,
you do one thing for me, Jimmy Jean.

You tell Felix Im coming after him,
you got that?

Heres a letter for you, Jimmy Jean.

Tony.

'JJimmy Jean, keep this to yourself.

Im on my way back, just shipped
aboard a Greek tug, the Ulysses.

We ought to arrive in about 10 days.

Im going to need your help.
Watch for me. Tony. "'

Dr. Sam, this is Fran�ois.
Can you hear me, Sam? Hello?

- Yes?
- I say, this is Fran�ois.

Theres been an accident.
There was this collision...

- ... between a freighter and a liner.
- A collision?

- The freighter was coming into port.
- Coming into port?

I waited until I got all possible details
before I called you.

- How many hurt?
- They asked me to bring a doctor.

- Can you hear me, Sam?
- I'll be right down.

So during the fog, there was this
little collision during the night.

The liner was hardly damaged
and didnt turn back.

But the freighter is limping into port,
the S.S. Ulysses.

How many people are hurt?

The radiogram only mentioned one,
a sailor.

Hes jammed up in the bow,
and they can't get him out.

Oh, well, if a man signs up
to be a sailor...

...he must expect little inconveniences
like that from time to time.

Hello. Here comes the fog.

Hey, look out!

At last. Finally.

- I'll write such a report!
- Where is he?

In case youre not familiar
with maritime law...

- ...I shall clearly state in that report...
- Yes, you do that, captain.

- Where is he?
- Where is who?

The injured man.

Where would he be?
Forward, in that hold.

- Caught like a weasel in a trap.
- Show us how to get to him.

Hes down that hatch, but let me
warn you, this is dangerous.

Everythings loose, liable
to come down at any moment.

- Youll have to creep on your belly.
- Stop wasting my time.

Its at your own risk.
I take no responsibility!

Hey! Youll need this.

Welcome, boys.

This way, Sam.

Can I offer you boys a drink?

- This is the doctor. Are you hurt?
- I dont know. You tell me, doc.

You dont look so bad.

You ought to see me
when I dont need a shave.

- Does anything feel broken?
- No.

Can you move your toes?

I dont know.
I can't feel them anymore.

They wiggle.

There doesnt seem
to be anything broken.

You wont be able to go
to any dances for a little while.

I had no appointments.

- What happened?
- I was checking the cargo...

...and all of a sudden the roof fell in.

Iron started raining down
like rice at a wedding.

Something conked me in the head,
and I passed out.

Came to, here I was,
locked up for being a bad boy.

I dont need a doctor,
I need a wrecking crew.

Well be in port in two hours.
We'lll get you out in no time.

Dont make any sudden moves,
because the furniture is fragile.

Theres genuine antiques.

- Whats your name?
- Tony...

- ... Hackenhausen.
- Whats that, a German name?

Yeah, Im the scion
of an old Bavarian family.

Is there anybody
you want us to notify?

No, nobody.

- Youre sure?
- Yeah, I'mm sure.

My folks all got wiped out in the war.
The Hundred Years War.

Is there anything
we can do for you now?

Yeah, tell the boys Im hungry.
And I'd love a bottle of beer.

Maybe they could rig a light up here.
Im an only child. I'mm afraid of the dark.

Okay, Tony.

- I'll be back.
- I'lll be waiting.

You better keep the torch.

Yeah.

- Well?
- Hes all right.

Let me use your radio, captain.

I want to have some people
standing by with equipment.

Well try and get him out
as soon as we get into port.

By all means. And while youre at it...

...ask the fire department
to be there waiting for us too.

- What do you mean?
- Take a good deep breath.

- Smell anything?
- Somethings burning?

Its in the aft hold.
Come with me.

The collision started something.

Sparks. Spontaneous combustion.

- What have you got in there, captain?
- Rubber.

Raw rubber!

Id better get that radio off right now.
I'lll be back in a moment, Sam.

What a night. Six hours out
of port, and this had to happen.

Captain, this boy
whos caught up forward...

...he says his names Hackenhausen.

If he says his name is Hackenhausen,
then his name is Hackenhausen.

- He says hes German.
- The world's full of Germans.

- He speaks English like an American.
- He has a talent for languages.

- The Germans are clever people.
- Did you see his papers?

He said he had lost his papers.

Id like to see his bunk,
if I may, captain.

Its all the same to me. It's right
in there, in the far corner on top.

Thanks.

- What do you think, Fran�ois?
- The poor devil.

WI'll they be able to get him out?

Theres an American Navy
repair ship in port.

I radioed to get hold of them.

And the fire department
is standing by.

What do you think, Fran�ois?
WI'll they get him out?

Maybe.

If anybody can get him out,
they wI'll.

Maybe not all in one piece,
but theyll get him out.

- How are things, Fran�ois?
- The American Navy is at work.

- What do they say?
- They dont say anything.

They just whistle through their teeth
and call for Coca-Colas.

- Are they putting out the fire?
- It is a fire of raw rubber, monsieur.

One does not put out
a fire of raw rubber.

Sometimes with luck,
with a great deal of luck...

...one puts such a fire under control.

- Infrequently.
- Whats the matter with him?

Hes an important man,
and an unpleasant decision faces him.

Therefore, he must try and make
others feel as unpleasant as he does.

- Whats the decision?
- The decision.

To keep the fire under control...

...he has to pour ton after ton
of water into the hold.

Now, if he pours in enough...

...at a certain moment,
the Ulysses wI'll capsize and sink.

When that happens,
he wI'll lose his job, and so wI'll I...

...because we permitted the ship
to sink alongside a dock.

And well deserve to lose our jobs...

...because it wI'll put the dock out of
commission for at least, oh, a year.

To say nothing of the money
it wI'll cost...

...to float it again
and get it out of the way.

To say nothing of the man in there
who wI'll sink with it.

To say nothing.

But if he does not put
enough water into the hold...

...to keep the fire under control,
the fire wI'll spread.

In the very next hold,
weve just discovered a charming fact.

There is a load of nitrates.
Eighty tons of nitrates.

If the fire were to reach the 80 tons
of nitrates, there goes the Ulysses.

And there goes, perhaps,
half the harbor facilities of this port.

To say nothing of the man
in the bow.

To say nothing.

Do you wonder that the captain
is a little snappish?

No, but the American Navy
must have said something.

Ask the American Navy yourself.
Here it comes.

Lt. Sellers, permit me to
introduce our port doctor, Sam Blake.

- How do you do, doctor?
- How does it look, lieutenant?

Great. Were putting in
some hydraulic jacks.

If they hold,
well get him out by tonight.

- And if they dont hold?
- Kindly notify next of kin.

- See you later, sir.
- Right. Hows the boy?

Sitting down there,
playing the harmonica.

He plays real nice, that boy.

Lieutenant!

- Were just about ready to try it now.
- Okay, I'lll be right down.

- You want to come along?
- Think I'll be of any use?

- I sure do.
- Thanks.

If anything goes wrong, youre gonna
have a lot of customers, doc.

Boatswain, whats up
with the forward hold?

Get those grapplings undone
on the double.

Hows it going, Mac?

- Be ready in a few minutes, lieutenant.
- Good.

Hi, lieutenant. Youre here again?

What are you doing,
bucking for admiral?

What did you bring the doctor for?
Is somebody sick?

He likes harmonica music.

- Hows the fire doing aft?
- It's just about under control.

Lieutenant?

Slowly going out of control, Tony.

How long do you give it?

Twelve hours,
give or take a few minutes.

Youre an officer and a gentleman.

Always the straight dope, huh?

- Always the straight dope.
- Lieutenant, were all set here.

Okay, I'll tell you when to start.

Now, look, Im gonna start the jacks
and the winches going.

All we have to do is raise
this girder 3, 4 inches.

If you feel it lifting, try to get
your legs out by yourself, got it?

- WI'll do.
- And if things start falling, cover up.

- What wI'll you do?
- I'll sing the "'MMarine Hymn. "'

Okay, lets go.

All right, start them!

Hold it!

Nothing doing, lieutenant.

All right, slack off.

There goes your ball game,
lieutenant.

- Not yet.
- Straight dope?

The straight dope.

We cant get you out this way, Tony.

Well have to try putting in more jacks
with a different rig, but it'lll take time.

My time is your time.

Im gonna start my boys working from
the outside with acetylene torches.

I dont think we'lll have time enough
to reach you, Tony, but we'lll try.

Where does this leave me,
sitting here frying?

Sitting there frying.

Doc, could you perform
an operation down here?

Get out of here, both of you.
I know what youre thinking.

Youll get me out, all right. You'lll get
half of me out! Leave me alone!

If youre gonna get me out,
you get me out in one piece.

Otherwise, keep away from me!

- Think about it, Tony.
- Peddle your wheelchairs elsewhere!

Okay, I'll start the boys
with the torches right away.

Doc, you stop sucking around me,
and if you come near me...

...with one needle, I'll brain you,
so help me I wI'll.

I wont touch you. Tony, isn't there
somebody you want to talk to?

No!

Have you seen this picture before?

Yeah, the lady is my aunt Clara...

...and the man is my
Sunday-school teacher...

...and the colored gentleman
played second base...

...when I managed
the New York Giants.

Ever see that before?

Yeah, they gave them out as favors
at a strawberry festival I once went to.

Now, dont be so tough, Tony.
We want to help you.

Help me? You want to make
a half a man out of me.

- We want to keep you alive.
- I dont like the terms. It's no deal.

You come back when you
can make a better offer.

And keep out of my locker
from now on!

- I'll be back to see you again soon.
- Don't hurry on my account.

Boatswain, get more men
pitching those acetylene bottles.

- Howd you make out?
- I tried to talk him into it...

...but he wouldnt have it.

Its the only way you'rre gonna
get him out of there.

What do you think?

My job is to get him
out of there alive if I can.

Thats all, I think.

My job is to keep as much
of the human race as possible...

...alive as long as possible.

What would you do
if you were in there?

Me? Id say, "'CCut away, doc. "'

Ive lots to live for,
I got a wife and two kids.

Maybe hes got nobody.

Hes got somebody. A boy like that's
bound to have somebody.

- Well, they better turn up real fast.
- Yes.

Hey, boatswain,
we havent got all day.

Lets get some more men up here.

Is that boy gonna be
all right, Dr. Sam?

Sure.

They gonna get that boy
out of there, Dr. Sam?

- Whats your name?
- What difference what's my name?

- Well, you know mine.
- Everybody knows Dr. Sam.

Jimmy Jean.

- Do you want to help that boy in there?
- Might be.

- Like a drink?
- Might be.

Right.

Chief, clear more room
on the pier for drums.

Well, thats the way it was.

You asked me why that boy
might be arriving on this island...

...with a gun in his locker.

I guess you got as much
of an answer as you need.

What about Felix, is he here?

- And the girl?
- Shes here too, with him.

Youre coming with me, Jimmy Jean.

- Where to, doc?
- Do you know where Felix is?

- Yes, I do, doc.
- Right.

Monsieur, its no good.

The fire is completely out of control.

This ship of mine is going to blow up.

We have got to take her
out of the dock.

Come on, you men. Get more stages
fixed to get those barrels down.

Get those gasoline drums out
before the fire reaches them.

Boatswain, push that guy
up on the winch.

Lieutenant! Lieutenant.

- Lieutenant.
- Come on, you men.

Dont act like a bunch of flakes.

Get those drums hove to.
Jones, lend them a hand.

Listen, lieutenant, we cant
give you any more time.

Weve waited too long as it is.

I want to save the boy
as much as anyone does...

...but that ship is likely to blow up any
second. Get your men out of there.

Im ordering her to be pulled out
into the middle of the roadstead...

...where she can explode without
blowing up the whole town with her.

You understand my position,
lieutenant, dont you?

Yes. Yes, of course.
Look, give me 15 more minutes.

- What good wI'll 15 more minutes do?
- Were putting in another jack.

- Do you think it wI'll work?
- No, but we have to try.

But Im telling you,
it's likely to go up any second.

Are you wI'lling to go
in there and risk it?

All right, forget about yourself.
I know thats your privilege.

- But are you wI'lling to risk your men?
- If I pull them out of there now...

...I'll be marked lousy from one
end of the service to the other.

Navies!

I suppose a man has to be a lunatic in
the first place, anyway, to join a navy.

All right, 15 minutes. Im crazy,
I say yes. And not a second more.

And Im going to stand right here.
If it blows, I want to blow with it.

I dont want to be around
to answer any questions later.

Go! Go ahead, man.
Dont stand there looking at me...

...with that sad, accusing American
face of yours. Im tired of it.

Polaski, bring up more jacks
for the forward hold.

Hi, lieutenant.
Youre stI'll bucking for admiral, huh?

- Yeah.
- Came in the back door this time.

We opened it up, just in case
you want to get out in a hurry.

Yeah, just in case.

Now, listen, were gonna make
one more try with the jacks.

They might work, but if things begin
to tumble around in here...

...and I cant reach you,
that's the best way out.

Okay.

This is the last try, Tony.

Theyre gonna tow this barge
out in the middle of the roadstead.

- And if she goes up...
- I know.

You havent...?

Havent changed your mind
about anything?

No.

Were all ready, lieutenant.

Say when, sir.

All right.

Start them.

Last one.

Someday Im gonna
give up cigarettes.

Me too.

Well, I guess thats it.

Thats it.

Now hear this. Now hear this.
Towing crew, stand by.

All others, abandon ship immediately.
Abandon ship immediately.

Towing crew, stand by.

All others, abandon ship
immediately. Immediately.

Im sorry, kid.
I seen a lot of guys.

I was in the Battle of Leyte Gulf.

I spent 10 hours
in the water in the war.

One thing Id want to have.

Been carrying it for 12 years.
Insurance.

Now hear this. Now hear this.
Cast off all lines.

Just St. George and Navy tug 233
proceed immediately...

...in accordance with instructions.
In accordance with instructions.

Were going for a little ride, dear.

- Whats happening, lieutenant?
- He's stI'll out there.

Weve done everything that we can,
but it's just no use.

Then theres no chance
of getting him off?

None.

Hes stI'll on there.
They couldn't get him off.

What are they waiting for?

Theyre waiting for it to blow up.

You stay here, miss.

You come with me.

- Where?
- Out there.

You and I have got something
to say to that boy.

- I told you to stay behind.
- He might want to see me.

And if he does, I want to be there.

Let the lady come if she wants to.

We better stand off a little.
This ships getting awful warm.

What do you think?
Is there anything I can do?

No, maam, everything you
could do, you already done.

You hate me, dont you, Jimmy Jean?

Yes, maam, I do.

Tell him what you told me.

Doc here says he could get you
out of here if youd let him.

Did he tell you how?

Yeah.

- Tell him what you said.
- I said you wouldnt be alone.

Id take care of you.
We'd take care of you.

Irena and me.

Forever.

- Did she say that?
- Yeah, shes waiting now.

Shes in the launch out here
by the bow.

You want me to get her
and let her tell you herself?

Keep her out of here. Nobodys
gonna have to take care of me.

I told you what hed say, doc.

I know.

Listen. Ive done everything
I can for you, son.

Now I want you
to do something for me.

- What?
- Im a religious man, Tony.

I believe in the word of God
and in the power of prayer.

I believe in grace
and punishment for sin.

When I read, 'VVengeance is mine,
sayeth the Lord"'...

...I believe thats exactly
what it means.

I know why you came
to this island, Tony.

I know what the gun
in your locker was for.

I dont want you to face
the moment ahead of you...

...full of hatred and revenge.

I want you to forgive him, Tony.

Oh, hes no good, I know that. He's
done you great harm, I know that too.

Hes a betrayer...

...and a blasphemer and a liar.

Wherever he goes, he leaves
a path of ruin behind him.

But I want you to forgive him.

Let me tell you something, doc.

If I had a gun in my hand,
Id kI'll him this minute.

And if I had a son,
Id curse him...

...if he didnt promise me to spend his
life tracking him down and kI'lling him.

If I had a brother, Id swear
I'd never let him rest...

...until he promised me
that hed get him.

And if I had a wife...

...the only way that she could ever
prove that she loved me would...

Okay, doc, youve had your chance.

Now let me have mine.
You get out of here.

Tony and I have some things we have
to say to each other. In private.

- Tony?
- Go on.

Im all the things the doc said, kid.

Plus a couple more
he neglected to mention.

But Im not gonna
leave you alone now.

I warned you we were
doing the wrong thing...

- ... that first night we saw her, didnt I?
- Yeah.

I knew it in my bones.
Im hunchy.

Its a funny thing, though.
I never have hunches...

...when something goods gonna
happen to me, only bad.

Id be a great guy to consult to know
who was going to lose a horserace.

Does a man get a drink in this place?

To the good years.

I was straight with you
for a long time, Tony.

- I thought so.
- I was.

Im gonna be straight with you now.

You did me a lot of good,
and Im grateful to you.

You picked a great way to show it.

Until you came along, I was a rummy.

Floating around the islands,
getting rolled whenever I was drunk.

Getting beat up in bars.

But nobody in the whole world
to care whether I lived or died.

Then I saw Irena, and I...

I knew they were bringing
the curtain down on me.

I never wanted anything so bad
in my whole life, Tony.

Maybe it was because
we were so much alike.

She got hers in Berlin...

...my whole life has been Berlin.
Give me the bottle.

Only, naturally, like all the rest,
she went to you.

I thought,
'Well, give him a little time.

The games always
over for him by 4:30.

He plays again next Saturday
out of town. '

Then you came to me and told me
you were gonna marry her.

That night I tipped off the customs.

Im ashamed of it. It's the dirtiest
thing a man could ever do.

- And Id do it again, Tony, if I had to.
- And the doctor says forgive!

But I was wrong.
You want to know why?

- Why?
- Because I didnt have to.

Because two days later,
after it was too late...

...to stop you or call off the customs...

...she came to my hotel room,
where I was sitting half-drunk...

...with a three-day beard
on my face...

...and she got down on her knees,
and she kissed my hand.

She told me she couldnt
go through with it with you.

Shed made a mistake.
She couldn't marry you.

You were young and gentle
and offered her safety.

Only she didnt want safety,
she wanted me.

And shed go anywhere and
do anything I wanted her to.

- Youre lying!
- Want me to get her right now...

- ... and have her tell it to your face?
- Go get her!

Tony!

- When I say go, you jump with me.
- Listen...

...you might as well know something.
This doesnt change anything.

And if I pull through this,
Im stI'll coming after you.

Go!

We must get him to a hospital, quick.

How could he have gotten out?

I thought you said he couldnt move
for at least another five days.

I know what I said, but hes a young
man, and he recovers fast.

Doctors.

I saw him. Hes coming here.
He's picked up a gun.

Dont you think you'd better
get out of here?

No, not really, doc.

Sit down, Jimmy Jean. Have a drink.

No, thank you,
I'll have mine at the bar.

- Oh, come on, sit down.
- I'll warn this man...

...but I wont drink with him.

Jimmy Jean has a highly developed
moral sense.

Rare in this day and age.

Simone, bring us another glass.
Were expecting a guest. We...

- Now, Tony...
- Thats all right, doc.

We were expecting you.

I want to talk to you outside.
Alone.

Im ready.

Sit down. We have nothing
to say to each other.

Like the man says, some days
you win, some days you lose.

Drinks are on me.