"Hi." "What can I do for you?" "I have some jewellery, I want to sell." "Maybe." "Yes." "Let's see." " Where did you get this from?" " My mother." " Your mother?" " She just died of cancer." "So your mother just died of cancer." "Who did your mother get it from?" "From my father." "Is it worth something?" "Do you have a minute?" " I just have to look something up." " Okay." "Fuck!" "Severin..." "I have stolen from you." " I know." " What?" " Do you think I'm blind?" " But..." "I promise you." "I have it all here." "Put them on." " What?" " Put your jewellery on." "And put this on." "We eat in an hour." "It's hard to write this." "Even after so many years, I can still feel the pain I felt   when Sofia and I were moving north again." "Away from the smell of death and mass graves." "I carried a child in my arms." "She carried one in her stomach." "There was nothing left." "I thought both Laust and Peter were dead." "So I was dead too." "I had lost all faith   and found myself in the same condition as the rest of the country." "Dazed and shocked." "Like a theater that catches fire and the operetta turns   from euphoria to burning inferno." "And the audience's laughter turns to screams." "The country was now open to the Prussians." "The army was crushed, and thousands of men had fallen " " Along with all the dead ideals." "And where are they now?" "I don't know." "Most ended up in mass graves." "Oh, my God!" "There is nothing left." "Your Majesty..." "Your Majesty, I have just spoken in parliament and said that   even though we were defeated, we still have the will to defend ourselves." "I just pointed to Frederik the 3rd...." "I have sent a message today, to Bismarck and King William   of our total surrender." "To avoid further suffering and protect the people   so we can control our own destiny   rather than throwing us under the great power   now standing at our door, I have asked   that the Belgian king, as an intermediary, could enquire " " whether Denmark could become a member of the German Confederation   and under what conditions." "But..." "German?" "Denmark?" "It's treason." "Have you lost your mind?" "Well, that must be the field you are an expert in." "Wasn't there insanity in your family?" "What if this disease not only manifests   in drooling idiots with rolling eyes   but also finds its expression   in a sanctimonious and pious citizen's lack of realism." "Frightening." "Mrs. Heiberg!" "Mrs. Heiberg!" "Mrs. Heiberg!" "It's terrible, Mrs. Heiberg." "The King is ready to surrender the country to the Germans." "The wildest fears of my wildest imagination." "This is the downfall." "It's over." "Everything is over." "Unless, Mrs. Heiberg, yes..." "Together..." "We gather together all the forces." "Politically, militarily, culturally." "We can still turn defeat into a victory." " We can still change the mood." " Well, cute little Monrad." "I am an artist." "What would I be able to mobilize?" "It's over." "It didn't go well." "Sometimes an idea proves successful." "Other times they fail." "And all one's efforts end in oblivion." "It's a very dull feeling." "Men continue in a melancholy state for some time." "But they soon forget." "That's how it is." "And now you must excuse me." "I am already late." "So don't stand there like a disappointed fat boy." "Tell me, Moltke..." ". ." "You know so much about the Danes." ". ." "What do you think of the Danish king's request - . . ." " to include Denmark in the German Confederation?" ". . ." " Your Majesty..." " Not on your life!" ". . ." "What would we do with the Danes?" "They only speak Danish." ". . ." "And if we could understand them, we would only hear complaints." ". . ." "Danes complain constantly." ". ." "In their view, they would be the main nation in the Confederation." ". . ." "Their over-estimation of themselves is abnormal." ". . ." "It wouldn't surprise me, even after this defeat - . . ." " if they turned everything around and proclaimed it a victory." ". . ." " Is he right?" " Bismarck is always right." ". . ." "Shall we go, gentlemen?" ". ." "Now we just need you to start again, Inge." "Time heals all wounds." "That's how it is." "Tomorrow is a new day, and it will be brighter." "You move in here, and everything will be..." "Everything will be as it was before." "You haven't asked what he is called." " Well, what is he to be called?" " His name is Laust." " And you love him?" " What?" "You love him, of course, as a mother loves her child." "Yes, that is obvious." "The miraculous thing is that, although shells fall around us,   we can always hear the skylarks." "They don't want this war   which makes us, down here on earth, act like stupid sheep." "Mum, I miss you." "We miss you." "Soon this will be over, and then we'll come home." "I love you." "Laust." "And Peter?" "I don't know about Peter." "But he fell at Sankelmark." "Inge said." "Sankelmark?" "I don't think so." "Didrich told her." "No one knows anything about Peter." "What should he be called?" "Peter." "You can speak?" " Yes?" " I have to talk to Inge." "Who would like to talk to Inge?" "Yes, sorry." "Johan." "I fought with Laust." "I have a letter from him to Inge." "I have to talk to Inge." "She is sleeping." "I really need to talk to Inge." "It will only take a few minutes." "Unfortunately, you cannot." "But I will give her the letter." "I want to deliver the letter myself." "That's what Laust wanted." "I'll take care of it." "You must promise me that she will get the letter." " It is important." " I am her mother." "What do you think?" "Could I come in and get a glass of water?" "We have just washed the floor." "Hello!" "Are you a soldier?" "You must assure me that she will get the letter." "It means a lot to me." "I will give it to her, as soon as she wakes up." "Come, soldier!" "Come here, soldier!" "Have a small one." "From Dybboel?" "From Als?" "It was hell, wasnt it?" "Hell." "Damn Prussians!" "Yes." "There is no one who can beat such a superior force." "Damn unfair." "And the Danish officers?" "Where were they?" "4000 men. 5000?" "No one knows how many we have lost." "Fathers, sons and husbands." "And to what end?" "But we had to retaliate." "That we did." "My son..." "My poor son." "They say he is in Hamburg." "You... know Didrich." " Tell me." " Tell?" "What?" "My son." "What should I tell you about your son?" "Didrich..." "He was a captain." "A deserter." "A coward." "A man who could not..." ""My dear beloved Inge."" "If you are reading this letter, it's because I'm dead." "Though we never made it, we were together." "Everything we dreamed of." "What we all dream about   when you know, that you have met the right one   and life just becomes easy." "I'm sure I feel good now." "The fact that there is no pain." "That it's just one long deep sleep." "If so, I can't miss you or anything." "So do not miss me, but leave me   and move on." "We lost the battle, and you and I lost." "But promise me, my love   always find life." "Go for light." "All the greatness you always have room in your heart   your joy, your fire and your faith." "Clear the old land with fire   so it can be fruitful again, and live your life." "I will always love you." "Your Laust." "I'm so tired." "Is there anything wrong?" " That's all there is to tell." " Who are you?" "You are here under my roof, my house  and you call him a coward." "A deserter!" "Who are you, to have the nerve to insult my family that way   to my face?" "Is that all you have to say?" "There is nothing more to tell." "Who are you, to come here   and tell me the worst thing about my son?" "!" "A coward." "A deserter!" "Was that all?" "!" "Come." "Come into the light." " Sorry." " I don't want to hear about it." "Forget it." "I don't have time for unfriendliness   or for anything you can't do anything about." "Will you stop it." "Now we celebrate." "See the table I have set." "A Danish institution." "Cold water cauliflower." "Chou-fleur de l'eau froide." "Yes!" "Machine peeled potatoes from last year." "Pommes I'ancienne." "And saucisse avec Graisse." "Sausage with fat." "Ah!" "And here." "The most Danish of all Danish in the world." "The brown sauce." "La sauce brune." " Also called chiasse." " Chiasse?" "Diarrhea." "And there can only be one drink Gevrey-Chambertin 1945" "Come." "Yes." "So!" "Yes." "Cheers." "Cheers." " Damask tablecloth?" " Yes." "I thought we should celebrate   that we are reading the final chapter of Inge's book." ""Although Peter's fate was still officially unconfirmed " " I believed Didrichs assurances   that he had fallen at Sankelmark." "Which would prove to be one of Didrich's cruel lies."" "Around June 1866, he and the other Danish soldiers were released." "They began to go home." "First in a group, and then he travelled alone." "Close to the German border, he bought damask tablecloth for his mother." "He traded his very last pennies and a pipe." "And then worked for his living all the way home." "Then there were rumours of war again." "Bismarck's project was obviously far from complete." "Now it was Austria's turn to be broken." "And in Germany, he met the eternal soldier again   with dead eyes, shuffling to an unknown fate." "Things happen." "Nothing is forgotten." "And life goes on." "Is that Didrich?" "Well then!" "Are you alone?" "Isn't there someone with you...?" "Where is the baron?" "Well..." "Didn't you get the letter?" "We sent it a while ago." "Weren't you in the camp in Hamburg six months ago?" "We were sure it would be enough to bring you back." "What?" "The baron's death." "Well!" "How?" "He shot himself." "No!" "Why?" "And Didrich, we are a bunch of lowly   spoiled, stupid, simplistic, drunk..." " Drunk!" " Lost traitors." "While you Didrich..." "Went to war." "Fought and won, dammit." " You won and came back." " Yes!" "You're fucking a hero Didrich, while we..." "What are we?" " What are we?" " We're piss drunk." "No." "We are Denmark's future." "It is because of you, Didrich, that we can be proud." "For although the Germans knocked us back, still we won." "We won!" "Because we are Danes." "We'll show them all   that even though we are broken into thousands of pieces, no   a million pieces..." "still, we will rise again." "You rose up, Didrich." "Respect!" "Respect!" "Respect!" "Show us the wound." " No." " Jo." " No, I can't be bothered." " Didrich!" "Didrich!" "Didrich!" "Didrich!" "Didrich!" "Didrich!" "Shh!" " Do you want to see the wound?" " Yes." "Give me a bottle and a saber, I'll fucking show you   what I did to the Prussians down there." "You made it easy for yourself, old man." "A single shot, and you were done." "The rest of us... you know." "We die a hundred times a day." "A hundred!" "For your sake!" "Father?" "Father?" "Answer me, somehow, you bastard!" "Will you please get up and hold onto me?" "Welcome, Didrich." "Dearest Inge   there is sorrow over Denmark." "There are many who have been terribly alone these last few years." "Me too." "The estate is too big." "I can't run it by myself." "Your father is obviously of invaluable support to me." "But in private, I despair." "I know that I am a fool." "You have loved another man   and I have been overshadowed as a ridiculous idiot." "Angry and drunken." "Yes." "But that's over now." "It's over now, Inge." "Because I've decided, that life, it continues." "That it should be lived." "Whatever." "It doesn't matter that we all fell into a big hole together." "And sit there now." "Especially if we can help each other out of the hole." "What I will say is   that sometimes, something is better than nothing." "That's why I have come today, because I very much want to ask you " " And your parents for your fine, small, white hand, Inge." "Inge..." "These are for you." "It's not every day, a baron marries a land agent's daughter." "But it is a new time." "It's a new era now, Inge." "You have always told me that." "Congratulations." "Congratulations, congratulations." " Well that's that." " Thank you, Baron." "But we won't have the bastard child." "You will work something out." "Yes." "It looks like it will rain." "This... shouldn't be happening!" "It's ok, Inge." " Come on." " No!" "Shh..." "It has never really been your child, has it?" "Monrad..." "You can not blame us, because we had a vision." "Although it went wrong." "We wanted something great." "There are so many dead." "So many dead families." "So many maimed." "The country itself has been amputated." "It is grotesque." " Inward." " What?" "Inward." "From now on we must think inwardly." "Come to terms with our smallness and become masters of what we have." "It is probably wise that you take a break, Monrad." "Goodbye." "All is well, you see." "Everyone says, that New Zealand is fantastic." "And the natives there do not know of God." "And if there is a meaning to anything in this world   and if you still have a mission " " Then you, with your faith and your strength, can convert the wild." "It's from Germany." "It's for you." "Good heavens!" "Damask." "It's so fine." "Thank you." "Thank you, my dear." "Thank you." "What do you want?" "I was told that I could find Inge here." "Inge?" "Oh!" "The mistress." "Grandjean!" "Who is it?" "Oh!" "Who the hell is visiting us at the front door on a Sunday?" "You." "Peter!" "Well..." "You're..." "We all thought you were dead." "Yes, there were many who died." "Many... died." "Where is the little one?" "Inge, where is Laust's son?" "I was told that he doesn't live here." "Where is he?" "Yes... we had a little difficulty with the bastard offspring." "I was told you were dead." "I was told you were dead!" "Who are you?" "I am your father." "What is a father?" "What is that bird?" " It's a lark." " Is it a lark?" "Yes." "A lark, it is always happy." " Do you want to run on top of the grain?" " Yes." "Do you know how?" "Come here." "Dear friends, the sun is shining   but many tears have been cried in these past years." "Laust died under the same blue sky   like today with the lark hovering up there." "We are simple people   who have seen too much in too short a time." "When I looked into the eyes of our enemies   with my heart pounding like a wild animal..." "It destroyed everything." "If there is something we should be afraid of, it is the evil within ourselves." "Even if it is so small, that we try to shut it out." "A small scratch." "A loveless child or just a silly misunderstanding." "We must be careful every day that we don't just shut the bad things out   but that we grow everything that we hold dear." "Finding joy." "Looking after each other." "The thrill of the grain flourishing, or the log splitting." "When little Laust and little Peter are giggling in bed." "When Sofia passes me and gives my hand a squeeze." "When the lark hovers above and, again and again, tells us that life is good." "That it's all wonderful." "At the end of life is death." "Laust went too early down that road." "We who are left, owe it to him and the others who died, to live life fully." "We will do so." "Everything we can." "Cheers, dear friends." "Cheers." " Cheers, my beloved Sofia." " Cheers." "Oh yes!" "It has been a long day." "Should I read a little?" " Is there more?" " We are on the last page." "5th November 1939." " When did Inge go?" " Three weeks later." " And you were...?" " 18" "I sat with her when she died." ""Over the years I forgot my infatuation with Laust " " But I never forgot our son." "I followed him from a distance." "Carefully." "Full of shame."" "Maybe I was stunned into bringing more children into the world." "Not created in love, but created to put love in the world." "The evil in Didrich died a little, every time there was a new one." "He had been poisoned by his life and he just wanted to move on." "And so my husband slowly became a man." "And as time went on, I bonded with Sofia and Karen again." "And with little Laust." "As such, time heals everything." "And now I am an old woman, about to die." "I have long been unable to write." "My hands are shaking   and I can't hold the pen." ""So therefore, my dear grandson, Severin   in the past few months, has written down all these words." "Who should read them in the future and why, I have no idea." "I am just a dying old woman, with time behind me." "What others can learn about life from my hand, is not much   other than it should be acknowledged, that life takes its course." "And it is very stupid, not to get the best out of it." "Thank you and good night."" "That's it then." "The end." "So it just ended." "And you wrote it down!" "You might have said that." "Hey!"