Il Divo (2008) - full transcript

"You have six months left", said the
army doctor when I was called up.

Years later I looked him up:
I wanted him to see I was alive,

but he was dead.

It always went that way.

They'd predict my demise
and I'd survive.

They'd die instead.

On the other hand, I've suffered
splitting headaches all my life.

Now I'm using a Chinese remedy,
but I've tried everything.

In its day, the drug
Optalidon looked really promising.

I even sent a supply
to a journalist: Mino Pecorelli.

He's dead too.



THE SPECTACULAR LIFE
OF GIULIO ANDREOTTI

"The Premier's Cheques"

ROBERTO CALVI. BANKER
17 JUNE 1982

MICHELE SINDONA. BANKER
22 MARCH 1986

MINO PECORELLI. JOURNALIST
20 MARCH 1979

CARLO ALBERTO DALLA CHIESA
CARABINIERI GENERAL, 3 SEPT. 1982

GIORGIO AMBROSOLI. LIQUIDATOR
"PRIVATA ITALIANA' BANK, 12 JULY 1979

ALDO MORO.
DC PRESIDENT, 9 MAY 1978

GIOVANNI FALCONE
MAGISTRATE, 23 MAY 1992

ROME. THE EARLY 90s

Massacres and conspiracies are
the work of Craxi and Andreotti

- What time did you wake up, Giulio?
- 4:30.

The great La Pira would wake at 3:30.

He was a saint. I'm a sinner.



- How many times, Giulio?
- As of today, seven.

Seven times Premier,
twenty-five times minister.

I never had
such an illustrious parishioner.

We're all illustrious in God's eyes.

Montanelli said:

"De Gasperi and Andreotti
went to mass together,

everyone thought they did
the same thing but it wasn't so.

In church, De Gasperi talked to God.
Andreotti talked to the priest.

Priests vote.

God doesn't.

Mario, I want to confess.

Of course, Giulio.

Premier, don't slouch.

I'm comfortable like this.

Premier, storm clouds are gathering.

PRESS AGENTS OF
PAOLO CIRINO POMICINO

CHANCELLOR OF THE EXCHEQUER
alias "THE MINISTER"

FRANCO EVANGELISTI. ANDREOTTI'S
RIGHT HAND MAN alias "THE LEMON"

Hello...

...yes, excuse me.

GIUSEPPE CIARRAPICO
BUSINESSMAN alias "CIARRA"

VITTORIO SBARDELLA
DC MP alias "THE SHARK"

CARDINAL FIORENZO ANGELINI
alias: "HIS HEALTHINESS"

THE ANDREOTTI FACTION
OF THE CHRISTIAN DEMOCRATS

Fiorenzo, sit on the throne.

How's the Pope doing?

I was on TV yesterday.

There was talk of priests in trouble.
I quoted Pius XI.

Whenever they mentioned
a priest in trouble to him,

he always said the same five words.

- What?
- What is the lady's name?

- The Lad's in good form.
- Thank you for calling me "lad".

The usual nasty journalist pushed
the same old button:

My faction... according to her
it's teeming with bad company.

What did you reply?

One can never be too cautious
about the company one keeps.

After all, Jesus had Judas
amongst his disciples.

- What's eating you, Salvo?
- Nothing.

Rome's so beautiful.
And it's so calm too.

Fiorenzo, I'd like Tedax
to stay in the pharmaceutical codex,

it's relieving the suffering of many.

Giulio,
Tedax is problematic, it doesn't...

Tell me about my favourite pony.

Craxi was on the warpath,
he kept yelling:

"I'd sooner cut my balls off than see
your Mazza as bank president."

- Who got the job?
- Our Mazza.

Have you already asked Craxi
to comply?

It's relieving the suffering of many.

Giulio, I need to talk to you
in private.

And Vittorio also has ideas
about the faction

that not only differ from ours,
but they're excessive too.

I propose...

to arrange in
a more widely distributed manner...

that would only be difficult...

Boys, behave yourselves.

Today is the inception
of the 7th Andreotti government.

Today's a day of celebration.

Let's all behave.

SALVO LIMA
DC MP alias "HIS EXCELLENC Y"

Today's a day of celebration.

Good morning, Premier.
Do you know the way?

It's vaguely familiar, thank you.

The President of the Republic,
Francesco Cossiga.

THE 7TH ANDREOTTI GOVERNMENT

Premier...

Apart from the Punic Wars,

I've been blamed for everything
that's happened in Italy.

They've honoured me
with several nicknames:

The Divine Julius,
The First Letter of the Alphabet,

The Hunchback, The Fox, Moloch,

The Salamander, The Black Pope,
Eternity,

Man of Darkness, Beelzebub.

But I've never pressed charges

for a simple reason:
I have a sense of humour.

I have something else too:

A vast archive
in place of an imagination.

Every time I mention it,

those who should shut up do so,
as if by magic.

- You may go in, ma'am.
- Wait!

What's wrong?

Everyone says he's a dangerous man.

Andreotti isn't dangerous.

He's daring.
That's quite a different thing.

Is there anything I should know
about him?

Yes, his hands. Watch them closely.

If he twiddles his thumbs,
he thinks you're intelligent.

If he plays with his ring,

it means he disagrees
with what you're saying.

If he rhythmically taps
his fingertips together,

it means you'll be dismissed
within the next five minutes.

What about when his eyes
suddenly dilate?

I don't know, no one does.
Good luck.

Thank you.

Giulio, it's midnight,
we have to go.

Don't forget you're leaving tomorrow.

Yes, Livia.

- Thank you for coming, Andreotti.
- Goodbye, Paolo.

MOSCOW. THE KREMLIN

Hello, I'm the Premier.

I'm more important,
I'm his wife.

- Did you go to play cards?
- Yes.

I wore the coat
that Saddam Hussein gave you.

Marisa loved it
and asked where I bought it.

I was a bit hesitant to say because
it seemed like I was boasting.

- How's Gorbachov?
- State Secret.

Is that birthmark on his head
unsightly?

I don't mind it.

Are you going to bed now?

First I have to do
some Cossack dancing.

- Say "trimarri".
- "Tvimavvi"

- Say "vrigliari"
- "Vigliavi". That's enough.

Goodnight, Giulio.

What will they remember
about you, Honourable Mr Andreotti?

I don't intend to rake up
your dull career,

that's not a crime.

What will they remember about you?

A cold organizer: Inscrutable,
incapable of doubts or thrills.

Incapable of pity.

What will they remember about you?

Postscript:

The Pope did ever so little,

perhaps he'll feel guilty.

Your government's immobility damages
your race for the presidency.

The government's about to fall,
but it shouldn't happen like this.

Better to bluff it than snuff it.

Politically, you're naive.

Naivety and intelligence
always go together.

- Are you calling me a bastard?
- Of course not.

You're angry because I didn't defend
you from Cossiga's accusations.

That's water under the bridge.

I couldn't oppose Cossiga,
we've been arguing for months.

I'm just trying to see things
from a political viewpoint.

You always want to talk
political strategies.

I, on the other hand,
have a dreadful migraine today.

Yes, but you always have a migraine.

Remind Fiorenzo about Tedax.

Let's make sure it stays
in the pharmaceutical codex.

Amintore...

Good morning ma'am.

I'm well, thank you. How about you?
Go ahead.

Actually it's not true.

I'm not very good
at making recommendations.

I hate lies and I don't tell them.

I've never believed
one can divide humanity

into two groups: Angels and demons.
We're all average sinners.

If one wants to keep a secret,
one mustn't even confide in oneself.

One must never leave traces.

Good evening.

Come in.

Take a seat please, ma'am.

I used to come to this apartment
before you were here.

- It was a furrier's.
- I know.

Craxi used to say:

"Andreotti is an old fox,
he'll end up in a furrier's one day."

He was right, I really have.

But alive.

Does my company bore you
that much?

- Not at all.
- Really?

Really.

You aren't at all curious about me.

It's very unusual.

I'm only curious about myself.

My job is to inquire into myself.

Does this noble work pay well?

Yes, my husband pays for this
noble work very generously.

What do you expect from me, ma'am?

Sorry, I wanted to thank you.

It's a very difficult time for me.

I'm so vulnerable.

You mustn't be.

Vulnerability always commands
exorbitant prices.

So, what must I do?

Your young lover is transient
because youth is transient.

But your husband isn't.

He's a cure for your Ioneliness

and for your vulnerability.

Believe me, I'm familiar with
Ioneliness and it's not very nice.

In my position

I must have met about
300,000 people.

Do you think this oceanic crowd
has made me feel any less Ionely?

Thank you.

Go!

Go!

Giulio, the Mafia murdered
Salvo Lima.

VINCENZO SCOTTI
INTERIOR MINISTER alias "TARZAN"

Teresa, how are you?

That's good news.

Yes, Teresa.

Livia and I will visit you
on Sunday.

All right. Goodbye.

Teresa is my cousin.

She's the same age as me
and she's always sick, in hospital.

Once she was home for
three months: A remarkable event.

To tell you the truth,
as much as I've tried,

and I've tried a lot over the years
of militancy, friendship...

I must say that I'll never
understand you.

I don't know you.

When they abducted Moro
I had spasms of vomiting.

An uncontrollable reaction.

Uncontrollable reactions
embarrass us.

But deep down they reassure us,

because they tell us
that we're alive and human.

We have to go to Palermo
for the funeral.

If they killed Lima to strike at me,

a candidate in pectore
for the presidency of the Republic,

it means there's another candidate
using these methods.

I speak to the State,
I speak to the investigators,

and I call on you to identify
and exemplarily punish

the killers
and the mandators alike,

so that this time
they cannot be shielded

by a disheartening vagueness,

especially the mandators.

Public opinion calls for justice
to prevail.

There should be
absolutely no doubt

about the willingness
to investigate

and expose the true facts.

Lord, keep a close watch on me

because I am becoming despicable in
the eyes of those who contemplate me.

Lord, keep a close watch on me

because I am becoming despicable in
the eyes of those who contemplate me.

Lima was suspected
of Mafia involvement for years.

He generated too much gossip.

So do many other members of your
faction. It's not a good sign.

- I generate gossip too.
- But you're Andreotti, they aren't.

That, at least, is not my fault.

Why do you surround yourself
with such people?

Wars are fought
with the troops available.

The best people can choose
the best troops.

Trees need manure
in order to grow.

Your irony is atrocious.

Irony is the best cure
against death.

Cures against death
are always atrocious.

You're suffering for Lima?

I'm suffering for Moro.

Everything always washed over me
without leaving a trace,

but not Moro.

I just can't get him out of my mind.

It's like a second migraine,
but even more agonizing.

Why didn't they take me?
I'm strong.

Moro was a weak man.

Don't say that.
It's just pointless remorse.

If the Red Brigades
had wanted secrets,

they could have talked to me
for a year.

Moro had no idea that
certain things even existed.

You know, Mario,
once they called me at home.

No one has my private number.

They said they'd kill me
on December 26th.

I replied: "Thanks, now I'll spend
Holy Christmas in peace."

I'm still here.
They were put off by a witty remark.

The Red Brigades,
far too serious.

Andreotti's 7th government
shouldn't have ended this way.

It doesn't matter. Next time,
God willing, I'll get a little higher

The Quirinal.

The presidency of the Republic would
be your crowning achievement.

How will you spend Sunday?

The same way I spend all the others,
with my old constituents.

- Thank you, Premier.
- You're welcome, ma'am.

Do they grow that big
in Ferentino?

In Sora? Thank you, Vittorio,
put them down there.

This is for you.

Here's a nice sailboat
and a lovely toy kitchen.

- This is for you.
- Many thanks, Premier.

- Premier, I'd...
- What's this?

Household expenses...

Goodness...

- Any news on that job, Premier?
- You'll have to be patient.

Well chaps,
we need to face up to the situation.

Now that Cossiga had nominated
The Lad as life senator,

what will happen
to his 330,000 votes?

Bravo, that's exactly why

I think I should be appointed
faction co-ordinator.

Behave yourselves.

I don't get it, what the hell
do you want to co-ordinate?

Each one of us always took care
of our own regions.

Behave yourselves!

What do you want?

Join in this political debate

but don't just say "behave
yourselves". We need a concept.

Where are you going?

To the other Christian Democrat
faction, they're nicer.

Niceness is detrimental
in politics.

That's why I'm going,
because I'm not nice at all.

Wait a moment.

Pomicino, The Shark's leaving.

And he's taking all those
330,000 votes with him.

The Shark! The little fish...
who'll drown.

Hi.

How are you, my dearest Ambassador?

My dear lady!
I haven't slept a wink

since I missed
your last art exhibition.

You didn't miss a thing,
I'm just a dabbler.

Hooray for dabbling!

I'm a surgeon
and Chancellor of the Exchequer...

Professionalism is killing us.

I beg you, please dance.

Would you like a "Transgression",
ma'am?

- What do you mean?
- It's a cocktail, ma'am.

No, thank you.

Premier, would you care for a Cuban?

Thank you, but I don't succumb
to lesser vices.

Have you ever danced, Premier?

My whole life, ma'am.

Here's the "fat girl"
I promised you.

You can't imagine
what this mozzarella's like.

- It reminds me of Sbardella.
- Reminds you? It is Sbardella.

That traitor! How far will he get
without Andreotti?

He won't get anywhere
without Andreotti.

We're not members of a faction,

we're in a theocratic empire
where one person rules: Andreotti.

Eat Sbardella, Franco.
It'll calm you down.

Listen Andreotti,
the aim of this dinner is obvious.

We think you should be elected
President of the Republic.

And we want to do everything possible
to make that happen.

What do you think?

I know I'm of average height, but...

I don't see any giants around.

I know my Giulio too well.

He just said yes.

Thank you.

This watch

isn't to commemorate the moment,
it's for the future.

Its hands always point to the future.

And you are the future.
I got it from Haussmann's.

It's the brand that counts,
not the store.

You make it tough to care about you.

I never asked you to care about me.

I know, but I care about you
all the same.

And in all these years, you've never
shown me any affection. Never.

I always defended you politically.

Even when you made
incongruous remarks.

Yes, but life isn't only politics.

I'm not intelligent like you...

I did some "incongruous" things,

but I always covered the body part
directly below the coccyx for you.

Always.

Always, don't forget that.

You just made
another incongruous remark.

There's nothing else but politics.

Talk to Fiorenzo.

I'll be unhappy if Tedax is taken off
the pharmaceutical codex.

What is it?

Why did you get up?

I wanted to wish you luck.

Yes.

If you get elected, will we live
in the Quirinal or here?

Here.

The Quirinal would drive you mad.
It's like being a prisoner

with all those cuirassiers,
speakers and pastry-bearers.

Yes Enea, five o'clock
will be fine. Thanks.

Bastard.

The order of business is:

Election of
the President of the Republic.

Thieves!

Honourable members!

Honourable Parisi!

You're an old parliamentarian,
show some respect.

- I'll press charges!
- Shame on you!

Show some decency!

Buffoons, buffoons!

We have to nominate
the President of the Republic,

we must remain united
so one of our men wins.

My dear chaps, come to an agreement.
Talk frankly.

If dear Arnaldo is a candidate,
I'm out of the race.

If dear Giulio is a candidate,
I'm out of the race.

I see.

- How did it go?
- They both want to run.

I'd like to finish speaking,
Mr President.

You've already had two applauses,
let someone else talk.

I just want to finish
a line of reasoning.

That's enough reasoning,
let's vote.

Honourable member,
reasoning is optional for you.

Four ballots and we still
don't have a real candidate.

Agnelli asked me
if this would go on all week.

Is he worried about the weekend?

Franco, I don't discuss
politics with you, just sports.

I discuss politics with Giulio.

The immobility of Andreotti's
government has multiplied its enemies

If we vote for him,
they'll assault us.

You haven't understood a thing.

You hammer us for a year

and then ask us to vote
the big boss into the Quirinal.

Andreotti in the Quirinal and
Forlani as head of the D.C. Party.

If you want Forlani in the Quirinal,
don't complain afterwards.

If Forlani gets the presidency,
De Mita becomes party leader.

And De Mita will hinder Craxi
from becoming premier.

That's why we have to get
Andreotti into the Quirinal,

and leave Forlani as party leader
and Martinazzoli as vice premier.

See how simple, clear
and scientific it is?

See all these people?
See the opposition?

Andreotti supporters are everywhere,
above suspicion.

Not only in the Christian Democrats:
I'm cross-party.

The killer was about to be revealed,
I never want to know.

The candidates will fall, one by one.

Then we'll move in,
rested and redemptive.

What do the illegal bookmakers say?

Spadolini is at one and a half,
Andreotti four, Craxi eight,

lotti ten, Forlani twelve,

De Mita fifteen
and Scalfaro twenty.

- Cossiga?
- Cossiga's not on the list.

Did they forget him?

Will you vote for him?

No, I can't stand him.

- What does that mean?
- I could never stand him.

Not voting for him is dangerous
for you and us too.

I'm asking you as a favour,
do it for me. Just this once.

- All right.
- Dry your hands, hurry.

Let us observe a one-minute silence

in memory of Giovanni Falcone,
magistrate.

Here are the ballot results:

Present voters 1002,
no abstentions.

Absolute majority
of the assembly: 508.

Voting went as follows...

- Watch Andreotti closely.
- Scalfaro 672 votes...

- He's waited for this all his life.
- Miglio 75, Cossiga 63...

Volponi 50, Valiani 36,
Forlani and Spadolini 7,

Andreotti and Vassalli 6,

Conso and lotti 4,

Bossi and Scalfari 3,
Guido Quaranta 2.

Invalid ballots: 15,
blank ballots: 38, void ballots: 11.

I declare the elected
President of the Republic to be

the Honourable Oscar Luigi Scalfaro.

Keep watching him.

Watch and learn how to behave.

I never kissed my mother.
Never!

Then again, Judas kissed a lot,
and he wasn't sentimental.

She wasn't at all impressed
that I was an MP or minister.

I cried when she died.

During my life,
I cried twice more:

When De Gasperi died and the first
time I was nominated vice-minister.

Once, I made a vow,

it was when the Red Brigades
kidnapped Aldo Moro.

I vowed to give up ice cream
if he was released.

I have a weakness for ice cream.

If there were direct elections in
Italy for President of the Republic

I would've won.

I forgive you, but you've got to
get down on your knees.

If you have the courage to
change... but they won't change.

To change, change...

They don't want to change,
they won't change...

Change and stop causing
death and destruction.

Go back to being Christians.

We pray for this in the name
of Jesus who said it on the cross:

Father, forgive them
for they know not what they do.

Politicians, businessmen: I'm worried
about this recent wave of suicides.

Some can't stand imprisonment,

others the accusations
of corruption or bribery...

and they kill themselves...
but are they suicides, Premier?

By the way,

Craxi says you're the puppeteer
behind Bribesville.

What nonsense!

Your colleagues are falling prey
to corruption and extortion.

Craxi, Forlani, De Mita,
Martelli, La Malfa.

But not you.

This appallingly big scandal
hasn't touched you.

I feel compassion
and a sense of sadness for them.

But, I don't think they're finished.

I don't believe
they're personally responsible

or that they should disappear
from the political scene.

I don't want to talk
about Bribesville

but about a piece I'd like to write
on an almost philosophical theme.

This theme is chance.

I don't believe in chance,
I believe in the will of God.

But you should believe in chance!

Well, Premier,

is it by chance that the families
of assassination victims hate you?

Dalla Chiesa's son hates you.

He says that you instigated
his father's murder.

Aldo Moro's wife hates you

and holds you responsible
for her husband's death.

Does banker Roberto Calvi's wife
hate you by chance?

She said you threatened
then ordered Calvi's murder.

She says the Vatican Bank
didn't kill him, but two people:

Andreotti and Cosentino,
who's also dead now.

And I wonder, is it by chance
that you were Interior Minister

when the bandit Pisciotta was killed
with a poisoned coffee?

Maybe Pisciotta could have revealed
the instigators of Giuliano's murder.

Was banker Michele Sindona killed
in the same way by chance?

He too could have made some
uncomfortable disclosures in prison.

Is it by chance that everyone says
you repeatedly protected Sindona?

Is it by chance that Evangelisti,
your deputy,

met Sindona when he was on the run,
at a toy shop in New York?

Is it by chance that
the Magistrate Viola says:

If you hadn't protected Sindona,

the Ambrosoli crime
wouldn't have happened?

Furthermore,

you jot down everything scrupulously
in your diary, so is it by chance

that you forgot to write
about the Ambrosoli crime?

Is it by chance that from '76-'79,
when you were Premier,

all the secret service chiefs were
members of the P2 Masonic lodge?

Is it by chance that in your frequent
meetings with P2 head, Licio Gelli,

you talked exclusively about
South American desaparecidos?

That's what you said:
Just friendly chit-chat.

Finally, is it by chance that
you've been dragged into

nearly every scandal
that's afflicted this country?

And I'm omitting to mention all the
suspects that allege your Mafia links

Basically, as Montanelli said:
It's one or the other.

You're either the most cunning
criminal in the country

because you never got caught

or you're the most persecuted man
in the history of Italy.

So I'm asking:

Are all these coincidences
the fruit of chance

or the will of God?

Is it by chance that the influential
newspaper you founded

was once saved by the Premier?

That Premier was me.

Your newspaper almost fell
into the hands of Silvio Berlusconi,

an employer you wouldn't have liked.

I stopped it from happening.

Also thanks to the mediation
of the much-reviled Ciarrapico.

I allowed you to regain
your independence and freedom.

Independence and freedom
which allows you

to ask me impudent,
specious questions.

It's thanks to me that you can
be so arrogant,

presumptuous and distrustful
towards me.

That's not the case...

The situation was
a bit more complicated.

See? You're quite perspicacious,
you've worked it out for yourself.

The situation was
a bit more complicated.

But that doesn't just apply to
your story, it applies to mine too.

TOTO' RIINA. MAFIA BOSS
OF BOSSES alias "THE BEAST"

Now I'll tell you everything,
but hold on to your seats

because it's all linked,
everything is connected.

I repeat:
Hold on to your seats.

GIANCARLO CASELLI
ATTORNEY GENERAL OF PALERMO

Pippo Calo, Toto Riina
and Francesco Madonia

made use of Licio Gelli
for their investments.

Some of this money was invested
in the Vatican Bank

where Gelli acted as banker
for the group.

Sindona was banker
for the previous Mafia bosses:

Stefano Bontate
and Salvatore Inzerillo...

Yes, I met Licio Gelli
and Michele Sindona.

Well-mannered, respectful people.

Licio Gelli had a mattress shop near
the Christian Democrat headquarters.

Pippo Calo killed
several relatives of mine,

but at one time
we were great friends.

Roberto Calvi appropriated
a substantial sum

belonging to Gelli and Calo.

Calvi's suicide was staged.

Calvi was strangled
by Francesco Di Carlo,

on Pippo Calo's orders.

Pippo Calo was a very important man
in Cosa Nostra,

he's capable of using his brain,
he was Cosa Nostra's man in Rome.

He had links
with Bontate, then with Riina,

with the Camorra, with the Vatican,
with the Secret Services,

with the P2 and the Magliana Gang.

- If Calo talked...
- If Calo talked...

he'd die after saying
good morning.

On the subject of Moro,
Pippo Calo told Bontate:

"Don't you get it? His fellow
party members don't want him freed."

In 1983, Badalamenti told me there
were secrets about Moro's kidnapping.

Secrets that troubled
the Honourable Mr. Andreotti.

Andreotti was worried
they could leak out.

Only two people knew
about these secrets:

General Dalla Chiesa
and Mino Pecorelli, the journalist.

Badalamenti told me that although
we'd killed Pecorelli,

it was a political killing

commissioned by the Salvo cousins
as a favour to Andreotti.

When Dalla Chiesa was murdered,
Badalamenti said:

"They sent him to Palermo
to get rid of him.

He hadn't done anything
in Sicily

to justify all that hate
towards him."

The Pecorelli and Dalla Chiesa cases
are linked, gentlemen.

The government wouldn't give Dalla
Chiesa special anti-Mafia powers.

When Dalla Chiesa was killed,
they blamed the Mafia.

Some time after, I had a meeting
with Lima and Nino Salvo.

If Dalla Chiesa was already powerless
on all levels, why kill him?

For some politicians, he'd have been
more dangerous in retirement.

We're the ones who'll be fucked
for a long time to come.

Badalamenti told me he'd met up
with Andreotti in Rome,

to thank him for his concern

over a trial regarding Filippo Rimi,
Badalamenti's brother-in-law.

Badalamenti told me that Andreotti
congratulated him, saying:

"Men like you..."

Men like you... are needed on every
street in Italy.

BADALAMENTI'S ATTORNEY

It was said by Ciro Varga
of the Vallelunga family,

Cataldo Terminio
of the San Cataldo family,

and Salvatore Ferrero
of the Caltanisetta family that...

Giulio, I need to talk to you
in private.

...the Honourable Mr Lima
was Andreotti's contact

for everything that concerned
Cosa Nostra,

especially the trials.

Sebastiano Nardo told me
that Andreotti was "pricked",

he was initiated,
a "man of honour".

Bontate told me that Andreotti
went to Palermo to meet him,

Lima, the Salvo cousins
and the Honourable Mr Nicoletti.

It was between spring
and summer of '79.

The meeting took place
on a hunting reserve

and Bontate complained to Andreotti

about the
Honourable Mr Mattarella's behaviour,

who wasn't lending a helping hand
to the Mafia anymore.

There was a second meeting
some months after Mattarella's death.

We're in charge of Sicily

and if you don't want
the D.C. Wiped out,

you'd better do as we say.

Otherwise we won't just
take away the Sicilian votes,

but those from Reggio Calabria
and all Southern Italy too.

You'll only have the North,
where they all vote Communist.

Take our votes.

And don't get any ideas about
special measures or laws

or there'll be other
serious incidents.

But I'd point out that after '87,
Andreotti stopped favouring anyone,

in fact
he started fighting the Mafia.

Lima died because he represented
that political faction

which had made use
of Cosa Nostra's votes

then reneged on its commitments
during the Big Mafia Trial.

I can't be more precise
about when the meeting took place

because it's hard to put a date
on my memories.

You know that what you're telling us
is almost unbelievable?

Yes.

But it was also unbelievable
that Riina was captured

after years on the run,
but it happened. Thanks to me.

Come with me.

Livia,
the Palermo Judges sent notification

that I'm under investigation
for Mafia connections.

They'll ask for authorization
to proceed against me.

And this time they'll get it.

I know who you are.

You can't spend your life with a man
and not know who he is.

I know who you are.
And we'll defend ourselves.

I don't know if Riina
and Andreotti met or not.

But if they did,
I'm sure they kissed.

Andreotti spoke about the Mafia,
well, he spoke about himself...

Why must the good ones
always die, like the mafioso Liggio?

When Andreotti dies, they'll take
the black box out of his hump

and we'll finally know...

... like a miraculous lucky dip

It's wonderful to dip in
while suspended

From a soft, pink cloud

Me like a gentleman

And you like...

A bride

While outside the window

Only the dust blows

A storm's brewing

We two are from a distant planet

But from here, the world seems
like a secret trap door

Everyone wants everything

Only to realise

That it's all nothing

We won't be like other people

These will always be

The best years of our lives

The best years of our lives

Hold me tight,
no night lasts forever...

Livia, your lively eyes dazzled me

one afternoon in the Verano cemetery.

I chose that odd place
to ask you to marry me.

Remember? Yes, I know, you remember.

Your lively, innocent,
enchanted eyes didn't know,

don't know and will never know.

They have no idea of the deeds
that power must commit

to ensure the well-being
and development of the country.

For too long that power was me.

The monstrous,
unavowable contradiction:

Perpetrating evil
to guarantee good.

The monstrous contradiction
that made me

a cynical man
that even you couldn't decipher.

Your lively, innocent eyes
don't know the responsibility.

The direct and indirect responsibility

for all the carnage in Italy
from 1969 to 1984

that left precisely
236 dead and 817 injured.

To all the families of the victims
I say that I confess.

I confess that it was my fault,
my most grievous fault.

I'll say it, even if it's pointless.

Havoc used to destabilize
the country,

to provoke terror
to isolate the extremist parties

and strengthen the centre ones
like the Christian Democrats...

has been described as
"tension strategy".

It would be more correct to say:
"Survival strategy".

Roberto, Michele, Giorgio,
Carlo Alberto,

Giovanni, Mino, dear Aldo,

by vocation or necessity,
all confirmed lovers of the truth.

All bombs ready to explode
that were defused into silence.

All of them thinking truth
is the right thing,

but actually
it's the end of the world.

We can't allow
the end of the world

in the name of what's right.

We have a task, a divine task.

We must love God greatly

to understand how necessary
evil is for good.

God knows it, I know it too.

One can be dull but honest,
dull but good,

dull but full of fervour.

Well, Honourable Mr Andreotti,
that is just what you lack.

You lack human fervour.

Along with the goodness, wisdom,
flexibility, transparency

that undeniably make up

the few real Christian Democrats
that exist in the world.

You'll last a little longer,
or a little less,

but you'll vanish without a trace.

You'll be a mere news item,

especially now that it suits you.

- How long did you walk?
- All night.

- My legs are really hurting.
- Take more care: Stress, your age...

- Tedax would make me happy.
- It was taken off the codex.

Stop the nervous walking,
try doing some sports.

All my sporty friends are dead.

Chance.

I don't believe in chance.
I believe in the will of God.

- I'm sorry.
- No, don't say anything.

It's for the best, I'll retire
to the country and pick chicory.

- Chicory's good.
- Yes, it's politics that's bad.

And to tell the truth,
I'm tired of it.

It's for the best.

Andreotti says he has too many
legal expenses

and now that he's not
in the government...

Poor Andreotti,
he was always on his own.

Now even more so.

- What's in there?
- Love letters.

You wouldn't think it,
but women liked Andreotti.

They wrote him lots of letters.

But I never let him see them.

I don't want trouble.

Have you read them, Miss Enea?

I know full well, Senator,

that there are certain things
in life one mustn't see.

PRIVATE ARCHIVES
OF GIULIO ANDREOTTI

I can say with a sense
of responsibility that I'd prefer

the Mafia to have eliminated me in
the same way they did Dalla Chiesa

than to end up here, not knowing
how to defend myself against lies.

I never met the Salvo cousins
in my life.

I never associated with them

and Lima never hinted at matters
pertaining to the Mafia.

I do not know Bontate,
I do not know Badalamenti.

I have never had secret meetings
with them.

My movements are constantly
controlled by the police.

I am under special surveillance,
I want there to be no doubt.

As for the authorization
to proceed, I'm in your hands.

Senator, if we use our vote

to block further investigations
by the judiciary,

what will be left
of this country's institutions?

I understand the risk but...

we cannot allow the judiciary
to govern.

That's all for now.

Would you like to add anything else,
Senator Andreotti?

Go ahead.

For many years I have been
Italy's international representative.

A country led by someone
who reports to the Mafia

does not have much credibility
in the world arena.

I'm not the only one
who'll be discredited by this.

You've lost more weight.

And my hand shakes when I write.

Because you don't sleep anymore.

Yes, I don't sleep anymore.

Your friends from the faction
don't call anymore.

Pray for them, Livia.
They were destroyed too.

By whom?

By life

and by accusations of bribery.

Is it far?

26 times
for 26 different accusals,

I was brought before
the investigating committee.

They made me talk for days on end.

But each time,
the case was dismissed.

Dismissed, dismissed, dismissed...

We're here to talk about
presumed governmental responsibility

in the Piazza Fontana massacre.

I don't remember...

I was only informed of the facts.
I couldn't know about that.

You remember meeting Gelli?

I don't remember, I don't remember,
I don't remember.

De Gasperi said of you:
"He's so capable at everything,

he could become capable
of anything."

Leave De Gasperi out of this.

I met Gelli briefly in Frosinone,

he was a manager of
the Permaflex mattress company.

Years later I saw him in Argentina
and thought:

"He looks like the manager
of Permaflex."

Carlo Bordoni,
Sindona's son-in-law,

and Mrs Calvi accuse you

of being the master of the P2 lodge,
not Gelli.

I'd never have settled
for being master of just one lodge.

Mrs Calvi made that accusation
years ago,

I wrote to her expressing
my sympathy

for her grief and imploring her
not to foster such scandals.

The Christian Democrats
did all they could to save Moro.

It was one of the most agonizing
things I've ever experienced.

It's one thing
to fight political battles,

but to say that we didn't do
everything possible to save Moro...

That is truly...

I've made many mistakes in my life
but I never had Mafia ties.

Never! Ever!

A man is here today

who once had the courage to say
to Pope John XXIIl:

"Excuse me, Your Holiness,
but you don't know the Vatican."

He was right.

Giulio Andreotti is here
with us today.

The committee
has given the go-ahead.

There will be a trial.

REBIBBIA PRISON.
MAXIMUM SECURITY COURTROOM.

Here he is!

He's coming.

Mr Riina,
have you ever met Giulio Andreotti?

Have you ever kissed him?

Have you ever met
Senator Andreotti?

Today's a beautiful day.

- Do you feel safe in prison?
- We're safe anywhere.

- We who?
- What do you expect from the court?

Only good things.

- Do you know the turncoat Mutolo?
- No.

- And Senator Andreotti?
- That's enough, back off.

May I have some fizzy water,
please?

Pecorelli said he had Moro's
complete memoirs

and that they contained
revelations about Andreotti.

Once, around two in the morning,

General Dalla Chiesa
came to see me

with a manuscript of about 50 pages
that Moro had written.

He said he was going to give it
to Andreotti the next day.

Yes, that's what he said.

The news is false and slanderous.

I never met Ignazio Salvo or Riina.

If Di Maggio recognises Salvo's
house, it's his business.

Come on Senator, tell the truth.

Who induced you to accuse me?
We've never met.

Sure we have. I'm talking about stuff
that I saw myself.

They got Riina because of this.

My conscience is at peace.
Do the same for yours.

My client will not be subjected
to such tones.

That will be all, Di Maggio.

- Let's continue.
- No.

First I'd like my statement
to be minuted.

Because even though I recognise
that all men are equal,

I feel deeply humiliated

by a confrontation with a Mafioso,
even if he's a turncoat.

How are you, Premier?

So so... And you?

Basically, I'm bored.

Basically,

so am I.

Goodbye, Premier.

Goodbye.

Premier...

don't slouch.

Italian cuisine is delicious,
especially the Roman dishes.

- Know how this sauce got its name?
- Yes, I know.

Giulio, you're good at listening,
making wisecracks,

you have perseverance, the ability
to concentrate and to hold out.

But that's it.

They depict you as cunning,
cultured, very intelligent.

I say that's not the case.

What's made you so critical suddenly?

Nothing, just the need
to establish the truth occasionally.

A need you've never had.

You live longer without needs.

Another wisecrack.

My blood will spill upon you.

People know you and I didn't get rich
from politics,

but they think that power is what
interested us for 40 years.

They think it makes us happy:
Maintaining our positions.

They forget, or pretend to forget,

that we actually saved their lives.

They forget the Soviet threat
was real and close by.

We let Aldo Moro die.

And if I have grey hair
and liver spots on my skin,

it's because while we let
Moro die,

I was aware of it.

What about you, Giulio?

Do you remember
that socialist, Nenni?

Enthusiastic, passionate.

He said: "I'm going to put the
national railway back on track".

I said: "In the madhouse, those
who don't claim to be Napoleon,

claim they'll put the national
railway back on track."

Nenni and I hated each other.

But we esteemed and respected
each other,

both of us.

It's not like that today.

Don't be disheartened by the
inquiry into Pecorelli's death.

It's funny.

I'm disheartened by little things,
not serious accusations.

You know what discourages me?

The news that I've been removed
as president of The Music Society.

I'll lose my lectureship at
the Institute of Ciceronian Studies

and perhaps even
the honorary degrees.

I always thought my vanity
was a great defect.

- But I'm comforted by talking to you.
- It's nothing to do with vanity.

I'm from the provinces,
from a humble background.

Cultural rather than political
legitimisation was more important.

I always preferred to be seen
as a cultured man

rather than a great statesman.

Francesco, I must confess something
I've never dared admit to anyone.

Not even to myself.

- Tell me, Giulio.
- But it must remain between us.

It wouldn't be the first time.

I've always had a secret.

A passion.

A passion for Mary Gassman,
the famous actor's sister.

She never knew
and she never reciprocated.

I'm sure she wouldn't have,
even if she'd known.

She was marvellous, Mary Gassman.

She took my sleep away,
she took my breath away.

All I did at school
was think about her.

Then I got married...

and I forgot her.

I must talk to you.

From today, we will apply
the philosophy of St. Bernard:

See everything, tolerate a lot,
correct one thing at a time.

Because if it's true that Christians
must turn the other cheek,

it's also true that Jesus Christ,
very intelligently,

only gave us two.

The Big Mafia Trial
is about to begin.

I will defend myself
with all my might.

And I have plenty of it.

To the activism of the Palermo
public prosecutor's office,

we can add that of the Perugia
public prosecutor's office.

Whilst gathering statements
from Buscetta

about the existence of
compromising writings by Moro

that General Dalla Chiesa
was supposed to have hidden

and that the murdered journalist,
Mino Pecorelli, was about to publish,

another request has been made
for my committal to trial.

This new accusation claims

that I was the mandator
in Mino Pecorelli's killing.

What can I say that my life
has not already made clear?

Their theorem worries me.

The prosecutors assert
that a Mafioso cannot lie.

So this brotherhood's members
are marked by the fact

that they can kill up to
20 people in Mannoia's case,

or, if they show restraint,
10 people in Di Maggio's case.

However, they can never
be suspected of lying.

The fact that I took a very hard
line of action with the Mafia

in regards to government legislation,
counts for nothing.

They said I pretended to be tough
on the Mafia.

At this point, I'm starting to think
they're in league.

What's your reaction
to Evangelisti's statement?

I never had a secret meeting
with Dalla Chiesa.

If Franco claimed that,
he must have dreamed it.

Is there a conspiracy against you?

Look, since all the turncoats
are making false statements,

I must assume that they have
an unknown prompter,

since a concurrence of this type
would be most difficult.

Yes, because their statements
all concur,

yet we know there's been
no contact between them.

They're held by different bodies.

Doesn't the theory of a plot
against you seem implausible?

Not at all.

Thank you everyone.

Of course...

all right.

We can go.

Andreotti's trial begins.

The first hearing, in what has been
called the "trial of the century",

will start at 10, tomorrow morning.

As time goes by, I'm more convinced
Andreotti is an extraterrestrial.

We haven't understood
that he belongs to a tradition

that has made the history
of the Church immortal.

He carries 2,000 years
of history inside him.

There's Christ's sacrifice,
Pope Joan,

the Inquisition, the Borgias
and diplomacy.

I'm not surprised
that Andreotti

has been marked as mandator
in the Pecorelli murder.

Probably, the issue of his magazine
with the Senator's photo on the cover

is at the root of his death.

If Andreotti had wanted to kill
everyone he found troublesome,

he'd have had to take on enemies
much greater than Pecorelli.

Maybe a whole cemetery
wouldn't have been big enough.

Talleyrand comes to mind
when you think of Andreotti.

T-A-L-L-

E-Y-R-A-N-D-
full stop.

They both had the same objective,
colon, power, full stop.

But the complexity of Andreotti's
character comma...

makes up part, comma, if one can say,
comma, of his greatness full stop.

The greatness of the enigma
full stop.

Hello Livia...

...yes, I got some sleep.

I love you too.

The Court is in session.

Be seated. We'll begin with
the representatives.

Is the defendant Giulio Andreotti
present?

Please sit down.

Defence attorneys:
Odoardo Ascari and Franco Coppi.

Have substitutes been designated?

Andreotti remained indifferent,
leaden, distant,

cocooned in his dark dream
of glory.

He'd had to further
his reactionary plan,

not disappoint the Communists,
the Germans

and who knows who else.

What was the meaning,
in the face of all this,

of the inconsolable grief
of an old spouse,

the destruction of a family?

What did all this mean
for Andreotti,

once he'd achieved the power
to do evil

just as he'd always done
evil in his life?

All this meant nothing.

THE BIG MAFIA TRIAL

23 OCTOBER 1999:
The Tribunal acquits Giulio Andreotti

of Mafia association, because
there are no incriminating facts.

2 MAY 2003: Palermo Appeals Court
cannot proceed against Andreotti

for the crime
of Mafia association

committed up until Spring 1980
because it is already statute-barred.

The rest of the sentence
is confirmed.

15 OCTOBER 2004: The Cassation Court
confirms the Appeal Court sentence.

PECORELLI TRIAL

30 APRIL 1999: Public Prosecutors
request life imprisonment for

Andreotti, Vitalone, Badalamenti
and Calo as mandators

24 SEPTEMBER 1999: The Assizes
Court acquits all defendants.

16 NOVEMBER 2002: The Appeals Court
sentences Andreotti and Badalamenti

to 24 years imprisonment.

30 OCTOBER 2003: The Cassation Court
overrules the sentence.

Andreotti and Badalamenti
acquitted of Pecorelli murder.

Subtitles:
Laser S. Film s.r.I. - Rome