Ten Little Indians (1987) - full transcript

ODESSA FILM STUDIO

Alexander KAIDANOVSKY
as Philip Lombard

Tatiana DRUBICH
as Vera Claythorne

Ludmila MAKSAKOVA
as Emily Brent

Anatoly ROMASHIN
as Doctor Armstrong

Vladimir ZELDIN
as Judge Lawrence Wargrave

Mikhail GLUZSKY
as General Macarthur

Alexei ZHARKOV
as William Blore

Alexander ABDULOV
as Anthony Marston

Good day, gentelmen.

You?re for Indian Island, maybe?
Take me with you.



Irina TERESHCHENKO
as Ethel Rogers

Alexei ZOLOTNITSKY
as Thomas Rogers

in

TEN LITTLE INDIANS

Based on the novel
by Agatha Christie

Directed by
Stanislav GOVORUKHIN

Director of Photography
Gennady ENGSTREM

Production Designer
Valentin GIDULYANOV

Music by Nikolai KORNDORF

English subtitles by
Boris BULGAKOV and Zora K.

Must be difficult

to land here in dirty weather.

Can?t land on Island when
there?s a southeasterly.

Sometimes this cut off
for a week or more.



My name is Lombard, Philip Lombard.
You may call me Captain Lombard.

- Vera Claythorne. - Do you know
this part of the world well?

No, never before. I haven?t ever
seen my employer yet.

- Your employer?
- Yes, I?m Mrs. Owen?s secretary.

- Isn?t that rather unusual?
- Oh, no. I don?t think so.

Her own secretary
was suddenly taken ill

and she wired to an agency
for substitute

and they sent me.

- And suppose you don?t like it?
- So what?

It?s only temporary -
a holiday post.

I?ve got a permanent job
at a girls' school.

At a matter of fact frightfully thrilled
at the prospect of seeing

Indian Island. There?s been such
a lot about it in the papers.

At first, they were saying that some
kind of American movie star bought it.

After that - millionaire Owen.

What are they like?
Tell me, please.

Good evening, gentlemen.

Mr. Owen unfortunately
delayed unable

to get here till tomorrow.
- Good start.

Instruction - everything
they wanted -

if they would like to go
to their rooms?

- Dinner would be at 8 o?clock.
- It?s late.

The house with insects.
It?s true.

Really.

- It?s impossible, Miss Brent.
- Everybody says that

and then nothing
can be done.

Let me help you.

Sorry sir, your room upstairs.

This way, please.

I hope you?ve got
everything you want, Miss?

I?m Mrs. Owen?s new secretary.
I expect you know that.

No, Miss. I don?t know anything.

Just a list of the ladies
and gentlemen

and what rooms
they were to have.

Mrs. Owen didn?t mention me?

I haven?t seen Mrs. Owen not yet.
We only came 2 days ago.

May I go?

Ten little Indian boys went out to dine...

Ten little Indian boys went out to dine;

One choked his little self
and then there were nine.

Nine little Indian boys sat up very late;

...sat up very late;

One overslept himself
and then there were eight.

Eight little Indian boys
travelling in Devon;

One said he'd stay there
and then there were seven.

10 minutes ago I regretted
that I came here.

- Quaint these things, aren?t they?
- Yes, they are.

- How many are there?
- Ten there are.

One, two, three?

Possibly they are in order.
This one is a chief.

They?re 10 little Indian boys
of the nursery rhyme.

In my bedroom the rhyme
is hung up over mantelpiece.

- In mine.
- In mine too.

- In mine.
- In my room too.

I think the owner must be going
through his second childhood.

Doctor, d?you know
Constance Culmington?

I?m afraid, I don?t.

It?s of no consequence.
Very vague woman -

and practically
unreadable handwriting.

I was just wondering if I?d come
to the wrong place.

I had the same thought.

Mrs. Oliver has been lucky
to get this servant.

Oliver? Did you say Oliver?

- Yes.
- Mrs. Owen.

- I?ve never met any one called Owen.
- Ladies and gentlemen!

Silence, please!

You are charged
with the following indictments.

Doctor Armstrong,
that you did upon

the 14th day of March, '29,
cause the death of Mary Clees.

Emily Brent, that upon
the 5th of November, '31,

you were responsible for the death
of Beatrice Taylor.

William Blore, that you brought
about the death,

of James Landor
on October 5th, '28.

Vera Elizabeth Claythorne,

that on the 11th day of August, '35,

killed Cyril Hamilton.

Captain Lombard, that upon
a date in February, '32,

you were guilty of the death of 20 men,
members of an East African tribe.

General Macarthur,
you deliberately sent

your wife's lover, Arthur Richmond,
to his death.

Anthony Marston, were guilty
of the murder of John and Lucy Combes!

Ethel and Thomas Rogers,
you brought about the death

of Jennifer Brady.

Lawrence Wargrave, that upon
the 10th day of June, '30,

you were guilty of the murder
of Edward Seton.

Prisoners,

have you anything to say
in your defence?

Doctor, quick!

It?s nothing. She?s fainted,
that?s all. Rogers, water!

Help, please!

Put her here.

What?s happened to me?

Just one sip,

you?ll feel better.

What a horrible voice.

Where have I heard that voice?

What?s going on here?

What kind of practical
joke was that?

Ah, here we are.

What?

Ladies and gentlemen!
Silence, please!

Turn it off!
Turn it off!

That?s just nerves.

Now Mrs. Rogers will be better.
She?s fainted, that?s all.

Because of the voice.
What a horrible voice.

It sounded like a sentence.

I have to make a statement,
gentlemen, it?s a heinous lie

from start to end.

- A disgraceful and heartless practical joke.
- So you think it?s a joke, do you?

There?s one thing
you?ve forgotten.

- Who the devil turned the thing
on and set it going? - Rogers?

Yes, Sir?

Who put the record on the gramophone?
Wasn?t you, Rogers?

I didn?t know what it was.
Before God, I didn?t know, sir.

That is probably true. But I think
you?d better explain.

- I was just obeying orders, sir.
- Whose orders?

Mr. Owen?s. I was
to start the gramophone,

after I?d gone
with the coffee tray.

- A very remarkable story.
- I didn?t know what it was.

I swear to God, it had
a name on it,

I thought it was
just a piece of music.

Was there a title on it?

Quite right, Sir.
It was titled ?Swan Song?.

The whole thing is preposterous!

Slinging accusation about like this!

- This fellow Owen whoever he is?
- That?s just it,

who is he?

Now then we must get
to the bottom of this.

Rogers!

Yes, Sir?

- Who is this Mr. Owen?
- He owns this place, Sir.

We are aware of the fact,
Rogers.

What do you yourself
know about the man?

I can?t say, Sir. You see,
I?ve never seen him.

You?ve never seen him?
What d?yer mean?

My wife and I were engaged
by letter through an agency.

The ?Regina? Agency.

Old established firm.

We are to arrive on a certain day.

Everything was in order.
Just needed dusting and that.

And then yesterday I got
another letter from Mr. Owen.

It said he was detained
and to do

the best we could?

- To do the best!
- And gave the instruction about dinner

and gramophone plate.

- Surely you?ve got that letter?
- Yes, sir. Here you are.

Headed Ritz Hotel

and typewritten.
- If you?ll just let me have a look.

?Coronation? machine.

Quite new - no defects.

Ensign paper.

?U.N. Owen?.

Got some fancy Christian
names, hasn?t he?

Ulick Norman Owen.

Quite a mouthful.

There?s something very
peculiar about of this.

I received a letter with a signature
that was not easy to read.

It purported to be
from Mrs. Oliver

I had met at a summer
resort 2 years ago.

She invited me to this Island

where, supposedly, opened a pension
with a good cuisine and without

the newfangled fashions: half-naked
youth and music until morning.

- You have that letter, Miss Brent.
- Yes, I will fetch it for you.

Please, stay here.

Marston?

What? Got a wire.
From a pal of mine,

because I had an idea
he had gone to Norway.

Told me to roll up here.
That?s all.

General?

Got a letter from
this fellow Owen

mentioned some old pals of mine
who were to be here.

Letter?

Haven?t kept the letter.
I?m afraid.

I was invited as a doctor.

From the letter I understood that
the husband was worried about his wife.

He wants to find out her health condition,
but so as not to disturb her.

She refuses to see a doctor.
Nerves, you know.

- There was a check in the letter.
- I see.

You had no previous
acquaintanceship with the family?

No. A colleague of mine
was mentioned in the letter.

To give verisimilitude?

And that colleague, I presume,
was momentarily

out of touch with you.

Yes.

At the moment I am interested
in a minor point.

Amongst the names

recited was that
of William Blore.

But there is no one
named Blore amongst us.

The name of Davis

was not mentioned.

What have you to say
about that, Mr. Davis?

Mister Davis?

What?

Cat?s out of the bag,
it seems.

I?d better admit that
my name isn?t Davis.

- You are William Blore?
- That?s right.

Not only are you here
under a false name

but in addition you?re
a first-class liar.

You claim to have come

from Natal, South Africa.

I?m prepared to swear
you?ve never been there.

- Now then, any expectation?
- You gentlemen have got me wrong.

I?ve got my credentials.

I?m ex- C.I.D. man
of Scotland Yard.

- I was put on this job.
- By whome?

This man Owen. Enclosed
a handsome money order.

I was posing as a guest
and keep weather eye open.

I was given all your names.

- Any reason given?
- Of course!

Mrs. Owen?s jewels - plague take ?em!

Sweet company!
There is nothing to say.

And I, an old bird was
caught with chaff!

To my mind, Mrs.Owen
does not exist at all!

Your conclusions are,
I think, justified.

The letters we got were bearing
the signature "U.N.Owen" -

"Unowen", that's to say -
anonym.

- But this is fantastic-mad!
- Oh, yes. You are right.

I?ve no doubt in my own mind
that we have been invited here

by a madman - probably
a dangerous homicidal lunatic.

Whoever it was who
enticed us here,

that person has taken
the trouble to find out

a good deal about us all.

- A pack of damn lie!
- It?s iniquitous!

A lie? a wicked lie?
We never did - neither of us.

Our unknown friend accuses
me of the murder of one

Edward Seton.

He was charged with the murder
of an eldery woman.

He made a good impression
on the jury.

Somebody thought that
not doubt of the verdict

and acquittal
practically certain.

Nevertheless, on the evidence,
he was certainly guilty.

I summed up accordingly,

and the jury brought in
a verdict of guilty.

I wish to say that my conscience
in perfectly clear on the matter.

I did my duty and nothing more.

Did you know Seton at all?
I mean previous to the case.

I knew?
?nothing of Seton?

?previous to the case.

I?d like to tell you
about that boy.

I was nursery governess
for him. We lived by the sea.

He was forbidden to swim out far.

One day, when my attention
was distracted, he started off.

I swam after him?
I couldn?t get there in time?

It was awful?

But it wasn?t my fault.

At the inquest the
investigator exonerated me.

And his mother -
she was so kind.

I don?t know, why should this
awful thing he said?

- It?s not fair.
- Don't worry, my dear.

Of course it?s not true.
It?s lie?

Fellow?s a madman.
A madman!

Got a bee in his bonnet!

Best really to leave this sort
of thing unanswered.

However, feel I ought to say -

no truth whatever in what he said
about young Arthur Richmond.

Richmond was one of my officers.
I sent him on a reconnaissance.

He was killed. Natural course
of events in war time.

Wish to say resent very much ?
slur on my wife.

Best woman in the world.

- About those natives?
- Yes, what about them?

Story?s quite true!
I left ?em!

Matter of self-preservation.

I and a couple of fellows what
food there was and cleared out.

Shame on you!

You are an officer.

You abandoned your men -
left them to starve?

Not quite the act of a pukka
sahib, I?m afraid.

But self-preservation
a man?s first duty.

And natives don?t mind dying,
you know, as Europeans do.

- Oh my God!
- You left them to die?

Yes, indeed.

Why are you looking
at me like that?

I don?t understand anything at all.

I killed John and Lucy Combes!
I killed!..

Absurd! Delusion!

I killed...

That's right...

Must have been a couple
of kids I ran over

near Cambridge.

- Beastly bad luck.
- For them,

or for you?

It was a pure accident.

By the way, I had my license
endorsed for a year.

This speeding?s all wrong!

Young men like you
are a danger to the community.

Speed?s come to stay.

I'm sorry.

Are you waiting for me
to say something?

- I have nothing to say.
- Nothing, Miss Brent?

Nothing.

You reserve your defence?

There is no questions
of defence.

I have always acted in accordance
with my dictates of my conscience.

I have nothing with which
to reproach myself.

What about yourself,
Mr. Bloor?

What about me?

Your name was included
in the list.

Ah!

Landor, you mean?

I remember?

Landor was convicted
on your evidence.

He got penal servitude for life

and died in Dartmoor a year later.

- He was a delicate man.
- He was a crook.

You were complimented,
I think, on your able

hanging of the case.

I got my promotion.

I was only doing my duty.

What a duty-loving,

law-abiding lot we all seem to be!

Myself excepted, of course.

What about you, doctor -

and your little
professional mistake?

Illegal operation,

was it?

I?m at a loss to understand
the matter.

The name meant nothing
to me when it was spoken.

What was it - Clees? Close?

I really can?t remember having
a patient of that name.

It might possibly be one of my
operation cases in hospital.

Yes, they come too late,

so many of these people.

Then, when the patient dies, they
always consider it?s the surgeon?s fault.

I, too, used to find myself
in such situations.

If I might

just say a word, gentlemen.

- Go ahead, Rogers.
- There was a mention

of me and Mrs. Rogers.

And of Miss Brady...

We started working for Ms. Brady
when she had already been ill.

There was a storm,
sir, that night she was

taken bad. The telephone
was out of order.

We couldn?t get
the doctor for her.

I went for him on foot.
But he get there too late.

We?d done everything
possible for her.

Devoted to her, we were.
Any one will tell you the same.

Come into a little something
at her death, though? Eh?

Miss Brady left us a legacy
in recognition of our faithful services.

And why not,
I?d like to know?

Our inquiry rest there.

- Now, Rogers,..
- Yes, Sir?

?who else is there on this island
besides you and your wife?

Nobody at all, Sir.

- Are you sure of that?
- Quite sure, Sir.

I suggest that we
leave tonight.

- But there?s no boat on the island.
- No boat at all?

- No, sir. - How do you
communicate with the mainland?

The boat comes over
every morning, sir.

It brings the bread
and the milk and the post.

Well, I?ll leave tomorrow morning.

- Yes, you are right. - Ought to ferret
out the mystery before we go.

The whole thing's
like a detective story.

We have to figure it out.

A stranger challenged us.

I am ready to take it up.

He?s dead.

D?you mean the fellow

just choked and died?

In the midst of life
we are in death.

Poison?

Yes.

Everything points to one
of the Cyanides.

Probably Potassium Cyanide.
It acts instantaneously.

It was not in the whiskey.

It was in his glass?

Seems like it.

You mean - he must have put
the stuff in his glass himself?

Suicide, eh?
That?s a queer go.

Marston was not
the kind of a guy

to commit suicide like that.

I want to swim out
to the rock, Miss Claythorne.

- But please.
- No Cyril, I can't.

- Please...
- It's too far.

Miss Vera, but please,
let me swim to that rock.

I love you, Vera.

I can?t ask you to marry me.

I?ve not got a penny.

Although, just recently
I considered myself rich

until a baby boy was born.

If a girl was born instead, I would have
inherited the title and the fortune.

You know, everything in life
is a matter of luck.

My Cyril is a sweet boy.

I grew so fond of him.

?Ten little Indian boys went out to dine;
One choked his little self??

One choked his little self?

- Who is it?
- Doctor.

- What is it?
- It?s the wife, doctor.

I can?t get her to wake.

- Dressing-gown.
- Yes, yes.

Here, here it is.

Yes, she?s gone.

Is she?

She?

Did she take things before,
Rogers?

To make her sleep?

She didn?t have nothing
last night, sir, except what you

gave her, Doctor?

What is it with him today?
He forgot to give me coffee.

You must excuse any
shortcomings this morning.

Rogers had to prepare
the breakfast himself

for Mrs. Rogers
could not help him.

She died in her sleep.

Very remarkable?

How awful!

Two death on this island.

It might have been heart
failure, I suppose?

Her heart certainly failed to beat -
but what caused it to fail is the question.

- Conscience!
- What do you mean by that?

You all heard, she was accused,
together with her husband,

of having deliberately murdered
her former employer.

You all saw
her last night.

She broke down completely
and fainted.

The shock of having
her wickedness brought home

to her was too much for her.

That?s carrying things
a bit far, Mrs. Brent.

You regard it as
impossible that a sinner

should be struck down by the wrath
of God! I do not!

Mrs. Brent, Providence leaves
the work of conviction

and chastisement to us mortals.

Allow for the moment

that Rogers and his missus
polished of that old lady.

Well, where does that get you?

They?ve been feeling quite safe

and happy about it.

No, I don?t think Mrs. Rogers

ever felt safe.

That?s as may be.

Anyway there?s no active danger
to them as far as they know.

Then, last night, some unknown
lunatic spills the beans.

The woman cracks -
she goes to pieces.

Notice how her husband
hung over her?

Not all husbandly solicitude!

He was like a cat on hot bricks.

Scared out of his life
as to what she might say,

if the whole thing?s going
to be racked up.

Ten to one, the woman
will give the show away.

She hasn?t got the nerve
to stand up and brazen it out.

She?s a living danger
to her husband

that?s what she is.

So he slips something
into a cup of tea.

There was no empty
cup by her bedside.

Of course there wouldn?t be!

First thing he?d do would be
to take that cup and saucer away?

- But I should hardly think?
- ?and wash it up carefully.

But I should hardly think it possible
that a man would do that - to his wife.

When a man?s neck?s in danger,

he doesn?t stop to
think about sentiment.

Is there anything more
I can get you?

I?m sorry but we?ve
right run out of bread.

The boat never came,
and the food was not brought.

What time does the motor
boat usually come over?

Between seven and eight, sir.

Sorry to hear about
your wife, Rogers.

Doctor?s just been telling us.

- Thank you, sir.
- Accept my condolences.

- We are all sorry.
- So am I.

Thank you. Excuse me.

It?s not an accident ? that?s
what I say, Mister Lombard.

It?s part and parcel of the whole
business. It?s all bound up together.

The motor boat won?t come,
you think?

Of course it won?t come.

You think not too, General?

We?re counting on the motor boat
to take us off the island.

We?re not going
to leave the island.

It?s the end, you see -
the end of everything.

That?s peace - real peace.

It's meaningless to undertake anything.

Meaningless...useless.

There goes another one who?s balmy.

Looks as though it?ll end
with the whole lot going that way.

I don?t fancy you will, Blore.

It wouldn?t take me off my head.

And I don?t think you?ll be
going that way, Mr. Lombard.

Please, sir,

if I could have word with you.

- What?s the matter, man?
- Inside, sir, come in here.

There?s things going on that I don?t
understand. You?ll think I?m crazy.

Don?t go on talking
in riddles, Rogers.

It?s those little china figures.
Ten of them, there are.

I?ll swear to that, ten of them.

Yes, ten. We counted them
last night at dinner.

That?s just it, sir. Last night,
when I was cleaning up,

there wasn?t but nine.

I noticed it and thought it queer.
But that?s all I thought.

But now see for yourself,

there?s only eight!

Only eight.

Do you really think what you
said at breakfast, Miss Brent?

What do you mean?

Do you really think that Rogers
and his wife did away with that old lady?

It's not my business.

But, Miss Brent, if it true?

Well, there is that Mr. Lombard.
He admits

to having abandoned
20 men to their death.

- They were only natives?
- Black or white,

they are our brothers.
My own case?

Well, I was not going
to say anything last night.

It was not a fit subject
to discuss before gentlemen.

Beatrice Taylor was in service with me.
She was very clean and willing.

It was some time before
I found out that she was

what they call "in trouble".

Naturally I did not keep her
an hour under my roof.

Her parents were decent folk.
They did not condone her sin.

What happened to her?

The abandoned creature
committed a still graver sin.

She killed herself?

Yes, she threw herself
into the river.

What did you feel like when
you knew she?d done that?

Weren't you sorry?

Didn?t you blame yourself?

I had nothing with which
to reproach myself.

Her own action, her own sin

that was what drove her to it.

Remember: life is what
you make of it.

And the past concerns me
only as much as I want it.

Go ahead and don't look back!

I asked Rogers this morning what
this Miss Brady had suffered from.

You know, his answer
was enlightening.

I don't need to go
into medical details,

but in a certain form
of cardiac trouble,

amylnitrite is used.

When an attack comes
on an ampoule of amylnitrite

is broken and it is inhaled.
If amyl nitrite were withheld well,

the consequences might
easily be fatal.

- It must have been rather tempting.
- No arsenic,

no positive action just negation!

And, even if any one knew,
nothing could ever be proved.

There are crimes that cannot be
brought home to their perpetrators.

Instance, the Rogerses?.
Another instance, old Wargrave,

who committed his murder
strictly within the law.

Everyone knew that Seton
was innocent.

Who doesn't remember that trial?

Clearly, the judge
simply got even with him.

Wargrave murdered Edward as if
he?d stuck a stiletto through him.

I could continue with examples, doctor.

I am listening

Murder on the Operating Table.
Safe as houses!

All right, all right, there is
some truth in this accusation.

I was very hungover when
I was operating then.

You know, hands shaking,
nerves all to pieces.

Now we?re getting down to it. What?s
the real purpose of getting us all here?

What do you think?

If you tell me that
Anthony Marston,

a young bull with no nerves
and precious little brains,

got the wind up over having
moved down a couple of kids

and deliberately put himself
out of the way ?

well, the idea?s laughable!

- Anthony Marston was murdered,
of course. - And Mrs. Rogers?

I could believe in Mrs. Rogers? death
if it weren?t for Anthony Marston.

Two murdered.

And two figurines have disappeared?

The man must be a raving maniac!

There?s one thing
Mr. Owen didn?t realize.

We shall make short work
of searching it. - What do you mean?

In no time.

He?ll be dangerous.

I?ll be dangerous when
I get hold of him!

Climbs like a cat, doesn't he?

But I wouldn't trust him a yard.

Why?

Did you happen to bring a gun
along with you, doctor?

Me? Why should I?

Why did Mr. Lombard?

It's under his belt.

I suppose - habit.

It?s only in books people
carry guns

around as a matter of course.

Ah! It?s you!

Do you like sitting here
looking out to sea?

Yes, it?s pleasant.

- It?s a good place to wait.
- To wait?

What are you waiting for?

The end.

But I think you know
that, don?t you?

We?re all waiting for the end.

What do you mean?

None of us are going
to leave the island.

That?s the Mr. Owen?s plan.

You know it, of course, perfectly.

What, perhaps, you can?t?

?understand is the?

?relief!

The relief?

You see, I loved Leslie.

I loved her very much.

- Was Leslie your wife?
- I loved her and I was proud of her.

That?s why... I did it.

You mean?

It?s not much good denying it now
not when we?re all going to die.

I sent Richmond to his death.
It was murder.

I had no regrets.

- But afterwards?
- Well, afterwards?

Afterwards?

I don?t know if Leslie ever guessed?

But she?d gone far away

where I couldn?t reach her.

And then she died
and I was alone.

You?ll be glad, too,

when the end comes.

I don?t know what you mean!

I know, my child,

I know.

Let's search the house, and then
the island once more thoroughly.

But this time you will be
the one to go down.

Quiet - listen.

- Is this Rogers' bedroom?
- But that's where Mrs. Rogers' body is.

Of course!

Best hiding place
he could have chosen!

I?m sorry, gentlemen. I was
just moving my things.

I take it there will be no objection...

if I take one of the vacant
guest chambers on the floor below?

The smallest room.

- Of course... Of course...
- Thank you, sir.

Thank you, sir. Sorry.

I?d like to know what drug it was.

Let?s get finished.

I feel it in my bones we?re not
going to find anything.

Doctor,

you did give her some dope,
you know.

Dope?

You said yourself you?d give her
something to make her sleep.

I gave her a mild dose of trional.

A harmless sedative.

- A perfectly harmless preparation.
- Not to mince matters ?

you didn?t give her
an overdose, did you?

It?s possible, isn?t it, that you
may have made a mistake?

Doctors can?t afford to make
mistakes of that kind,

It wouldn?t be the first you?ve made if
that gramophone record is to be believed!

What's the sense of making
yourself offensive?

We're all in the same boat.
We've got to pull together.

What about your own
pretty little spot

of perjury?

Perjury be damned!
That?s a foul lie!

You may try and shut me up,
Mr. Lombard,

but there are things
I need to know

and one of them is about you!
- About me?

Yes. I want to know
why you brought a gun

down here on a pleasant
social visit?

- You?re not nearly such a fool as you look.
- That?s as may be. What about that gun?

I brought it because I expected
to run into a spot of trouble.

You didn?t tell us that last night.

You were holding out on us?

- In a way, yes.
- Well, come on, out with it.

I was approached by a little
Jewboy - Morris his name was.

He said I?d got
a reputation for being

a good man in a tight place.

He offered me a hundred guineas
to come down here

and keep my eyes open.
I was hard up. I took it.

Why didn?t you tell us all
this last night?

How was I to know that last night

wasn?t exactly the eventuality
I was here to cope with?

- But now - you think differently?
- Yes.

I believe now that I?m in the same
boat as the rest of you.

That hundred guineas was just
Mr. Owen?s little bit of cheese

to get me into the trap.

- Quiet.
- This is a trap. I'll take my oath on that.

Quiet. Someone is screaming.

Gentlemen! Come here! Hurry!

Gentlemen, gentlemen.
General Macarthur...

- What? He's murdered?
- He's dead.

One, two, three, four, five?

Oh, Miss, I?

I just came to see?

You?re quite right, Rogers...

There are only seven.

Macarthur was hit with a life
preserver or some such thing

on the back of the head.

- Did you find the actual
weapon used? - No.

This morning I was
sitting on the terrace

and observing your activities.

You were searching the island

for the unknown murderer?

Quite right, sir.

You had come, doubtless,
to the same conclusion that I had.

Now you understand
why Mr. Owen

enticed us to this island?

He's a madman!

A loony!
- There's no one on the island,

- I tell you. No one!
- In the sense you mean, but no.

I came to the same conclusion.

Nevertheless, Mr. Owen,

to give him the name
he himself has adopted,

is on the island.

His goal is the execution of justice
upon certain individuals for crimes

which the law cannot touch.

There is only one way in which
this goal could be accomplished.

Mr. Owen...

among the guests.

Consequently, Mr. Owen...

is one of us.

No, no, no.

My dear young lady, this
is no time for refusing

to look facts in the face.

We are all in grave danger.

One of us is U.N.Owen.

I agree that one of us
is possessed by a devil.

I suppose you'll leave
the women out of it.

Do I understand you to assert

that women are not subject
to homicidal mania?

Of course not.

But all the same...
I think...

Doctor, a woman would have
been physically capable

of striking the blow
that killed poor Macarthur?

Perfectly capable...

given a suitable instrument
such as a cosh.

The other two death have resulted
from the administration of drugs.

I think that, no one will dispute
is easily compassed

by a person of the smallest
physical strength.

- You're mad!
- My dear young lady,

do try and restrain your feelings,

I am not accusing you.

I hope, Miss Brent, that you are not
offended by my insistence

that all of us are
equally under suspicion.

Now you're talking, sir!

Let's go into it.

As regards Marston I don't think
there's anything to be done.

A person actually in the room could
have done that even more easily.

Now take Mrs. Rogers.

The people who stand out
there are her husband

and the doctor.

Either of them could have done
it as easy as winking.

I protest!

This is absolutely uncalled for!

I swear that the doze I gave
was perfectly.

Dr. Armstrong, your indignation
is very natural.

Nevertheless you must admit that
the facts have got to be faced.

Either you or Rogers
could have administered

a fatal doze
with the greatest ease.

We come now to the death
of General Macarthur.

I myself will state at once
that I have no valid alibi.

I spent the morning
sitting on the terrace.

There were several
periods during which it

would have been
possible for me

to kill the General,
and return to my chair.

I was with Lombard and
Armstrong all the morning.

They'll bear me out.

- You went to the house for a rope.
- Of course, I did.

Went straight there
and straight back.

You were a long time.

What the hell
do you mean by that?

I only said you were
a long time.

During Mr. Blore's absence,
were you two together?

Certainly. That is, Lombard
went off for a few minutes.

I was only absent a minute or two.

Did either of you two
glance at your watches?

No.

A minute or two
is a vague expression.

- Miss Brent?
- I took a walk with Miss Claythorne.

- Afterwards I sat on the terrace.
- I don't think I noticed you there.

I was round the corner of the house.
It was out of the wind there.

As you can see, even our superficial
inquiry into the circumstances shows

that we cannot say definitely
that any one person

can be considered as cleared
of all complicity.

All we can do at present juncture
is to consider what measures

we must adopt
to ensure our safety.

So far the murderer
has had an easy task

since his victims
have been unsuspicious.

From now on it is our task to suspect
each and every one amongst us.

Forewarned is forearmed.

We won't let it happen again.

That's all.

Thou shalt not be afraid
of the terror by night;

nor for the arrow
that flieth by day.

Thou shalt not be afraid
of the terror by night.

Shalt not be afraid...
Shalt not be afraid...

Miss Brent, let me in.
Miss Brent.

- It's me, Beatrice Taylor.
- Ah, so it's you.

Haven't I told you
that you are fired.

- I am cold. Let me in.
- Get out of here. I want to sleep.

To sleep.

I know the murderer?s name.

Her name is?

Beatrice Taylor.

Good morning,
ladies and gentlemen.

What time is it?

Thirty to ten.

Wouldn't have believed
I could have slept like that.

Well, shows you've got
an easy conscience.

What happened? Why is there
no breakfast yet?

Rogers is missing.

He isn't in his room.
And there's no kettle

on and the kitchen fire isn't lit.

What if it's he?

Where?s Miss Brent got to -

that's another mystery?

Good morning, gentlemen.
The sea is as high as ever.

I shouldn?t think any boat
could put out today.

Have you been wandering
about the island alone?

Don?t you realize that that?s
an exceedingly foolish thing to do?

I assure you that I kept
an extremely sharp lookout.

- Seen anything of Rogers?
- No.

Why?

Look!

The Indians! Look!

There are six.

Even if there had been any fingerprints,
the rain washed them off.

Miss Claythorne, we should make
breakfast for the men.

Breakfast will be ready
in half an hour or so.

Would it have needed
great force, doctor?

A woman could have done it
if that's what you mean.

Any one who's mentally unhinged has
a good deal of unsuspected strength.

Do they keep bees on this island?

Tell me that. Where do we
go for honey?

Miss Claythorne.

You thought I was mad.

Haven?t you read that
idiotic rhyme, have you?

You have not?

It?s up in all your bedrooms
put there for you to study!

?Seven little Indian
boys chopping up sticks.

One chapped himself in halves?

And then there were six.?

We might have come here
straightaway if we?d had sense.

And the next verse.

?Six little Indian boys playing with a hive.
A bumblebee stung one?

?and then there were five.?

I?m asking. Where is that bumblebee?

Thank you?

I?m all right now.

You have such self-control,
Miss Brent.

I lived in India for a long time.

My father was a Colonel.

Thank you, Miss Claythorne.

Anything the matter, Miss Brent?

I...

I wanted to help Miss Claythorne,

but I feel so giddy.

- Giddy, eh?
- Yes.

Must be a delayed shock.

- I can give you some medicine.
- No!

I'll just sit here quietly till
the giddiness passes off.

Take a seat in this armchair, Miss Brent.
You'll be more comfortable here.

What a job we've got.

No one will envy.
- Except for them.

Everything is relative, Blore.
To them we are the lucky ones.

That's enough. Let everyone
stay where he is.

Pretty soon there will be a corpse
in every room anyway.

It is she. She's gone mad.

Old spinsters go that way.

In the morning I went to the kitchen
and saw her there.

Calm, neat, didn't even forget
to put the apron on.

And the apron is probably Mrs. Rogers'.

And says: " Breakfast will be ready
in half an hour or so."

She?s mad.
Religious mania -

thinks she?s God?s instrument.

You know, she sits in her room
and reads her Bible.

That?s hardly proof positive
of an unbalanced mentality.

When Rogers was killed, she?d been
down to look at the sea.

The murderer of Rogers would take jolly
good care to be rolled up in bed snoring.

You?re missing the point, Mr. Lombard.

She?d only do that if she knew

that she had nothing to fear.
That?s to say

if she herself is the criminal.

That?s a good point...
Yes, I hadn?t thought of that.

Glad you don?t still
suspect me, Blore.

I did start by thinking of you

that gun and
the queer story you told.

But I?ve realized now that
was really a bit too obvious.

Hope you feel
the same about me.

All I can say is, if you?re the criminal,
you?re a damned fine actor

and I take my hat off to you.

We?ll probably both be a couple
of stiffs before another day is out,

you did indulge in that
spot of perjury, I suppose?

Oh, here is goes.

Landor was innocent
right enough.

The gang had got me squared and
we got him put away for a stretch.

Mind you, I wouldn?t admit this.

If there were any witnesses.
It?s just between you and me.

Well, I hope you made
a tidy bit out of it.

Didn?t make what
I should have done.

And he got penal
servitude and died in prison.

- I couldn't know that he would die.
- Sure, you couldn?t know.

- That was your bad luck.
- Mine?

His, you mean.

Yours, too.

Because, as a result of it, your
own life is going to be cut short.

My? Not me!

Anybody, but not me.

I?m watching out for myself
pretty carefully, I can tell you.

Well, I?m not a betting man.

And anyway if you were
dead I wouldn?t get paid.

Listen, how true this is:

"And nations will fall into the pit,
which they digged for themselves.

And they will get caught up in the nets,
which they set up themselves."

Yes.

I think, it's time
to stop searching.

The murderer is sitting
in the dining-room.

I bet, the murderer
is this old spinster.

And the motive?

The motive?

Come.

Here she is.

Miss Brent?

Miss Brent?

Damn it!

She?s dead!

One more of us poisoned -

too late!

Look - a bumblebee.

It wasn?t that bee that stung her!

A human hand held the syringe.

That?s the mark
of a hypodermic syringe.

The bumblebee is dead.

?A bumblebee stung one
and then there were five?

He?s a playful beast. Likes
to stick to his damnable

nursery jingle as
closely as possible!

It?s mad.

We have still, I hope,
our reasoning powers.

Did any one bring
a syringe to this house?

I did.

Always travel with one.

Most doctors do.
- Quite so.

- Where that syringe is now?
- In the suitcase in my room.

We might, perhaps,
verify that fact.

Please.

Somebody must have taken it!

I tell you someone
must have taken it.

There are five of us
here in this room.

One of us...

...is a murderer.

The position is fraught
with grave danger.

We must do something!

You, Mr. Lombard, have in
your possession a gun.

I?m damned if I?ll
give up my gun!

Mr. Lombard, you are
a very strongly built man,

but ex-Inspector is also
a man of powerful physique.

Dr. Armstrong and we
will on Blore?s side,

and assist him to the best
of our ability.

Oh, very well then.
I?ll fetch it.

I think it would be desirable
if we went with you.

Oh, very well then. Please.

What? Of course! The engine?s
not been run today

since Rogers hasn?t
been there to see to it.

We could go out and
get it going, I suppose.

There are packets
of candles in the larder,

I saw them, better use those.

Doctor, help me please.

And just where is the gun?

It's here, in the house.

Only the owner of the gun
can answer this question.

You are an idiot, Blore. How many times
do I have to say that it was stolen.

I've got a terrible headache.
I'll go, lie down.

Of course, of course.

We will guard your sleep.

- Would you like us to follow you?
- No, thank you.

If needed, I will call.

I am listening.

It seems to me you have
something to say.

The more I think about this matter,
the more it seems to me...

that all threads lead
to one person.

In the meantime, we'll be
all killed in our sleep.

Well, I agree, but on one condition:
that we keep all together

Who is alone makes it
easier for the maniac.

Look at that!

Miss Claythorne?

What's it with her?

Miss Claythorne.

Doctor!

- What is that?
- Head on the pillow, there.

Wake up, Miss Claythorne.

What was that?

Seaweed?
Why seaweed?

You?d better drink this,
Miss Claythorne.

- Drink it yourself.
- I got it from downstairs.

Good for you, Vera! You?ve
got your wits about you.

What is it? What? Don't even
dare say that I wanted to poison...

Here...
- Here?s one murder that

hasn?t gone according to plan!

- You think - that was what was meant?
- Expected you to pass out through fright!

Some people would have,
wouldn?t they, doctor.

Hmm, impossible to say.

Miss Claythorne - young healthy subject

no cardiac weakness. Unlikely?
- Where?s the judge?

Incidentally, where?s the judge?

- He, too, heard screaming.
- So, where is he?

- We were together.
- Where's he?

Seems like we've been
tricked again.

- Mr. Wargrave, where are you?
- Mr. Wargrave!

Quiet!

The judge is killed.

Look, he has his wig on,
and the mantle.

Five little Indian boys going
in for law? One got in Chancery...

and then there were four.

That's the end of
Mr. Bloody Justice Wargrave.

No more sending innocent
men to death.

Here's the last time
he?ll ever sit in court.

How Edward Seton would
laugh if he were here!

Only four of us now?

Who?ll be the next?

We must be very careful?

You?re repeating the judge?s words.
That?s what he said?

And now he?s dead!

It worked just as
it was intended to.

The murderer was able
to frighten Miss Claythorne,

and the rest went
according to his plan.

- Why didn?t any one hear the shot?
- You was screaming,

the wind was howling,

we were calling out.
No, it wouldn?t be heard.

But that trick?s not
going to work again.

He?ll have to try something
else next time.

Good night, Miss Claythorne.
Don't forget to lock.

- If something - scream.
- Yes, of course.

- Good night, Miss Claythorne.
- Good night.

Who's this?

Cyrill, is it you?

Ah, Cyrill...

Just a second, baby.
I will let you in right now.

Just a moment, baby,
just a little moment.

Mr. Lombard.

Mr. Lombard, Mr. Lombard,
it's me. Please, open.

- What happened?
- Don't know.

You need to drink
something, Miss Claythorne

I am scared. I am so
frightened, Mr. Lombard.

- So frightened. - Have a drink.
You' ll feel better.

Have this... Drink this,
Miss Claythorne.

The most important - we have
to make it through this night,

and then this nightmare
will be over. Calm down.

Oh, my Goodness, what
am I doing? Mr. Lombard...

Mr. Lombard.

Let everything go
as it does.

Mr. Lombard.

Mr. Lombard, Mr. Lombard,
I will scream!

No!

Go ahead, scream. At night,
half-naked, visiting a man,

and then to scream
for help - that's ridiculous.

Indeed, everything
is so ridiculous.

Come on, Miss Claythorne,
easy, calm down.

If it is one of them -
which do you think it is?

I take it you are excepting
our two selves?

Well, that's all right.

I know very well that
I'm not the murderer,

and I don't fancy that there's
anything insane about you.

Thank you.

Come now, Miss Claythorne, aren't
you going to return the compliment?

You've admitted that you don't
hold human life sacred,

but all the same I can't see
you as the man

who dictated that gramophone record.

Quite right.
This mass clearance

is not my line of country.

Please, be so kind - pass matches
to me, there in the drawer.

Doctor?

Doctor, open.
It's Blore.

Doctor?

Don't come close to me,
don't come close, I'll scream.

I, myself, am ready
to scream with rage.

I'm telling you,
someone set me up.

It's as unexpected for me,
as it is for you.

- Who?s there?
- It?s Blore.

Get dressed, Lombard.

Something happened?
Put your flashlight away.

Happened. Armstrong is not
in his room.

And Miss Claythorne isn't in hers either.
- Miss Claythorne is with me.

She was scared to be alone.

- Miss Claythorne,
are you here? - Yes.

Well, at least, it's natural.

Exactly, buddy. It happens sometimes
between a man and a woman.

Armstrong isn't in his room.
I heard screaming outside.

After him, Blore.
This time we'll get him.

Wait a minute.

Vera, we?re hunting Armstrong.

Don?t open your door.

If Armstrong comes along and says

that I've been killed,
or Blore?s been killed,

pay no attention.

Only open your door if both Blore
and I speak to you. Got that?

We?d better be careful. He?s
got a gun, remember.

That?s where you?re wrong.
I?ve got that gun!

Found it put back
in my drawer tonight.

And now - after him!
The hunt's up!

Don?t be a damned fool!
I?m not going to shoot you!

Go back, if you?re afraid!

Even birds are leaving
this cursed place.

Stormy.

Again no boat will be able to land.

There are only 3 figurines left.
That means Armstrong is killed.

Then why haven?t you
found his dead body?

Indeed, strange. We searched
the entire house and the island.

- It might have been thrown into the sea.
- By whom? You? Me?

I don't know.

- But I do know one thing.
- What?s that?

- The gun is in your possession now,
- My good blockhead, I swear to you

that it was put back
in my drawer.

You ask us to believe a thing like that!
Why the devil should Armstrong,

or any one else for that
matter, put it back?

I haven?t the least idea.

There seems no point in it.

No, there isn?t. You might have
thought of a better story.

Rather proof that I?m
telling the truth, isn?t it?

- I don?t look at it that way.
- You wouldn?t.

Look here, Mr. Lombard, if you?re

an honest man, as you pretend.

- No, indeed, I never said that.
- If you?re speaking the truth -

there?s only one thing to be done.

Don?t be an ass. That gun?s
mine and I?m going to keep it.

- In that case I?m bound to come?
- Yes, Mr. Owen!

Think what you damned well
please. But if that?s so,

why I didn?t pot you with
the gun last night?

I could have, about twenty
times over. - I don?t know.

You must have had
some reason.

I think you?re both behaving
like a pair of idiots.

- What?s this?
- You?ve forgotten the nursery rhyme.

Four little Indian boys
going out to sea?

A red herring swallowed one
and then there were three.

A red herring!..
Armstrong?s not dead!

He took away the china Indian
to make you think he was.

Maybe, this time our Mr. X
decided to change his tune?

But don?t you see, he?s mad?

The whole thing of going

by the rhyme is mad!

At any rate there?s
no Zoo on the island.

- What Zoo?
- The one the next verse

talks about:

"Three little Indian boys
walking in the Zoo;

A big bear hugged one
and then there were two."

Don?t you see? We?re the Zoo?

We were hardly human anymore.

We turned into beasts.

Time to lunch.

I?m not going back to the house.

Oh, come now, Miss Claythorne.

Got to keep your strength up.

If I even see a tinned
ham, I shall be sick!

Well, as for me,
I need my meals regular.

What about you, Mr. Lombard?

You know, I?ll stay here
with Miss Claythorne.

It?s all right if you say so.
But remember,

we agreed we ought
not to separate.

Are you afraid? I?ll come
with you if you like?

- No, you won?t,
- So you?re still afraid of me?

I could shoot you both this
very minute if I liked.

Yes, but that wouldn?t
be according to plan.

It?s one at a time, and
it?s got to be done

in a certain way.

Well, you seem to know
all about it.

Of course, it?s a bit jumpy
going up to the house alone.

And therefore, will I tend
you my gun?

- Answer, no!
- As you please.

- What if he is this Owen?
- What do we know about the man?

Less than nothing! All this
ex-policeman story may be bunkum!

He may be anybody -
a mad millionaire,

a crazy business man.

He could have done
every one of these crimes.

And supposing he gets - us?

Don?t worry.

Touching faith in me,
haven?t you, Vera?

Quite sure I wouldn?t shoot you?

One has got to trust some one.

I heard a sort of cry.

- We?d better go up and see.
- No.

Blore is dead!

I don't believe you!
No...

See for yourself!

Whose is that window just above?

It?s mine.

- What is it?
- The clock?

?from my mantelpiece
member now.

"A big bear hugged one
and then there were two."

Clearly, it's Armstrong.

This time I won't miss him.

Careful!

We are next!

He wants us to look for him!
He?s counting on it!

Maybe, let's go down to the sea?
It's not as windy over there.

Look!

Over there, in water!

- But that's Armstrong!
- What do you say, Vera?

There?s no one on the island -
no one at all except us two.

No one?

You got it right on.
Now we know what to do.

Don?t you feel that there?s
someone watching and waiting?

No, I don?t believe
in the supernatural.

This business is human enough.

That?s conscience?

Tell me,

you did drown that
kid after all?

No! No!

No, I didn?t!

You?ve no right to say that!

Oh, my good girl!
I don?t know why.

There was a man in it
probably, was that it?

Yes -

there was a man in it.

Poor Dr. Armstrong.

What?s this? Womanly pity?

Why not? Haven?t you any pity?

I?ve no pity for you.

We must move him.

As far as I?m concerned
he can stay where he is.

Help me!

Go away!

Satisfied?

Quite.

So that?s the reason for your
womanly solicitude!

Give that gun to me.

Now look here,
my dear girl,

you just listen.

You?re behind the times,
my dears.

You can come with me.

We?ve won, my dear!

No?

No? I don?t want to?

"One little Indian boy
left all alone.

He went and hanged himself
and then there were none."

"Ten little Indian boys
went out to dine?"

Never has Justice risen

to such a brilliant height

as it has done here.

Without jesters? hats and mantles,

without corrupt lawyers-liars.

One-on-one - the judge
and the criminal.

One-on-one - the criminal
and the executioner.

Execution...

That?s Alpha and Omega of Truth.

And she understood that.

Vera Claythorn?

And she carried out the sentence herself.

That means I am right.

I am chosen.

I have been preparing
for this for a long time.

Hundreds of acquitted criminals,

murderers, perverts,

and as many of those, who were
innocently brought to the scaffold,

dispelled my doubts completely.

I began to collect victims,

who managed to escape
from their punishment.

To find them was not hard.

I was able to acquire incognito
Indians Island.

I sent an invitation to each guest,

according to the information
I had gathered.

They all arrived to the island
on the same day.

After the third death

the guests searched
the island and realized

that they were alone there.

According to my plan

I should shortly need an ally.

I selected Dr. Armstrong
for that part.

I asked him to feign my death.

It would perhaps rattle
the murderer.

That same evening
the show was carried out.

Nobody worried about me anymore.

I had a rendezvous with
Armstrong at 2 o?clock.

They are not suspecting anything.
Everything is going as planned.

I found something.

All day long I was watching
Lombard out the window.

Look.

Down there. The entrance to a cave.

- Where?
- Over there.

Now, when my duty is fulfilled,

and Justice, cleansed of all filth,
is triumphant,

I will take the step

that only the greatest judge
can take.

Because the true greatness
of a judge lies in his ability

to punish himself!

Screenplay and directed by
Stanislav GOVORUKHIN

Director of Photography
Gennady ENGSTREM

Production Designer
Valentin GIDULYANOV

Music by Nikolai KORNDORF

English subtitles by
Boris BULGAKOV and Zora K.

Starring

Vladimir ZELDIN
as Judge Lawrence Wargrave

Tatyana DRUBICH
as Vera Claythorne

Alexander KAIDANOVSKY
as Philip Lombard

Alexei ZHARKOV
as William Blore

Anatoly ROMASHIN
as Doctor Armstrong

Ludmila MAKSAKOVA
as Emily Brent

Mikhail GLUZSKY
as General Macarthur

Alexei ZOLOTNITSKY
as Thomas Rogers

Irina TERESHCHENKO
as Ethel Rogers

Alexander ABDULOV
as Anthony Marston

The End