Original subtitles

Like this it was, the night he died,

with the cold freeze in your blood

and the wind cussing every move you made.

Joseph Bleak said he wouldn't leave this world easy.

By thunder, the world was filled

with noise and corruption when he did.

Did you know Mr. Bleak well?

Ha! Nobody knew him well.

Being his business partner,

I suppose I knew him better than anyone else.

He used to sit out there in that island

with his money, his diamonds and his art treasures

like Croesus himself.

You, ah, expect to get your hands on some of that wealth

tonight when they read the will?

No, sir. I don't.

This is a bad night for just a pleasure trip, Mr. West.

There's the signal.

We all have a reason for coming here.

You must have one too, I'm sure.

Your uncle left something of great value

to the National Museum.

Washington has sent me here to get it, Mr. Chambers.

Joe Bleak had no right giving that stuff away.

Belonged to us.

You're gonna find it hard to argue with a dead man, sir.

It's like arguing with a ghost.

The squabbling's begun already. No good'll come of it.

Your aunt asked me to welcome you

and the rest of the guests to Bleak Island.

Is that you, Johnson? - Yes, sir.

You've changed in the last few years.

That's the house.

Outside of the caretaker's place

and Joe's old greenhouse, that's all there is.

Who else would wanna live on this godforsaken island?

Aren't you coming ashore?

I ain't budging a mite, mister.

Nothing would get me ashore on this kind of night.

He'll be abroad with them green eyes a-and...

And them long teeth.

Big enough to tear a man to pieces.

Shut up, you old fool.

Nobody believes those stories about the hound of Bleak Island.

Now, come on, get off of there.

Ohhh, Lord save us all.

Thank you.

Renald.

You're looking fine, Celia.

The only woman I know

who could thrive on this sea-bitten island.

It's good to see you, Aunt Celia.

Mark, you've grown up.

Heh! Suddenly you're a man.

Is Alicia here?

You're here for the reading of the will, Mark,

not to make eyes at Alicia.

You introduce me to this gentleman?

Uh, this is Mr. James West.

Mr. West, this is my aunt, Celia Rydell.

How do you do, Mrs. Rydell? You're Joseph Bleak's sister?

I'm sorry Joseph couldn't donate a better night

to the United States government.

Do you let your dogs run loose on the island?

I've lived in this house 35 years, Mr. West.

We've never owned a pet.

Well, I thought I heard a hound out there.

You heard something.

Mr. West, this is my husband, Steven.

How do you do, sir? How do you do?

My late brother's ward, Alicia.

Alicia. How do you do?

His attorney, Mordecai Krone.

Mr. West. Mr. Krone, how do you do?

And Helen Merritt,

my brother's housekeeper.

It isn't every man that can have two women to run his life.

I was very fortunate to have served such a man.

You won't know if it was fortunate, Helen,

until the will is read.

Celia, I can think of no heat that could warm us

as much as some of Joseph's fine sherry.

Of course.

The Dona Baissas'61, a really spectacular year.

A true nectar.

But then, uh, Joseph collected only wines

that were good enough for the gods.

Collect, sir?

Joseph Bleak collected everything, Mr. West...

including people.

Well, I, myself, am very grateful for his habit.

He was the perfect guardian,

a wonderful man.

The, uh, sherry, Jarvis.

It'll take Jarvis some time, Helen.

Meanwhile,

if you will show our new arrivals to their rooms.

That was lovely, Alicia. Why don't you play it again?

Miss Merritt, am I wrong,

or did you deliberately show me to my room last?

You're not wrong.

Would you mind shutting the door, please?

Listen to it, Mr. West.

What does it mean to you?

It sounds like a loose shutter.

And I think a hammer and nail could fix it.

It's the soul of Joseph Bleak

demanding to be let into his own house.

But they'll keep him out, just as they managed

to keep the rest of the outside world

from reaching him while he lived.

I was the only person

that was able to penetrate that wall

that Celia and her husband built around her brother...

the only outsider.

You see, I was, uh...

more than a housekeeper to Joseph Bleak.

That's why Celia Rydell hates me. She always has.

She never could share her brother with anyone.

Now I think Celia would rather kill me

than let me get a penny of Joseph's estate.

Don't you think accusing someone

of wanting to murder you is a rather strong statement?

I only know what I feel.

That's the first time it's ever been that close.

What do you know about that animal?

We found a plow horse one morning.

It had been ripped open by some beast.

No one had ever even seen or heard of that creature

until after Joseph died.

The hound of Bleak Island was a legend

that he created to keep people off.

Now Celia has brought a real beast here...

to kill me.

I'm asking for your help.

If I die...

my blood will be on your hands.

- They're delicious. - Absolutely delicious.

Ahhh.

Ah, first a superlative Puligny-Montrachet.

And now a brilliant Chambertin.

Joseph said that a nation speaks for itself in its wines.

And immediately after dinner,

Joseph's will shall speak for him

and tell us all what he thought of us.

Aunt Celia? Yes, my dear?

Who's the empty place for?

Oh, well, it's for a friend.

Someone who, uh... must have been detained.

Mr. West, tell me,

why does a man seek danger as a career?

I prefer the kind of hunting

where you don't put the trophies on the wall, that's all.

But hunting's more than a game, sir.

It's a science.

But certainly you should know that.

After all, you track down human beings,

a known quantity more or less.

However, I prefer to meet my quarry

on his savage terms and let him know who's master.

Have you ever tried meeting

the thing that howls out there on its terms?

Steven has tried to find it, Renald,

but it's a... It's a shadow, a ghost.

All this talk about ghosts,

it's nonsense.

I've lived on Bleak Island ever since I was a little girl.

And I've never seen one.

Only the old are close enough to the grave

to know about that, my dear.

I think the matter of the will

is getting on everybody's nerves.

What we need is some more wine.

Jarvis?

Jarvis, what in blue blazes is the matter with...?

Jarvis!

Sir Nigel Scott,

what an unexpected pleasure under these circumstances.

James West,

I certainly never expected to find you here.

Nor did I expect to find you, sir.

Pure luck.

If it hadn't been for that boatman

letting me off on the north shore

and trudging through that beastly muck

in the middle of the night,

and then hearing that commotion between you and those men...

Well, one of them at least has taste in clothes.

It's a very good piece of Scotch wool. Who were they?

I don't know, sir, but they had something to do

with the murder up at the Bleak mansion.

Murder?

Oh, that means I'm too late.

Too late for what, sir?

For what? Heh-heh.

The question is, too late for whom, James, dear boy.

I venture that your victim...

His name was Jarvis, sir. He was a butler of Joseph Bleak.

Oh, then I venture that Jarvis was murdered by blowgun.

Ah, beautiful piece of work. Very old, very valuable.

You said blowgun?

Yes.

Examine the deceased

and you will probably find a small puncture

about one inch beneath the right ear.

If a hunter like Sir Nigel Scott makes that kind of a guess,

then he knows whom he's hunting.

Whom indeed. Heh-heh!

You know very well

I'm talking about Dr. Jacob Calendar.

Calendar's dead.

Reported dead, James.

Assumed to be dead by Scotland Yard,

who wouldn't know a dead man from a live one

without a thermometer or a stethoscope.

He will not be my undoing.

Calendar is supposed to have died, of course.

And yet, suddenly, in this past year,

there erupts a positive spate of major crimes,

all of them perfect.

All of them with the trademark

of my very old and very familiar friend.

So, Nigel, you're telling me that Calendar isn't dead?

He is very much alive.

When we worked together in London five years ago,

no one knew what the man looked like.

Quite. And he's still faceless to me,

a master of disguise and impersonation.

But I can sense. I can feel.

I know him by his touch, James.

I know that Dr. Jacob Calendar is on Bleak Island.

Who are you?

This is Sir Nigel Scott, everyone.

He was our empty place at dinner.

I asked him here to rid us of that beast outside.

Celia, don't be ridiculous.

You're that English detective who's been touring America.

Crime knows no boundaries, sir.

We've all read about you in the papers, Sir Nigel.

When I heard that he was in America, I wrote to him.

He came here to rid us of that, uh...

That thing howling out there.

You're all in more danger than you realize.

In the meantime,

we only have your word that you are Sir Nigel.

I can vouch for the gentleman.

We worked on a case together in London.

Well, thank you, James. Has the will been read?

No, not yet.

Then I suggest that you proceed immediately.

I'll get my briefcase.

Where is the deceased?

Right this way, sir.

You're right, Sir Nigel. Just under the right ear.

Curare. Calendar's favorite.

Quick and silent.

The other question is, where did it come from?

By thunder, if someone tries to get at the rest of us,

he'll have to get past me first.

Ah, my darling.

It's been so long.

I never heard from you.

But I wrote to you every week.

You wrote? Yes.

I wrote.

I bet Aunt Celia tore up all our letters.

But why?

Because she doesn't want me to get too attached to you.

Or maybe it's because

she's afraid I'll inherit more than she.

Ah, that's it, James: the blowgun.

Observe how small it is, almost like a whistle.

The murderer could have fired the dart

seated next to you at the dinner table,

yet never have been detected.

Sir, why would a man like Calendar come to Bleak Island?

For the same reason as you did, James, dear boy.

What else?

Other than for one of the most priceless treasures

in the world:

the Moon Diamond.

A thousand carats of perfection.

A gem so pure it is said to glow in the night.

It's gonna do all its glowing from now on, sir,

in the National Museum in Washington.

I'm here to see that it doesn't go anyplace else.

Yes, I suspected that was your mission.

The stone is worthy of Washington's finest agent.

Ha-ha! Well, thank you.

Gentlemen,

Mr. Krone is ready.

"To my beloved sister, Celia, and her devoted husband, Steven,

"I hereby leave my home,

"my island and $200,000 cash.

"To my talented nephew, Mark Chambers,

"whom I am sure will one day be a great artist,

"I leave my collection of paintings,

"each a masterpiece.

"To my business partner, Renald McAvity,

"I do hereby bequeath

"the one thing he so richly deserves:

"a hell on earth.

"He cheated me whenever he could

and thought I was too stupid to know it."

That's a lie!

"Jail would not have been enough punishment for him,

"but now I have my revenge.

Enjoy the fires of perdition, Renald."

"To my loving ward, Alicia,

"whose sweetness has brought light into my life,

"I leave $300,000 as a gift

"to be given her on her wedding day.

"Though the National Museum in Washington

"was informed some time ago of my bequest,

"this will serve as official notification to turn over

"to a properly designated representative of the government

"one of my most valued possessions:

the priceless Moon Diamond."

Well, officially it's yours now,

but Calendar doesn't believe in anything official.

You will need all the help I can give you

to get that stone off Bleak Island.

You can have Calendar.

All I want is that stone off Bleak Island.

Fair enough.

"And now my final bequest

"to a woman who endured the anger and scorn

"of my family for many years

"out of her concern and affection for me

"despite her great pride

"and because I think she is endowed

"with the ability to carry on for me,

"I hereby leave my 60 percent of the Joseph Bleak Company

to Miss Helen Merritt."

Why, that's preposterous!

He was out of his mind.

She isn't even in the family!

I'll contest that will!

I'll take it to court!

That woman had him trapped!

I should have gotten that share!

I'll stop you, Joe Bleak.

You're not going to ruin me.

I'll stop you. You mark my words!

I'll stop you!

It's the hound.

The hound!

I could swear I hit it.

That creature was near the front door,

and yet there isn't a track on the ground.

This wind could have blown away any tracks.

Logic is always reassuring. I hope you're right.

Yes, you have an admirable quality, James:

You never panic.

I wanna see the Moon Diamond

and make some very tight security arrangements.

Joseph Bleak took some excellent security measures himself.

He called this room his room of treasure.

Yes, he was no fool.

Hardly for the eyes of mortals, is it, James?

I wonder if the National Museum will appreciate it.

The security men have already been chosen

to guard it in Washington.

Calendar will sure to try to get it

before it reaches there.

It appears there are only two ways in here:

that window...

and the door.

And since Mrs. Rydell claims that this is the only key...

It could be a trick.

Check the gas valves and lock me inside.

Ah.

There we are, old chap.

That's better. You had me worried.

Someone threw gas in here.

That smacks of Dr. Calendar, all right.

The Moon Diamond is gone, James.

Stolen as easily as you please.

Dimming the lights was indeed a ruse.

Must have come in through that window.

Easy. Take it easy. I told you.

They want me dead.

He tried to shoot me.

Who?

Steven Rydell.

Take care of her.

Oh.

Hold it right there.

West, I could have shot you.

The way you came running through the woods, I thought...

What did you think?

I came looking for that animal.

Something ran through the woods, and I shot at it.

You shot at Helen Merritt.

Helen?

She's afraid of you and your wife.

She thinks you're trying to kill her.

That's preposterous.

What was she doing out here?

Why was she down here near the dock?

I'll tell you what I was doing, Steven.

I was trying to get away from here,

because I knew you'd do just what you tried to do.

Try to murder me.

She's out of her mind. Am I?

Then why did you make sure I couldn't leave here?

Why is the boat gone?

I took a walk just before dinner. It was gone then.

That means the boat left before the diamond was stolen.

So the stone is still on the island.

But if one of us didn't take the boat, who did?

Who else is on this island?

This is an outrage.

Just because your diamond is missing,

you're accusing us all of being thieves.

In your case, Mr. McAvity,

someone else has already done that this evening.

Celia, this is your home.

Are you going to allow this meddler to intimidate us?

Be quiet, Renald. Mr. West is right, and you know it.

Thank you. I'd like all of you to return to your rooms.

Sir Nigel's going to conduct a search.

Ladies and gentlemen, if you please.

Be careful, James.

Sir Nigel.

Oh, you gave me quite a turn for a moment.

He didn't come from the window.

There's broken glass on the outside of the sill,

which means it was broken from the inside.

Well, then there must be another entrance to the room.

It would seem so.

Well, that could hardly be what we're looking for.

Ah, that's it, James.

Heh, this room is full of surprises.

Fancy Joseph Bleak building a secret entrance

to his own treasure room.

Mr. Krone. Who is it?

Oh, oh.

What brings you down here?

I... couldn't sleep.

I tried counting sheep,

but I started counting all the bottles

that I knew were down here.

And one thing led to another,

and all that counting made me thirsty.

Mr. Krone,

weren't you afraid of the hound or the murderer?

I certainly didn't expect to encounter him down here.

Please, uh...

don't tell Celia.

You needn't look at me that way,

because f-four of those kegs are mine.

Jarvis told me it's Celia's surprise.

Well, why don't we let bygones be bygones

and have a little brandy nightcap?

No, it's empty.

Uh...

I-I-I didn't put it there.

I didn't steal it.

If you did, you're undoubtedly our murderer as well.

Oh, no, no, no.

I... I couldn't kill anybody.

You gentlemen are my jury. I'm pleading my case.

Is...? Is this the face of a murderer?

Can't be Calendar.

If it is, I've led a lot of wasted years chasing him.

But he could be a confederate.

Keep an eye on him.

There may be something very interesting

in one of these passages.

There's one thing I can't stand, Mr. Krone:

incompetence in a criminal.

Oh, Mark.

You shouldn't have come up here, Alicia.

It was the only way we could be alone.

And I wanted to see you so much.

Aunt Celia keeps such a close watch on me.

Soon you'll be of age, then no one will be able to interfere.

Then... Then we can go away together.

I'll take you off this island.

Then we go away to Europe, the continent, anywhere.

Just say you love me. I love you. I love you.

I do. I love you.

Alicia!

Alicia! Alicia!

What happened? Alicia. She... She's gone!

Mark!

Oh!

Mark.

Oh, your arm.

It's all right.

Who was with you in that greenhouse?

I don't know. It was so dark.

I must have panicked. I'm sorry, Mark.

Why would anyone wanna kill either of you?

No reason, Mr. West. We haven't harmed anyone.

Your uncle had a very valuable wine cellar.

How come he didn't leave it to anyone?

I.. I-I guess he left it to Aunt Celia.

No one else?

Well, it was supposed to be a surprise,

but she did set some aside

for you, Sir Nigel and Mr. Krone.

It was no surprise to Krone.

Oh?

Well, only Jarvis and I

selected the casks, which we sent out as gifts.

Jarvis?

Yes. Well, we picked them out in the wine cellar.

What's at the end of this path?

The old caretaker's cottage.

It hasn't been used in years.

Take this, Mark.

I'll meet you back at the house.

Yes, sir.

Dr. Calendar.

I suppose I could have run, James,

but your legs would be so much stronger.

And really, I... I couldn't pull myself away from your expertise

in dealing with some of my best men.

Poor chaps.

Just as a matter of curiosity,

was it in the wine cellar

that you began to have your doubts about me?

It was a succession of things.

I couldn't help wonder how you knew Jarvis

had been hit with that dart under the right ear.

Yes, yes. Perhaps that was a mistake.

But Krone was an accident.

I hadn't counted on that idiot breaking into one of the casks

which Celia was giving to me.

The one you had hidden the diamond in?

Sir Nigel, you seem to think this is some kind of a game.

Oh, but it is, James. Your intellect against mine.

What better game is there for man to enjoy?

So, you see, you get no points for Krone.

And now the game comes to an end.

Sir Nigel, why did you start this game?

Calendar is really dead, isn't he?

Dead? Oh, yes, for some time.

And when he died, something in me changed.

I hadn't realized

what a large part of my life Calendar had become.

He provided all the excitement and challenge of the hunt.

I couldn't do without it.

So you became the hound and the hare.

And the Moon Diamond was just one of your trophies.

Surely you of all people must appreciate my plan.

You killed Jarvis because he knew about the wine.

I had planned to take care of the girl later,

but I would have felt rather guilty about her.

But I knew it was just a matter of time.

A trained mind such as yours

would have put the pieces together

before I had time to get off the island.

Sometimes murder is a very necessary part of the game.

Let's go back to the mainland, Sir Nigel. I'm still ahead.

Oh, but you're not, James.

A good player always has a few moves left.

Now, really, James, you shouldn't have given your gun

to those two youngsters.

James, you must believe me.

It is with considerable regret that I must dispose of you.

You were such a noble adversary.

I really believe that hound hates me.

It took so many stern measures

to train him to my every command.

So it is your dog?

Imagine my delight when Celia invited me here

to rid the island

of the very dog I had brought with me.

And now, my friend, I must leave you.

I have the boat on the other side of the island.

I wish I could say, "Good luck, dear boy,"

but the rules of the game forbid it.

Goodbye, James.

And as of 3 p.m., March 29th,

the Moon Diamond was officially turned over

to the National Museum.

So much for that. Would you care for more wine before dinner?

No, this is fine.

I don't see how a detective like Sir Nigel

could do such a thing.

How did you ever see through him?

Well...

Oh, excuse me.

Hello. Hello.

Mr. West, I hope you don't mind us dropping in on you.

Not at all.

Oh, I'm sorry. This is Nancy Conrad.

This is Alicia Crane and Mark Chambers.

Hello. It's Alicia Chambers now.

Oh, we were married two weeks ago.

Congratulations. Won't you join us in a toast?

We'd like to, but we're late. We're in a rush.

We just stopped by to deliver something to you.

When we were in Washington on our honeymoon,

we met a friend of yours, a Mr. Gordon.

And when he found out that we were coming back this way,

he asked us to deliver this to you.

Thank you.

Thank you very much.

Goodbye. Bye.

Would you mind reading that for me, please?

"Dear Jim, you'll be glad to know

"that things are pretty much wrapped up back here.

"Don't be too long till...

Oh. "It won't be too long till I'm on my way.

"In the meantime, I know how dull it gets

"looking at the same old things every day,

"so I sent something along to brighten up your day.

See you soon. Artie."

Well, this really is what I've always wanted.

Would you please set it over there on the table?

Thank you.

So that's your friend Artemus? - Mm-hm.

He's kind of cute,

but then so are you.