Original subtitles

So Stalin's notebook.

Wait!

Who told you about this?

An eyewitness?

From that time?

If this book really exists, it's a piece of history.

I need to find your father, Papu.

I didn't kill the old man!

Oh, but you did.

When you told Mamantov you had a witness from the old times,

that was his death sentence. - I'm a witness.

I'm not a suspect!

Remember me?

I met you this morning, RJ O'Brian.

I'm being deported.

I'm not.

Give me what you got.

When I got home last night, there

was a note from my father.

It says that there is something valuable,

and you can tell me what it is, in a toolbox.

Who killed him?

They think a man called Vladimir Mamantov.

He knew your father from the old time.

What was in my life, the old time?

That you?

I'm surprised he kept it.

I don't actually know what I'm looking for.

It's underneath you.

Hold that.

What is it?

You know about guns.

It was my father's.

In Makarov, when we were little, he told us how

to strip, clean, and fire it.

Hey, hey, whoa!

Put your hands on your head!

Hey.

Uh, Professor, can you do me a favor

and just ask her to put that thing down?

What the hell are you doing here?

Look, I was curious to see if you got on that plane.

And you didn't!

And OK, now she's starting to freak me out.

Put it down.

Wait.

I know you from the clubs.

You're Zinaida, right?

Why's she here?

She's Papu Rapava's daughter.

So what are you guys doing, making some home improvements?

Or has it got something to do with that?

You're never gonna shake my ass off of this.

I'm a pit bull, Professor.

So we may as well partner up.

You two can split whatever loot you make.

Is it valuable?

If it's what the professor thinks it is,

it could be worth half a million, yeah.

Dollars?

That's right.

Let's open it up.

Wait!

I wanna capture this moment.

You don't drive a BMW?

No, it's not my style.

I thought we were followed by a 7 Series.

7 Series?

Sounds like a mafia car.

Or a cop on the take.

Jesus. Do you live in here?

I did in Baghdad.

Look, you do this as long as you keep her name out of it.

And you don't show any of this footage

until we get that thing properly forensically analyzed.

Anything else, Professor?

Yeah, you can stop calling me "Professor."

Can I call you "Doc?"

No.

What is it?

Well, It's embossed with the seal

of the Soviet Union, which would suggest

it's something official.

Well, it's not Stalin's writing.

What are you talking about?

It's written about Stalin, but it's--

it's not his writing.

Oh, great.

Price just took a nosedive.

Komsomol unit number two display their paces.

We marched across Red Square.

And as we passed beneath him, his glance fell upon us,

like the rays of the sun.

It's the righting of a young girl.

WOMAN (VOICOEVER): I remember the day the comrade from Moscow

came to visit.

The leader of the local party met him at the station.

He had the biggest car in Archangel.

The comrade explained that since the parade in Moscow,

I had been selected for special tasks relating

to high party leadership.

If I accept, I must return to Moscow with him

and stay there for a year.

My father says if it is the will of the party,

he will not prevent me.

I'm so happy I could die.

We went south through a forest.

Konosha, Vologda, Yaroslavl.

Last time, there were 20 of us, silly laughing girls.

Now there is only me.

I'm a little afraid so far from home.

[car honking]

I will take care of this.

It's all right.

She's got it covered.

Let's get out of here, go to my office.

"Comrade Stalin has asked that from now

on I'm to bring him breakfast.

He works till he falls asleep wherever he finds himself.

How I wish that people could see him like this.

So humble, so dedicated to their welfare."

That's sweet.

What's the date of the entry?

It's the 21st of October.

She got there on the 12th.

That means she's been there for what, eight days?

And he still hasn't jumped her.

"When leave the room, I hear him cursing.

He has cut himself."

[speaking russian]

[russian singing]

[music begins]

[speaking russian]

[music stops]

[music playing]

That's it?

That's all?

See for yourself.

The last pages have been torn out.

Shit.

What are all these doodles?

Look, this looks like a wolf's head.

Stalin used to draw the heads of wolves in the margins

of official documents.

So this is genuine?

Until I've have it forensically tested, I just--

I just can't say.

Bottom line, Doc, I hold you up against a brick wall

with a gun, what's your opinion?

It's genuine.

Good.

So what about all this other stuff?

Hey, look, careful!

Jesus.

It's an NKVD report.

It's the family's medical history.

Teeth, blood group, no genetic disorders.

What, the old bastard only school prom queens?

Why would he keep her diary?

Obsession.

Infatuation.

On the train, she says that that

was the worst day to travel because it was that time.

Meaning what?

She had her period.

And the last night when he called her to his room,

it was 10 days later.

When she was fertile.

That's it.

That's what the medical reports are about.

He was looking for the perfect mother for his child.

You know what we gotta do?

We gotta find this girl.

Find her? She'll be dead.

You can't be sure.

She'd only be about what, 70?

Yeah, but that's not the point.

She wouldn't have died of old age.

Who do you think we're dealing with here, Prince Charming?

Maybe, but this is a huge story.

We gotta run this down.

We gotta go to Archangel.

I-- I can't go to any airport.

Look, we'll head straight up the M8.

It's about 7, 800 miles.

We'll take the war wagon.

A flask for coffee, a few uppers, a stack of CDs.

Loving it.

Louise!

I am not going anywhere.

Oh no, you have to.

If you stay in Moscow, they'll find you and they'll kill you.

For what?

For this?

Your father died because he wouldn't

tell them where it was, because he wanted you to have it.

Not worth dying for.

Stubborn old fool.

He died because he wanted to leave you something of value,

so that you could get out, so you could stop being a--

A whore.

Like you and O'Brian?

Look, um, he's a hack.

He's not gonna sit on this.

We have to ditch him.

Is that what he said is the truth?

It's worth a lot of money?

Yeah.

A lot of money.

You're supposed to be in St. Petersburg tomorrow.

We've rescheduled this twice already.

Well, why don't we just dump it?

I'll talk to the chief.

Going to get some warm clothes.

OK, but let's try and leave before dark.

Whereabouts is your place from here?

North 20 minutes.

Good.

We'll get your stuff and keep going.

Although we're not gonna get very far in this.

No need.

Here's O'Brian's.

- We steal? - We steal.

What did she say?

She says there is someone in there.

Right, well, let's go.

We'll find some clothes on the way.

There is something I need.

Do you know him?

Of course not!

Let's go.

I told you, there is something that I need.

What are you thinking?

How many men I sleep with to get this cash?

No.

I was just wondering how you find the time to study law.

Archangel.

"Founded by Peter the Great, named after the Archangel

Michael, the warrior angel.

Until the fall of communism, it was a forbidden city closed

to all the outside visitors."

They had nuclear subs there.

They leaked.

Why are we slowing down?

The car behind us, it's the Militia.

Shit.

O'Brian didn't waste much time, did he?

It's OK.

They're not interested in us.

[russian rap music playing]

Uh.

I don't know if I can handle Russian rap for 500 miles.

[volume increases]

The whole area was used for nuclear weapons.

Oh, and listen to this travelers' tip.

"When arriving at the railway station,

check the digital radiation meter.

If it's 15 micro-rads or below, it's safe."

Oh, this sounds like a fun place.

2 and 1/2 thousand dollars.

What is that, round trip?

One way.

When could he leave?

10:00.

Tell him he's got a deal.

OK, he'll be there at 9:00.

Yes.

Yes, of course, cash.

Yeah.

RJ, I think you're crazy.

The weather's bad, and it's getting worse.

Yeah, that's why I have to leave tomorrow,

or I'll never get in.

What do I tell head office?

That you're going off radar, leaving 'em with a $2,500

tab for a charter?

I'll give 'em a taste.

Book me some satellite time.

[speaking russian]

Mamantov.

[speaking russian]

Very chic.

Well, there's not much call for Versace out here.

And I don't think we'll find a sushi bar, either.

These small towns are forgotten.

The old die, the young leave.

When you leave Moscow, you realize Moscow isn't Russia.

You smoke too much.

I know.

How old are you, anyway?

27.

You?

Older.

I prefer to go with older men.

Safer and less exhausting.

Ever paid for it, Fluke?

Once, when I was 16.

I needed to lose my virginity.

It was weighing me down.

[chuckling]

You should do that more often.

What?

Laugh. Come on.

We have a long way to go.

The victim was later identified

as Papu Gerasimovich Rapava, a 73-year-old

survivor of the gulag.

Rapava may have known the whereabouts of a secret diary

belonging to Joseph Stalin.

And this knowledge may have cost him his life.

RJ O'Brian, SMS News, Moscow.

Excuse me, can you tell me where the pilot is?

Oh, God.

This plane is older than me.

It's a bucket.

Are you the pilot?

Mr. O'Brian?

RJ.

Lev.

Ready to go?

Hm?

Right.

Here you are. - Thank you.

Let's go.

You know what the weather's like in Archangel?

I'll risk it if you will.

Shouldn't we have a navigator or somebody?

No one above.

Oh, that's great.

Just terrific!

Take a seat!

[inaudible] is first class!

[speaking russian]

Hey, hey.

Hm?

Roadblock ahead.

And my visa's run out.

I'll handle it.

How'd you manage that?

I gave him a month's wages.

Wait.

OK.

Spasiba.

Shit.

Nicer foul-ups.

Eat.

It's not bad.

The party, they'll-- they'll still have an office here,

won't they?

We should check their records.

To find out about this girl's very important for you, yeah?

Fo More important than anything, I guess.

Yeah.

For me, history is dead.

It tells us what happened, not what happens next.

That is what I care about.

Well, that's wrong.

You think because Russia has MTV,

and McDonald's, and accepts American Express that it's just

the same as everywhere else.

Well, that's bullshit.

Because you won't understand Russia until you

understand its past.

Thank you for the lecture, Professor.

Look, look.

Just tell her that we've traveled an awfully long way.

We're very discreet, and we just need to see some records

of the party members.

Why would you be interested in someone from this remote place?

- I'm researching a book. - On what subject?

On the residual power of the Communist Party

in rural Russia.

Excellent subject.

Willfully ignored in the West.

Take our situation here.

We have people who have got rich.

Millionaires.

We also have organized crime, unemployment, AIDS,

prostitution, and drug addiction.

Such progress.

Not like in the good old days, eh?

We had work.

We had pride.

Now we have free markets and rich oligarchs.

I see you've read Comrade Mamantov.

I was with him two days ago in Moscow.

[speaking russian]

It's incredible.

They haven't thrown anything away.

What are they waiting for, the second coming?

Most curious.

The Komsomol lists from 1950 and '52 are not here.

They were transferred to the Central Committee in Moscow.

On whose authority?

General Poskrebyshev.

Oh, Comrade Stalin's private secretary.

I'm impressed.

Dead end?

In the Party files is listed Mikhail and Varvara Safanov.

The parents.

When did they die?

Mikhail died in 1988.

The woman paid her Party dues this year.

She's still alive.

[speaking russian]

Come on, come on!

[speaking russian]

Maybe it was just a routine check.

Maybe they haven't connected us with the car.

Maybe it's too many maybes.

Oh, Jesus!

How did you get the scratch on my bumper, Professor?

How the hell did you get here?

It wasn't easy, you son of a bitch.

Get in.

We can't stay here.

Why did you cut me of the loop, huh?

All I ever wanted was the story.

You get the rest.

The book deal, the lecture tour.

Get in!

Did you find Anna?

We found her mother.

Oh, you gotta be kidding.

So where is Mr. O'Brian now?

He had to charter a plane because those guys stole

his jeep, which really pissed him off, because he's

married to that thing.

So your boss is following them.

Where?

North, Archangel.

Archangel?

Why?

Because that's where the girl lived.

What girl?

[speaking russian]

Yeah.

Yeah, I gotta go, Todd.

All right.

I'll catch up with you later.

Who's Todd?

Have you ever used one of these?

Who is Todd?

You wanna call your girlfriend?

Todd.

Todd, he's a guy in the newsroom.

And what were you asking him?

Just asking him about the World Series.

I got some money on it.

O'Brian, how did you hook up with us at the lock-up?

OK, I got a tip that you were at the morgue.

From who?

No idea.

It was a voice on the phone.

We keep a lid on this until the time is right.

That was the deal. - Yeah, yeah, yeah.

You got it. No problem.

[speaking russian]

Here.

She seems to have opened up to you.

Perhaps too much.

She must have been told never to speak of these things.

A long time ago.

People in Russia don't lose their fear

because they get told.

Maybe she's following orders.

Maybe once we leave, she makes a call.

Maybe you should stay here tomorrow

and make sure she doesn't.

Why me?

To O'Brian stay.

Well, if I do that, he's just gonna call the office.

At least this way, I can keep an eye on him.

We'll be back by nightfall.

OK.

But you should know something else that she told me.

Her husband wanted to meet his grandson.

He took off the same way that you're taking.

He never came back.

They killed her, didn't they?

After the baby was born?

Yeah.

Yeah, they did.

Look, I'm-- I'm gonna go in now.

It'll be a long drive tomorrow.

[music playing]