"Where the heck have I put the alarm?" "Calm." "Calm." "Calm!" "Calm." "What madness, damn it." "What madness!" "His wife was an anxious woman." "Her anxiousness disappeared after they divorced." "She left the alarm clock behind." "Yes, alright." "Alright, alright." "Coming." "Niccolò, don't forget what you have promised me," "I've waited a whole year." "I know, I know." "You are right." "You are right, damn it." " Everything's fine?" " Yes, all is fine." "It was my fault." " Thanks Romolo, I'm sorry." " I had check even this one." " You never can tell." " No, you did the right thing." " Good night." " Good night, Romolo." "Stamps." "Of course." "Now what?" "Hello." "Am I speaking to Mr. Niccolò Farra?" "Who's talking?" "Ah, you're finally back?" "What do you mean, finally?" "Hello." "I've been asked to tell you something important." "Important for you." "Excuse me, do you know what time it is?" "You didn't care before." "What is your name?" "Can we arrange to meet?" "Look, if it is an important thing like you say, you better tell me now." "Who are you?" "No, not on the phone." "It's a matter to be treated with some... discretion." "It's better we speak in person." "But who told you to approach me with this?" "I'll tell you when we meet." "Why not leave me your telephone number?" "No, because I have to meet you in person." "Tomorrow at the Gelateria Fassi, at 10.00 o'clock, is that okay with you?" "Okay." "Who is it?" "Who is it?" "Why can't you understand I'm thinking about you?" "Good morning." "For some time, Mr. Farra, you've been interested in a girl." "Very beautiful, I'm told." "I don't know her, I haven't had the pleasure." "Name?" "I'm sure we are thinking about the same person." "Whoever it is, it is my business, don't you agree?" "Well, this is the case." "I have the impression she isn't only yours." "I am here, to make a suggestion." "Which is?" "Go ahead." "I'm interested in the conclusion." "I have concluded." "Uhm." "I'm not threatening you, let's make that clear." "It is simply a warning." "Could you be a little more precise?" "Well... if you would stay..." "calm..." " Would you like something else, Sir?" " No, thanks." " Here you are." " Thank you." "The things you have to endure to enjoy an ice cream." "Okay lady, see you tomorrow at four?" "Oh, I' m very capable of the job." " Listen..." "I have to make a phone call..." " Please, excuse me..." "I understand." "Goodbye, see you tomorrow." "It is me." "I have something amusing to tell you." "Can I see you?" "Will you answer, please?" "The secretary has left." "Of course." "Who is it?" "I would like to speak to the doctor." "She is very busy at the moment, would you like to speak with me instead?" "My name is also Farra." "I don't understand." "Are you also a gynaecologist?" "No, no." "The doctor is my sister." "That makes me her brother." "I'm phoning to make an appointment, not to hear a joke." "You're right, excuse me." "I'm sorry." "Farra Niccolò, the director?" "That's what they call me." "Listen, since you have to wait a little, maybe you could describe what you look like to me?" "Because you want cast me for a movie?" "I don't know." "I don't know you." "But it makes me uneasy that I cannot visualize... the person I'm speaking with on the phone." "Here's my sister." " Thank you." " You are welcome." "Yes..." "Listen, would it be possible to make an appointment for tomorrow?" "One moment." "No, it's not possible tomorrow." "Please give me your name and telephone number." "Maria Vittoria" "Maria Vittoria..." " Luppis." "Six, five..." " One moment... 656039." "Very well." "I'll call you." " Thank you." " You are welcome." " Will you wait a second, please?" " Why not." "If man didn't exist, would God still exist?" "Heh, even with man there are some doubts, not to mention without him." "That's true." "And what was God doing before creating the world?" "Nothing." "Where is your bed?" "Find it." "And your briefs, will you not take them off?" "No, you have to take them off." "But not right away." "I'm not one who needs to have sex like it was the daily bread." "It was you who asked me where the bed was." "Listen , why can't we lie here a little without doing anything?" "I have some problems." "What problems?" "No, not really problems." "That is, I started very late." "Why is that?" "For more than two years, I was at a college in England," "In Wales, close to the ocean." "Atlantic College." "Never heard of it." "Only you noble people know these places." "At the college, besides studying," "I specialized in sea rescues." " Rescues?" " Yes, if our canoes capsized, we had to rescue each other." "In winter, in summer." "Even after meals, or in agitated sea." "Always waves." "Always canoes." "But I had a good time." "It's just that we couldn't have sex." "It was forbidden." "And so I was forced to wait." "The college is very beautiful, you know." "The doctor said I shouldn't have intercourse for some weeks." " Who, my sister?" " Yes." " You saw her?" " Yes." "She didn't think you were seriously ill, right?" " Cigarette?" " Here they are." "Then what was the other evening..." "Please, I don't like to talk about sex." "Ssh." "No problem." "I know, I know." "I am incapable of punctuality." "Excuse me." "Now what?" "Did you flirt with anyone recently?" " There is always someone." " Uhm." "No... somebody in particular." "Probably rich..." "of a certain age." "Why do yo ask me?" "Because part of the story is, that this someone is interested in you." "To the degree that he sent someone to threaten me." "What are you saying?" "I caused him to threaten you?" "Two hours ago." "He phoned me, then we met." "In short, he made me understand..." "I had better not meet you anymore." "Who is he?" " You're not thinking of anyone in particuar?" " No." " Try to think." " I am thinking." " I don't know." " Now, then." "Du want me to swear?" " Do you recognize this face?" " No." "Are you sure?" "Never seen it." "In my opinion, he is your adorer's gorilla." "And you believe that I have met the gorillas?" "Not the gorillas, but the merchants of death that pay them." "And there must be several of them, in your circles." "They're not my circles anymore, since a long time." "What should we do?" "Ah, what should we do." "Don't think it is over between you and me because of this scoundrel." "No." "Certainly not." "I ask myself what we can do." "Why don't you introduce me..." "to some of your friends?" "Yes." " Good evening." " Hello, Carlo." " Mavi..." " How are you?" " See you upstairs?" " Yes, sure." " Ah, you are here?" "Leaving already?" " Yes, but I'll return soon." " You're coming back?" " Yes." " How are you, sis'?" " Fine." " My sister." " And him?" " Some would say that..." " What would "some" say?" "That you have been at the Atlantic College with all of them, in a canoe." " Why?" " You're so friendly with everyone." "You're also seeing how everyone is equally friendly with me." "As you already said, men like me." "Especially in spring." "In springtime I always want to make new friends." "It's a fortune that winter is not over yet." "I still have some time." "One moment please." "I want to tell you something." "Hello." " How are you?" " Fine, and you?" " Fine." "I rarely see you nowadays." " It's been a while." " Are you preparing a new film?" " Did you go to see my films?" "Certainly." " Will you be sorry if we leave?" " No." "I wonder if any one of them didn't look at me sleeping?" "Who is he?" "One who earns don't know how many millions per day." "What do they do with all that money?" "There are even those who don't have a single lira here." "But those who have, all know where to place them." "Because of this, they will never say it is their fault if things start going wrong." "The guilt lies in the structures." " Of what?" " But yes." "Do you think what we live in is a society?" "What we are missing is an idea of society." "Here, there are as many as there are people at the party." " Do you have a cigarette?" " Certainly." "You're into politics now?" "Good evening, How are you?" "Is that your wife?" "Which one?" "That blond lady?" "I would be thrilled to have you at my home one of these evenings." " Can I phone you?" " Certainly." "Mavi, you said "my home"." "Which home?" "Your home, will you lend it to me?" "Heh..." "We haven't spoken in a long time." "Yes, I'm living in Paris." "What do you think of the election, madame?" "Ah, I find Mittérand sympathetic and think he will do well." "We will see in the end." "... from the ancestors..." "who invented the contrabass." "Listen there is always this sectarian atmosphere at your cocktail parties and dinners ." "As if they are afraid of being scrutinized, spied upon." "You're not being fair." "Many have in fact already cut the rope." "Oh, now." "In the past, poor people used to emigrate from Italy." "Today these people are." " Really?" "What will you do now?" " He's not always like that." "Let's go there." " Pardon me." " You are welcome." " Do you like the strawberries?" " Yes, very much." " I'll take some wine, however." " As always." "What is he doing?" "Oh..." "Excuse me." "Eh, excuse me." "...in this case..." "Excuse me...you're not by any chance..." " I've never seen him..." " Excuse me so much." "Still..." " I lost you, where were you?" " In there." "Come, I will introduce you." " I've seen him." " Who?" "Your adorer, I am sure of it." " Show me." " He disappeared." "How are you?" "Will I see you afterwards?" "Good evening." "Tell me, young people, is something not alright?" "Niccolò is looking for one of your guests, but doesn't know who he is yet." " And what has this poor man done?" " Nothing." "Why look for him then?" "If there was someone here with a crush on me, don't you think I would be aware of it?" "With you it is never clear if you're speaking the truth or not." "Is that so bad?" "A little hypocrisy is needed in certain situations." "Strange, how you succeed to be, at the same time... intelligent and stupid." "Good and bad." "Sour and sweet." " Me?" " Yes." "You." "You have all those qualities that usually constitute a character." "Even defects." "It is as if you were incapable of..." "Mavi." "Listen." "If you want us to continue being together, you have to listen to what I'm saying to you, even that which displeases you." "And going ahead, there will be always be more of those things that displease you." "Wait, you don't want to go in there." "Stay here a little longer." "I feel uneasy here." "They must consider me one who came just out of curiosity." "They bear me because I'm with you." "That is certainly true." "See, even you think as they do." "I am no longer on their half." "You have to understand." "I am on yours." " Do you want me to swear?" " Yes, yes." "You are nice when you swear." "Ah, you gave me a compliment." "Niccolò." " Hello." " Excuse me, we were here before him." "Yes, I know." "Be patient." "Those poor people were right." "Who knows how long they've been waiting." "I think they're not here to see me." " Did you receive my message?" " Yes." "Hello." " Something has happened to my sister." " My God, an accident?" "No, no." "She lost her the position at the department of Gynaecology, in the hospital where she works." "The manager position." "It is power abuse." " I am sure it is my fault." " How is it your fault, I don't understand." "They are starting to put their threats into action, Mavi." "And he doesn't strike at me, that son of a bitch." "But at a person dear to me." "Bastards." "But your folks haven't got any friendships in those circles?" "My mother perhaps, but she moves around." "What is it?" " I nearly went mad today, you know." " What has happened?" "A man, whom I only know to be my mother's lover, has an obsession with me." " How?" "He phones me, he wants to see me." "You remember back at the Dandini place... that I stopped to speak with a man?" "Can I talk with you a moment, Mavi?" "For a long time, I've had something to tell you you." " I would like to see you one of these days." " Let's talk now." "Are you referring to a story that goes more than twenty years back in time?" " How did you know?" " I gathered as much." "Understand that fatherhood is not a literary idea." "Your mother said that if you only took a close look in the mirror... you would understand who your father is." " It is not true, and I never would've understood it!" "Look at our hands." "I've hated him from childhood, I don't know why." "He, on the other hand, has adored me since I was born." "Without being able say it to anyone, including me." "Without being able to touch or caress me." "Why have I always felt this instinctive repulsion towards him." "I believed him to be a friend of the house, when I saw him I'd hide." "Why!" "It's not your fault." "It's not my fault, right?" " See that girl over there?" " Yes." "Two days ago I was on a motorcycle with a friend of mine, about ten kilometres from Rome, we had a flat tire." "A car stopped a little distance from us." "I approached it to ask a for screwdriver." "Inside it was a totally naked girl with a guy." "See, now she has recognized me." "Niccolò, remember the stamps." "I must be crazy, but I want to make a film with you..." "I'll let you have the widest freedom." "You will find a script at your home." "Thank you." "Let me see if those damned stamps are here." "Catalog." "Ah!" "The voices of the other world... or..." "I think, I exist." "Objective test of a life after death." "The widest freedom, then he sends me a script." "List of people who have communicated with the unknown." "Maybe I'll phone one of these." "Oh my God." " Did you plant it." " Who, I?" "You disappeared, what happened to you?" "What happened to me is that I can't put the pieces of this story together." "Ah, think twice before closing up that story." "Is this why you came back here?" "Who was it who said family life is an interference of the private life?" "I can no longer think of myself, nor at the film I want to make." "How is this film?" "I don't know the story yet, that's why I haven't spoken with you earlier." "I know the main character is a woman." "Excuse me, how do to know it is a woman if you don't know the plot?" "Oh, just a feeling." "A feeling she has female forms, I don't know how to explain it to you." " Another love story." " I haven't said that." "I wonder what the point of a love story is nowadays... in this decay, this corruption." "But corruption is really the cement that keeps our country together." "And the corrupt ones are the first who want see love stories." "I am searching for a face." "An idea of the character, but instead she always enters my mind." "And she won't do as a character?" "Who, Mavi?" "Mavi isn't the center of my film, she is the center of me." "And that's not the exact same thing?" " No." "Searching for a character also means searching for places, for facts." "Why haven't you found them?" "Ah..." " You're having a crisis?" " What crisis." "Listen..." "We've argued many times, you and I." "How many theories and discussions have we had, and had again, during our conversations." "And, while we speak, the world around us changes." "Our discussions age." "They become more and more impenetrable." "Have you ever been in a hangglider?" " No." " Me neither, but I'm imagining it." "I want..." "I want that type of emotion when I'm with a woman." "Instead, it's like it is always necessary to speak, say something." "Silence makes the atmosphere strained." "I wish I could be silent together with a woman." "In short, I want to have a relationship with her like I have with nature." "Unless you're crazy... if you're alone by the sea, or in the woods, what are you doing?" "You look in silence." "But, without you hardly noticing, there is still dialogue." "It speaks and answers." "As if another person was present." "The ideal woman for me, is the one who identifies with this other person." " The ideal woman, you are waiting for her?" " Yes, I'm waiting for her." "Mavi, it is better if you do not come, there is someone down here." " Do you hear me?" " What are you afraid of?" "I'm not afraid for me, but for you." "I don't engage in fears." "In my opinion, you have lost your sense of humour." "If it's how you say, I'm in trouble, right?" "But perhaps it is humor that has changed." "I won't be coming then." "Wait." "I'm not coming." "Look..." "I have cellulites already." "I should be in the prime of my life..." "but instead..." "You will be old only when nobody falls in love with you anymore." "For the moment they do, don't worry about it." "Are you in love with me?" "Hello?" "He's was by the staircase, I made a run for it." "No, I went out for cigarettes." "I just returned." "How can I be sure that you and this man did not secretely look at each other?" "I assure you." "Do you want me to swear?" "No, no, no, I believe you." "You say you believe me, but you don't." "Whatever you say." " Is that man still there?" " Yes." "Invite him up for a drink." "That's an idea." "I'll call you later, okay?" "Bye." " My God, who's there?" " It's me." "Don't turn on the light." "You're crazy, why shouldn't I turn it on?" "The guy who waited by my house has followed me, and will be here shortly." "If it is dark there isn't much to see." "Even he has a family, right?" " And now, you and I escape." " Where to?" " The countryside, okay?" " Yes, my love." "Love, love, love, love, love, love." "Is it cold?" "Is the place heated?" "I don't know, the house isn't mine." "I'm renting it." "I have been there a couple of times in summer." "Perhaps it will be cold." "Bring a sweater or something." "Look." "Is that him?" "No, it's not his car." "Listen, anyone who goes on a trip at night certainly has good motives to do so." "Important, unimportant, who knows?" "We think they are bandits, but do you know why?" "Because we are full of suspicion, but it is based purely on emotion." "Look at this fog." " Take it easy." " More easy than this?" " Yes, you can't see." " I'm following the white line." " Are you sure this is the road?" " I hope so." "Will you give me a cigarette, please?" "Take it." "A light please?" " I don't want more of it, do you want it?" " All right." " Are you angry?" " No." "A sign." "God knows what it said." "Nic." "Where are you?" "I am here." "Don't disappear, please." "Do you think that even here, someone is spying on us?" "I don't think so." "And I'm telling you there is." "What are you saying?" " I feel it." " Well." "Do you want to bet I can't shake him?" "Attention!" "This is crazy, stop, no..." "I can't see anything." "I have told you to stop, understood?" "Please, stop." "I am afraid, can't you understand." "It is not possible." "Enough!" "I am afraid, stop!" "Get away from me." "You really are..." "Mavi." "Mavi." "Mavi." "Listen, excuse me." "Have you by any chance seen a girl with short hair, a jacket..." "Seen?" "Who could see her?" "Down there it's confusing, I don't know what has happened." "But... there was shooting." "Didn't you hear shooting?" "No." "Seems someone has fallen into the river." "Yes, it seems there are some..." "rowdy people down there." "Yes, who rob and steal from cars, and they rob the passerbies." "They honked their horn." "You didn't hear the horn?" "The ambulance siren, did you hear it?" " No, no." " Are you deaf or something?" "This is crazy, I don't know." "What is it, do you feel ill?" "How long will you be angry with me?" "You know this is all constructed on a void." " What do you mean, void?" " Yes, underneath it is an old Roman villa." "The reason why they would let me rent it, is really this." "The void has ended up invading the entire house, as a sort revenge of time." " My God..." " Let's go see," "I've never been down there, come." "Give me your hand." "Attention." "Come on." "Look." "Ah!" "It's humid." " It will never catch fire." " Why so pessimistic?" "Don't you trust nature?" "In Baku, Russia, there is still a temple for the God of Fire," "Inside there is constant flame coming out of the cracks in the earth." "Ah!" "In reality it is burning oil." "There is plenty of oil in that region, fortunate for them." " I am fond you, you know." " Why don't you say you love me?" "I have never said that in my whole life." "Too shy, perhaps." "Say you love me." "And then, tell me what it means to love." "You don't love me." "You need me, and that is not love." "You need me to live, or to survive." "But it is a problem every day, to survive." "Don't give it to me." "Can you tell me why I can't give it to you?" "I like to be cold." "You, on the contrary, want to see me covered up in clothes, warm, with no risk of contracting pneumonia or even a cold." "If I catch a cold, it is my business alone." "You never catch anything." "You're immune to illness, like the sharks who can swallow a car plate or polio virus, they digest it all." "I don't want to stay here anymore." "Where would you go, there are no lodgings in these parts." " And that beast underneath." " It is all closed, Mavi, don't be afraid." "I fear you." "Me?" "I thought you felt protected by me." "I am afraid you will ruin my life." "You do not think your life can be what you do for a couple of months?" "What we do for a couple of months is merely provisional for both of us." "I don't know where you go." "I don't know any of your friends." "I don't know anything about you." "Nothing." "Do you like the way I live my life?" "Christ, how you shine." "Elena." "I hope you haven't rented this place too?" "You don't mean to say you paid a deposit also?" "No, only..." "Hello, who's speaking?" "Farra speaking, is Mavi in?" "Miss Mavi." "I'm sorry, I haven't seen her today." "But, is she in town?" "I think so." "Oh... excuse me, is her sister at home?" "No, she is out, I'm sorry." "Thank you, you're very kind." "Too kind." "Yes, what is it?" "Mr. Farra is on the phone." "He is searching for Miss Maria Vittoria." "Let him search." "Excuse me, you're Mavi's sister, right?" " Yes, you're Niccolò?" " Yes." "I'm sorry, I can't help you with anything." "Try to understand." "I see." " Have you missed me?" " A little." " The doorman let us in." " Sweet sister." "Niccolò, come and see." "What is it?" "Have you seen that nest?" " That is not a nest." " What is it then?" "Who knows?" "Where are the birds when the nests are empty?" "They're out flying." "Have you found the stamps?" "Come." "I'll give you a full box." "We aren't very talkative today, are we?" "A brother and a sister depressing together don't make a happy couple." "When will you introduce me to Mavi?" "I think never." "Her fault or yours?" "Why do you ask me that question?" "With your wife it was your fault." "Lucio, now that you have those stamps, we must leave." "Niccolò, why don't you make a science fiction film?" "That is not a bad idea." "Could you give me the Nouto?" "Hello." " You don't remember me?" " No." " We met at a party." " No, I don't remember." " Is that your boyfriend?" " No, just a friend." " Do you like to swim?" " No." " What are you doing here then?" " Nothing." "I like that." "When I was a boy, I too took dives." "I even won a medal." "Have you ever been in love?" "You never wanted to?" " No." " Why?" "I am not capable of it." "Are you frigid?" " No..." " You're for chastity?" "Perhaps that would be be a solution." "You don't have the face of someone in love." "Indeed I don't." "So, what do do you like to do?" "I like..." " I like to masturbate." " Ah yes?" "It is better with another person though." "Best of all if it is a woman." "Why is that?" "Because a woman does it to please me." "While a man does it more for himself, to prove he is virile." "With a woman it is all much more soft." " Do you know Mavi Luppis?" " A little." "She is bigger than me." " She went to bed with a friend of mine." " Ah." "Is he young, this friend of yours?" "Yes." "Blonde?" "As tall as you, perhaps?" "It was an evening, by the sea." "We had just dined, there was boxing on TV." "The guys all went to see the boxing, and we were left to ourselves." "We were angry with them, and so we ended up in bed." "For some anti-masculine activity." "Where is Mavi now, in Rome?" "I don't know." " Bye." " Bye." " Wait for me, I'm coming with you." " All right." " Am I late?" " You have changed your car." "I have changed my mentality and feelings." "Wait while I park." "You've become a snob." "I thought the countryside made people more simple." " I am more simple, can't you see?" " No." "I'm quite elegant, don't you think?" " Why did you phone me?" " I wanted to see you." " You wanted." "And now you don't want to anymore?" " I do, I do, and you?" " I have a great need to take a pee." " Ah." "There, see." "No, not at the bar." "Besides I'm sure it is out of order." "Okay, let's go to the theatre." " Yes." " Okay." "Listen, this is the kind of inconvenience that doesn't occur on the countryside." " You sit down behind a tree and you're happy." " I know." "In my opinion, you're happy when the body is in harmony with your thoughts, with your ideas." "Mine is accustomed to being in the middle of the field, by the rivers or trees, on frozen soil." "You start thinking differently from how you did in the city." "Here, the laws of nature don't mean anything, and this makes me feel... empty." "This is the reason I phoned you." "Because, from time to time you should look at your situation from the outside." " What?" "What do you want to say?" " You're beautiful, I like you." " Listen, let's not go to the theatre." " So what do we do?" "I don't know, let's go somewhere just to talk, to eat..." " Yes." " Ok?" " It's nice however." " Okay, we will return another evening." "Look, there is one of those girls." "Hurry up, we're late." " Hello." " Hello." " Do you know her?" " No." "She's very sexy." "And the pee?" "Don't worry." "I am able to hold out for three years." "How come you never came back to see the show?" "I didn't come to see the show." "I came to see how they make the rosetta bread." "I've heard them say you're a rotten intellectual." "With whom it is impossible to argue." "I'm not an intellectual, nor am I rotten, that's insane." "They have both told me, therefore it must be true." "I heard nothing about you." "Ah yes, someone said you you were sexy." "Only that?" "Well, they said many other things, but I don't know about them." "I'll inform myself." "With whom do you go to bed nowadays?" " With a boy my age." " Ah." "Your director?" "No." " Do you go to bed with your actresses?" " Rarely." " I am happy I'm not the director." " Why?" "For two reasons." "The second is, that boy has a face that makes one think of Heine." "It's as sad as a German who died the day before." " Who is Heine?" " A German who died two centuries ago." " And the first?" " Fortune teller." "No..." "Down there are horses." "Down there?" "That is why I'm out here." "We're there." "That house." "That one?" "Nice isn't it?" "I'm sure my acquaintances are in that castle." "It's nice here." "Have a seat." " Is it necessary?" " Eh... no." "No." " What's up?" "I was thinking of a woman, go figure." " Do you think of her often?" " No, water under a bridge." "Many don't want to ride a horse." "The pounding of the saddle excites me." " How did you learn to ride?" " A friend taught me." "His father had a stable." "Then even you belong in this environment." "Why "even I"?" "Who are the others?" "Whoever." "No." "Imagine, at sixteen I was already working." "I was traveling around in a minibus with a guy selling clothes." "I wore them." "Ten, twelve, twenty times in a day." "In the evenings I was beat." "He gave me ten thousand liras per day." "It was a lot for me." "Was he a nice guy?" "Reasonably." "Inexhaustible." "At the end of the day, he'd want to go out to eat or dance, but I was always tired." "I came with him only one time ." "And then?" "I never went to bed with him, if that's what you want to know." " You thought so?" "Right?" " Yes, miserable me, I thought so." "I'm becoming soft." "I've never been in your house, will you take me there?" "You may come and go whenever you want." "Today is Monday, I'm resting." " Will I see you later?" " Do you want the keys?" "For God's sake no." "I would be afraid to lose them." " See you." " See you." " Good evening." " Hello." "Don't you like it?" "I don't know if I like it, I came to see you in your house, not the house itself." "As I usually say, It is my ex-wife's arrangement, she did everything here." "What would you do if I wasn't here?" "I would go to my study." " Where is it?" " Over there." "Beautiful." "All those photographs, what are they?" "Women, as you can see." "For a movie?" "Yes, I am looking for a face." " As you want it?" " I want to find out." "Beautiful, right?" "Even he is quite a character, his eyes are very much alive." "They are terrorists." "Two coherent lives." "Yes." "Yes, because a context like theirs requires virility, courage, life, none of which creates a relationship of violence." "You know, that girl abandoned her husband because of their ideological differences." "She went away, leaving her child, to live with that guy." "Together with her husband, she then appeared in the newspapers." " Even the husband is in prison?" " Yes." " What a romance." " They have everything in common, those two." "Ideology, fanaticism, clandestinity, risks," "Of course they were fine together." "It is when two people have a normal relationship that the trouble begins." " Do you want to go to the cinema or a theatre?" " Yes." " What's that for?" " They brought them here in the afternoon." " They're for the girl..." " Understood, understood." "There is a note attached, look." "What a funeral of honor." " Where shall I put them?" " You take them, Romolo." "Excuse me, what will I do with them?" "Listen, give them to that gentleman on the floor below, see how pleased he will be." "What do you know..." "Damn that whore and these flowers." "Did you ever happen to hate someone?" "No, no." "I'm afraid of real hatred." "Is it the same girl... of the riding ground?" "It is not her I hate." "It's the one who sent me the chrysanthemums." "Japanese." "He must know it's all over, and still he continues." "Among the many things I believe in, there is also hate." "But there's a little too much of it in him..." "and he unloads it onto me." " Excuse me." " It is I who should excuse myself." "I don't succeed in...being enough for you." "Don't even think that." "It is I who feel impotent!" "Damn misery!" " Hello, how are you?" " Ah, how am I?" "Huh?" "Listen, Mr. Farra.." "I already gave you you one recommendation, and now I will give you another." " Let's not make a scene." " Exactly." "No scene." "Go." "What are you doing in these parts?" "Nothing, my car broke down on me, and I was looking for a telephone." "Ah, you were looking for a telephone." "Isn't that a coincidence." "If you want to make a call, the house I live in is over there, you know." "What do you want from me?" "No, you have to tell me who pays for this shit work you do." "Fortunately, the commissioner isn't an idiot." "Less bad." "He told me... you are looking for a stranger who made the threats, but here all are threatening you." "Wherever you turn, you cannot rest." "What do we do, put them all in?" "Why do you, at any cost, want to know the name of that man?" "You are right, it is not important." "What are you doing, are you leaving?" "I came here to be with you." " You want know where I go?" " Yeah." "To look for her." " Ah, how's that?" " I have an idea." "You don't even know her name." "You're thinking too little of what I don't." "Listen, forget what I have said, it doesn't matter to me." "Why do you look at me like that?" "I'm trying to understand if you are sincere." "Very sincere." "Anyway, I would prefer not to be with you today." "Is it okay?" "Can I stay her a little while?" "Of course." "You can even look through the drawers, if you want to." "I would rather look in here." "No..." " No grudges, right?" " Yes..." "See you tomorrow." " Okay." " You're okay?" "Still here?" "I fell asleep." "This is for you." "Page 41." "How did you do it?" " I will explain another time." " No, please, now." "The name of the florist was on the envelope of the note attached to the chrysanthemums." " He thinks I'm stupid." " And then?" "So I went there, and learned the flowers were ordered by a woman." "Probably a secretary." " Whose secretary?" " I don't know..." "I didn't ask." "I was searching for her, not him." "How did you get to her, then?" "This issue of Time was there, in the shop." "Ah, a florist who reads Time." " Please!" " Perhaps he doesn't read it, but it was there." "Perhaps that secretary had left it there." "Listen, Ida, if you know who it is but won't tell me, I can't..." "You can't what?" "It was you who told me to forget about it." "because she didn't mean one dried fig to you." "Her yes, not him!" "Holy Christ," "You cannot spend your life waiting for the moment of revenge." " You can't understand." " Who knows what I can't understand!" "I am a person just like you, right?" "Only of a different sex." "Tell me the truth, why do you want to know it?" "I am in the very same situation... as when I'm looking for the solution to the plot of a film, but can't find it." "I have a suspect." "I wanted to know whether you had found him too." "And who's that suspect?" "Her father." "Ah." "You think he is in love with her?" "Well!" "Fatherly love, fatherly jealousy, it happens." "What are you doing, filming me?" "My forehead is too big, right?" "It is certainly that forehead which gives your face its incredible expression." "Here, this is the girl, will you help me find her?" "Do you want to use her in a movie?" "Should we notify her about it?" "No, no movie, no notice, I only want the address." " All right." " Thank you." "Hello." "Simonetta, I need the address of Maria Vittoria Luppis, quickly please." "Okay." "She is very nice, right?" "Yes, she is nice." "Stay a while to speak with me, I never see you anymore." "I know, but today I don't have the time." "I'm in a bit of a hurry." "Here, this is the address we found on her." "Thank you, Simonetta." "Excuse me,..." "Do you know a girl named Maria Vittoria?" " Who?" " Mavi." "Ah, Mavi." "No, I don't know her, I never heard of her." "Uhm, thanks." " Is Mavi there, please?" " Mavi who?" "Luppis." "As far as I know, there isn't any Mavi Luppis here." "I understand, thanks." "Why don't you come inside?" " Another time." " As you wish, bye." " Bye." " Bye." "Well, for a fur I'd tell my husband" " and make them rich because of a fur..." " No..." "Can I get you anything?" "Nothing?" " To Mario, but who's that?" " I know that... he is from the police." "But where is he going at this hour?" " Is that you?" " Who do you want it to be." "Will you open?" "This little thing is broken." "Which little thing?" "The knob that moves the bolt, I don't know what to do about it." "Why did you bolt it?" "Because he's around." " He who?" " Niccolò." "He came here earlier on." "Perhaps you should close the front door." "What are you doing now?" "Why did you stop?" "I went to get some oil for it." "Pass me some matches under the door." "I hope you won't be hurt by leaving here also." "No." "Come in, it is open." "I have good news." "Well, good for us." "One of the actors has become ill, and the play will be suspended for three days." "Ah." "Do you know Venice in wintertime?" "The open lagoon?" "Venice in wintertime yes, the open lagoon no." "What is it?" "Outside the islands, towards the sea." "Here... this is the open lagoon." "What solitude." "I, who am used to having many friends around." "I like to be among many." "It is beautiful, but sad." "It's the water that is sad." "The sound of the water." "Listen, listen." "There is no joy." "Forgive me." " For what?" " To have brought you here." "It is an illness... a professional deformation, to be searching for places like this." "The hope is that loneliness will trigger imagination." "Do you forgive me?" "If you do not forgive me, throw me into the water and don't look back." "If you throw yourself, I will follow you." "The first tide that passes... takes me to the middle of the sea, and ends in the mouth of a whale." "And then you, and all the men that have loved me.." "will go out on the oceans in turn, searching for the whale." "A little Moby Dick." " Don't count on it." " Why?" "Because I don't like whales." "Coming here was always satisfying." "I still is to me." "The solitude isn't the reason why." "We always imagine happiness where we are not." "This must be the reason why so many people in the world suffer." "Perhaps one should just get married, and resolve all matters afterwards." "Shall we marry?" "I don't see any other solution." "This has become a vice, don't you see?" "That is someone else's place, can't you place it here?" "Now..." "Lady, you are wanted on the phone, in booth number one, please." "Are you sure?" "No... no!" "When did he phone you?" "Listen, I don't know what to say." "It's such an emotion that..." "How can I explain it?" " Good news?" " Yes." "I don't know." "I'm having a child, I have taken the test, they just broke the news to me." "Ida." "Ida, why do you do that?" "A moment ago you were happy." "You told me you took precautions." "Yes, but..." "How long have we known eachother?" "Evidently, I was already pregnant." "Ah." "Let's look for a solution." " You speak like a director." " I am." "You italian directors act as if you were paid.." "to be angry with the ways of the world." "Even to ridicule it." "It is simply a way of not conforming with it." "I, on the contrary, am conforming with everything I understand." "I will suffer like a beast if you don't come to find me anymore." "It seems I will have to pay to keep the child." "You are my love." "Repeat it." "You are my love." "You're my party." "My New Year's Day." "My cocaine." "You're many things." "But you are not my order." "My order is... it is a boy who..." "Do you remember that day, when you showed me the photos of your terrorists?" "You told me:" "They have it all in common, ideology, fanaticism, clandestinity, risk, of course they did fine together." "My boy, if I ever meet him, and more still if get to know him... we would also be fine together." "Now, would you want to become the father of a child which isn't yours?" "It is the story of a spaceship moving towards the sun." "Very close to the sun." "Won't it burn?" "In science fiction, you never can tell which things are plausible, and which are not." "My spaceship is an asteroid captured in space... and transformed into a spaceship." "It is made up of a rare mineral, capable of resisting one millon degrees." "Why is it approaching to the sun?" "To study it." "The day when man understands... how matter is distributed inside the sun... and its dynamics, perhaps he will understand how the entire universe is made." "And the reasons behind many things." "And thereafter?"