Original subtitles

The eve of Michaelmas

Good day, everyone!

I'm a journeyman.

From the Jura. Been walking since Saint-Jean.

Room and board?

Hey, Monge!

Hear anything?

I heard.

Monge! If you didn't hear that, then you're deaf.

Lucien!

Show him the stable and get back quick.

Good night, everyone.

- Who's that? - Quiet!

- Will they ever go to bed? - In the end.

Recognise him?

Yes.

- What do we do? - No choice.

What if we're caught?

Clear the way. There's no one else.

THE MURDERED HOUSE

I can boast of one thing:

I saw him first. Then Rose Puiol.

She never wasted any time flashing her ass.

At that point, I didn't know his name.

But I'd almost forgotten the Monges.

- Who should I say? - Monge. Séraphin Monge.

Not even the teacup reader had predicted Monge's return.

She quickly corrected the village's mistake.

We should have given you an explanation.

There could be no board of guardians without a family.

We had to do what needed doing:

find you a nurse and see to your education.

The Sisters of Charity are not for the poor.

The land was sold, but alas, La Burlière...

- La Burlière? - Your family home.

- We couldn't sell it. - Why not?

Why not?

You know.

No.

You don't know but you read your family record book.

I know I'm an orphan.

Well, I was 10 years old back then...

And what does it matter, anyway? It's all in the past.

Weren't you with the Sisters?

No.

I was.

Well, 1250 francs and 50 centimes are left from the sale of the land.

It's yours, as is the house. This is the key.

- Sir? - Yes?

Tell me...

Each month, I received a package from here.

- Do you know who from? - A package...

It must have been my poor father. He was so good.

- Poor father? Is he dead? - Yes, in 1916.

No, it's not him. I received them until last month, in Poland.

- No sender's name? - No, never.

Hello, I'm Rose. Rose Puiol.

Monge was back from the war. The town hall provided

a room in the village and a job as a roadman.

He'd even be working with me.

Rose!

Puiol wanted his daughter married off

but, like lots of the old folk,

he thought misfortune had returned.

I don't know why he didn't go in just then.

Well, I say that... I do understand.

Everyone made a detour around that house

so as not to see it.

I followed him to his new home

but didn't dare talk to him that day.

For a few days, we worked side by side.

Hello.

She said hello to me but she's interested in you.

She made a heck of a detour to come this way.

Marie Dormeur, the baker's daughter.

She takes bread to Paillerolle every day.

Never comes this way.

We should be getting back.

With that colour on the Mées, there'II be a downpour.

No. The Mées is that way.

You have to learn your land!

A lad from here has to know the names of everything.

What's that little rock?

La Belle-Donne?

I've told you 20 times, that's the Gouar rock.

Let's get back.

- Wait! Come here! - Where?

Just come on.

- Come in! - No.

Do you want to catch your death? Come inside.

You don't understand.

After all, you're right.

I've known 2 in my lifetime.

2 roadmen almost as strong as me.

After a soaking like that, they died a week later.

The bigger you are, the more fragile your lungs.

You realise, kid?

The wood burning here was cut 23 years ago.

23 years...

- Hey, are you listening to me? - I'm looking.

23 years...

just your age.

Apart from the dust, nothing's changed.

As for cleanliness, la Girarde... Everything here gleamed.

La Girarde?

- Your mother. - My mother?

Nobody dared tell you.

You went to the Sisters at 3 weeks.

You remember?

Don't know if I should.

Why not?

That bitch'II be the death of us.

Surviving war and Spanish flu only to be struck by lightning!

Why shouldn't you?

Behind that door,

there were fifty of us transfixed, speechless.

There were only two sounds in here that morning:

the clock and a baby crying. You.

They took the bodies, then you.

What bodies?

What I remember most was the smell.

It smelled of warm blood. You can't imagine.

Oh yes I can.

That's true, you know the smell. You went to war.

But I didn't.

There was blood everywhere.

Wherever you see dust there were bloodstains

where feet had waded through it.

Here, where I was sitting, was the grandpa.

Your mother's father.

The blood gave him a red beard on his shirt front,

as if he'd worn a red bib for eating.

And here...

here was Monge, collapsed against the wall.

Lightning Monge.

- Lightning Monge? - Yes.

Your father.

The killer had stabbed him with the spit, hanging there.

Your father, with the spit in him,

managed to crawl here.

You could see his handprint by the salt box.

It's still there.

Here, your 2 brothers,

abandoned at the bottom, their throats cut too.

And your mother was lying here, without her skirt.

My mother?

Don't worry, she wasn't raped.

She had her throat opened too.

But she was the only one with her eyes closed.

As if someone had taken pity on her.

The rest still looked at you.

I know what you want to know.

They found the murderers.

Supposedly three men who worked on the railway.

They were found dead drunk with your father's bottles.

They came from far away, some sort of country...

Herzegovina, they said.

They had the devil of a iob to find an interpreter.

Anyway... They were guillotined.

Do you see now why everything was left?

Why no one even stole a pinch of salt.

They couldn't give La Burlière away.

This house bears the sign of the crime and above all...

the sign of the scaffold.

But I don't believe it happened like that.

There was too much mystery to Monge.

It wasn't like that.

And you know what happened, then, vermin?

I knew one day this bloody door would be opened.

For shelter.

Shut up, you! What did you tell him?

Nothing. Well, everything that could be said.

Because you know what can be said? You poisoned his life!

That's what you've done!

Who's that?

Zorme. He has powers.

What's he saying?

Don't try to understand. He's not talking to us

but to the devil. Don't look.

What is it?

My mother.

She's been dead 20 years.

But only 5 minutes to me.

Séraphin!

I know you're there.

- Recognise me? - Yes.

- You weren't at the memorial. - I'm alive.

You should have, everyone was there.

- Already you're not liked... - Not my fault I survived.

It's not that. My father had them write your name.

He's a town councillor.

He didn't like Paillerolle having more dead.

It wasn't against you.

- What do you want? - Me? Nothing.

Bye.

Séraphin?

- Come to the a.l.oli. - Not invited.

I'm inviting you.

What are you doing?

Nothing, just waiting for you. Do you mind?

They crossed out my name. If we arrive together...

Morning, Mr Dormeur, Madame Dormeur.

Go in, I'll be right back.

Hello, Marie. I hope there's enough for us.

- What's she doing with him? - You know about his house?

- We all do. - I couldn't.

I'd feel surrounded by his dead family.

Could you?

Yes.

So the Paillerolle guy says to me:

We'll get the railway because we're a heroic village.

Heroic village!

At this rate, there'll be nothing but stations in France!

- Come and dance! - Not today.

- Come on! - I'm not alone.

All the same since they've been back.

You came back. Will there be another war soon?

Yes! They'll all go away again!

And I'll dance with the girls!

Séraphin! You have to take a loaf.

No, that's Zorme's, in case he comes.

Take that one.

His father's a PLM engineer. He decides where the stations go.

Séraphin! Come here, I saved you a seat.

I'll say this:

the railway's good for business but think of the outsiders.

What if the outsiders buy?

Some outsiders come back.

Why are you laughing?

Because it bothers you.

We've done nothing wrong.

I didn't ask.

But you know.

We beheaded the murderers.

Very handy, wasn't it?

Their footprints were found, covered in blood.

They stole some brandy. What more proof do you need?

They protested their innocence.

They all do. But they did it in a foreign language.

We didn't understand.

- Very handy. - That's all we've got to say.

You'll find nothing but pain and suffering.

I'm not scared, I've no money.

Now they're rich, they don't like trouble.

Don't listen to fools.

The guilty were punished.

Séraphin! Go and dance.

What's past is past. Join the youngsters.

I should know. The olive mill owner, Didon Puiol,

almost bought La Burlière for a song.

But his wife told him: " If you do, you'll live alone.

"I won't set foot there." She was scared of ghosts.

She was right.

Every night, the mother returns for her baby.

- I can't dance. - I'll teach you.

Look at him! He's spoilt our party with his evil eye.

You waited for me? That's nice.

You shouldn't have.

My bread!

Give me my bread.

He's not scared. That's because he's new here.

But this is home. Despite what some say.

Thank you, Séraphin Monge.

Thank you.

No garlic, thank you. I hear it's evil.

For people like me.

Excellent bread, Célestat Dormeur.

Better than last year.

Did fear fall into the dough?

The seasoning gives it a slightly exotic taste.

Happy to be back in your village, Séraphin Monge?

You see: everyone's celebrating.

We're glad to see you again.

We're your family now.

Even if some were clever enough to tell you things.

To wake the dead. You must never wake the dead!

It can turn against you.

Sometimes.

The next day, I caught a fever.

- Brigue? - I knew you'd come.

Are you ill?

I wouldn't be if I'd told you nothing.

Spanish flu, they say.

I tell you, it's more like the devil's flu.

Never mind. I'm not sorry I told you.

But... remember...

it couldn't have been like that.

Why?

The lawyer said.

Only one thing could make wounds like that:

A gutting knife. A well sharpened gutting knife.

No knives were found on the three from Herzegovina.

And that kind of knife is local.

Not from Herzegovina.

Tell me about my mother. What was she like?

I'm talking about the murderers.

- They're dead and gone. - I'm not too sure.

Since you told me, I get nightmares.

I see... I see pieces.

The house, my father... A cradle.

But I never see faces. What was my mother like?

She was beautiful.

There was a portrait of her at La Burlière, but...

Well, it disappeared.

Get some fresh air. The dead are trying to get you.

Trying to get you into a bed to finish their work.

Watch out, son.

Watch out.

Clorinde!

Come here.

Listen to me.

Don't shout! Célestat's having his nap.

I want to see you. Séraphin Monge is mad.

- He's burning his furniture. - What?

He's at La Burlière, burning everything!

I was picking oregano for Brigue's fever.

He was trying to smash the table.

And the kneading trough was in the fire.

Marie! What are you doing?

Where are you going?

Where's she off to?

God knows. She's mad. She makes me dizzy.

No, not that!

What's it to you?

- Move. - You know who I am?

Yes, the baker's daughter. Move, I said!

- No one speaks to me like that. - I know.

Never burn a cradle. Where will your children sleep?

- I won't have any. - I want some.

- What's stopping you? - You. You love someone else.

I'm not here to love anyone.

I was looking for a family and unfortunately I found it.

I don't want to talk about it.

All our men have gone

and you think of the dead. Didn't you see enough?

Leave me alone.

If I were a man, I'd stop you doing this.

- You've no right! - How do you know?

Do you know why I'm burning this?

Do you know my mother crawls to my cradle every night?

Let me go.

If no one had said, I'd think she died normally.

I can't even have revenge, someone else already did.

You're hurting me.

Someone was listening.

I didn't hear a thing.

I'm always on guard.

War gives you habits.

That day, old Brigue died of Spanish flu.

Spanish flu! Easy to say.

Then one day there was no smoke nor flames at La Burlière.

Is it over?

- No. - You burned it all.

No. The house agrees with me.

It knows it has to go.

- Go. - Let me through.

He's too unhappy and he'll never love anyone.

- Not you. Now it's my turn. - You don't understand!

He has to choose between the house and us.

I'm going.

You spoke to the roadman again.

- He has a name! - I don't care.

He belongs here too.

If his folk weren't dead, he'd be like us.

Get this straight! I don't want him hanging around you!

It's not him, it's me. And why shouldn't I speak to him?

Is marrying a handsome man immoral?

He won't want to marry you.

- Why not? - I saw him with Marie Dormeur.

She was talking, that's different.

No. He was doing all the talking.

That's enough.

We know nothing about him but he has his family's blood

and went through a war without a scratch.

A black star protects him.

I don't want him in my house.

That's why it suited you to put his name on the monument!

It didn't suit anyone! Now be quiet.

I told you not to speak to roadmen.

Why not?

- Because. - That's right.

Why not stop her seeing the only man left?

- A roadman! - So what?

Without roads I couldn't sell your bread.

Don't raise your voice!

He's a good lad, a hard worker and very handsome.

- What do you know of beauty? - We're too old.

He's not handsome. He's dreadfully unhappy.

Exactly! So steer clear of misfortune.

Misfortune is catching.

Say his name and leave the table!

That night my father said nothing.

Anxiety took his appetite. I'd never seen him like that.

Then early one morning, I saw them talking.

Funny to watch the baker and the miller.

They'd never talked before.

Now, Séraphin was demolishing his house.

Come on.

The village layabouts came to see the madman.

Hey, madman!

As you like it up there, you might as well stay!

Come on, lads!

Now we'll show him. Aim for the head.

Put the ladder back or I'll thrash you with my whip.

Let's go, lads.

That's right.

A painter called Picasso does this kind of thing.

I could be his model.

I kept my arse. They used some to give me a shoulder.

Thanks. I'd be up there but for you.

You'd have been humiliated.

But I don't want that. My name's Patrice Dupin.

- I'm... - I know.

- Looks like you came through. - It does.

- Still think of it? - War?

Never.

Yes. You've other things to think of.

You're the only one who hasn't asked why.

Why what?

We all have our burdens.

They broke you inside. Why not be less formal?

Like in the war? I had too much of that.

I've no more friends either.

Come and see me.

It's on the Pourcelles road, at Pontradieu.

My father bought a house there. Well, more like a chateau.

He's playing the noble.

You'll see, it's funny.

Good day, ma'am!

Was there a farm called La Burlière round here?

There was.

Wasn't it an inn back then? A post house?

- Could you show me the road? - There's no road nor house.

My name's Margoulite.

Joseph.

I came by here 25 years ago.

I remember like it was yesterday.

I came from the Jura as a journeyman.

It was my tour of France.

I've made my way since then.

But I tell you, money is no substitute for the road.

I can still see the house.

You mustn't talk of it. There was a crime at La Burlière.

It's an accursed place.

I can imagine.

With 3 innocents guillotined...

- Why say that? - I was there that night.

Back then I came on foot.

- What do you want? - I'm in building.

I'm building a house for Parisians the other side of the Gouar.

I heard that...

Well, I learned he'd come back.

Séraphin? He won't stay long.

Demolished his house?

What do you want?

That shows it's still eating him too.

I was right to come. But his revenge

should be on men. I'll tell him the truth.

- We know the truth. - No!

Hello!

Yes?

Quite a iob!

It's funny. I say that because I'm concerned.

You demolish, while I build.

Help yourself to any stones.

It was a fine house 25 years ago.

- Twenty-five years ago? - That's right.

I'll never forget that night.

I've never talked of it.

I was 18.

I was covered in blood and scared they'd accuse me.

That's why I ran.

I stayed for ten days

hidden in the mountains

with only my fear.

- You saw the 3 men? - I saw 3 men, yes.

Before I got here.

I'd been walking 2 days.

In the bend after Les Mées lies a spring.

Level with the ground.

I drank, then fell asleep.

I don't know what woke me.

A noise, or the voices...

- How will we make him say it? - We've plenty of ways.

Monge has a heart of stone. And what if we're caught?

We won't be. We'll cover each other.

My grandfather would sharpen his knife on this stone.

Will we need it?

If we do, they'll be sharp.

Didn't you warn my father when you arrived?

How? I didn't make the connection.

I was hungry. I'd come from the Jura.

Monge meant nothing to me.

Wait... How did you understand them?

- They were foreign. - Not a bit!

They spoke like you and me. They were locals.

That's not what's important.

On the contrary, it's very important.

What about the one without a mask? How big was he? How old?

The truth isn't easy to tell.

When I arrived,

I saw I was in the way,

the storm had spread indoors.

After supper, one of your brothers took me to my bed.

He opened a trapdoor and I went to the stables.

I lay down and slept. But not for long.

Noises awoke me. I was thirsty. I thought:

"What if you disturb them? You need a drink."

So I opened the trapdoor

and saw... It was blood.

I also saw a mass clothing and an outstretched arm

that almost reached your cradle before it fell.

And then... she died.

I know. My mother.

Look out!

Come away.

Forget what he told you.

You should live and be happy.

Zorme! The murderers...

- They were locals. - What does he know?

And you?

He tried to poison your life.

Your house killed him to protect you, you hear?

Believe him, and you're lost.

Lost!

- Wait! - Forget it all!

The demon wants to take you! Don't give in!

Forget!

What a business! What a way to go...

for a man who built houses.

I saw one he built at Paillerolle.

Awful. It looked like a soup tureen.

What did he tell Séraphin?

Nothing. He came to buy stones from La Burlière.

- The house didn't want that. - That's easy to say.

See whether he talked and if it drove Séraphin mad.

He's violent. He's not normal.

No, Célestat. No.

I saw everything. He said nothing to Séraphin.

Didn't have time.

My mother, my family, three innocents guillotined!

And a man who'd done nothing!

Bitch!

I'll get you in the end.

There'll be nothing left!

Hello.

- Séraphin! - We brought presents.

- Olives. - And cream puffs.

Thanks, but don't stay there, it's dangerous.

I have to work. I don't have much time.

We shouldn't come together.

He's much nicer alone.

- Come alone, then. - I don't answer to you.

- Patrice. - Shh. I'm dreaming.

She looked right at me without lowering her eyes.

She...

- She smiled at me. - Which one?

The Persian. The one who looks like a Persian.

- A Persian? You're sure? - I don't know.

That's how I see her.

- Are you crying? - Yes.

I know how to cry.

Take the olives. She brought them.

I'll put them in a glass case.

And eat the other's cream puffs.

What about you?

What would I do with them?

You eat them when you're happy.

If only I could erase my face

as you did your house.

I won't just erase it. I'll find the murderers.

The real ones.

25 years later? God knows what's happened to them.

Are they even alive, after the war?

I'd know if they were dead.

I'd just know.

How could my father earn so much?

"June 11892, Gaspard Dupin."

"Didon Puiol."

"Célestat Dormeur."

"acknowledge owing Mr Félicien Monge 1500..."

"1000... 1200..."

With 1000 francs, back then you'd buy 10 hectares.

He'd be getting 23o% interest.

23o%! 1000 francs at 23o%.

Enough to make you want a man dead.

"Payable to Mr Félicien Monge Michaelmas, 1896."

The night of the crime was Michaelmas eve.

Three debts. Three local men.

Dupin, Puiol, Dormeur.

Hello, Mr Dormeur.

The olive mill owner, Didon Puiol...

But I don't want that. My name's Patrice Dupin.

Dupin the rich man, Puiol the miller, Dormeur the baker.

A loaf?

I just wanted to thank you father for the cream puffs.

Hello, Mr Dormeur.

See you soon, Marie.

What's wrong? You've never come before.

I came to thank your father for the delicious olives.

My word, now he talks!

Let's go, father doesn't like you.

Oh, why's that?

You bring bad luck. It's made his oil darker.

- You'll enioy Pontradieu. - I'm sure.

- I can rely on you? - Fine. Sunday for lunch.

- Thank your father. - I'd rather surprise him.

- Right. We'll surprise him, then. - Bye.

Séraphin! What are you doing?

I thought you weren't coming.

Looking at the pond.

It's my father's pride and ioy.

It's his ritual stroll, even when he gets back late.

He has to walk around his little lake.

Come on, we eat at noon here.

My mother's already seated.

So you're Séraphin Monge. So it's you.

My God, if I'd thought that...

- If I'd been told that one day... - She's as deaf as a post.

Yes, but she's alive.

She's never heard me laugh or cry.

My father married her for her inheritance.

- Your father isn't here? - No, he's in Marseilles.

That's him.

Don't I look like him?

Sit down.

- Is he rich? - Very.

There's my mother's inheritance. He waited ages for that.

How long?

The inheritance? It was around 1900. I was 10.

- So I'd have been 4? - Yes.

- It seems to be a problem. - No.

So when I was born, he was poor?

He couldn't know.

Then there was the war.

Good business for a blacksmith.

Very good business. Shoes for horses

and then shells.

He made as many as fell on us.

Earned him more millions than I have pieces in my face.

But when he saw me like this, he wanted to give them back.

But didn't know who to.

Charmaine, my sister.

Her husband was killed October 1917.

It's a sin, an ass like that used only for sitting!

Stop it, Patrice.

It's compulsory to like her.

Sit down. It'd bother me if you grew any more.

- Isn't father here? - No, he'll be back tonight.

Conchita changed her day.

- How much will she take today? - As long as she's not pregnant...

Someone could do the iob for him.

Does this discussion bother you?

It always stimulates conversation.

The guest is embarrassed and changes the subiect.

Get used to it. He's a man of few words.

I wouldn't mind if he looked at me.

The chair you're admiring is a real Louis XIII.

I'll show you the one in my room, if you like.

That girl I saw on Sunday at La Burlière...

Which one?

The one who smiled and said hello.

- Oh, the Persian? - Yes, the Persian.

- That's Rose Puiol. - Rose.

- You see her now and then? - I run into her.

If you do, could you tell her...

Nothing. Tell her nothing at all.

I'll do that.

- I have to be going. - I'll walk him to the gate.

Come back soon. It was good to see you.

I've no friends and no yen to have any.

Nor do I yearn to party.

It scares people when I laugh.

I know with you there's no danger of that.

No. With me, there's no danger.

Not even for me?

- Is there a Rose in your life? - No, there's no one.

How long will you ignore me?

- I'm a roadman. - Does that stop you living?

Or do you need excuses?

Take this.

It opens the back door

that leads to the long passage.

My room is first on the right.

I'll wait for as long as it takes.

My brother wanted us to meet.

I wouldn't hurt him for the world.

Same goes for you.

Feed them yourself every night

otherwise they won't recognise you.

Goodbye, Mr Dupin.

Looking for trouble.

Those beasts are more dangerous than a loaded rifle.

Exactly. And I want it known that they are dangerous.

I've wanted to do this for a long time.

Conchita's father breeds them. I knew them as puppies.

They're obedient to me.

They're capable of killing a man in total silence.

Killing? Do you really know what it means?

- He's been here. - Who?

The roadman.

If you mean Séraphin Monge, you're right. He was here.

- I can sense it. - You've never seen him.

I don't need to. I know where he's been.

He came to lunch and spoke to Miss Charmaine.

She mustn't.

You judge him without knowing him.

He's a Bolshevik!

You don't destroy a house.

You have to respect memory, property,

the work of others. He sets...

a bad example. - And you set a good one?

I set nothing! I want to be left alone.

Anyway, what are you blaming me for?

For not suffering.

How do you know?

Everyone suffers inside.

In his own way.

You're glad to have your car and English suits.

I sacrificed my scruples to feed you.

So I won't have you judge me.

What I did, I did for you.

So you'd have a comfortable life, fine clothes.

If your roadman returns, I'll set the dogs on him.

You could have some respect. He's unhappy.

God didn't create unhappy people. It's their own fault if they are.

You hear?

I hear the voice of stupidity. The only one you listen to.

Happy now?

You hurt her. Was the meat overdone?

Oh... I'm sincerely sorry if I offended the chatelaine.

Don't call her that.

Go and see her. You may yet save the meal.

She loves me.

She'd throw herself into a fire for me.

She'd throw the others instead.

Puiol.

Dupin.

Dormeur.

The three IOUs aren't in the order in which I decided to kill them.

Somebody's been here and read these papers.

Someone not interested in golden louis either.

Puiol, Dupin, Dormeur.

To kill them I have to know them.

Learn their habits. Choose the time.

Séraphin!

- Why are you here? - I'm looking for you.

- On behalf of Patrice. - What?

He didn't know. Just wanted me to talk to you.

- He's a really nice chap. - Yes.

He's serious. He's disfigured but inside he's like that.

- I know. - And... he really likes you.

Shall I give him a message? What shall I say?

The same thing.

Right, then.

Have a nice day.

Gently now.

What's wrong, dog?

Someone there?

It's nothing.

- Will he come every day? - Maybe he's here for Marie.

Maybe he's not. And she's asleep at this time.

Morning, Séraphin. You're up early.

And the weather... Have you seen this wind?

- Is it the mistral? - No, it's from the mountains.

For a day or two. The air's so dry that the bread won't rise.

The animals hide, they don't eat. Not even the dogs.

Dogs?

They're like limp rags. Their sense of smell goes.

You want a fougasse?

No. A cream puff.

I've made up my mind.

Tonight, I kill Gaspard Dupin.

Did you dare come in? I looked everywhere.

What?

All over the estate.

I saw you come by earlier. I called you.

Not me. It was your father or your brother.

My brother isn't back and my father's playing billiards.

No matter. You came to see me.

See you?

Shall I undress or will you do it?

- O I can go in there? - Er... in there.

- Don't run away, will you? - No. Why?

Look here instead.

Look at me.

Look what I do when you're not here.

I close my eyes.

I imagine you.

I caress myself, waiting for you.

I see you.

You're at the door. Can't find the key.

You try dozens of them.

You've a keyring full.

Never the right one.

Tell me it isn't!

It's never the right one.

Your forehead is burning...

your fingers trembling.

And this wind... The wind that arouses you.

It's the mountain wind.

Come. Come, I beg you.

No. Not yet. You're not there.

You're at the downstairs door. You try the keys.

- I have to go downstairs? - No, Séraphin!

Come. I've waited for you so long.

Do you like me? Tell me you do.

Tell me I'm alive? Kiss me.

Kiss me!

No, you're not here. You're downstairs.

I got fed up and broke down the door.

You finally decided.

Gently, there!

Gently!

Yes... You're making love to me in front of everyone.

All those who wanted to bury us.

But we're stronger!

They watch and it's killing them.

Patrice!

Patrice... Oh, my God.

It can't be. He's killed himself.

Oh, my God!

Thank God.

It's his fault.

If you hadn't brought him, it wouldn't have happened.

He carries death with him.

He killed your father!

Quiet, madwoman.

Just be quiet.

What happened?

He must have slipped.

I killed the dogs but it was too late.

Then she came out with her gun.

She saw a silhouette in the grounds.

That was you, no doubt.

Maybe.

I'd been to see the Persian.

Rose.

Thanks to you.

I was happy.

I regret his death but I can't be unhappy.

- Where are you going? - Home.

Stay. I need you.

The doctor and the police are coming. They'll ask questions.

Don't worry, I'll tell them why you were here.

I'm not afraid. Not for me, anyway.

I'd be thrilled to say we were making love.

Hey! Gaspard Dupin won't be buried whole.

What are you on about?

- They'll open him like a beast. - What is all this?

The doctor was ending his report with "natural causes"

when a policeman arrived, soaking, teeth chattering.

- It didn't rain. - No. He fell in the water.

The captain went to check, and said:

"The edge was slippery over 3 metres. Anyone would fall in."

And?

There was soap along the edge.

- Like an ice rink. - Meaning?

It was a crime.

A crime? By whom?

It was him! The one who demolished his house!

He has blood on his mind.

His whole family was killed, only he escaped.

He was 3 weeks old!

He drags death around wherever he goes.

- Like the war... - Quiet, you're mad!

Somebody greased the edge, though.

Something to say?

You must have had a good alibi.

I never believed it.

Thank you.

They arrested Dupin's son over the inheritance.

They always think it's about money.

I don't care.

- Is it true, you and the widow? - Let them talk.

I can't sleep. I forget the bread, get deliveries wrong...

Marie... I don't know where I am.

There's more to life than housebreaking!

It's not just that. I'm incapable of loving.

Even the widow?

Even the widow.

Then I can wait.

- The murderer is Patrice Dupin. - You're making it up.

- It might be him. - No. I know.

- It can only be him. - Who else could it be?

No one asked you!

- I'm going, anyway. - Where?

The police. He can't think we've abandoned him.

Stay or I'll lock you in.

You'll say nothing. He's a Dupin.

- I'd go even if he wasn't rich. - He's a man.

- You want a slap? - It was Séraphin Monge once.

- Say it's not true. - It is.

But I can't help it. Séraphin isn't a man.

You heard what she said? He's not a man.

It's not a man who killed Dupin.

What do you mean?

You can understand a gun or a knife.

They're men's weapons. But soap?

- So what? - What if she's right?

If Patrice Dupin is innocent, someone killed Gaspard.

That's woman's nonsense.

What reason would he have? None.

I'm not scared of him.

He wouldn't hurt anyone. He's just bad luck.

Not his fault.

They're Morpho butterflies from South America.

These species are worth thousands of francs.

Before the war I was into coins,

but that's far prettier on the wall.

- Why were they in your car? - The butterflies aren't mine.

I mean the polish and black soap.

Cars break down.

They require tinkering.

I happen to love repairing them. I wash my hands afterwards.

And the polish?

For the leather.

Of course.

As for the revolver, I don't believe my father was shot.

Quite.

But there's a two-hour gap in your timetable.

That's right.

Where were you?

I don't wish to reply.

Between 8 and 10 pm, you had time to grease the edge.

Tell me where you were.

And where were you during the war?

Doing my duty.

At the rear, arresting the poor sods who deserted.

- You refuse to answer? - Yes.

Then I have to keep you.

But I'm not charging you with your father's murder.

I am charging you with possession of an unlawful weapon.

War souvenirs are all well and good.

- But they must remain at home. - It's not a souvenir.

I have others.

Look I...

No.

I had a comrade who looked like me.

Maybe even more sewn up.

One day, weary of war...

You can say that again.

...he blew his brains out. With that.

He left me the gun in his will.

Mockingly.

The law...

The law is the law.

Reassuring.

I authorise you to take a lawyer.

There'll be a bail hearing within 48 hours.

Till then... I'm very sorry.

Séraphin Monge!

The village will try to get you. You must leave!

For good!

Crime poisons everything: both murderers and victims.

And it's contagious... Worse than the plague!

Zorme! Old Brigue said you had a power.

Everyone's scared of you, but not me.

If you've something to say, say it or be quiet.

Do not defy Zorme, Séraphin,

Lest fate catch up with you.

Your destiny is here. I have it.

I hold it! But if you defy me...

Go to bed, you're drunk.

Yes, I do drink. Because I have the power.

But I can change nothing. Flee.

Forget everything.

Now you've murdered your house,

you've no more to do here. No more roots.

You'll always be an outsider because they're cowards!

They'll always reiect you. Snuff you out like their remorse!

They seek revenge.

If you take a wife here,

your children will bear the mark of blood.

Clear off. It's you who should go.

This is my home. Even if it's all gone.

Séraphin... the night they died...

You must flee! Flee from all of that!

Them! And especially you.

Especially you.

Otherwise... fate, Séraphin.

Fate!

- What are you doing? - Going to kneed.

You knead with a gun now?

Despite his precautions, Gaspard slipped on soap.

They call that natural death? I'm taking the gun now.

- He's scared. - Who? Célestat?

Every night he takes his gun.

Scared of being alone.

Well, grief doesn't stop the Dupin girl from running around.

I hear she's having a hot time with Séraphin.

Widow and orphan. They go well together.

Hand in hand, feet in blood and inheritance to boot.

That's rubbish!

- Where are you going? - Ask her!

What's wrong with her?

I don't want to hurt her. I'm like her grandmother.

Séraphin better not take her from me.

- All he wants is peace. - Oh, yes?

Some accuse him of the crime and are ready to round him up.

He better not hurt Marie.

I won't give you up.

I didn't love my father. I know what he did.

Was he the murderer?

There were three.

So that was your secret?

- Do you like to punish? - It wasn't me.

I had the idea, but didn't tell anyone.

It's like someone read my mind.

It's done us a favour. His Conchita was going to ruin us.

Get dressed.

Go.

It doesn't matter.

Now there's something even stronger between us.

I didn't throw myself on you because I needed a man

but because they'd taken everything. Broken our lives.

We're the same. They'll pay for this.

We're not the same. War took your husband and brother.

No one was guilty.

It's always the cowards who survive, with their clear conscience,

who erect monuments to prove they're living.

The one thing that can unite us is revenge. Which one?

Puiol? Dormeur? Everyone'II say it was an accident.

Charmaine!

Séraphin!

No.

- You loved her. - No.

Don't say that! Let her have something. You did love her!

Why was she here and why are you here, then?

They're right, I bring death. Go away.

Séraphin Monge killed my master to marry the heiress,

as my master spent too much.

He was right not to want to leave them anything!

But Charmaine rebelled when her brother was charged.

She told Monge she'd confess everything.

Monge killed her with the dogs.

The dogs obeyed him because they smelt the devil.

Miss, upon what do you base your accusations?

It was my family's chateau. I grew up with Mr Dupin.

He was our gamekeeper's son.

When he bought the chateau after the war,

he kept me as housekeeper.

He... I think he always had a soft spot for me.

As I didn't shoot him, lock him up or it'll continue!

Marie Dormeur? This way.

I reported her. That girl broke my gun!

Did you see Séraphin Monge open the kennel door?

Are you mad? Did she tell you that?

As nasty as anything and blind too!

I saw another man leaving the grounds on a bike.

You didn't recognise him?

I couldn't watch him. I'd just heard the sound of...

Are you sure?

You know what penalties periury carries?

Why would you want to clear Séraphin Monge?

Because it wasn't him! He was home with Charmaine.

Then he cycled after her and I followed.

He couldn't open the kennel!

What did they do at Monge's?

She'd come to to make love to him.

And why did you follow Monge to the chateau?

Because I love him.

Hang on.

Thanks for what you did.

- What you told the judge. - I told the truth.

It wasn't easy.

Are you hurting much?

She was much more than my sister.

You can't understand.

I do. Because now we're two.

Look at Séraphin. He's alone. Totally alone.

Because he has nothing to give. But I need you.

I love you.

I'll never leave you.

You won't believe me but I left my ring on this rock.

It's disappeared.

Did you find something?

No, but someone was here.

You think they'd have taken my ring? It wasn't worth much.

No, but... This presence...

I know it.

It's always after me, watching me.

Why my ring?

Why Charmaine?

What's wrong with her?

- I don't know. - I'll take her in.

- I'll help. - No. You know, her father...

Doesn't like me, I know.

- What does the doctor say? - It has to come out.

He doesn't know what it is.

I know.

You know nothing.

- Has she eaten? - Next to nothing.

- Sometimes she talks. - What does she say?

- Silly things. What else? - What silly things?

She saw someone at the chateau and recognised him in a dream.

How can we lift the evil?

Have her drink St-John's-Wort and goat's milk.

I've given her everything:

hyssop and henbane, comfrey and sarsaparilla,

purslane, meadowsweet, everything you said.

If herbs can do nothing, then it's time to pray.

Who did you see at the chateau, my girl? Tell me!

So it was you.

I tried not to believe it.

But deep down, I knew you'd come.

I've waited a long time.

You killed Dupin?

No. But I swore I would, as I will with you.

And you know why.

Put down the gun, Séraphin.

We can talk about it.

I know about the debts.

So? I owed your father money. I can pay you back.

You cannot.

Your father was as much a thief as us. More, in fact.

Everyone here knows. He had it coming.

But it wasn't us.

When we went in, nothing happened as planned.

I never forgot that night...

Go on.

Throw it.

You can't?

Help him, you lot!

It's not cowardly, there's lots of you.

Anyway, I'm a killer. I have to be stopped.

Unless...

Unless it suits some people.

Dupin's death, Puiol's death.

You settle your scores, I'm guillotined.

Like the foreigners.

I'm the ideal culprit.

I did want revenge for my family.

But someone killed instead of me.

So who was it? Was it you?

Him?

A cousin? A neighbour?

A lawyer? Maybe a baker.

I don't care about your business. I'm here because it's my home.

My home, you hear!

And what a home.

I demolish my house. I sleep with a girl and she's killed.

Even my revenge is stolen.

I'm alone. I've always been alone.

Ten years with nuns, 7 with lumberiacks.

Then thrown into a war. I had no one to live for.

But I didn't die. I didn't die!

Now I'll go home.

If you set it alight, you can rest easy.

I've no child to avenge me.

- Maybe he can cure her. - What if it's his spell?

I didn't dare say, he scares me so.

Why? We've never harmed him.

I don't know, Célestat.

I don't recognise you. There's something else between you.

You must tell the truth.

Dupin, Puiol... And I'm next.

Marie will be alone with evil. Don't leave her.

I was like you, like the rest.

We made a killer to forget our sins.

But now we have to save him from the village.

He's the only one who can save Marie.

Séraphin Monge?

Yes.

If his hate is strong enough to kill without touching,

maybe he has powers too.

- Séraphin... - Leave me alone.

Don't think of death or you'll kill them all.

I keep telling them it's not me.

The man who came to see you, the journeyman,

he wanted to tell you something.

Yes. He saw Dupin, Puiol and Dormeur.

Yes, he saw them.

At the spring, not at La Burlière. He saw something else there.

Awakened by thirst, he opened the trapdoor.

Two men were fighting:

your father held something red.

The other had a weapon that shone.

He lost his balance.

He grabbed the spit just as your father

iumped on him. And your father was impaled.

But he didn't fall at once.

He staggered three paces with the spit in his guts...

and he leant on the wall.

The other man arrived and cut his throat.

One man?

Yes. One man and bodies.

Who was it?

When it was all over and he'd fled,

the journeyman saw the man again near the well.

He saw him throw something inside and he said...

He said he heard him crying.

Why did he tell you all that? Why you?

It was the first time in 25 years he'd confided in anyone.

He mustn't talk to you. Your house didn't kill him by chance.

What about the others?

- One man. - Why didn't you say so before?

So as not to awake misfortune.

Then why now? It's too late.

If you find the real culprit, the evil will cease.

It's not you who's cursed, it's us.

We knew it all from the start.

We didn't want to face the truth.

We lived with the secret and fear,

but we lived.

We kept quiet so no one would know,

so other villages wouldn't look down on us.

To keep the same life we knew.

The weight of days is heavier than hate.

But we must save Marie. She's dying because of us.

Go, Séraphin.

See what's in the well.

So you found it!

Happy now? They told you in the end.

And you think you know because my name's on the handle.

Why would I kill your family? I had no reason!

The Monges are the killers!

For generations, they killed travellers!

Their treasure came from that skeleton!

- Zorme! - From father to son.

A family of murderers!

Took your time.

- What's that? - It's obvious.

A spell, but why? Why Marie?

She saw me when Charmaine died.

She had to forget.

- You should have died 25 years ago. - You weren't brave enough!

You were sure you had me.

In the end, I had you!

Dupin, Puiol, and now...

your daughter's going to die.

You should have killed me then.

It's not Marie's fault.

You'll suffer like I did, I'm glad of that!

Save Marie.

Go on, shoot!

I willed your daughter to death!

Go on, shoot!

Shoot!

It wasn't me! It went off on its own!

What did you try to tell me earlier? Talk.

Leave him, he's wounded. You'll kill him!

- Talk. - Quiet, you worm!

You think a baker's bullet can stop Zorme?

The night of the crime, when I left the well,

I saw those three in the barn.

They recognised me but they said nothing.

How could they explain their presence?

The reason they didn't kill Monge that night

was that I'd already done it.

Why did you do it? For money, too?

Séraphin, when I entered La Burlière,

Monge had massacred all the rest.

He'd slit your mother's throat.

She was still moving.

She crawled towards you,

as Monge had already raised your head so as not to miss you.

I iumped on him. We fought.

He was still insulting me when I impaled him.

To save me?

He was mad with iealousy.

Your mother...

We loved each other.

I've never looked at another woman.

So...

The packages, that was you?

Yes.

I didn't want you to become a murderer.

I saw the papers you'd found at the house.

I saw through your plans and I killed them instead.

I wanted you to escape fate.

Why Charmaine? It wasn't her fault.

You were at her mercy.

I've nothing to say to men. But I can talk to dogs.

Or even your house, to silence strangers.

I've lived here alone for 25 years. You understand?

It all stopped when your mother died.

Séraphin, you are the only important thing in my life.

You pushed me to shoot, Zorme.

They'll arrest me, I've had it. Your revenge is over.

There's no point to Marie dying. Save her.

I haven't enough strength.

Everyone knew you were Zorme's son.

My girl. My child.

You're saved.

It's over.

If you take a wife here, you'll bring misfortune on her.

You've nothing more to do.

You'll always be an outsider because they're cowards.

They'll snuff you out like their remorse.

Leave, Séraphin. I don't want you to become a murderer.

I wanted you, at least, to escape your fate.

Séraphin, wait for me!

Subtitles - Henry Moon for TELETOTA