"Can we do a sound test?" "A few words..." "Yes... 1 ... 2... 3..." "My name is Emmerich..." "Jean-Baptiste..." "Emmerich." "With an "h"." "I was born..." "April 2, 1926 in Limoges." "Father: factory-owner." "Mother: factory-owner's wife." "A small factory, a family business." "Not porcelain." "Shoes." "In Limoges, you're in teacups or footwear." "is that OK?" "Just checking for distortion." "It's fine." "But that was rather... bureaucratic, right?" "Really?" "We can give it a social slant, sociological..." "Emmerich, Jean-Baptiste, born 04/02/26 in Limoges, in the Haut et Vienne district." "Haut et Vienne, yet!" "Well-to-do family." "What else?" "Excuse me." "I'm looking for the 7:55 to Limoges." " You're catching it?" " Yes, I am." "Go to the intercity line." "Here it's local." "Sorry." "That's all?" "Well-to-do family." "Not so well-to-do." "So-so Catholics, so-so war record." "Medium-sized family business." "Family fell on moderately hard times, as factory only sold moderately well." "We don't have much time!" "Where are they all?" "The only plus of a life in the shoe biz, of two generations in it, a cute nickname:" "the Centipedes." "The Centipedes!" " You serious?" " Sure!" "That's the Emmerichs:" "The Centipede family." "In Limoges, I'm Centipede, jr." "is that what you want?" "Just what do you want?" "What does he want?" "I don't know, to talk about painting!" "I'd planned questions." "We can talk about work, too!" "No trouble at all." "I'll answer my own questions!" "Here we go!" "Emmerich, Jean-Baptiste!" "... 1926, in Limoges." "Eldest of the Centipede twin sons..." "Painter." "An artist!" "I'm a teacher, writing a novel." "It's done." "Or we could say... a minor mid-20th century master, the Centipedes' 101 rst leg." "A dried fruit, but a fruitful artist." "Stick to French, please!" "Not so famous that my name's always spelled correctly, but respected enough never to be called Johnny... by my friends." "I also teach." "Not very well, if you look at my students' results." "Father died at 69." "In horrible pain, every nerve in his body shot with pain!" "Cancer!" "Never touched cigarettes or drink, or my mother." "Those Who Love Me Can Take the Train" "Where's Francois?" " l'll go look for him." " Hurry, we're late!" "Mother died of a brain clot." "She was 69, too." "I was 69 last year." "What am I waiting for?" "It's no good, Jean-Baptiste!" " One can't talk to him." " What can I say?" "I'm 70 y ears old, and I'm tired!" "I'm closing up shop... following my natural course..." "My life is of no interest..." "Claire!" "My life is devoid of interest..." "We're on platform 19." "I have to buy something!" "We can talk about art, or painting, but that's a drag, too... lsn't it?" "Let's just talk about clothes..." "Or... shove a grenade up our ass and wait for it to expl..." "We said we'd go together!" "I missed your message!" "Are you sure I left one?" " Didn't you?" " Yes." "You see?" "I dreamed of Frederic last night." "Isn't he dead?" "No, he's not." "I was expecting him." "Where is he?" " You knew where to reach him?" " l always did." "Claire's missing, too!" "I saw her!" "I gave her her ticket!" "I don't believe this!" "Shit!" "Didn't you come together?" "You two got problems?" "Want me not to come?" "It's a tough day for you." "Just wanted to help." "I'm down." "If you're up, that'll be a help." "How are you?" "is he your fiance?" "Yes, he's my fiance." "That's it..." "Get in!" "Hurry!" "What about Frederic?" "You told them we're in two cars?" "I did my best!" "I brought some cookies!" "They're in my bag!" "Here they are." "Elodie, I'm not scolding you." "Where did you get those cookies?" "Who gave them to you?" "Did you steal them?" "Did you?" "Claire's changed!" "Like she's off it." "You think so?" "Maybe." "Maybe?" "Let's sit here." "is this smoking?" "I looked all over for you!" "Where are the others?" "I got you the sports paper." "I'll move." "No, stay." "You said you'd help!" "Still read it?" "I can't get out of our lease." "We both signed it." "You must write, too." "You're a drag!" "The 3 months' notice can't start!" "OK." "You cut your hair." " How are you?" " Don't!" "Sorry!" "Some people shake hands, or kiss." "Even years later." "Excuse me." "You never mentioned the letter." "I left messages all over." "You're unreachable!" "I can't ask how you are?" "I'm fine." "I'll be better when you write that letter!" "Hi, darling." "Excuse me." "It was a fine death." "So unexpected, you know." "Don't cry, Lucie!" "Maybe Claire knew things?" "Where's Francois?" "Seen him?" "Over there." "She doesn't even say hi!" "You're fine!" "Why did she say you knew things?" "Beats me." "Don't fall for that troublemaker!" "There!" "See?" "He reframed them all." "He cut them out of magazines," "Must we do that now?" "is it that urgent?" "He'd have said, "No portraits." "Not my puss in your magazine!" "Look, this one's really like him." "It's a drag." "What should we do?" "Play scrabble?" "Or chat?" "That's what fags do:" "chat, tell all..." "Fags and women." "Montherlant said it!" "I'm off to the bar." "To join the others." "My fiance!" "Did you hear him?" "Seems you're my fiance." "Not the right word." "Then what is?" "I don't know." "I wouldn't use that word." "How would you describe our bonds?" "Why'd you ask?" "You said you wouldn't use that word." "Need any help?" "I'm an insomniac, I'm the only one he could call at any hour of the night." "The other day, he phoned at midnight, to make me listen to a concerto." "Bach, I think." "He'd bought the record that day." " Where's my bag?" " Here." "What day was that?" "He still called you?" "I'm dripping!" "Revolting!" "We talked, we listened to music." "Or were silent: not to wake the boy in the next room." "You hadn't heard?" "I never saw him." "Wait..." "You knew who the last boy was?" "I wasn't trying to pick you up." "I'm as good at it as anyone, but I wouldn't stare at someone... so crudely." "You use a paper with a hole in it?" "That's called ogling." "We've met before." "I don't believe that." " Where?" " Here." "I mean, at Austerlitz station." "About 3 years ago." "Almost to the day." "I shouldn't tell you this story, it's crazy." "Lots of things scare me, but not crazy stories." "We saw each other, at least I saw you, at the station 3 years ago." " l couldn't believe it this morning." " So what?" "I saw you, that's all." "Maybe it wasn't me." "I'm never in that station." "3 years later I go back:" "you're in the same spot." "As if time hadn't gone by." " See what I mean?" " Sure." "It's possible." "My folks live in Orleans." "I don't know..." "We've never met." "I know." "But I recognized you." "Though we've never met." " What's your name?" " Louis." "I'm Bruno." "You didn't ask, so I'll tell you." "Shall we go for coffee?" "Or go suck each other in the john?" "Just kidding." " l'm with someone." "And you?" " Me, too." "Let's all sit over there." "Get those people to move." "Ask them!" "Go on." "I need to sit." "You look great." "Things must be better." "So marriage isn't always destructive!" "We all pick a family." "The family Jean-Baptiste picked is us!" "Shut up!" "She's sad. lt's her right." "Cause she raped him once in Madrid, ages ago?" "She's a bitch!" "It's odd!" "Going back to Limoges isn't a big deal." "Isn't that weird?" "Sorry I only see you this way..." "Yes, indeed." "But we don't overwork our answering machines!" "You saw him a lot?" "Who?" "Jean-Baptiste?" "I don't know what to tell you." "Two coffees." "You seem in great shape." "How's Lorette?" " lsn't Thierry here?" " No." "He is coming?" "He's driving." "With Jean-Baptiste." "Driving with Jean-Baptiste?" "We have a big station wagon." " Jean-Baptiste gave it to Thierry." " Nice..." "Anyway..." "Want to go for a smoke?" "No, you go." "I didn't draw the sparks well because sparks are light blue and I don't have the right pen." "Know why there are sparks?" "It goes into the city and lights up the homes." "Magnet Man took the two wires..." "You're not listening!" "Of course I am." "Over there..." "Who's that girl?" "It's a boy!" "Can't you tell?" "Who's the fat guy?" "A nobody." "No, an old pal who hates me." "He knew Jean-Baptiste?" "He made a play for him." " You said he was married." " Not that kind of a play." "But who knows?" "360 francs. I got a group rate." "I'll pay by check." "No checks!" "None of that!" "Look." "1967." "I'll be damned!" "It's my father!" "No, it's Jean-Baptiste." "They're so alike." "It was in Alexandria." "Lovely trip." "Then India, Cambodia." "Lovely trip." "Your mother, me," "Jean-Baptiste." "Beautiful, isn't she?" "Some hairdo!" "That was the style!" "Can I have one too?" "Aren't you Thierry's daughter?" "Don't give your candy." "Just kidding." "So you knew my mother?" "That's where we met:" "in a big cafe, in Alexandria." "Your mother was... I remember her as someone... with a special laugh..." "Mostly, she was very sad." "Keep it." "I have my own memories of her." "I brought it for you." "For your novel." "It's too late for that." "Give me that!" "Don't be a pain!" "Look, it's my dad!" "No, there!" "Look!" "It's dad!" ""lt's a pity?" What does that mean?" "Two figures on a bed... I wanted them to be screwing!" "So I smashed the painting!" "That's a pity?" " lt was destructive!" " Should we keep shit?" " What is shit?" " You think you're getting somewhere, that you're painting something good, then realize you're nowhere... ls it legal?" "A coffin in a private car?" "As you can see." "Or you need someone to talk to..." "Someone with an eye..." "Who can say: "Yes, that's good..."" "But I've got nobody." " And your students?" " They're boring, no initiative..." "They just mimic." "They don't practice." "Nobody does now, they cheat!" " Even Frederic?" " No, he's very gifted." "But he quit." "Disappeared:" "What can one teach them?" "The moves, they can learn that..." "But practicing..." "Conjuring up images:" "They're afraid of pain." "So they get nowhere, not in painting:" "Sure, it's not enough." "You think of a body, a belly, a shoulder..." "A belly's beautiful... lt's silly but... I keep thinking we could start all over... make a fresh start..." "do it right... I never knew why we lost contact..." "No, I meant with Lorette." "Did you stop your tape recorder?" "is it off?" "It's off, Jean-Baptiste!" "Tea or coffee?" " Francois!" "Answer me!" " l don't care." "Move things, so I can put down the tea-tray." "No news from Thierry." "Not a phone call!" "It's been 5 or 6 days." "Aren't you getting used to it?" "Now he's got a kid." "He's become a family man." "You have to be, with a kid." "is he in trouble?" " He owes money." " You give him money." "And more!" "He swipes everything!" "That's how it is." "Loving people means putting up with their shit." "A guy alone with a coffin is weird." "It's disgusting!" "When there's trouble, you know if it's real." "That's friendship, love!" "Being ripped apart." "Anything goes, even violence." "With limits!" "To what?" "To love?" "To trouble?" "There are no limits." " With you there were none." " With me?" "You were a total pain!" "You getting in?" "Anyone in there?" "Only carpenters move empties!" "He had heart trouble." "I worked in a hospital then..." "As a nurse." "That was 1 .5 years ago." "I was his night-nurse." "I carried him home in my arms, like a bride." "I got a place beside this." "After the operation he needed peace." "He was alone, always working." "He was a painter." "Yeah?" "What did he paint?" "He was no Picasso, but a painting of his'll trade for a TV." "A really good TV." "People came around, it tired him." "Then he wasn't alone!" "I threw them all out!" "The old lady, the nephew, the fatbroad!" "It's Thiery:" "I'm on the road." "I don't know where..." "Chateauroux..." "Vierzon..." "Poitiers." "Does Chateauroux exist?" "Can I score there?" "I'm hurting!" "What?" "Who?" "Didier?" "I don't care if it's a detour!" "I gotta be there by 3PM, it's OK." "What?" "Shit!" "Change of route!" "Beat it!" "Close the door!" "I'm in no mood for that." "Neither am I." "I want to cry, too." "Go on." "Touch my ass." "Your friend wants to fuck it all up..." "So do I..." "Some days are like that..." "Some days..." "Stop it!" "I said stop!" "Stop it!" "What are the dumbest things you did?" "Dumb things!" "That you do when you're into that crap!" "When your're... into dope." "You see?" "I swiped checks." "I pulled some real dumb stunts." "Not just with money." "I know I goofed. I goofed..." "So what?" "I mean, what now?" "He wants to talk!" "Really talk." "All the way." "But it's so low of him to act like we're strangers." "Can I show you something?" "I want to show you this." "Promise you won't tell." "You know, we really had something going." "Even now, we still do." "Where is it?" "Shit!" "Want some pens?" "There's markers, too." "Incredible colors." "Fuchsia..." "They're not worth much." "There." "It proves I'm well!" "It's fabulous!" "What does Jean-Marie say?" "You said you'd tell nobody!" "Nobody." "You didn't tell him?" "You must!" "I know, guys have no guts..." "But it's crazy not to tell them." "Sure..." "So he can say:" ""How do I know it's mine? "" "I'm not crying..." "But it's really tough..." "Last time we spoke, my dad asked me... to put pictures of the house... on the teachers' bulletin board at my school." "Think of it!" "Dad calls me and wants a notice with the photos:" ""For sale, fine house... I forget the exact words... just outside Limoges... or in the countryside..." "He said:" ""lt might interest someone... "" "A huge, expensive house!" "I'm sleeping." "He has real money anxieties, worries about local taxes..." "You get the picture." "Yes, I do." "The fact is, he killed her." "I think so. I'm sure of it." "Who?" "My mother." "But who killed her?" "My father!" "Not Jean-Baptiste!" "He wouldn't have." "Anyway..." "Mom married the wrong twin!" "That's good." "Where are we?" "Wait..." "Going for a drink?" "Claire told you what they discussed Saturday?" "What?" "Who?" "Claire saw Jean-Baptiste Saturday." "I thought you knew." "Tickets, please." "The interview's great." "Louis did it." "He could've dug deeper." "Am I intruding?" "Handsome, eh?" "Dominique likes your interview." "I'll be back." "Still agree we should have no secrets?" "What's on your mind?" "I love you." "Ouch!" "We've been together too long for such declarations." "Here." "My mother gives them to me." "Every year, for Christmas." "By the dozen." "I told her I don't cry that much..." "Are we arriving somewhere?" "She's completely wrong about me." "She thinks I'm ultra-sensitive." "Everyone knows I'm not." "So..." "Don't use kid gloves." "I'm listening." "I love him." " You can be so complex..." " We don't have to..." "No, let's talk about it." "By all means." "Has it been going on long?" "No, just since the station." "You kidding me?" "At the station, just now." "In fact, I've known him for ages." "But we never met or spoke." "I mean..." "You needn't believe me." "It was sudden. I'm crushed." "Did he tell you he's hiv positive?" "What are you saying?" "The cute guy with long hair, and the blue gizmo?" "Bruno?" "I'm asking you if he told you he's hiv positive?" "Because he didn't tell me." "He told me long after." "How did you find out?" "He didn't tell me right off." "He thought it could wait until... 6 months later." "Then it wasn't a fling, it was a real affair?" "Since about a year." "Or a bit longer." "You're saying you just found out, is that it?" "You and he never talked about me or Jean-Baptiste?" "You're nuts!" "We didn't talk about you!" "Of course, why not?" "You're a scumbag!" "That's a strong word." "You've fallen hard." "Shit." "And stop bleeding!" "There's my card." "Gin!" "We seem to be stuck here!" "Why Limoges?" "Family vault's there." "It's practical." "Not for those who love you." " Nice interview!" " Limoges is far." "They can take the train." "I loved the bit on autopsies, on butchers..." "You read it?" "Jean-Baptiste's interview?" "You're a pal of Louis?" "No." " l haven't read it." " The bit on butchers." "How we're all so much meat." "At the butcher's he wonders why he isn't hanging there, instead of the animal." " You don't agree." " lt's not his best thinking." "But I haven't read it." " A bit lightweight?" " l don't get you." "Not to worry." "Not a very hip answer." "If he'd said:" ""Why wasn't I the butcher? "" " That's a thought." " Heavy!" "You saw Jean-Baptiste Saturday?" " We're speaking again?" " What is this?" " You told him about us?" " So what?" " lt was up to me!" " Because he liked you?" "I did right." "So he'd know why you dropped him." "That's my business." "I didn't drop him!" " lt was for me to tell him." " Why didn't you?" "I'll tell you why!" "It was admitting he was right all along!" ""Beware of that girl." "She's dangerous. "" ""She's a killer, she'll ruin you! "" "Idiot!" " You're a wimp!" " Stop it!" "A wimp!" "Stop it!" "You're nuts!" "Stop it!" "Claire's pregnant!" "I'm stealing more than money:" "your child!" "Behind your back!" "How about that?" "Behind your back!" "Dumb cunt!" "Jean-Baptiste wasn't a talker, he was a painter!" " He painted violence." " Not true!" "He couldn't: that's why he was obsessed with Bacon." "On odd days, he loved him." "On even, he was a fraud." "is that so bad?" "Everyone cheats!" "How about you?" "People cheat all the time!" "Everyone does!" "Let's go." "She said it: behind my back!" "A kid now!" "She won't get at me like that!" ""You use dope again, I'll leave you! "" "She thinks it was easy for me?" "It was hard!" "Stop it!" "I came to bury Jean-Baptiste, back to a place I hate!" "No one mentioned that on this trip!" "Not a word!" "They don't care!" "This is where we meet them?" "Wasn't stated." "There must be a waiting room." "I hope they have enough cars!" " l'm starving!" " What time is it?" "I've seen no one." " They should be here..." " Jean-Marie!" "Marie-Rose." "Your dad isn't here?" "You've seen no one?" "Even Cedric?" "Claire." "Hello, Madame." "That's Marie-Rose." "His sister." "A painter too, poor fool." "Aunt May, Aunt Nisou." "Remember Gitou?" "She's an orthopedist." "Sad to meet again like this!" "I've never met her!" " Now what?" " l don't like being used." "Life's hard enough." "And Jean-Baptiste?" "He's dead!" "You're all here!" "That's enough!" "Count me out!" "We're all in this together." "Like it or not!" "Or whether we like it or not!" "Come on, hurry!" ""Hurry!"" "See how you talk?" "You forgot me months ago!" "What is this?" "It moved, see?" "It always moves at this time of year." "It's roots growing, springtime, the rain... I think it moved..." "Won't you say hello?" "Sure." "That's easy." "Hi, dad." "How's teaching?" "How's the miserable teaching profession?" "You look well." "Remember the trip to Egypt?" "Your grand tour?" "I thought of it because of Jean-Baptiste." "That trip was his idea." "A very good idea." "Your mother..." "She loved it." "They visited things." "Temples, museums, and so on." "She was happy." "I think." "You weren't?" "I don't like traveling." "Other places are like here." "Even far away places." "But worse." "You can't find stamps, or medications you need..." "You pretend to like revolting food..." "That wasn't really the problem." "No." "No, that wasn't... really the problem." "It was that I was an idiot." "A common kind of idiotic husband." "But for her to be buried apart, with her own family, that was... that was her way of undoing our marriage." "Alive, she stayed for you." "I presume." "That's how I see it." "I don't care what people think." "What could they think?" "Mom was a manic-depressive." "Everyone knew." "Then one day she had enough." "That's depression... I know." "You give up on life." "Were you with him at the end?" "No. I wasn't." "That's too bad." "You were there so often." "Did he leave a letter, a note?" "No, why?" "He wasn't a suicide!" "When you don't know, you imagine things." " Where's Jean-Marie?" " l don't know." "It's Dad!" " Where were you?" " l knew you'd wait!" "I couldn't." "My legs were putty." "That'll be 680 francs." "You idiot!" "Engine trouble!" " Got 700 francs?" " No!" "Some people haven't paid yet!" "Holy cow!" "Well, all isn't lost." "I'm Claire." "Jean-Marie's wife." "It's been ten years." "About time." "Did you score?" "I'm all out..." "Don't be a pain." "Cut it out." "OK, come on." "I'd like to say..." "I haven't prepared anything." "Sami showed me his speech on the train and it didn't strike me like this... I mean, in a way," "it didn't seem sad, and told of someone leaving on a journey... ln fact it's very sad, because in fact... what happened is... he gave up..." "He got fed up..." "He got fed up with painting, with everything, with us too." "We were into dumb family gossip." "That bugged him!" "It wasn't his fault, it was ours!" "He didn't want to be a father." "I wonder if anyone wants to be a father." "He didn't want kids, he didn't want any heirs." "He hated families!" "He knew they stink of death and dirty tricks!" "And always have!" "He came back here to settle old scores." "To close the circle." "So it would be over." "He didn't want it to go on." "He wanted to be the last." "And now it's over." "I won't betray him!" "I'm the last Emmerich." "There will be no more!" "Nature is efficient." "It kills things that are half-dead!" "Now what happens?" "What happens?" "They've organized a snack." "We're not going, right?" "I think I'll go jerk off." "Get in the red car." "Claire, come with us!" "Claire!" "I'll take you." "It's the biggest cemetery in Europe." "185,000 dead!" " What's the population of Limoges?" " A bit less. 140,000." "You that stuck on him?" "Bye." "Have a good trip back." "I should visit the family." "Will you be OK?" "Can I abandon you?" "I'll have a cup of tea." "Don't worry about me." " You're a jerk!" " You coming too?" "I thought it might perk us up!" "It's nothing, just a snack..." "At least Mr. Emmerich had fine weather." "Sit where you want." "Death is nothing. lt's the pain." "The pain..." "Madrid, 1952." "Feels like yesterday." "Know what I meant to him?" "I was his impossible dream." "I was woman." "I was... woman..." " The impossible woman." " Don't you mean the opposite?" " Wasn't he the impossible man?" " What's the difference?" "It was impossible, that's all!" "You wouldn't understand!" "No, I can't..." "The Parisians..." "They'll be leaving..." "One day he was drunk." "He said:" "'You must take it up the ass!" ""As a duty to your partner!" "But it hurts! "" "I often wondered:" "was Jean-Baptiste the man or the woman?" "Jean-Baptiste liked to seduce, to watch." "Anyway, sex at his age..." " To you, age matters?" " Yes, it does!" "You can't make love if you're ashamed of your body." "Loving someone, means doing everything..." "Everything he wants." "Depends." "Eating out ass!" "He loved that!" "But I never wanted to." "He called it "rose petals"..." "Who invited her?" "Who is she?" "It's crushed sardines!" "So my brother said it hurts to get butt-fucked!" "At last I know!" "Can't you feel his presence?" "Because the whole family's here." "Too bad he can't see it." "Why didn't you speak in the cemetery?" "You always say such interesting things!" "You'd have spared us that awful scene!" "To say what?" "What could I have said?" "What would you have said?" "Lucie means that, of us all, you were... I was what?" "The closest to Jean-Baptiste!" "That's not what I meant!" "Who was closest to Jean-Baptiste?" "Stop it!" ""Stop it!" Why?" "You should've spoken!" "Not Jean-Marie!" "Let's not talk about it now." "We're too upset." "I'm not upset!" "I don't care if you're not upset!" "I don't give a damn!" "Nobody asked you to bare your soul!" " What would you have said?" " That's enough!" "What is this dumb game?" "We're all behaving like kids!" "We shouldn't have come here." "Jean-Baptiste gave something to all of us!" "I remember when..." "But we gave him a lot, too!" "We all did..." "Speak of the devil!" "You did a great job!" "Spoiled everything!" "...Jean-Baptiste made you feel you could do anything." "That was my first impression." "From the day I met him." "That life was there for the taking." "How do you feel, now that you've missed the boat?" "Wake up, man!" "Didn't you know he badmouthed you behind your back?" "Didn't you suspect it?" "Come on!" "Oh, yeah?" "So what did he say?" "I don't remember." "Does anyone else?" "Because everyone knew!" "Nobody remembers?" "Was it about Lorette?" "Because she's wacko?" "Why Lorette?" "Why her?" "He was a bastard!" "But he didn't really hate women." "Who knows?" "Was it about me?" "Forget it, Bernard." "I will. I'd better." "The bulb's shot." "Well..." "See you all." "Maybe I won't see you again." "So?" "We let him go just like that?" "Could you tell him what Jean-Baptiste called him?" "A loser and an ass-kisser?" "But Bernard wrote something on Jean-Baptiste, a short book..." "He never finished it!" "He's hopeless!" "He craves our sympathy!" "All he does is moan and praise!" "He wrote a book on him, you didn't!" "Why?" "Because Jean-Baptiste didn't share your views on art?" "Jean-Baptiste wasn't big on theory!" "He was vicious!" "I'm sure he badmouthed us all!" ""l'm sure"!" "We loved it when he put down others." ""He's hilarious when he's mean", and so on." "That was his scheme!" "To make us all compete with one another." "It was a free-for-all!" "Why did you stick around?" "To be the one he didn't put down." "His favorite!" "He called the tune, and you jigged to it!" "You both make me puke!" "Another empty." "Now we've cleaned up." "There's still work to do, but most of it is done." "Sure is." "You really gave it to him!" "That's your fine family!" "Don't talk to me!" "Can't you see it doesn't exist?" "What if I want it to exist?" "Frederic?" "Don't call me Frederic." "There's no more Frederic." "Please." "Did Dominique tell you?" "No, I figured it out." "Well?" "Are you appalled?" "Not at all!" "But I can't believe it!" "I see you, but I can't believe it." "You're truly lovely..." "Discouraging for us..." "May I touch?" "We look like idiots!" "Anyone for bronchitis?" "Look who I found!" "His car broke down!" "Quite a space!" "Elodie!" "Louis?" "I want to see the house." "She's sleepy." "You're the mother of that interesting little girl?" "My house is packed!" "I say, my house..." "Can I talk to you a minute?" "Jean-Baptiste wanted her to be his heiress." " He wanted her to have all..." " All of his share?" "I know." "The lawyers mentioned it." "All of his share!" "But I'm still alive." "It's no time to discuss this... I know just how you feel." "You've lost a brother." "I lost mine in a dumb moped accident." "Sorry to hear it." "Don't think we're awful people." "That's easily done." "He introduced her as his granddaughter." "They had a real love story going." "Always called her his granddaughter..." "A love story!" "Very beautiful." "Then you're my niece!" "You didn't tell me you were my niece!" "So you'll know, just to reassure you, the will won't be contested." "In any way, whatsoever." "It never would have been." "You like Viviane as a name?" "It's fine." "It's magical." "Classy." " Not vulgar." " Yes, it's not vulgar." "That's super-important." "But it wasn't easy." "To decide, I mean." "I know. lt's easy to be vulgar." "People don't realize that." "They must, when they pick names for their kids." " Dominique knew from the start?" " Yeah." "He was great." "Never snitched." "I was thinking that in the cemetery." "That it was funny..." "Yes, funny..." "That you, in fact no one, recognized me." "As no one did, it was also Frederic's burial today." "One burial for two." "Two birds with one stone." "That sort of thing." "Not sad or anything." "Cheerful, really." "In fact, it's a birth in some ways..." "Sorry, I'm talking nonsense." "That's me." "Always goofing." "What can I say... life's complicated for everyone." "What else?" "You're at home anywhere, right?" "Weren't you off it?" ""You're at home anywhere."" "You rarely talk to me that way." "Something stops you... at the last minute." " Shyness, maybe." " Thierry!" "Shut up!" "You want my creation to collapse?" "Shit!" "Thanks!" "Did she grab your head, too?" "A close shave, but I hung on." "Wow!" "Elodie!" "What lovely shoes!" "What did you call these shoes?" "What are they?" "They're bad!" "That's a virtue, I'm told." "He kills me!" "Elodie won't be selling her share." "You like the house, eh?" "We resume touring your new house?" "Milk's boiling over!" "You're the Prince who became a frog?" "Know what "heavy" means?" " Careful!" " Not there!" "Nothing salty?" "Take some." "Help me remove the froth." " Why?" " Must taste burned." "Froth puffs it up." "Let's put it there." "I'm on hormones, of course." "And Androcure." "What's Androcure?" "No more body hair or erections." "Heaven!" "You're cooking?" "Viviane's doing it all!" "I love pots and pans!" "Female sexuality!" "Speak for yourself!" "Isn't the operation risky?" "They cut your dick in four and stick it inside." "Some people never wake up, but it's worth it." "A banana split!" "We're making French toast!" "All these women!" "So many women in my house!" "Where did those jewels come from?" "I want some!" "Show me..." "Why Elodie, and not me?" " Smells good!" " lt's vanilla." "You had lots of stale bread!" "It was for the ducks!" "Sorry." "Don't you have a train to catch?" "You have this in 10 1/2?" "Maybe." "In our tall-women's department." "If you'll kindly follow me... I hadn't planned on buying anything..." "But since I'm rarely in Limoges..." "First, let's fight the darkness." "I warn you, I may lose my mind!" "I'm a shoe-freak!" "I love shoes." "Really?" "Me, too." "Shoe-freak's OK." "I'd have dumped all this years ago." "But I don't know..." "We must have had hopes..." "That business would pick up... I'm for hope." "Those are men's shoes." "Too late." "I'd have loved doing that." "No, you wouldn't." "Me, neither." "How do you feel?" "In those." "I'm embarrassed." "You're bored and it's late." "No, I'm not." "And I know how to do it." "I don't like to, but I know how." "That happens." "Things you dislike, but you do well?" "For instance, I liked math, but had to study Latin." "I was quite good at it." "I wanted to be a pilot, in the Naval air force... I wound up in shoes!" "I wasn't bad at that, either." "Actually I was lousy." "Very bad." "I bankrupted the joint." "That's not really true..." "Nothing too shameful." "I need an idiot who'd want this house... so I could sell it all." "The world's poorly organized." "Stand up, that's how you know." "Try walking a bit." "The runway ends there." "It's short." "You have real inner beauty." "Inner beauty?" "You're very handsome." "You're very refreshing." "Bitchingly refreshing, maybe I should say..." "You shut up!" "I wiped his ass when he was sick!" "I got him his smack!" "You hear?" "Keep him!" "Keep the corpse!" "You transported his body, what's your gripe?" "What's your gripe?" "Stop it!" "What's this mess?" " Move over!" " No one'll steal it, OK?" "Shut up!" "Want me to ream you right here?" " ln front of everyone?" " Get lost!" "Monday he called at 4 AM!" "He called me!" "He wanted to die in my arms!" "That bugs you all!" "Fuck it!" "Shut up!" "Stop it!" "Where were you then?" "Where?" "Little creep!" "That guy's nuts!" "Stop it!" "You stop!" "Do that again!" "Hit me again, I'm gone for good." "With Elodie!" "Bitch!" "The French toast is sizzling!" "That's OK." " Let me." " Watch out!" "I don't know where he went." "I sat down in this cafe, watched them from afar." "He comes over: "What'll she have?"" "He says things like that." ""What'll she have?"" "The treatment!" "I hesitated:" ""lf l say, hi dad, it's Frederic!"" "he'll have a heart attack." "I looked him in the eye and said:" "Hi dad, it's Frederic, remember me?" "I didn't say "remember me?"" "He looked at me." "When he saw it was me, he really belted me!" "For two days I couldn't see straight." "Heart attack, my ass!" "May I smoke in your room?" "Don't do this to yourself!" "You have three solutions:" "A child." "No child." "A child with him." "OK, you're not a man or a woman." "What do you know about either sex?" "You an expert?" "What's wrong with me?" "Shit!" "I've gotta quit sniveling!" "You hated Jean-Baptiste, right?" "He fucked us over quite a bit." "Now he's dead... I don't think he hated you." "I saw him Saturday." "This Saturday?" "Come on!" "That's exactly what he said to me..." "That he didn't hate me..." "He said he was sorry..." "Not that he was sorry, but that he felt... lt was weird." "He must have sensed it coming..." "He knew he wouldn't be around long..." "And then?" "Then?" "It's like pulling teeth!" "He told me he'd been sure we wouldn't stay together," "Jean-Marie and me..." "Because of dope..." "That dope would destroy us... and he was happy he'd been wrong." "Then I told him that he wasn't wrong, that he was absolutely right." "I said I was pregnant and was getting an abortion." "I was due at the clinic this morning." "I told him that he'd won." "That it was all over, it was too late." "It was dumb to tell him!" "That's easy for you to say!" "He did everything to destroy us." "Said I was destructive, stunk of death... I heard it all!" "What did Jean-Baptiste say then?" "It was very strange." "He said Satan put words in his mouth." "Literally." "I'm not kidding." "It gave me the willies." "He said" "Satan often put words in his mouth, when he criticized me." "He told me he was glad" "he was wrong, that Jean-Marie hadn't listened to him." "A baby was a victory for love..." "But it's too easy, later, once the damage is done, to play good guy." "That's too easy?" "Nonsense!" "Who apologizes in life?" "Ever hear a guy apologize?" "You told this to Jean-Marie?" "No." "Haven't we met?" "You seen Jean-Marie?" "No..." "We met at Jean-Baptiste's." "You're a great cook." "That must be it." "You don't know where he is?" "Jean-Baptiste?" "Yeah!" "Cut the crap!" "Everyone says that to me." "So take a hint!" "Anyone there?" "Dad?" "Beychevelle, 1982." "Last of the family jewels." "I'm no expert." "I'm warning you." "Am I intruding?" "What do you mean?" "My son:" "I kicked him out, he sneaks back and asks if he's intruding." " You didn't kick me out. i split." " True!" "Climbed out the window." "In the night." "You split!" "Right?" "Why not by the door?" "He wanted to fall." "So I'd feel guilty." "Pity to open these great bottles." ""So the Krauts won't get 'em! "" "Just to run to your spiritual father!" "He was like a father to you!" "And what else?" "Did you eat out his ass, too?" "He took my wife, my son, and now my house!" "The house, that's rough!" "But you love Elodie!" "I'm a grandpa." "Give him a junkie's kid, and he's a grandpa!" "Yet he never spent a single Sunday with us!" ""Us" is him and his mom." "Who I drove to her death!" "We're due for a serious talk about money!" "I won't be fleeced, you'd better believe it!" "I'm going to have a kid!" " l know." " No, you don't!" "I don't think you do!" "I know that Claire's pregnant." "I know you're careful with money, you'd rather die than ask me for help when you're strapped!" "I know you don't act like a rich kid!" "That you don't waste money!" "I know I raised you right!" "Do you think I lost track of you for 15 years?" "That my only news was your letters?" "You didn't have a dad, but I had a son!" "And a brother, who blabbed!" "He promised me that if you had no talent, you'd not go to art-school." "And you didn't go." "That's disgusting!" "Where did your money come from?" "Your uncle?" "Your spiritual father?" "Not from the Arts fund!" "From the Centipedes' slush fund!" "So fuck you!" "How's the wine?" "Fuck you!" "There you are... I dislocated something." "I'm sure I did." " Take your shirt off." " Oh, yeah?" "Just the shirt..." "My real problem is that I'm such a conventional girl." "Yet why would I cheat?" "Don't laugh, but I'd love to be a bakerwoman..." " So there!" " You dig buns?" "I'd mind the shop." "Here's my fantasy:" "it's Xmas-time, I open the bakery, around 7 AM, it smells good, people come in, still half-asleep, their faces puffy, they're off to work, it's cold and dark, mine's the only shop open," "I'm the star of Bethlehem." "I don't bug them, I flash a big smile, they take off into the night." "I've made their day." " Must be tiring." "Stop, any time..." " Don't worry, I'm used to it." "Your neck's really stiff!" "You're the wife or an aide?" "I'm the baker's wife!" "Married or just shacked up?" "You're not into Viviane's fantasy!" "Of course they're married!" "In church, right?" "City hall is OK!" "We made vows:" "for better or for worse." "City hall's nice." "It's lovely!" "Exactly." "Viviane wants an ordinary life." "He's getting nasty." "He's making fun of you!" "Not at all!" "You're impossible!" "I agree with Viviane completely!" "Rituals are essential." "To commit before witnesses is essential." "Secret love-affairs are lightweight." "What can witnesses do?" "If one lover dies, they can tell the other:" "we were there, it wasn't a dream, he loved you, he really did." " Right?" " Exactly." "Witnesses establish the truth!" "Like for murder." "They'd make you believe I loved you, if I said it?" "You never did!" "Nor did you!" " You see?" " See what?" "That we acted pretty rashly, but never lied to each other openly." "He can't admit... he dropped me when he found out I was HlV-positive." "is that true?" "Good question:" "is it true?" "Supposedly I hid that I was HlV-positive." "Did anything change when you told me?" "This is a bore, sorry Viviane." "What did it change?" "We stopped screwing?" "No way!" "You waited a while, to hide your fears." "is that it?" "Any other... explanations?" "How about pity?" "Isn't that worse?" "Fuck you!" "Get it straight in your head." "Why am I such a bastard?" "Because I stayed or because I left?" "Make up your mind!" "You were in the garden." "I saw you." "You went all the way." "You saw how big it is?" "Yes, I did." "And falling apart." "There's work to do." "That's why people can't keep big houses." "But many things are easy to fix." "Re-wiring the house, that's not too hard." "The roof's in tiptop shape." "What about that letter?" "I have to say what you said?" "I'm moving out?" "The easiest thing is" " if we do it together." " All right." " Did Dad go to bed?" " l don't know." "I've always needed a challenge." "One day..." "I'd meet someone I couldn't break." "Lousy way to look at love!" "I was rough on you." "You stood up well." "I'm leaving you." "Will you be OK?" "What about you?" "Shit!" "No hot water?" " ls there a Bruno here?" " Yes." "I'll take it." " Did I wake everyone up?" " Not at all." "We expected your call." "How was the station?" "Had a good time?" "The station was great." "I cried for three hours, caught a train, tried to reach you, then cried some more..." "How do you find time for all that?" "Well?" "I've been thinking..." "You're essential to my life." "What a drag!" "But...?" "So is Bruno." "We could... I mean, you're both important to me." "We could bring him up together." " Bring up Bruno?" " l don't know." "Why, is he a baby?" "Yes, he is..." "He's a kid." "What I meant was... our lives could be more inventive..." " l want to keep you in mine." " l don't want any kids!" "Ask before you adopt a stray baby!" " That's what I'm doing." " The answer's no!" "I need him." "If you say so..." "Are you afraid?" "Yes..." "But not the way you think." "Maybe that's what attracts me." "I don't know." "Your fear is wondering if you can handle it." "That's scary." "Sure..." "You're so smart!" "You meet the man of your life and have to say what if something happens, if he gets sick and all, could I deal with it?" "Could I handle it?" "I never asked myself." "I think about it and I'm scared." "But I know I could handle it." "Yes." "You know those things." "I know you know it." "You also know when you can't handle it." "Where are you?" "In a hotel." "Wait..." "Hotel Joan of Ark." "De Gaulle Avenue, number 1 7." "Here's Bruno for you." " You never know, huh?" " What?" "Sometimes it happens." "Give me that." "Something happens." "Someone happens." "It's crazy." "But it does exist." "Go!" "You have to hold on." "Have to hope." "Do I go?" " l'm against death!" " So I should go?" "I agree... I go, right?" "If you don't, I'll kill you!" "Jeez, it's cold!" "Shit!" "Wait!" "One second!" "We can go." "Wait." "Stop." "Let's go."