Original subtitles

You're trapped in, Alan. You're trapped in.

Heh, let's see ya get outta that!

- Help! Help!

Help! Help!

Help! Help!

Hello?

Professor Whitmore, I'm phoning

on behalf of Reverend Bradley, the Reverend Ian Bradley.

- Uh, Reverend Bradley, yeah?

I thought our appointment wasn't for another four days.

But something's come up,

and the committee would like to see you soon as possible,

right now, in fact, if it's convenient.

- Uh, I'm afraid I have a class to teach this morning.

That's not a problem.

I've had a word with Chancellor Hubbard,

and he's arranged for a substitute.

We want you to get the Intextus Project off as fast you can.

- All right, if you say so.

I'll see you later. Bye-bye.

Bye.

- Good morning, Professor Whitmore.

- Good morning.

Morning.

Gentlemen.

- Good morning, Professor Whitmore.

- Chancellor Hubbard.

- You are, of course, aware, Professor Whitmore,

how significant the Intextus Project is to our university.

As you know, Professor Roth in Hungary, Budapest,

has been giving us the most tangible answers

to our research.

- Uh, more so than from the researchers

in our contact cities.

- However, for the past two months,

just when it seemed we were about to get the final point,

all communication stopped.

I know. He hasn't answered my letters.

- And our calls. We're getting impatient.

Except for Roth's, all other reports are in.

- Whitmore, it goes without saying

that this project must be kept absolutely secret,

to avoid speculation

before we have all the answers.

You are one of the young professors

in whom we put our trust.

- You're also the coordinator of the project,

and you have the background.

That's why we're sending you.

- Uh, we'll take care of all your travel expenses,

too, of course.

- Travel?

- We want you to go to Budapest.

You're the only one with the understanding

of Roth and his researches.

- We must complete this project

as soon as possible.

If only you knew how important this really is.

- Well, of course I know how important it is.

All right... I'll go.

What exactly do you need me to do?

- Reestablish contact with Roth,

and bring back everything he has collected.

We were able to establish contact with his assistant,

who will be waiting for you at the airport.

- And here is a letter from me to be given to Roth.

There's a lot of responsibility attached to this trip.

Professor Whitmore, the institution and myself

will be very grateful to you.

You understand what I mean? Very grateful.

- Okay, gentlemen.

Chancellor Hubbard.

Seems like a guy who can handle the risk.

- He's naive to the situation.

It's better for us.

- Perhaps we should've told him everything.

- You're one of Professor Roth's assistants?

- I only deal with the mail and other odd jobs.

Like doing the driving?

- Only when an important person arrives.

Not so important.

Don't be so modest.

Do you also collaborate in his research?

- I'd love to, yet the professor is so reserved.

If you only knew.

Your letters have a great effect on Professor Roth.

He always awaits them anxiously.

- I don't know about that. He never answers them.

- That's Professor Roth's house there.

- Aren't you coming with me?

- Professor Roth is waiting for you.

We'll see each other later, no doubt.

I'll come and pick you up and take you to your hotel, okay?

Okay

Goodbye.

- Professor Whitmore, I presume.

Yes.

- Celia Roth. Please, come in.

Professor Whitmore, I feel

I should tell you

that my husband might tell you

some strange things.

You see...

- Tell me.

- Please don't take any notice.

Uh, don't attach too much importance to it.

- Mrs. Roth, what is it?

- Leo just had a serious nervous breakdown,

and work has become very hard and tiring for him.

I'm sorry. I didn't know that.

Maybe I can be of some help.

I don't want to to think that all his efforts will be wasted.

- I'm sorry, Professor Whitmore.

I fear you made this trip for nothing.

Don't stay too long.

Seeing people excites him but tires him.

Please.

- Thank you.

Hello, Professor Roth. I'm Alan Whitmore.

I thought you were expecting me.

- Who is going to prove to me

that you really are who you say you are?

- I'm sorry, I don't understand.

I see. This is a letter from Chancellor Hubbard.

It's for you. Please.

I'm the coordinator of the Intextus Project.

We've already received the reports

from Heidelberg, Bombay, and Cairo,

but some people are not so prompt in conveying the results

of their investigations.

Local objective difficulties, I guess.

- Or subjective.

Leo, don't forget you have to have your injection soon.

- Professor Roth, your first communications to us

were of great importance.

Chancellor Hubbard was very enthusiastic

about the wealth of documentation here,

but we can't understand why it stopped.

Professor Roth.

- Go on. Continue talking.

- I've planned on staying two weeks,

hoping that'll be enough to complete the study.

Professor Roth, you never told us

where you got your material from.

You have to understand how important this is.

- Listen to me. Hide this quickly.

Hide it quickly.

Here you'll find the fundamental indications.

Be very careful.

Don't say a word to anybody.

- I'll look at it later.

No.

- But why don't you tell me now what's happening.

- Because, Whitmore, this business is extremely dangerous.

I can't explain it to you right now,

but try and come back this evening alone.

Make sure nobody is following you.

I'm cons--

- The...

I told you he was strange.

I apologize on his behalf.

Do you understand now?

We've got to keep him quiet.

Please go, Professor Whitmore.

You can't be of any help here.

When my husband feels better,

then maybe you will be able to see him again.

- I'll come back after dinner.

Then I'll make a decision.

- Do as you wish. I warned you.

- Professor Whitmore.

I've already left your suitcase at the hotel.

It's just around the corner.

Come with me.

I'm terribly worried about the professor.

His crises are more and more frequent.

He can spend days without speaking

and fall into the deepest depression.

Often, he has a real

persecution paranoia. - So what do I do now?

- You're not interested in the professor's health, are you?

I'm sorry, Professor Whitmore.

- It's Alan. Please call me Alan.

And don't excuse yourself. It's just that I'm frustrated.

There was so much I was hoping to learn.

- This is your hotel,

and I just live over there.

Good afternoon, Mrs. Kuhn.

This is Professor Whitmore.

- Ah, you're Professor Roth's guest.

- No, I'm not his guest.

I'll take care of my bill, thank you.

Your room is ready.

Second floor, shh, internal courtyard.

It's very quiet.

How long do you expect to be staying with us?

- I haven't decided yet.

You must be feeling tired after your flight.

I'll leave you now,

but if you want to see Budapest,

I'd be only too happy to show you around.

- I'll see you anyway at Professor Roth's.

Thanks.

Thank you.

- Professor,

where do you come from?

- Dallas.

- Oh, what a fascinating city.

I'm planning to go there very soon.

You'll enjoy it.

I've found the sarcophagus.

The inscription says,

'I'm the urn that belongs to the weavers.'

There's no time left. They've entered my mind.

They prevent me from continuing.

The great cobweb is closing every passage.

It's a labyrinth without exit."

"Polgar Moricz."

Mrs. Kuhn? Could you phone Professor Roth, please?

Thanks, I'll hold on.

It's busy? Okay-

Please try again.

It's important. Thanks.

Yes? Still busy.

Okay, thanks anyhow.

- Close all windows.

There's a thunderstorm coming.

Make sure there's no laundry outside.

Professor, where are you going in this weather?

- Professor Roth is expecting me.

- But we serve dinner in half an hour.

I'll try to call again.

There's no need to go out.

- Don't worry about me.

- Professor Whitmore...

- Maria, I told you to check the laundry.

Everything is all right, madam.

Damn.

- Psst.

Please, I want to save you.

Uh, uh...

Listen to me!

I'm not crazy.

You must leave this place immediately.

Maybe you're still in time,

but you have to escape this very night.

- What the hell do you want?

- If you don't listen to me soon,

you won't be able to go anywhere.

Please! You'll be trapped here.

They, they, they'll let you go for a while,

but then they'll get you.

You'll be back like a...

You'll be back, sucked into the vortex!

Don't you understand?

You try to get out,

and suddenly the center attracts you, sucks you in,

and doesn't let go of you anymore.

- You're crazy, man.

- You'll make a big mistake not to listen to me.

You're in great danger, Professor Whitmore!

- Where do you think you're going?

- I'm a colleague of Professor Roth.

I've an appointment with him.

- So come with me.

Commissioner Blasco, this man is looking for Professor Roth.

- Who are you?

- Alan Whitmore, a colleague of the professor.

I'm an American citizen.

- When did you arrive?

This afternoon.

- Have you got your passport with you?

- I don't know, maybe.

Here it is.

What happened? Where's the professor?

I was just here this afternoon.

- What is the purpose of your visit?

- Why all these questions?

Would you please tell me what's happening?

- After you've answered my question.

- I'm a professor of Oriental languages

at Rudmore University.

At the moment, I'm coordinating an international project

on which Professor Roth is also working.

Follow me.

Miss Weiss, you confirm this man is a colleague

of the professor?

- Sure, I took him here myself.

- Where's the professor's wife?

- What wife?

- Mrs. Roth.

- The professor's not married.

- There was a woman here this afternoon.

She said she was the professor's wife.

She said she had to give him injections.

- Go on. - She left us alone.

The professor seemed worried. I didn't get it...

I didn't get what he wanted to say.

Then a ball, a black ball, as big as a fist,

it came through that win--

It came through this window here.

It came through here.

- Calm down, Professor.

We'll clarify everything.

- Okay. What about my passport?

- There's no hurry.

Anyway, you're staying a little while longer, aren't you?

- It wasn't paranoia.

Roth was actually threatened,

and you knew nothing about it?

- No, of course not.

He was just depressed.

- Look, I feel I'm in the middle

of a situation I don't even understand.

I'm even starting to doubt what I've seen.

Look, I think we both need something strong. Come on.

- How is it possible?

Who could hate him that much?

But you saw him. You spoke to him.

You must have felt something.

- I didn't see him for more than a few minutes.

- But the police...

What do the police say?

- The house is a mess,

but according to Commissioner Blasco,

they didn't steal anything.

There was a jewel case and a lot of cash

in one of the drawers in the studio,

but apparently everything is in its place

except for books and papers.

- But didn't you notice anything strange in his behavior?

Didn't he confide anything to you?

- He was scared, awfully scared.

- Anyway, isn't it strange that just as you arrived...

You must be upset.

May I offer you a liqueur?

- Thanks. I do need something strong.

- I need something strong, and a lot of it.

- Don't pay too much attention to Mrs. Kuhn.

I don't think she wants to insinuate--

No?

Fortunately, when the murder occurred,

I was here in the hotel.

Otherwise, I might be a suspect.

- Go to him.

- Mrs. Kuhn is of little importance,

and I don't think the police doubt your assertions.

- What about you?

- Certainly not.

- Yeah?

- From your letter to Professor Roth,

I had formed a completely different idea of you.

- You seem disillusioned.

- I didn't mean that.

On the contrary, you have been a pleasant surprise.

I appreciate your reservedness. I understand.

Try to understand me.

I feel very guilty for what happened to Professor Roth.

I would like you not to keep secrets from me,

no important secrets.

I would like to be able to do something.

Maybe they were looking

for something that had to do with the research,

don't you think?

- Maybe.

- You don't want to talk to me about it?

- It's not a secret.

Many scientists scattered all over the world

work on the Intextus Project.

It's difficult to imagine there could be murders

for some inscriptions back the third millennium BC.

- Professor Roth must have discovered

something particularly important.

- In any case, it would be a discovery

of pure scientific value.

No, something far more complicated in this murder.

- It was only a guess.

You really don't want me to help you?

- On the contrary,

I think I badly need you, Miss Weiss.

Genevieve.

- Sure, Genevieve.

- Professor Whitmore.

- Yes? What do you want?

- Please, don't speak loudly.

If they find out I'm here, it's the end for me.

- I don't understand. Do you need to--

- Listen, you must believe me.

There is no time to explain.

If you have any good sense,

you better pack your bags and leave as soon as you can.

There are unscrupulous people here,

people that don't make mistakes.

- If you have something to tell me,

you better make it more clear. Otherwise--

- You don't have the least idea of what awaits you.

I'm really afraid for you.

Take my advice, Professor Whitmore.

Maria,

what are you doing here?

- I brought some clean towels.

- Professor, you look tense.

It's understandable. Sleep.

Try to sleep.

- I'll do that. Thanks.

- "Polgar Moricz."

on.

Maria... Maria!

- Professor Whitmore?

Professor Whitmore?

No, no! No!

No! No! No!

- Ah!

Were you looking for something?

- Mrs. Kuhn! I was woken up by screams.

- Screams?

- I thought they came from up here.

- You must be mistaken.

This is my son's room.

He died many years ago.

I never wanted anybody to stay in this room.

It is like a shrine for me. You understand?

- Mrs. Kuhn, I tell you I heard screams.

- You're looking at this sign.

I did it at that time.

I was overwhelmed by sorrow.

A mother can't come to terms

with the idea that she's losing her child.

I locked myself in this room and I decided to...

The sun used to come in through the window.

There was a window there. I had it walled up.

From the garden came a spring fragrance.

You could hear children's voices,

while they were playing.

I didn't do it.

I only made a nasty cut.

One gets attached even to scars.

- I think I understand.

Did you never find comfort in faith?

- My son is still part of myself,

even if now he's in the eternal darkness.

- No, Mrs. Kuhn, I meant

maybe it would be more comforting

for you to have faith and belief in God.

Why not consider light instead of darkness?

- What are you saying, professor?

There's no God.

There's no light. There's nothing.

Leave me alone. Please.

Goodnight, Mrs. Kuhn.

Hmm.

- Last night, I was woken up by screams coming from upstairs.

When I went upstairs, I found Mrs. Kuhn

in a small room without windows.

She had them walled up.

- Yes? So what?

- She was depressed.

She talked about a dead child. She almost got angry.

- I feel sorry for Mrs. Kuhn.

A mysterious story's told about her,

a child that disappeared... maybe killed.

It was never clear what happened.

You promised you would tell me about your research, Alan.

Remember?

We're studying a very old religion,

different people far away from each other

that worship the same divinities.

Like an enormous cobweb,

they seem connected to each other.

"intextus," in Latin,

means "interlacing" or "weaving," doesn't it?

Yes. Why do you ask me?

Because Professor Roth often spoke

of a cobweb, big cobweb,

and I don't think it was a mere expression.

He referred to something real.

He also spoke of an object,

a sacred object.

He never mentioned it to you?

Do you think that's it?

- Roth gave you these pictures?

- Yes. Look on the back.

"Polgar Moricz."

Does that name mean anything to you?

- He's an antique dealer.

I don't see it.

Yes... Wait.

I know they were in contact with each other.

Then something happened between them.

I don't know what.

I think they quarreled.

- What sort of relationship did they have?

- Roth used to buy from Polgar Moricz

antique objects and books.

Where is his place?

- Intaski Road.

It's not difficult to find.

Do you want to go there now?

- Yes.

You take the second road on the right.

Second on the right.

- Then the first on the left,

and at the end of it, there is a small road.

The shop sign is visible.

- Good morning, Mr. Whitmore.

- Good morning.

Hmm.

- Wait.

It will take you five minutes by car.

- Thanks, but I think I need to go by my--

- Don't say anything. I know everything.

If there is one thing one must avoid,

it's to follow closely a scholar

when he's found a track.

- Thanks.

Excuse me, I'm trying to find the antique shop

of Polgar Moricz.

- Uh, yes, so, first two times to the left, please,

then to the right,

then once again to the left.

- Good. Thank you very much.

You're welcome.

- I have to take the second on the right.

That's where I made my mistake.

Then right again, and I should find the street.

No!

I took the second on the right.

Then I went right again.

I don't get it.

It's not possible. Hey!

Hey, wait a minute.

Hey, wait a minute! Hey, please!

- ls anybody here?

Mr. Moricz?

Mr. Moricz?

- Don't be afraid. I'm here to help you.

Quick, Professor Whitmore, quick!

You have to trust me now.

You have no choice.

Perhaps there's still a way out, a possibility to escape.

But we must hurry. Come on!

The religion you're investigating is by no means extinct.

The practices have survived the centuries in secret.

Today in the city, tomorrow all over the world,

the rats and their followers are growing.

Contagion is spreading.

Roth called them the Weavers.

They christen men in the labyrinth of death.

They penetrate their minds until they're no longer human.

They learn to serve their cruel and horrible divinities.

- So Roth was killed because he discovered the existence

of their sect.

- Oh, much more than that.

He discovered that their gods are no myths

but they are living creatures, real.

Their names have been inscribed

on that tablet that you found.

Ah, let's go.

This is where I live.

I've left a way of escape open. It's through there.

Do you see? Sewer tunnels.

I only hope it's not too late.

What do you mean? They're after me?

- You have the tablet.

They don't want the names of their gods to be known.

Listen.

When you're out of here,

be very careful of whoever you meet on your voyage.

And even afterwards, when you're in America,

you'll recognize the Weavers

by a sign they have on their wrists:

a white scar in the form of a spider.

Now, go. Go quickly.

I'll make sure none of them follows you.

- Why haven't they killed me so far?

- Because they want to use you

and make you become one of them.

- Why are you doing this?

Escape, too. They could kill you.

- They will, sooner or later.

My life now is here.

I have to stay here and save others.

God bless you, Alan Whitmore.

Hmm.

- All right. Here I am!

What are you waiting for?

I'm not afraid.

We'll be the ones who'll win.

- In the end.

- No.

No!

Stop. Stop!

Blasco, thank God.

- You should have remained at our disposal

and not gone off on your own.

- If you, if you hadn't come,

they would've gotten me, too.

Polgar Moricz, they killed him.

They're a sect of killers,

and they're all in this district.

- You are crazy.

- I'm in danger.

We're all in danger!

- Now you have to believe me.

Look. This tablet...

This tablet is proof of what I'm saying.

Genevieve? Genevieve?

Genevieve. Genevieve, it's me, Alan.

Genevieve? Genevieve?

Genevieve. Genevieve?

Genevieve, what's wrong? What, what happened?

Come, Alan. Come.

Now you know the taste of blood.

You're ready. You killed.

We are you. We are you.

Come, Alan. Come.

There is a point

where the end and the beginning coincide.

There's nothing around you, only emptiness,

and you fall.

You fall into absolute emptiness,

hanging only by a thin thread,

like the spider's web.

You have been chosen, Alan, and your task is great.

The world doesn't have to know about us,

and you'll spread our seed

so that the cobweb will become bigger.

Quiet.

Come with me.

Don't be afraid.

Trust me, Alan.

Trust me.

Genevieve? Genevieve!

- Nobody has to know, Alan. Nobody.

The god's name cannot be known.

Genevieve!

- Professor Whitmore.

- Good morning.

- Good morning. It's good to have you back.

Thank you.

- Yeah. - Chancellor Hubbard.

- Frank. - Alan.

- We received your cable. Exactly what happened?

- Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you, gentlemen,

but after Roth's death, I was unable to complete the work.

I tried to follow through on the research,

but I found no answers.

- Well, Professor, I think we've found the answers.

- The day after you left,

a registered letter arrived from Budapest.

It was from Roth.

It was full of Polaroids of a tablet,

taken from every possible angle.

Now that you're back,

we feel sure that you'll be able to tell us the meaning

of the scribbles on that tablet.

- A tablet... That's fantastic!

And to find something here

after all I went through in Budapest.

- Excuse me. Let me go and get the Polaroids

for you to look at.

- Now, tell us what happened in Budapest.

What happened to Roth?

- I have the...

Oh my...

Oh, my God.