""We are able to find everything in our memory, which is like a dispensary where, at random, we pick a soothing drug or a dangerous poison." Marcel Proust" "Marcel, look." "I think he's going to speak." "Look!" "I think he's going to say "Papa"." "Go on, say it, Paul honey." "Marcel..." "What a beautiful day." "Two..." "Three..." "Before the java came the waltz." "And before the waltz..." "There was the minuet." "1, 2, 3..." "They are all in triple time." "The 18th century." "The classical period..." "Order, clarity, reason..." "Think we'll dance the minuet in clubs?" "Refuse no experiences." "The army taught me that." "Fight the enemy with his tactics." "It's not a boxing ring." "Fashions come and go." "Disco music is back, so why not the minuet?" "Can we go on?" "With the waltz, bodies begin to touch." "But only lightly." "The 19th century..." "Romanticism," "Chateaubriand, Delacroix..." "Mendelssohn..." "With the java, it's body to body." "The 20th century..." "Auschwitz, Hiroshima..." "Chernobyl..." "Aspirin too." "No, aspirin's the 19th century." "Damn." "Concentrate now." "Form couples for the waltz." "Get some air." "Step back." "Is everyone partnered?" "One, two, three..." "Going to the park?" "You'll catch cold." "At least put your cardigan on!" "Temporarily out of order" "Again!" "It's too much!" "They're coming Thursday." "But I think it's a goner." "Six floors..." "Dancing keeps you young." "Imagine the other old folks." "Jean-Yves!" "Coming!" "What is it, Mum?" "All right..." "Where have you put the remote?" "Say when." "When!" "Let's go, kids!" "Happy birthday, Paul" "Is it me or is the piano off-key on the high notes?" "You're right." "I tuned it three days ago but the beast's already out of sorts." "I'll see to it." "Time for presents!" "From Mr Chassepot de Pissy and Mr Pineton de Chambrun." "Happy birthday, Paul." "We found this amazing item in an antique store." "It's a chirogym, a sort of gym for pianists." "Each appliance is designed for a hand muscle." "I advise against using it." "Schumann lost the use of his ring finger with one." "How amusing." "It must be very valuable." "From Mr Coelho." "It's from my home village." "No more crumbs in the piano now." "From your chouquettes." "Did you choose it?" "I always choose by myself." "At least it'll come in handy." "From us." "Happy birthday, Paul." "What is it?" "A model piano." "How topical!" "Don't glue your fingers for the competition!" "I found this in a cupboard." "She's watching you." "From up there..." "Hands off!" "Why don't you talk?" "Are you sick?" "What's wrong?" "I told you to get more." "Coming." "Madame Proust, your carrots are even bigger this year!" "Madame Proust?" "Who's there?" "Paul?" "What are you doing here?" "Thank you." "Madame Proust, we have a visitor!" "He's brought my record back." "It's Paul from the 6th floor." "The pianist." "The boy who doesn't speak?" "He can see though." "Will he rat about my vegetable garden?" "I don't think so." "He won't?" "I know Paul well." "He can keep a secret." "I'm not letting him go without some herb tea." "I make the decisions here." "I'm sorry." "All this is my fault." "Do you know it?" "Let my body tell you things that words cannot say..." "You don't know it, you're too young." "My first slow dance." "With my future wife." "The happiest day of my life." "And my first real erection." "Look at this carrot!" "I mustn't get this wrong." "This is the mute's." "And this one is yours." "Should I wait a little?" "You never know." "It might go badly with..." "Eat the madeleine to get rid of the taste." "A hint of mushrooms, right?" "Don't worry, it's herb tea." "It's not soup." "Then again... there's another flavour." " Asparagus." " Ok!" "That's Moustique." "He's my very own piano." "I'm no virtuoso but that's ok." "With the ukulele, it's the thought that counts." "He's gone." "What a sad boy..." "His parents died when he was two." "So he doesn't speak." "Quite a conversation-killer." "He has nightmares." "How can you tell?" "Does he look as if he sleeps well?" "I can't say." "You don't have colour." "What did his folks die of?" "His aunts never talk about it." "But he was there when it happened." "Brilliant." "What are you doing?" "He can't stay here." "Help me get him out." "He's not big but I bet he's a weight." "Well done, Mimi." "One hell of a guard dog." "Deaf as a post too." "A hat trick with a blind man and a mute." "You're sure he won't remember?" "Of course, that's the asparagus." "It purges your memory and washes out in your piss." "Goodbye." "Say goodbye." "Goodbye." "Come on." "Let my body" "Tell you things that words cannot say..." "Jean-Yves!" "Coming!" "Closed" "Where were you?" "You've lost your keys?" "We were worried sick!" "Four hours to buy chouquettes!" "We were going frantic." "We called the baker's." "They hadn't seen you." "Were you at the park?" "When you go to the park, Paul, write "park"." "Not "chouquettes"." "Any fool can do that." "What are you doing?" "It's dinnertime." "Have we got everything?" "Temporarily out of order" "Shit!" "Goddam thing!" "Hold your head up, please." "It's not a square dance, sir." "On the tips of your toes." "Light." "Airy..." "Elegant..." "No!" "You're hopeless!" "I know, I'm a physical mess..." "Come back for the java." "With the java, you can be..." "Lopsided?" "I have to sit this one out?" "I don't need classes to be a wallflower." "Mohammed, you really can't?" "I can try in socks." "Then try, my boy!" "You'll slide better in socks." "You're pairing up two fatties..." "Right!" "Time for the java!" "Off you go now..." "Poor Buddha." "They got you." "Shit!" "Attila Marcel vs. The Villette Butcher" "What on earth's that?" "That's not a tango." "You said one step forward, two back." "If you don't listen, you go backwards!" "All right, start again." "Take your partners." "I know where your mother is..." "Madame Proust - 4th floor" "Your mother's right here." "In the murky waters of your memory." "Memories are like fishies." "They hide in the depths." "Look at a pond." "You think, "It's dark and flat." "Nothing lives in there."" "If you're an angler, you toss in something they like and you start to see stuff moving down there." "You cast your line." "You reel in one that big." "Not a pike, a memory." "And what's the bait you use to catch memories?" "This." "Memories like music, see." "Feeding the fishies is fine but you need to reel them in." "And doing that requires a hook." "They're plain madeleines." "Some add orange-flower water but that's a bit gay." "The hook is in this." "Metaphorically speaking." "There are some side effects but they're worth it." "I nearly forgot..." "It's not free." "50 euros a session." "Life isn't cheap." "And my ingredients don't come from the corner store." "Well?" "If you don't want to fish for memories, there's still some asparagus tea." "Incredible, look at those digits" "We'll make you the king of pianists" "You're the child we've waited for Paul" "In our hands, you'll learn it all" "Come on, sisters, give it a rest" "Look at those shoulders, he'll be the accordion's best" "Nonsense, ignore what they say" "A lord you are and a lord you'll stay" "The time hasn't yet come to buy loafers for Attila's son" "This sweet angel so fine" "On the piano will be divine" "Divine" "Brilliant, you've done it now" "You've made him cry, and how" "The little accordionist" "Doesn't want to be a pianist" "What do you say, Anita?" "Neither one nor the other" "My boy will do as he wants" "The holy family won't decide" "What tune he dances to" "Neither one nor the other" "My boy will do as he wants" "Society won't explain to me" "How to make a man of him" "A little love, a little honey" "A little sunshine for his rainbows" "A little sand for his castles" "And all the crayons he needs to draw" "That's all it takes, that's all it takes" "A little love, a little honey" "A little sunshine for his rainbows" "A little sand for his castles" "And all the crayons he needs to draw" "That's all it takes, that's all it takes" "Well, sonny, you took your time." "Did you see your mum?" "All right..." "I've put together a selection." "If your aunts question you at Gestapo HQ upstairs, they'll think you were at the market." "Today's Thursday." "Next Thursday, same time?" "Let's go, Madame Herrol." "Really?" "Paul?" "Solange, your hands." "He runs fast for a pianist." "Amazing, isn't she?" "My job was giving me panic attacks." "My parents made me be a doctor." "But I dreamt of working with animals." "They don't talk." "They don't nag you with their problems." "See you next week." "You're here?" "I just popped in to say hello." "Hello." "Goodbye." "I have someone." "I have Psylocybe semilanceata powder." "The melons still need a month or two." "It can go on credit." "Do you know Madame Di Rosa?" "Madame Di Rosa." "Asthmatic bronchitis." "Her Chihuahua had a slight heart attack." "That left him dead." "He was a nasty piece of work." "So I thought of you." "Madame Di Rosa has a lovely chimneybreast." "I see..." "It'll be a start." "But I'm learning the theory." "To get your hand in." "A Chihuahua isn't that big." "No, it's not that big..." "Sorry, I have to show you the door." "Melons in three weeks." "I'll think about Madame Di Rosa." "Goodbye, Monsieur De Cressac." "Come on, your turn, kid." "His karma was to be a taxidermist." "His patients had a lucky escape." "What about you, my boy, was it your karma to be a pianist?" "I wanted to be a landscaper." "Outdoors, planting forests and gorgeous gardens as far as the eye can see." "Good job we have more than one life." "We're saying it for your sake." "You could have had a career as a pianist." "I'm not interested." "How can you say that?" "If I had your gifts..." "The De Cressacs are obsessed with this idea of a family virtuoso." "I played the piano to make Dad happy." "It's your Marcel." "He prefers the accordion..." "Leave him be." "Is it because he's not from our world?" "I prefer it that way." "Right, we haven't had many stevedores in the family." "What are you going to do?" "Marcel and I have plans." "Plans?" "I can't talk about them yet." "Come on, Paul, let's get ice creams." "Look out below!" "Perfect." "Not bad!" "Hello." " Your baby brother?" " No." " Your son?" " Yes." "Never mind." "A handsome baby." "A pretty mother, a handsome baby." "Thanks." "Know how photogenic you are?" "Want to be in a commercial?" "With him?" "I don't know." "I go back to Paris this week." "We have to meet." "And your name is?" "Anita." "Anita..." "That's pretty." "May I offer you an ice cream?" "Clear off!" "Anita, I've had girls by the pound, I've been around" "Anita, they were all for play" "Anita, that was before today" "Anita, with your flavour I'll stay" "Your beauty" "Like water ice" "Makes me melt" "In a trice" "I'm going nuts" "Feels so nice" "Beauty, kiss me sweet as spice" "Your beauty" "Like water ice" "Makes me melt" "In a trice" "I'm going nuts" "Feels so nice" "See that guy, Marcel?" "What's wrong?" "Mum's favourite film" "What on earth's wrong with him?" "I'll get another bottle." "Excellent idea." "Delicious." "Dig in." "It'll clean out your intestines." "He's looking better already." "Careful, you got some crab on him." "Sweetheart..." "My daughter won't be long." "She can be a little antisocial at times." "Cellists..." "They're lone wolves!" "Would you like some vegetables?" "Certainly not!" "Let me explain." "Paul is obsessed with vegetables." "They're all we ever eat now." "All his money goes on them." "So, when we got your kind invitation, we didn't think twice." "A weekend of fresh air, far from Paris and pollution..." "Far from vegetables..." "We didn't know Trouville." "It's..." "It's..." "It's full of air." "Paul is competing for the young soloist prize again, I hear." "This year will be the last time." "33 is the age limit for being young." "The competition is tough." "You said it." "Especially from the Chinese." "The Chinese?" "He's been battling the Chinese for 15 years." "Yes, but they are particularly gifted people." "Strength in numbers is all it is." "It's the same thing in our neighbourhood." "In our neighbourhood, they're everywhere." "They're talented though." "All they can do is win." "It's mathematical." "They stifle the rest of us." "Meet my daughter, Michelle." "Michelle is a pretty name." "Ever had brandied cherries?" "Paul's real problem are his fingers." "As a baby, he had his mother's slender hands." "During adolescence..." "With the hormones..." "His body changed." "Everything grew." "I see..." "No, you don't see." "Everything grew except his hands." "Now he has his father's chubby fingers." "We have to make do with that." "Do you know Professor Kruzinsky?" "A hand surgeon?" "A piano teacher." "I'll give you his number." "He's highly respected in the piano world." "And jury chairman this year." "Really, would you do that for us?" "We have to help each other." "He'd help us a lot more if he stopped adopting Chinese babies!" "A lollipop!" "The sea air!" "Are you still a virgin?" "Me too." "It's a bummer, isn't it?" "Come on, Mimi." "That's good." "Yes, that's good." "It's very good." "Very good..." "The light..." "The void beyond the light..." "No contours..." "The light swallows everything, digests it..." "You don't listen to music." "It burns into the retina of your eye." "A pianist is a pyromaniac of the soul." "He's a criminal!" "And you've understood that." "You have to be a criminal to play the piano." "You have to be a piece of shit!" "But a shining piece of shit." "And you do that beautifully!" "So... what's all this business about short, chubby fingers?" "Let's get serious here!" "So... that's fairly positive?" "Good." "That's reassuring." " Who do I make the cheque out to?" " I prefer cash." "Forgive me, but people can be dishonest." "May I?" "The light..." "May I sit down?" "I knew I'd find you here." "That's a beautiful tree." "At least it hasn't been turned into a cello." "Or a piano." "Talking of pianos, have you seen Kruzinsky?" ""The light..." "The light..."" "I wanted to tell you..." "I'm sorry about last time." "Did I shock you?" "I have to go, I have a rehearsal." "Are you here every day?" "See you soon then." "That Chinese girl's cute, isn't she?" "Want some advice about women?" "I don't have any." "Yet I'm a woman." "That shows how complicated we are." "It's good to see you smile." "My little brother never smiled either." "Life wasn't a barrel of laughs at home." "Dad cheated on Mum and she drank to forget." "I was older, I'd known the good times." "When they still loved each other." "He never saw them kissing, fondling each other, laughing like kids." "He only got the shit." "So he never learned to smile." "I tried to cheer him up with my clowning around." "That's how I got so stupid." "And then, one day," "I got sick of it, I left." "I travelled." "All the way to India." "That's where I met Buddha." "He's not a sad one, old Buddha." "He never stopped people fucking!" "Right..." "Shall we go?" "Come on." "My guy, he's a real man" "He's strong, tough as nails" "I see death, I know I can" "In his gaze that never pales" "Attila Marcel sounded familiar." "Then it came back to me." "Your dad got his monicker, Attila Marcel, from a song." "It's about a guy who beats his wife." "What was the singer's name again?" "That woman..." "The one with the teeth." "He holds me in his arms so tight" "For my breath I have to fight" "He's barbaric, cruel as hell" "My Attila Marcel" "What?" "It's just a song." "What are these things?" "It's tacky." "Still, as long as kids like it." "Kids don't care." "Ah, they're frogs..." ""Frogs" it says." "You have to know English." "I can tell this is going to get on my nerves." "I told you so, it's getting on my nerves." "You eat like a piglet, Paul." "I'll finish the lintels tomorrow." "It's looking good." "You're an ace, G?" "g?" "." "The Sunshine Sisters..." "They could've given you the bigger apartment." "Want to move that piano?" "I don't want it." "It ruined my childhood." "Get me an axe and I'll chop it up." "You'd have to chop my sisters up first and they're too much for you." "The offer still stands anyhow." "I'll think it over." "See you." "See you tomorrow, G?" "g?" "." "Thanks." "Bye, Paul." "Marcel, come and see." "Hurry!" "Look, Paul!" "It's us!" "That's great." "Don't give me that look!" "What look?" "That jealous look." "Sure, I'd love to show France my ass instead of Paulo." "You wanted to extend the living room." "Your son's behind is paying for that." "What did my wife give in return?" "Cut it out, Marcel." "We're not doing this here." "Come on." "It's all right, sonny." "It's just a bad memory." "Bloody frogs..." "When people arrive, Mimi!" "Not when they leave." "Do I know what I'm doing?" "Hey, Blind Man," "I pick my clients as I see fit." "I hate people lying to kids." "Adults, fine, but kids, I call that sick." "He's forgotten he saw his parents die?" "I don't believe a word of it." "It's not death preventing him from living." "He's going round in circles." "Just like your record." "This is what he needs..." "If we do nothing, he'll be two years old all his life." "You, you have your wife." "But what does he have?" "Apart from a piano." "And two beautiful sad eyes." " Ladies..." " Come in." "Paul's at the park." "Where's your equipment?" "What equipment?" "I don't know..." "A drug detector." "This is my detector." "His name's Bertrand." "This way." "He's not a German Shepherd." "Clearly not." "Is Bertrand qualified for this kind of work?" "You bet." "I got him from a pal on the Drugs Squad." "Search." "Search, Bertrand." "He looks happy." "What does that mean?" "That he's found nothing." "No Mary Jane, cocaine, LSD or so on." "Your Paul is clean." "Impossible." "There must be something." "Paul has never behaved like this." "We've even considered the worst." "A brain tumour..." "Are you sure Bertrand isn't mistaken?" "Not a dog like this." "Not with the training he's had." "If he could talk, he'd tell you..." "It's a tumour." "Heard of smaller dogs?" "She's not a dog, she's a bear!" "The smallest bear they had!" "Private Dickhead..." "Do you doctors write like dunces on purpose?" "Well?" "What do you think?" "Be honest." "That's him, he looks like he's about to bite." "What does Madame Di Rosa say?" "She wants to think about it." "She has time." "He's not running off anywhere." "She talked about cremating him." "That would be a shame." "I didn't advise it." "With the stuff keeping his coat shiny, the slightest spark and..." "Well?" "Your patients are falling over themselves..." "Sure you won't change your mind?" "I'm sick of it, sonny." "I'm not going through all that rigmarole again." "You can't say I haven't tried." "If I have to go, I'd rather go with a big bang." "Like that Chihuahua." "Checking to see if you'll have enough straw?" "It's all a joke for you..." "Pick up your melons in a fortnight." "And stop chewing that stuff." "You stink of strawberries." "Recovered from your frogs?" "I'm in no mood for guessing games today." "Don't look at me like that." "What is it?" "Something on my cheek?" "There's nothing there." "It'll end up showing, right?" "You don't see a thing." "You're not just a mute, you have shit in your eyes too." "Is something wrong?" "Is it because of the tree?" "What?" "You haven't seen?" "Are you all right?" "Give the damn strings a rest!" "The tree is sick." "We'll chop it down and plant a new one." "That's the cycle of life." "I don't need some pen-pusher to explain the cycle of life." "Listen, I'm just doing my job here." "All the bastards say that!" "Look, we're planting the same one." "That's going to protect kids from the sun!" "Skin cancer guaranteed for generations!" "What a silly cow I am." "They don't care about their kids' future." "They'll be in heaven on some shitty cloud." "I don't believe in your heaven!" "I'm a Buddhist." "I'm a Buddhist and screw you!" "Heaven is right here and you're screwing it up!" "Just read the damn toilet door!" ""Please leave this place as clean as it was" ""when you found it!"" "You treat your crapper better than the planet." "Be careful." "One day, the non-violent will get violent!" "And that's going to hurt!" "Fine..." "All right." "Asshole!" "Nothing unusual." "The blood tests are normal." "Your Paul is fine." "Are you sure?" "I'm positive." "He's in perfect health." "But the vegetables?" "The vegetables?" "Can too many vegetables be bad for him?" "Usually it's the opposite." "A form of poisoning, maybe." "Poisoning from vegetables?" " I can check." " Please do." "Cats..." "Cats are still tricky." "The Egyptians could do them though." "Can't have been the same cats." "Have you seen?" "Still out of order." "No, the madwoman on the fourth floor." "The cops arrested her." "Is something wrong?" "Jean-Yves!" "She bit one." "A trainee." "Luckily, he won't press charges." "They don't make them like her anymore." "The saddest past is she lost Moustique." "We're buying her a new one but it's not the same." "What's the matter with this piano?" "That's it." "She said you don't go anymore." "It happened to me too, an unpleasant experience." "Life isn't all happy memories." "The dose is too strong sometimes." "Madame Proust can be heavy-handed." "And it's not an exact science." "Right, Monsieur Paul?" "Monsieur Paul?" "We have an errand to run." "Errand." "Madame Proust?" "What's going on?" "What have you done to him?" "Have you drugged him?" "Do you drug Paul too?" "You should be locked away, you witch!" "You have the devil in you." "Are you trying to take our Paul from us?" "Stay here!" "Are you crazy?" "You won't get him." "He's ours." "We're his mummies." "And if anyone hurts him..." "We defend him." "I've finished, Madame Proust." "I'll come back next Friday?" "Madame Proust?" "Yes." "I'll come back on Friday, as planned?" "No." "No, Friday won't be possible." "Is there something wrong?" "Do you want to talk about it?" "Don't keep it locked up inside." "Shall I fetch the ukulele?" "Monsieur Paul?" "From Madame Proust." "Who is it?" "Mr Coelho." "I imagine you won't need me for the piano anymore." "Sonny, you don't come to the garden, so the garden comes to you." "All things come to an end and I'm closing down." "I'm starting a new life." "I'm going on a long journey." "It'll take a lot of time to prepare." "If ever you fish for memories again, here's everything you need." "Drown bad memories in a flood of tiny joys." "I wish you nothing more... but you have to turn on the tap." "Good luck with the competition." "Your pal, Proust." "Live your life" "Paul, your dad's over there." "See him?" "Ladies and gentlemen, to my right, the great, the mighty, the barbaric and cruel" "Attila Marcel!" "To my left, for the first time in the ring, the beautiful but dangerous tigress" "Anita Marcel!" "What's your problem?" "Hey, Tweedledum and Tweeldedee, your sis did a great job, huh?" "Young soloist of the year" "Thank you" "Who organized all this?" "Three hours since I ate and nothing's laid on for us?" "How can we manage?" "I'm not some dainty bird!" "I can't live on music and water." "You're on second after the break." "So this year is the one?" "Everything ok?" "Love you, Paulo!" "I love you, Paul." "Can you see me, Paul?" "Stay there." "Ladies and gentlemen!" "The beautiful but dangerous tigress" "Anita Marcel!" "He's awake!" "Lost something?" "I'd like to raise my glass to our dear Paul." "Since all things come to those who wait, all I can say is, bravissimo, maestro!" "Give us the pleasure of playing something." "A little sonata?" "A sonata!" "It was a load-bearing wall." "If it's any comfort, your father's friend..." "The one who did the work..." "He got five years in jail..." "Without parole." "Illegal work." "It isn't any comfort, is it?" "You're angry with us." "It's the joints." "It's very serious." "He may never play the piano again." "That's all right." "Yes, it doesn't matter." "Does it, Paul?" "You're taking it very well." "I'll give you some painkillers." "I can manage that." "Wondering where my little friends are?" "I've given up." "Taxidermy and I aren't made to get along." "My parents were right." "All I was good for was being a doctor." "It's you!" "I thought that madwoman was back." "Just kidding." "You want to look round?" "The state she left it in..." "What a bloody mess!" "You wouldn't believe it." "She's finished pissing us off now." "The big C got old Mother Proust in the end." "I don't know where they buried her but her new neighbours have got something to worry about." "The poor guys!" "What a pain she was..." "Temporarily out of order" "It's his girl and their baby." "Can we see her?" "She's so beautiful!" "She's so dainty." "Like her mother." "What pretty hands." "A cellist's hands." "Make a musician of her." "Or a dancer." "So today's the big departure?" "Take plenty of photos." "I dream of seeing all that." "Honolulu, the Pacific..." "Are you doing the trip in one go?" "The ukulele festival's in Hawaii but we'll stop on the way." "It's a surprise for Paul." "Paul, I think she's going to speak." "She's a bit young, isn't she?" "Look at her..." "I think she's going to say "Papa"." "Help us, damn it!"