All language subtitles for 1966-El Greco - Copy

[choir singing]

[orchestra playing
Classical music]

Have you got them?

In here, but
It'll cost you--

Come.

in the 16th century,

spain was a land
of great art

and great intolerance.

the family arrogance
of the ruling classes

forbade any outsider
to step across

their aristocratic
boundaries.

under the watchful eye
of the spanish inquisition,

the people lived
within the confines

of a strict set of rules.

the only defiance
of the church

came from experimenters

regarded by the church
as dabblers in black magic

to be sought out,
imprisoned, and tortured.

No love for the agents
Of the holy office,
That one.

Who could blame
A man for that?

What i've given you
Is a fair price.

[squealing]

[ribbits]

[donkey braying]

We're from italy,
My lord.

My master
Has been commissioned
By don diego de castilla.

Ah. So you are
A painter, eh?

In rome they call him
El greco.

So don diego will have you
Paint us a few more madonnas

And saints
And shining angels,

All poised
In everlasting glory, eh?

I'm first instructed
To paint

The assumption
Of the virgin.

Maestro, i do not
Doubt your words,

But if you are an artist
Of such consequence,

Why choose to sleep
In our marketplace?

There was a little
Misunderstanding, sir.
My master--

I quite understand.

It's just along here.

You'll like it,
I'm sure.

There. That's my door.
My magnificent palace.

Uh, leave
The horses there.
Come along.

Safer?

The holy office
Is very inquisitive.

They hunt for heresies
As industriously as
Birds look for worms.

I don't think
They'll find cause
To cross my path.

We have a useful
Saying here--

Keep out of
The clutches
Of the claw.

The claw?

Cardinal don fernando
Nino de guevara,

The inquisitor general.

I'll be working
For the church,
Not against it.

Don diego de castilla.

Yes?

Don diego,

I am domenikos
Theotokopoulos.

I beg your pardon?

The painter
From rome, sir.

Your brother,
Luis de castilla,

Arranged the commission
On your behalf.

Oh, yes, yes, yes.

My good fellow,
This is hardly
The time or place.

I am just arrived, sir,
At your invitation.

It is customary
To pay one's respects.

If you need money
For the night--

So your eye is set
On the escorial.

You will find king philip
A difficult master
To please.

I'm advised
He has a liking

For the supernatural
And fantastic.

Any man who
Commissions the work
Of hieronymous bosch--

You are very
Sure of yourself,
Domenikos theotokopoulos.

I'm sure
Only of my art.

And impulsive, too.

This place,
Our entertainment
This evening

Has certainly
Put you in debt.

Your gestures
Are charming,
But too expensive.

Our contract
Is my security.

And mine, too.

This morning i had
Three new clauses
Added.

The six paintings
For the retablo major

And for the side altars

Must follow
The preliminary sketches

You delivered
To my brher.

And a further
Stipulation--

You will paint the canvases
With your own hands,
Without assistance,

And not undertake
Other work until
They are completed.

And lastly,

You will not remove your
Canvases from this city

To finish them
Elsewhere.

But that's imprisonment.

Is it? Why?

To be trapped
Here in toledo?

Is the prospect
So disagreeable?

Frankly, yes.

Tonight you are
Invited to our
autosacramental.

The very spirit
Of toledo

Governs
Our morality plays.

I want to see
Your enjoyment of it.

You see, my friend,

We already like you.

In turn,
You must learn
To like us...

And our city.

[drums playing]

[music playing]

[speaking foreign language]

[shouting]

Who's that over there?

Jeronima. Jeronima.

Yes, father.

Come with me.

Doña jeronima,
Your servant.

My dear, we have here
Domenikos theotok--

Greek names are devilish
Tongue-twisters.

Theotokopoulos.

Exactly. The maestro
Will be painting your
Portrait for me.

When?

My dear girl, arrange
It to suit yourself.

Come.

Jeronima: "as always,
My heart is with you
In toledo."

Ha ha ha!

"oh, what are you doing
Today, my jeronima?"

Ohh.

"i am so very impatient
For the sight of you

That i can neither
Eat nor sleep."

Ha ha ha!

"even my fencing master
Tells me i am no more use."

Oh, poor luis.

He's quite fading away.

Jeronima: i've always
Wanted my husband to
Be just that way--

Devoted and
Wonderfully slim.

Maestro,
A thousand pardons.

Ha ha ha!

Hope the maestro
Doesn't mind
Waiting.

And don't you think...
[indistinct]

[laughter]

Your head round
More to me.

Maestro, i get very
Tired of looking at you.

Then merely pretend
I don't exist.

That shouldn't be
Difficult for you.

Are you always
Disagreeable with
Your sitters?

Whenever they
Deserve it.

And did your roman
Ladies of quality

Ever deserve it?

Rome is a sophisticated
Capital, my lady.

Our problem here
Is a provincial one.

Maestro, you forget
That until recently,

Toledo was the
Capital of spain.

Precisely 17 years ago.

Mm-hmm. And i was 3.

Now i understand
What drove your poor
King to madrid.

[women laughing]

Stop that at once.
Come back into the house.

Oh.

Doña jeronima...

If you want me to
Paint your portrait,

Tomorrow you will
Have to pose alone.

Alone?

But, my lady,
You know very well

Your father gave
Clear instructions--

Enough, zaida.

I don't see
The point of that.

You see, my lady, this
Model had manners enough
To stand still.

[choir singing hymn]

Ah, we are pleased
To welcome you.

Your excellency
Is most kind.

Eminence, gentlemen...

May i present to you
The painting of
The burial of count orgaz

By domenikos
Theotokopoulos.

I trust you sought

Father felix
De paravicino's
Helpful advice

Concerning the official
Attitude to such
A concept as this?

I experienced no need
For such guidance.

My inspiration--

A painter
Of religious pictures

Always requires guidance
From the church.

Inaccuracies of color
And sacrilegious
Exaggerations

Are easily perpetrated.

I appreciate that,
Your eminence.

Moreover,
Such errors
Are punishable.

In my capacity
Of grand inquisitor,

I must ruthlessly
Exterminate
All heresies,

Be they nurtured
In the mind
Or on canvas.

An expolio.

An expolio, maestro.

But i command you
This time

Not to deny yourself
The guidance
Of father felix.

The composition
Will be narrow
And vertical.

Centrally,
A majestic christ

Surrounded by--
Yet isolated from--
The surging mob.

Nothing grotesque
Or cruel.

I have a natural
Abhorrence of cruelty

In any shape or form.

Come on.
Come on.

[women giggling]

[sighs]

[indistinct]

Yes, of course.

My lady, you're sitting
For a portrait, not an icon.

I happen to have
Pins and needles.

In crete, didn't
They teach you respect?

Respect?

It depends. For what?

Well, in toledo,
We like to be
Civilized.

Our greek civilization
Is nearly 4,000 years old.

I can't think why
You ever left.

I was an underdog.

In crete, i was born
Under latin oppression.

I had to go seek
My fortune in the land
Of my oppressors--

In venice, where i found
The studio of old titian,

Where he gave me
The key to this.

Then why did you
Go to rome?

To search.

To find my own
Brand of truth.

But in rome,

I became
A captive again.

You see, i was expected
To conform

To a patron who was
Benevolent if one
Followed the rules.

But i had to speak
My mind.

I did.

And now you are here,
Looking for more
Impartial patronage.

Your escorial will
Need many fine paintings.

Then you must
Despise yourself

For being made to
Waste time on this
Little portrait.

No. No painter
Despises himself

For finding
Something lovely.

I'm fortunate.

Your face already
Lives here on my canvas.

A young spanish lady

Whose large eyes
Could be so tender.

My pins and needles
Have gone.

Go on.

[playing]

[theotokopoulos
Playing lute]

How soon the light
Leaves us.

These narrow streets
Seem to hide from the sun.

You still feel
A stranger here?

Candia's all sunlight
And color.

I've always
Lived near the sea,

In crete,
Then venice.

Even in rome,
I knew ostia was just
Across the fields.

Because it's landlocked,

Toledo is introverted.

So are the lives
Inside it.

How little
You understand us.

I understand
My feelings.

There's something
Oppressive here.

Your buildings
Are like prisons.

You decorate them
Inside to hide the bars.

First, this
Is a spanish city.

And you can
Never forget it.

It explains your intense
Preoccupation with
Religion and death

And social ostentation.

Aristocrats cannot help
Being aristocrats.

Your aristocrats
Surround themselves
With snobbish etiquette,

Silly regulations,
Absurd rules,

And gradually
Suffocate...

Just as
You're suffocating,
Doña jeronima.

You are quite wrong.

In your scheme
Of things, each man
Must know his place

And never trespass.

You are trespassing now.

No, you're the one
Who's trespassing

[laughter]

[speaking foreign
Language]

You work too hard.

Corpus christi
Will soon be with us.
This must be ready.

Don diego has already
Advised the king.

Does royal patronage
Really mean so much
To you?

As escorial painter is
An established person,
Someone of consequence.

There can be
No argument about that.

You surprise me.
Most painters merely
Wish to paint,

Marry their model,
Breed children,
And go on painting.

That's exactly
My problem.

Then we must find you
A beautiful wife.

I think
I already have.

Felix, i'm
Not a pastry cook,

And she's certainly not
A butcher's daughter.

Then if matters
Are as i suspect,

You will
Harm a young lady

And ruin
Your own future.

Felix, as a priest,

How can you make
Such an intolerably
Snobbish statement?

As your friend, i have
No other alternative.

As a priest,
I know my place.

As a toledan,
I know yours.

You may wish for it,
Even fight for it,

But you won't succeed
In mixing oil with water.

Believe me,
Domenikos.

But that's ridiculous.

I'm an educated man.

I speak five languages.

I've traveled.

Felix, i'm not
A pastry cook.

I know.

I need her, felix.

If i love this girl,
Truly, honorably,

And if she loves me,

No family
Could refuse us.

They can and will,
Quite bluntly.

In toledo,
A gentleman can become
An acceptable artist,

But it doesn't follow

That
An artist can become
An acceptable gentleman.

Don't tempt fate,
Domenikos.

But i must.

Then i will pray
For you, my friend.

Jeronima!

[bells ring]

[choir singing
Indistinctly]

♪ hallelujah ♪

♪ hallelujah ♪

I'm happy
For your success.

Once away from rome,
I knew nothing could
Stop you.

Domenikos,
I must be the one
To congratulate you.

Well,
Don't let's criticize
The eternal city.

Pignarelli
Is over there.

Pignarelli?

Mm-hmm.

What's he
Doing here?

Clinging to his majesty
Like the leech he is.

Not as a painter?

Oh, god forbid.

Ah, our genius,
El greco.

And how fares
Our refugee from the wrath
Of the farenese?

In rome, we are
Still apologizing
For your rudeness

Concerning
Buonarroti's talent.

I do not regret
My criticisms.

His majesty
Holds michelangelo
In the highest esteem.

Pray, do not
Speak ill of him
In the king's presence.

I do not intend to.

And if you choose
To curb your tongue,

The king
Need never learn of
The opinion i hold.

How very trusting.

Naturally,
My dear maestro,

We will permit your talent
To speak for itself.

♪ hallelujah ♪

♪ hallelujah ♪

[singing in latin]

Absolutely, sire.

I believe in
Maestro greco's art

More than my own.

You, conte,

What is your opinion?

Both in form
And in color,

An exquisite
Concept.

Of course,
The symbolic,
Mystic aspects

Require
Consideration.

We have considered them
And like them.

Maestro, we accordingly
Desire to favor you

By commissioning you
To portray the martyrdom

Of the much devoted
San mauricio

And his followers
Of the thebian legion.

Your work,
If found acceptable,

Will grace our monastery
Of the escorial.

You honor me,
Sire.

[organ playing]

[choir singing
Indistinctly]