Original subtitles

"Life is not always the best; But all of earthly ills, the chief one is guilt."

When I was a young girl, there were two kinds of bedtime stories:

The funny ones my father told and the scary ones by my mother.

I always preferred the scary ones, even if they kept me awake.

Perhaps I couldn't sleep because my mother kept playing loud music in the background.

Or simply because she was better at telling stories

regardless of how many drinks she had.

Who would have thought, that she would become part of a bedtime story herself?

In this case I surely would have preferred one of my father's funny ones no matter how badly the.

But unfortunately no one asked me... And my father was long gone.

Ever since, my mother is a ghost and I learned early on what it means to be alone.

THE LAST COMPARTMENT

Most of the rescued passengers got away with minor injuries and mild shock.

The swift and safe operation is thanks to the commitment of the rescue team.

The rescue operation began approximately half an hour after the avalanche derailed the train.

According to a spokesperson, the damage to the train was surprisingly limited.

The most affected part is said to be the last compartment which hasn't yet been found.

The brewing snowstorm however was making a rescue operation increasingly.

I can't get up because of my leg.

Wait, I'll help you.

Was that a radio?

They're searching for us.

Did you see it? The avalanche?

Yes!

I can't remember anything. I must have slept.

I will check the lights in a bit, it's probably just a loose contact.

Is that a conductor?

Hello?

Is someone else there?

No one except for me and those two Russians here.

We're Ukrainian, suit-man.

As if there's a difference...

Are you alright?

Did you see the avalanche?

How are we going to get out of here?

We're not getting out.

That was a "dry avalanche" with a slope inclination of around 50 degrees.

And since the mountain was at least 1,000 meters the whole thing must have had a high velocity.

If it was a ground avalanche even more. We're in very deep snow.

Or rather in very deep shit.

It surely won't be getting any warmer in here, nor will the air last forever.

That depends on the snow density.

What do you mean "snow density"? How much air do we have?

If the snow is loose and dry: At least three hours.

But if it's wet and dense: 90 minutes tops.

On the radio they said they're searching for us. It can't take that long!

What's wrong? What happened? The light is out.

No shit, old man. I thought my eyelids dropped shut.

It's probably no more than a loose contact.

Do you hear that?

What was that?!

Someone groped me!

Touch me again and I'll kill you!

Who me?! I didn't do any.

I didn't do anything. Goths aren't my type, okay?

Do you hear that?

What?

That's a "Bell UH-1D".

They found us!

Hey! We're down here!

Over here! Hello!!

Stop! Don't go!

Please...

Finally, kid...! How long have you been twiddling with it?

I said I wasn't an expert... but those two wires I can manage.

I guess those batteries should last for 12 hours easily.

♪ Speaking Russian ♪

Would you like to hear my theory, Mr. Conductor?

We're in the last compartment of a BGHW train, built in '76, right?

I think we broke off from the rest of the train during the collision... Not unlikely in the quad.

Well, aren't you the clever one?

I'm Carl, by the way.

Greta.

Great name for a goth. What are you, like 60 years old?

I find "Greta" beautiful. Compared to the smoke pollution you're bothering us with.

Sorry if you're annoyed by the smoke, kid. But this is a smoking compartment.

You're free to go next door to the Russians.

They're Ukrainian.

This is "Radio Alpenfunk", back with the latest news on the avalanche tragedy.

The last missing compartment has not yet been found.

It is said to have likely been blasted off the rest of the train by the masses of snow.

Tragically a small group of passengers is suspected to still be trapped inside.

The rescue team is scanning the entire area for survivors.

Is that a dog in the studio?

The search efforts are hindered by the bad weather.

Potential survivors of the accident are thought to be running out of air to breathe.

Not to mention the dropping temperature.

Why did you switch it off?

Think the batteries will last forever?

We got the gist of it...

They're reaching for us. We just need to keep calm and wait.

As if we had an alternative...

Whenever my mother had a bad day, she'd hit the bottle.

After my father had left, it became a regular thing.

Visually speaking she didn't look much different from a ghost then, but she wasn't one, yet.

It was strange, that she was allowed to continue working at the ski lift in her condition.

Every evening she had to check the gondolas before shutting down and then drove off to the pub.

One gondola after the other. 76 gondolas in total.

A dreary, but extremely important task.

I still clearly remember the morning, when it all changed.

As usual my mother had come home late that night.

Suddenly there was news of two missing teenagers on the radio, last seen at her ski lift.

As my mother heard the news she stormed out the door.

That was the last time I saw her alive.

Here. I can see that you're freezing.

Thank you.

What's up?

Nothing.

Are you going to be much longer? I can't really stand very long because of my leg.

No no, just a second, I'm almost done.

What's wrong with your leg anyway?

A guy crashed into my scooter a couple of years ago.

He had a few too many drinks that night.

It was almost a year before I could even stand up again.

And to this day I can barely move my leg.

That's why I'm headed to Graz, I'm seeing a doctor there.

Well, not exactly an appointment... But there's an expert there who developed a new procedure.

Greta? You there?

Yeah, just a minute. What clinic does he work at?

Who?

The expert.

St. Joseph.

Really? That's where I'm going also.

Really? How come?

My mother is in a coma. For more than 19 years.

I'm very sorry.

Like I said: It's been 19 years.

You don't need any help, do you?

No no... I'll be fine.

Did you know that around 40% of all coma patients still show residual consciousness.

Not with my mother.

Without the damn ventilator she'd be long gone.

Yeah... modern medicine. A blessing and a curse.

But perhaps there is still hope...?

Because with the other 60%, there is at least some measurable brain activity.

And the EEG waves almost look like those of a person sleeping.

Maybe your mother is just asleep.

I don't think she had planned to spend her entire life in bed.

She has slept enough.

So why don't you take her off life support?

Paragraph "19-04 BGB"?

Greta?

He can't be lying in there for very long. Quite possibly the murderer is still here.

You don't say, Einstein.

The murderer is probably right among us.

But where is the murderer, we've looked everywhere.

What's "Tsss'? What do you mean?"

You know exactly what 'Tsss' means, Russian.

Ukrainian.

How do you explain the blood stains on your sweater?

We all have blood on our clothes, we had an accident.

Then please explain why those stains are on your sweater and not on your jacket?

Seems like you put the jacket on later, perhaps to cover up the stains...?

I put it on immediately after the accident. How do you know, wise-ass?

I don't know. But I know your "sister" was unconscious for a while.

♪ Speaking Russian ♪

And when she woke up, she wasn't wearing a jacket. And yet there are blood stains on it.

And I don't mean the stains the little slut usually has on herself.

♪ Speaking Russian ♪

You screwed me over you prick!

Didn't you think I'd connect the dots when there's a severed head in the closet?!

Shut your mouth! Otherwise something might happen to you, suit-man!

Fuck you, Russian!

♪ Speaking Russian ♪

Hello? Hello? Who am I talking to?

Hartman... Carl.

How I am? Well... I'm okay.

- Listen, we have an exceptionally. - What about the others?

Excuse me?

How many exactly, are you down there? We are six

Mr. Hartmann, please listen carefully

I'm listening.

Your car was pushed dangerously close to a cliff by the avalanche.

We don't think it will tip over, but we can't be sure. You shouldn't move too much, understand?

Don't move too much, understood. We could tip off a cliff!

♪ Speaking Russian ♪

Ask them about the murder.

The conductor would like to know if you have any information on a murder...

Because we found a head; A severed head!

Tell those idiots to get us out of here, dammit!

- The conductor? - Yes, the conductor.

All train staff has already been evacuated. There is no conductor with you.

Please stay calm and try not to move too much, alright?

Alright yes, I will... we will do that.

He's telling the truth. It's a suicide note.

And a few newspaper clippings.

"Death on railroad tracks."

I assume you are not from this area, are you?

Not far from here there was a previous train accident. Exactly ten years ago.

A conductor caught two drunken teens riding without a ticket.

One of them jumped off the train at full speed.

His girlfriend killed herself shortly after.

I'm sure you can imagine who that conductor was.

I still don't understand why you have to wear your old outfit to commit suicide.

Same train, same day, same place and the same wardrobe.

Sounds logical.

Sounds cuckoo is what I think, Russian.

It wasn't your fault. Definitely not.

I once knew someone who thought it was her fault that some teenagers were being stupid.

And this "someone" came to the same false conclusions as you did.

What exactly happened?

The idiots froze to death in a ski lift. This "someone" should have checked up on the gondola,

but everyone knew that there was a problem with alcohol. Even the lift operator himself.

He shouldn't have let that person work there. It wasn't that persons fault.

And it's not your fault either.

Is that a camera?

That's an "AS 2407"... a model from 1980.

♪ Speaking Russian ♪

How many are there of these things?

Maybe five or Six?

Six?! Also in front of the toilet??

I don't know!

If they see the head, they will obviously think it was one of us.

And then it could take them a very long time until they get us out of here.

I'm sure the rescue workers are doing their best to help us!

Oh yeah? So where are they?

We might slip... you know what they said.

Oh, and so that's why they're taking their time?

What if... they're just waiting until WE find the murderer?

♪ Speaking Russian ♪

They're not honestly expecting that one of us is going to get down on his knees and confess to a.

Some dipshit just made up this silly cliff-hazard story!

What if you're wrong?

What the hell is stopping us from digging our way out of here?

The day my mother became a ghost our phone rang.

They told me they had found the missing teens and that they needed to speak to my mother.

Apparently she had had too much to drink that night and made a grave mistake.

When she had turned the lift off, the teens were only half way back down into the valley.

Of course neither of them survived the cold night in the gondola.

My mother must have suspected as much and probably wanted to avoid the consequences.

Not far from the lift, she had thrown herself off a cliff... to end her life.

Unfortunately her drop was stopped by a ledge...

She wasn't dead.

But neither was she alive.

GO AWAY!

♪ Screaming in Russian ♪

I'm sorry...

♪ cursing in Russian ♪

What happened? What? Please just get us out of here...

What happened?

Why does it matter what happened...?!

What happened?

Nothing the train must have slipped further. One of us was lost.

Just ask us all the questions you want once you've rescued us!

You're only five people now?

What difference does it make, we need help!

It makes a difference: Five people use less oxygen than six.

Was it a man?

Yes dammit, a Russian!

But that's not the issue here!

A man, understood. That's better.

Better?! What do you mean better??!

Get us the hell out of here, asshole!

Please remain quiet and try to breathe calmly. It will take us at least an hour to get to you.

Keep breathing calmly, every breath counts.

It's not mine, I swear! I didn't do anything!

The girl has a gun...

Hang up the phone!

Now!

In one hour we will be there, just hang in there.

Please keep calm.

That's exactly right. We should all keep calm. This is not my gun!

But it fell out of your pocket!

This is not my pocket, it's YOURS! He gave me his jacket earlier, this is HIS!

That's true, but there wasn't a gun in it. Otherwise why would I have given it to you?

You little fuck!

And what is that syringe you carry around with you if you don't mind me asking?

You think I haven't noticed the puncture wounds in your arms?

Oh my god what on earth is this?

Come on kid, put it down.

Take it down before someone gets hurt.

No.

Put it down, dammit!

Why, so you can take it?! Or him?!

Come on, kid...

Stop calling me KID, I'm a grown woman!

I can prove my innocence, can you?

I don't need to.

Move over there, to the others. Move! And keep your hands up!

And don't try anything stupid...!

And what's your plan now?

Shut the fuck up, Einstein.

We wait.

Wait for what?

Wait for this!

Hello? Please calm down and put down the gun.

Listen, this is not my weapon.

Don't worry, we know.

The video surveillance helped us find the murderer.

We have her in custody up here.

Best thing is you sit down and avoid any kind of physical strain.

Please don't misunderstand, but if a second person had perished you wouldn't have to worry.

So be thankful for everyone not using up oxygen and don't attempt any resuscitation.

It wouldn't work anyway.

I'm sorry. We're doing all we can.

So you agree the air in here won't last, Einstein?

Mathematically the analysis is right. One person less and we'd easily have an hour worth of air.

So we don't have a choice.

We could try to breathe less, maybe we can make it.

Why should we? The old man offered himself up, he would've thrown himself off the train anyway!

That's called assisted suicide! What do you think is going to happen to us when we get out?

At least we'll have a chance at all. That's more like self defense...

Right, Einstein?

It probably falls under "justified emergency" ”, paragraph 34, criminal code.

In an emergency a criminal behavior can be justified, as long as there is no alternative.

And it's not: If we don't do it, we will all die.

Probably, yes.

Sorry, but I will not be a part of this!

They are going to show up here sooner or later, and I don't want to have blood on my hands!

Me neither!

Would you please...!

So be it.

But someone's gonna have to do it.

You can't just kill another human being. Think about that!!

Think about the suicide letter, the guy didn't want to live!

We're doing the man a favor.

♪ Speaking Russian ♪

Learn German.

If there is one thing I learned from the ghost stories of my mother it's this:

You can never run away from your own guilt.

Not even if you jump off a cliff.

The young couple she had left behind in the gondola did not only freeze to death...

When the cold had gotten unbearable, the boy jumped out and onto the ground.

He broke several bones.

The girl had to watch her motionless friend freeze to death.

A few hour later she too was dead.

Let go!!

You asshole! I'll kill you!

I didn't want that.

Perhaps you should sit, young lady?

I'm not sure...

Bullseye.

I still feel fine. That's weird... right?

Maybe you shouldn't...

Doesn't hurt.

How's that possible?

Perhaps... you're under shock?

I'm not under shock, not a bit.

What...?

What is it?

Nothing happened

I'm fine!

Are you sure?

I've never felt better.

Well... I guess I deserve an apology.

♪ Speaking Russian ♪

What... what is she saying?

She says we are all dead.

Damn superstition.

♪ Speaking Russian ♪

You don't believe this crap, do you?

Enough of this hocus-pocus...

What if she's right?

Scientifically speaking, that's quite improbable.

How can she stand here after being shot?

How long do you think can a man dig himself through the snow

without freezing to death??

With a god-damn plank in his head?!

Yeah, but...

Who is at the other end of that phone?

♪ Speaking Russian ♪

What is she saying?

She...

She says we did not survive the avalanche.

We...

We are all dead.

♪ Speaking Russian ♪

We are not going to heaven... We must confess our guilt.

♪ Speaking Russian ♪

We are all...

We are all... ghosts.

Question is: Which guilt is she speaking of?

All these years I always asked myself, what might be going on...

Inside my mothers head.

Did she continue going to the pub every night? And behave like she was 20 years younger?

Did she perhaps run to church in the morning, to try to solve her problems in confession?

Was there anything happening at all?

Or was there just emptiness?

Maybe she knew what she had done to me and to those two teenagers.

Would she regret it?

Or would she still try to run away from it, like she did?

God, I can't even tell if she knows I'm there.

Well...

She can't really run away now.

I would just like to help her, you know?

But what's left for me to do?

Maybe you ought to leave it up to fate.

Yes, maybe

I'll have to think about it.

But don't go without saying goodbye to me.

Don't worry.

Hello mom.

Look, I brought you something.

Thank you.

You're welcome.

How are you feeling?

Did you sleep well?

That's a pretty necklace you're wearing today.

We haven't given up hope yet.

Did the drug show any effect?

No. But it was worth a try.

With some patients it really works wonders.

And how is it supposed to go on?

Well, we would appreciate if you would refrain from any further legal action.

Even if your mothers condition should deteriorate further.

We have already lost one of our coma patients today.

Life is a gift that should not be thrown away so easily.

We must also endure the darker days.

You know very well I don't want to throw her life away.

I just believe she would have wanted her death to take it's course.

But we cannot know for certain.

Didn't you say this drug was her last chance?

There is always hope.

Take Mr. Hartmann for example: After his accident he lay there just the same.

With him it was just a couple of months!

Do you really want to live with the guilt of not having done everything for your mother?

Our nursing home is committed to the preservation of life.

You have a responsibility, for yourself and for your mother.

Best leave this to us.

He's finally done with it.

Whatever.

He would've died either way.

We have a human life to answer for.

So?

All of this is only happening inside my head.

I'm in a coma.

Have you gone completely nuts now?

♪ Speaking Russian ♪

You can speak German now, nurse. I've seen through it.

"Nurse"??

Kid, I don't know what it is you're shooting up your arms, but it's very much affecting your san.

I'm not your kid. Technically I could be your mother.

Why don't we sit down now together and wait for the friendly guy to come get us out of here.. Hm.

We've waited enough, the "friendly guy" isn't coming.

You want proof?

(speaking German) It's a friggin' dummy!

(speaking German) How is that possible?

(speaking German) What?

So you're in a coma?

Yeah. And apparently you're something like my doctor.

And I'm in the room next door? Am I in a coma as well?

No. You woke up.

And for some reason in here I look like my own daughter.

Didn't you tell me earlier that the brainwaves of coma-patients work like those of a person slee.

The EEG waves are at least similar, yes.

So all of this is just like a bad dream...?

In a dream you don't know you're dreaming.

In a lucid dream you do.

What is a "lucid dream"?

A dream in which you can deliberately control things.

Also used in therapy, to process subconscious or suppressed memories.

I can control things?

In a "lucid dream" you can.

What options are there to wake up from a lucid dream?

An alarm clock...?

Is there something like an emergency alarm on the train?

Not on the "BGHW" quad-axis models.

And what's that?

That wasn't there a minute ago.

Come on kid, turn that shit off!

You're not waking up!

Just a few more seconds; Please!

This is a sleep-inducing drug, kid. I thought you wanted to wake up?

If I fall asleep in a dream, maybe I'll wake up in the real world.

Nonsense.

It's not actually nonsense.

"Stilnoxx" is in fact a popular sleeping pill, but is also used to wake up coma patients.

Want me to read the side effects?

Psychotic and paradox reactions. Abnormal thoughts, delusions

ightmares, sleepwalking

I guess that explains the silly uniform.

I would do it.

A coma is nothing more than a protective measure of the brain.

Like some sort of a flight from massive fears or pain.

The active ingredient that makes other people sleepwalk, may block this mechanism in the brains of coma patients.

Yes please?

Here, you forgot this in my room.

Oh, thank you so much.

I read something in the doctors' journal again.

Did you know that around 40% of all coma patients classified as being in a vegetative state still show residual.

Not with my mother.

Without the damn ventilator she'd be long gone.

Modern medicine: A blessing and a curse.

But perhaps there is still hope...?

Because with the other 60% without residual consciousness, there is at least some measurable bra.

And the EEG waves almost look like those of a person sleeping.

Hello.

Maybe your mother is just asleep.

Hello!

I don't think she had planned to spend her entire life in bed.

She's slept enough.

I'm awake!

With me it wasn't at all like sleeping.

I woke up, just like that.

Like I was on that scooter just a second earlier.

Are you spending the night here again tonight?

Yes, I guess so.

Anything else?

I

I thought about what you said earlier.

Why are you doing this to yourself?

Since there is no more hope? If I may ask...

Because she is my mother.

A mother who has not exactly done much for her daughter.

It's none of your business.

I'll leave you two alone again...

If you need anything, you know where to find me.

Don't worry mom, I know how much you regret all of this.

But he's probably right: Maybe I should leave you alone from now on.

The rescue operation began approximately half an hour after the avalanche derailed the train.

According to a spokesperson, the damage to the train was surprisingly limited.

The most affected part is said to be the last compartment, which hasn't yet been found.

I can't get up because of my leg.

Can you help me get up... please?

Was that a radio?

I will check the lights in a bit, it's probably just a loose contact.

I'm sorry, there's nothing.

Probably she just had another one of her cramps.

But it's not a problem if the nutrition is briefly interrupted.

If you ask me it could be severed completely.

But no one asks me.

From a medical stance it is highly improbable your mother will wake up from her coma.

I sympathize with you.

If there's anything else just ring, ok?

Hello mom!

How are you?

Did you sleep well?

You know...

Back at the ski lift...

We had this kind of Christmas calendar with little red sachets.

And everyone of us employees had to fill one of them.

With anything ugly or totally useless.

Then we drew the numbers.

And everyday one of us was allowed to open a sachet.

My boss loved this game.

That year he drew my number.

That wasn't exactly a lucky draw.

Because all he got from me was a cheap card game.

A trains card game.

You know, when I jumped off that cliff.

I only had that silly card game in my head.

I couldn't think of anything else anymore.

Not of that boy, who jumped out of the lift.

Nor of his girlfriend who froze to death in that gondola.

Not even of you...

Only thing I thought of

was how my boss would react, when he opened that little red sachet,

and saw the picture of a train.

I let you down, kid.

I wish I could make up for that, you know?

But I can't.

I won't wake up.

(In loving memory)