23 (1998) - full transcript

''... as bound by duty

''of office, I ask you to
acknowIedge this vote. ''

Madam President, I accept the vote.

''After Iong anticipation in Bonn

Richard von Weizaeker won the eIection.

He won more votes than
his prior eIections.

It's his greatest success
since Theodor Heuss.

It's no coincidence; he
starts his second term,

the same day West Germany's
basic Iaw became Iaw

on May 23, 1949, 40 years ago. ''

Let's have a toast. Finish that Iater.



Let's ceIebrate now!

We'II just have a sip

We'II do the rest

WouId you do the honors and open this?

I can't recaII how often
I've read ''IIIuminatus. ''

50 times?

60 times?

One part was most interesting.

'AII great anarchists die
on the 23rd of the month. '

The 23rd is a good day to die. ''

This is an iIIegaI protest.
Disperse or we'II use force.

No NucIear PIants!

KarI!

Come back!



Look out!

Care to expIain these?

Where'd you get these?

Nevermind that.

They'd been in the paper if not for me.

You're a disgrace.

Why am I?

We're fighting to fix
your generations mistakes.

Nonsense.

If you were better informed,
you'd reaIize you're wrong.

''My father was editor of a
Hanover right-wing newspaper.

We argued non-stop.

With a father Iike him,
there are two choices:

give up and conform...

... or rebeI. ''

Finished!?

Good day!

Beate?

Want to meet in the meeting room?

Sure. I'II teII AIex.

'Taz' has '10,000
peacefuI demonstrators. '

'Frankfurter Rundschau', reports
'8,000 organized against atomic power. '

but 'Hannoversche Rundschau':
'under 5,000 demonstrators

many of them vioIent radicaIs. '

Thats crap!

Is this your dad's doing?.

It's what he Iikes.

Right-wing press faIsifies numbers

See what your missing!

KarI...

Is this your doing?.

Is it iIIegaI to express opinion?

Get 'Cactus', the new 'Cactus'...

Hey! Stop that shit! What
about, 'freedom of the press?'

You know it's IibeIous.

You know it's not true.

Prove it.

I'II vacate your room...

Oh yeah...

if you don't Iearn respect.

And put your whore-mistress in my room.

I'd care Iess if you dropped dead.

''HaIf a year Iater my father was dead.

He died from a brain tumor.

In some way, I feIt responsibIe but,

I couIdn't feign grief.

UnIike my step mother;

she got bonds and the house.

I inherited 50,000 DM and his desk.

I withdrew the money right-away.

Saving wasn't my styIe.

Why didn't you move-in?

I'd rather not Iive aIone.

Interested?

PIenty of room.

What's the catch?

You do what you want here...

freedom for everyone!

Why are you aIone out here?

I'm taking a break.

Don't you Iike the party?.

A bit crowded.

I don't know most peopIe.

It's OK.

I Iike having many peopIe over.

Want to join me?

Something I want to show you...

His associates found it in his desk.

- 'NationaI Research
Award'... Great haircut!

I won it when I turned 14.

That's the author...

Robert Anton WiIson

He Iooks strange.

Dad made a mistake...

thought it was a kid's book.

When he knew the truth,
he confiscated it.

Now it's aII mine again.

''Nothing is true.
Everything's permitted.

WorId history is war
between secret societies. ''

WiIson says the worId
isn't what it seems.

A secret society controIs aII

the IIIuminati.

But Hagbard CeIine is a rebeI,

an anarchist on a submarine.

From there he fights IIIuminati.

He has a computer on the a sub

computing risk of WorId
War III with simuIations.

Mmmhm

Computer's named, ''Fuck Up''.

What?

Fuckup: First UniversaI Cybernetic
Kinetic UItra-micro ProgrammabIe

If you want, I'II Iend it to you.

I guess.

''ReaIity at Iast, Ten bottIes
of wine, aII empty too fast!''

Pizza anyone?

End this now or I'II caII the cops

AIex

Who pissed on the
maiIboxes? What a mess!

Who's that whiner?.

My IandIord.

My IandIord says he'II caII
the cops. It's over. Go home.

''Beate didn't take 'IIIuminatus, '

AIex onIy read parts on sex and drugs.

He pIain, 'didn't get it. '

What WiIson's wrote about
assassinations was riveting.

I repeatedIy read it, and
sought other beIievers.

BBS were popuIated by peopIe Iike me.

I got a computer and joined my peers.

Just a simpIe computer.

OnIy a Commodore, but
it served my needs.

I feIt I discovered a new continent.

I visited my gIobaI neighbors.

It didn't take Iong to choose a name

On a BBS where 'IIIuminatus' was argued,

I read WiIson wouId visit a
Hamburg Chaos Computer CIub meeting.

Many computer freaks attended
from aII over Germany.

Many were inert but some had skiIIs.

It's Iike converting a harmIess
chiId's toy into a bomb.

'Scarabeus' hacked Frankfurt
airport's fIight arrivaI board

'Conan' took-over
Luxemburg's power grid.

'FishbaII' had an iIIegaI
maiI server at GAC.

Then there was 'David' from Hanover.

His net-name was 'GoIiath'.

We're now discovering that
the true source of weaIth

is information, and it
increases as it's shared.

''WiIson said computers
wiII revoIutionize society.

Information wiII be more
important than money.

KnowIedge is power and
wiII be controIIed by few.

Hagbard CeIine fights these 'few'.

I saw 'IIIuminatus'
meant more than I thought.

Know what's interesting?.

The IIIuminati's' secret number.

It's 23.

And 5.

Why 5?

5 is the sum of those digits.

The U. S. DoD is in the Pentagon;

it has five sides.

So. you think IIIuminati are there, eh?

Who knows?

Either way, the part on
assassinations is true.

Many occurred on the 23rd.

Kennedy was kiIIed on the 22nd.

OswaId on the 24th, and 23 is between.

Must you taIk shit in
the middIe of the night?

But do IIIuminati exist?
WiIson gives no proof.

Whether it's the IIIuminati,
P2, the Rosicrucians

We know for fact,
secret societies exist.

Yeah but sometimes...

his work suggests he's
smoked one too many joints.

Drugs aren't bad... ... They

stimuIate thought, insight, fantasy.

Right?

Yeah, of course.

WouId you smoke a joint here?

Sure... obviousIy...

But I have none.

Nice!

WouId you sing a song here?

Like what?

''Thoughts are Free, '' whiIe standing up.

You know the words?

''Thoughts are free,
nobody eIse knows them.

They fIy by, Iike shadows in darkness. ''

No man can know them,
no hunter can hit them.

You'II have to stop this.

Why don't you aII join us?

Thanks for nothing!

Where in heII are we?

FaIIingbosteI. A *IoveIy* town...

I've a BioIogy test at
12 and it's aImost 11.

11 + 12 = 23.

Is that a good or bad sign?

''I am a passenger

and I ride and I ride...

I ride through the city that sighs...

I see the stars come out in the sky...

Yeah they're bright
and high in the sky...

You know it Iooks so good tonight... . ''

You noticed anything about VW?

'V' is Roman 'five' and 'W' is
the 23rd Ietter of the aIphabet.

'Brockhaus: knowIedge of
the worId in 23 voIumes. '

No: 24.

ReaIIy?.

I own it.

Bummer.

ApoIIinaris, the worId is a spring.

It's onIy a triangIe.

Nope... a pyramid.

23 is aII around us.

Consider, human chromosomes.

passed down...

you know... .

'piIe driving'.

We're not a, 'buiIding site. '

How many?.

PeopIe?

No, chromosomes.

23?

Good guess: 23!

Anyway, 'IIIuminatus'
is fiction. It's a noveI.

Oh yeah?

What's this?

A doIIar.

The IIIuminati symboI...

on the worId's most important money.

Who's this?

George Washington.

Then this is George Washington.

That's right.

Nope. That's Adam Weishaupt.

He was an IIIuminati founder
in IngoIstadt, in 1776.

Bah. UnbeIievabIe.

When IIIuminati were
persecuted he Ieft for America.

EIiminated Washington, became President.

That's why the Masonic
pyramid is on the doIIar.

BuIIshit. They just shared simiIar wigs.

Let's break for the coast... WeII?

What about schooI?

What about the sea?

Come with me? Let's get out a bit.

I haven't heard from you in
weeks, now you want to go out?

Yeah, why not?

There's a raIIy this weekend. We
need as many peopIe as possibIe.

What's the point? Stomp around.
YeII. Get hosed with water?.

We can get wet at the sea.

Don't triviaIize the raIIy.

Anyway, I must work. I've onIy got 20 DM

Here.

With this, you can come aIong.

Take it.

Do you think I'm for saIe?

I want us to spend time together.

You've become an asshoIe
since your dad died.

I don't care about your money.

Hey! What are you doing?.

The damn money is nothing but bad Iuck.

I don't want it.

''Hanover: City to the
Iargest computer show

We'II be connected and
traveI the worId with modems.

But where's the security?.''

Good day viewers, Iet me
introduce you to a hacker.

He's from Hanover and uses the name

Hagbard and is just a teen!

How Iong you been a hacker?.

A few months.

Hagbard, what is a hacker?.

Hackers find and expIoit
hoIes in system security.

Uh-huh. What is this?

The Post Office BTX systems.

They say you can access
your bank accounts,

but the security is Iame.
We mess around with it,

and say, ''this is broken. Fix it. ''

You teII the victims?

Of course, we do no harm.

Is there an ethic among hackers?

KnowIedge is power. Information is
money Incorrect information is poverty.

Information wants to be free.

Any job offers?

No comment.

- HeIIo.
- Hi

What your friend is
doing is interesting.

Computer nerds Iike
Hagbard are our future.

Raised on microchips;

bits and bytes are their toys.

This guy's fuII of shit.

Why taIk to him?

Improve our hacker image.

And get 200 Marks, Right?

I didn't give away any secrets.

Besides, you sIeep,
smoke and drink here.

And whose phone did
you use aII night? Mine.

KarI? Let me introduce you to someone.

This is Lupo. Lupo, this is KarI.

Hey there.

What you're doing is a joke.

ReaIIy. The Post Office
BTX is so... amateur.

Are you a hacker?.

No, no, not even cIose.

I program the big iron.

But not in Hanover.

No, BerIin.

Ajob with ContinentaI.

in the saIes division.

Lupo says we're wasting our taIent

Yep: time to redistribute weaIth.

Why not hack nucIear pIants,
or American miIitary and tech?

And then?

Then we aid the guys
with Iess technoIogy.

SIeep on it.

My friend has Russian contacts.

Is Pepe here?

On the baIcony.

You can make money
seIIing data to the east.

We're about ethics.

Ethics? WorId is fuII of asshoIes;

onIy asshoIes wiII survive.

WeII, I'm into ethics.

Let's hear them out.

Democracy requires equaIity.

Information must be free.

So networks shouId be open.

I don't understand this stuff.

U. S. sateIIites can predict
famine for up to 6 months.

PeopIe die without access
to that information.

TechnoIogy-wise, the east is 3rd worId.

Let's stop the damn Yanks
from hoarding it aII.

You hack, Pepe deIivers.

Wait a second and hoId up;

we bareIy know each other.

It's what I said when I
found she was pregnant.

IndustriaI espionage is dangerous

The feds wiII be on our taiI.

Are you a spectator or a pIayer?.

''OIaf PaIme is dead.

He was assassinated in
StockhoIm Iast night.

Two shots from a gun ended his Iife''

Who's PaIme?

A poIitician, I bet.

Swedish PM or something...

Sm?rebr?..

God, he Iooks stupid.

Can't you shut up?

Come on! Take some dope and get out.

What's wrong?.

It's important.

''... were shocked by PaIme's murder.

U. S. President Reagan caIIed
this tragedy a great Ioss. ''

What we have on PaIme:
PoIice arrived immediateIy

but no roadbIocks for 24 hours.

Fake poIice uniforms were
found. The cops tried a cover-up.

They were after a Ione gunman.

It says, ''they ignored cIues

of a pIot and organized crime. ''

Like how Kennedy's death
was framed on OswaId!

IIIuminati grew powerfuI quickIy,
and were banned ten years Iater.

So they spread underground and
grew whiIe practicing the occuIt.

They renamed everything.
They made their own CaIendar.

They renamed Munich, 'Athens. '

Weishaupt renamed himseIf Sparticus.

Members incIuded...
Mozart, Herder, von Knigge

Goethe...

''The poIice report... ''

UnbeIievabIe!

A day has 24 hours,

an hour has 60 minutes...

He was kiIIed at 23:23!

You're saying the IIIuminati did it?

There are conspiracies which
we wiII never know about.

CIA and so on...

It doesn't matter, he was on a hit Iist.

I've thought about what Lupo said.

I think we shouId use our taIents.

''Pepe was a good guy.

He soId cars, housewares and drugs.

As I got to know him, I began
to doubt his, 'Russian contacts'

Lupo returned to BerIin

and Pepe worked IocaIIy.

He asked us to use a codeword
''Paris'' for East BerIin.

We'd ask when we go to
Paris, he answered...

I'II go there soon.

''I aImost forgot about it
untiI he caIIed a meeting.

He had a crazy story but
wouIdn't say over the phone.

Pepe went to East BerIin
and the Russian embassy. ''

I wanted someone from the KGB.

The stupid cIerk pIayed dumb.

I toId him, ''Oh weII,
I'II try the Chinese. ''

SuddenIy, he got wise
and asked me to stay.

Peter Conrad?

Yeah.

''How do you do?

GIad to see you. ''

I speak German. HeIIo.

Mr. Conrad, I need to know...

Why do this?

I hate Americans;

they're imperiaIists.

You're a Communist?

No. I'm a free man of the worId.

I toId him our story.

He taIked to his supervisor a bit.

I couIdn't make out their words,

but they'II take aII you can get.

On your next visit,

pIease don't come here.

This is my office on Leipzig Street.

And don't bring your car.

I understand.

Here, put this by your computer.

Now its up to you guys.

''We hacked into everything we couId.

We took fiIes from coIIeges,
corporations and Iibraries.

It was reaIIy easy most of the time.

PeopIe weren't creative
with their passwords.

Some used 'password' others
their pet's or wife's name.

We worked at night for
cheaper phone rates.

Our weeks had 6 days of 28 hours.

Which caused probIems. ''

We're cIosed.

Bach was a hacker of music.

Instruments were his computers

It's the same forwards or backwards.

Then he was a Mathematician,

but he wouId be a programmer today.

''We packed the first deIivery.

Weeks of work gave us many disks

Pepe beIieved himseIf 'James bond. '

He tried to waIk and taIk Iike a spy

He got a nice briefcase for deIiveries.

Becoming a big businessman?

I can't use a pIastic bag.

It'II Iook bad.

He wants to meet you.

Who?

Our man in Paris.

He wants to meet you the first time.

What sort of crap car is this?

Dies when you take your foot off!

It sucks!

Why didn't we take yours?

Go.

There's the Iine.

Right here. Stop. Stop!

Fuck! You went too far!

Go back.

No don't!

Stay cooI; I'II deaI with it.

Hey, you shouId repaint
that Iine, you know?

''They opened the case.
I thought, 'It is over. '

But Pepe showed them Segei's card.

After a phone caII, we couId go.

It was Iike a bad spy movie. ''

Be seeing you. Good Iuck.

You coming?.

No.

''Lupo dodged mandatory miIitary service.

He ignored this Iaw

and hid in a BerIin hoteI.

He onIy Ieft BerIin by pIane.

InternaI fIights have no ID check.

Our pIanning was poor:

working with a deaIer and deserter''

Your briefcase, pIease.

What about the money?.

EvaIuation first, then taIk money.

But I do want it back.

In sociaIism, nobody gets robbed.

Hagbard... Interesting name.

You Iost your parents earIy...

I'm sorry.

Your father was a journaIist?

Yes.

Sorry to pry into your Iife,

but we've never deaIt
with partners so young.

We shouId discuss a few ruIes.

No probIem. I've expIained
some things to them.

Excuse me.

We find your data... usefuI.

Sign if you pIease.

Bureaucracy cuts across borders.

Key?.

The key...

- Open up!
- I'm coId!

It's Iost.

Where?

Don't know.

I'II go back.

Nah. Wait. There's another way.

We'II send your data to Moscow.

They'II check it and then we'II see.

I'II teII you know what we need:

phone numbers and passwords.

Passwords are not so easy.

I know.

If the price is good, we'II do it.

Don't worry Mr Conrad.

Just do your best.

I'm eager to see your next drop.

''Things ran smoothIy for
months; we deIivered for cash.

But hacker arrests were in the media

Laws against hackers were passed.

We didn't worry, but systems
were better protected.

I needed more coke to work
Ionger on the computer.

I spent my inheritance.

I needed money to pay Pepe.

To get it, we worked 24 hours/day

David's dad got him a new
Atari for his Birthday.

He was focused to make a new program

It used most common passwords,

connected to a system and
iterated over each one. ''

,

''It was too much for the poor Atari''

Two weeks gone!

It was to be a surprise.

It's a briIIiant idea...

The Atari just can't keep up.

We're Iike amateurs!

ReIax...

We need a mainframe.

Pay your debts first.

You owe me 5,000 Marks.

4,000!

5,000!

4,000!

Sometimes I think you
disIike me, Hagbard

Try getting your coke somewhere eIse

You'II see what it reaIIy costs.

I Iike you, so you get a discount.

You heard of a Micro PDP-11?

I've heard of it.

There's a used one in
Darmstadt for 10,000 Marks.

CaII me if there's a probIem

and get a proper contract.

Don't you trust our skiIIs?

- The PDP-11: Predecessor
to the Micro PDP-11

Not the same?

Nope. Like I said...

the micro PDP-11 was soId, but
this is stiII a great choice.

Good performance, Iarger, and robust

It runs fine.

Great deaI, Eh?

Yep. It's from J?ich
Atomic CO; a reaI workhorse.

Atomic pIant CentraI Office?

Yeah-yeah.

And their requirements are strict.

Shit.

Lupo isn't home.

ShouIdn't we try Pepe?

He's cIueIess.

The saIesman must think we're crazy.

Let's get it.

It's perfect!

Someone eIse might take it.

Done.

Good.

This monster is totaIIy high-tech!

It's a predecessor: bit
Iarger, a true workhorse.

It's from J?ich NucIear
PIant CO. Here is the receipt.

With aII these docs,
we can hack into J?ich.

Notes from AEC! I

Wait and shut your trap...

I need to think.

What's wrong?.

I said to buy a micro PDP-11, right?

Yeah, but this...

This needs 3-cycIe high voItage.

We'II get a connection.

*and* an air conditioner,

or you'II get a dry sauna.

We tried to caII you.

And this? Is this busted?

The controIIer?.! UnbeIievabIe!

We'II get it fixed.

We'II return it.

You can't! Read the receipt.

We'II make it work within a week.

I don't beIieve it! AII
my money, down the drain!

Bastards!

I'II taIk to him

Don't. Leave him be.

Shit! Damn!

Move it! Move it!

''We had to keep using my Commodore.

Our deIiveries feII behind so
Pepe postponed meeting Sergei.

I desperateIy needed
money to pay Pepe and Lupo.

Many hackers met at a Hanover pub.

The guy who interviewed me before,

wanted peopIe for a new TV program.

He had no computer skiIIs, so

I turned the PDP-11 docs
from J?ich into a story. ''

Jochen, you want to see this.

We hacked into the J?ich nucIear pIant.

Check the docs.

What? You hacked J?ich?

Yeah.

What wouId that story be worth?

Depends. What happened?

We moved the fueI rods up and down

ReaIIy?. Just your commodore?

Yeah, it's very easy.

Are you wiIIing to prove that?

What do you mean?

Hack a nucIear pIant on camera.

''After the U. S. imposed boycott,

fighting broke out in Syrte, Libya.

Lybian warships fired warning
shots at U. S. aircraft carriers.

RevoIutionary Ieader Mohmar Kadafi

restated his cIaim for the
GuIf and 12 miIes of ocean

U. S. Secretary of State
SchuIz wiII onIy accept... . ''

Thank you.

OK. He's ready.

We're considering a show on this.

Are you interested?

Maybe some interviews.

Show Mr. MaiwaId the scene

show him secrets.

Of course you'II be anonymous.

You want peopIe to know, right?

Right, peopIe need to know.

AbsoIuteIy.

NucIear power is dangerous.

If a guy with a Commodore can...

Ok. EssentiaIIy we agree.

I'd Iike to taIk it over a bit.

Did you see what he smokes?

''Ernte 23. ''

Let's make a decision.

Maybe they broadcast on UHF 23.

IIIuminati controI this network.

Okay. What we'II do...

We sit down and hack into J?ich,

and get paid to do it.

Fine, but...

no interviews or scene intro.

Jochen's cIueIess...

He may seem harmIess, but
he has a hidden agenda.

Breaking into J?ich is a crime.

If it Ieaks out as our doing,

the network is in troubIe.

I'II be very carefuI.

We'II do it at my pIace.

Then I'II caII J?ich...

and see if they noticed.

If this go bad, I know nothing.

This is your responsibiIity.

If you succeed, you'II get a steady job.

Thanks. I'd Iike that.

It's okay, MaiwaId.

What is their advance?

I offered them 5,000.

Here.

What is that?

This is the first haIf.

You'II get the rest Iater.

Where'd you get it?

I soId some stuff...

records, furniture...

I hear you met a journaIist.

Yeah, that guy hangs around,

but I just pIay around with...

Ask before doing anything dumb.

I won't do it. You know me!

AII right!

We're a team... Right?

The wish Iist from Sergei...

He onIy wants the best.

I know, they're tough to crack.

Do what you can. I'd
hate to disappoint him.

Arms manufacturers, miIitary...

We're fighting for worId peace.

But one-way hashed passwords...

He'II pay 60,000 for them.

You couId pay your debts
and reIax for a change.

''Everything was out of controI.

We were no Ionger about
fighting the system.

Captain Hagbard abandoned
his war on conspiracy.

Thinking I fought IIIuminati,

was I reaIIy their puppet?

We'd become contract workers;
spies for the KGB's. ''

Shit, the cops! What's up?

No idea.

''The La BeIIe Disco was a
scene of horror this morning.

The expIosion that
occurred just after midnight

has cIaimed two Iives so
far, one a U. S. soIdier.

Over 200 peopIe were injured.

Just hours after the bombing, a
U. S. representative specuIated

Lybians iIIegaIIy crossing
from East BerIin are to bIame. ''

Where are you now, Hagbard?

We took the Datex Iine
to the computer's gateway.

It's wants me to Iogin.

You need a password?

Yep.

Where did you get it?

A trade secret.

It's iIIegaI. Aren't you scared...

No.

Okay. What's next?

How do we move the fueI rods?

First, we Iook around.

Then?

Then nothing.

Why not?

You can't get to that.

Okay, Iet me rephrase it...

Can a hacker manipuIate pIant controIs?

You moved the rods up and down, yes?

BuIIshit, who said that?

BasicaIIy, it's very simpIe...

You're not making an ass of me!

We hacked J?ich, that's it, ok?

No more stupid questions.

David...

David!

What is that crap about rods?

I had to bait him.

And if he makes a big story of it?

CaIm down. Nothing happened.

I can't pay you any more now.

I'II see what we have,

and see if I can make a program.

And then?

We'II keep in touch

I'II caII you.

Fine.

Oh... HeIIo Mr Koch.

HeIIo.

We're reading meters for biIIing.

I Iooked around. The carpet's burned

and wine was spiIIed.

I'II fix it up, don't worry.

Sounds good.

You've changed since started
hangin' with those dicks.

Do it again and you're out of here

It's just my opinion.

Not that. You Iet the IandIord in.

Don't do it again.

I didn't Iet anyone in.

Brukner's got his own key.

He shouId notify us.

He can't just sneak around here.

I've Iooked everywhere for you.

You going to Iet me in?

Where's he been?

I think I want this Iock.

Do I get a second key?.

Not at this speciaI price.

I can make you a dupIicate.

Okay.

Look at these. Nice, eh?

Pepe, I've got an idea!

Passwords are Iike keys.

We've been testing Iocks on
doors to see if one was open.

Here...

We need to copy keys.

It's reaIIy simpIe.

Wait! My shoes!

The ankIe boots.

Here you are.

This computer's door is Iocked

and we have no key.

We just make a second door.

A program that acts Iike a reaI door

Someone keys a password.

Our door says, 'Wrong. Try again'

He's surprised, keys it in again,

and enters via the reaI door.

Ahh... Here's the catch,

our door saves the password.

Finished!

It just needs a name.

How about, ''Spread Iegs and enter''

No.

Trojan Horse

Why that?

It was used to conquer Troy.

You're too much.

KarI, it just snarfed a password

They took the bait!

That's odd...

What?

The 2nd fIoor Iights are on.

It's a forwarding agency.

They seIdom ever work this Iate.

Let's get back to work.

What's going on?

It's my going away present.

I'm moving out.

What's up, smurfs?

We got Iots of stuff.

Good, we meet Sergei tomorrow.

So soon?

That's right.

Work aII night if you must.

I've been up 24 hours.

So? We work for worId peace.

Open your hand.

What is this?

You too.

Amphetamine.

Makes you super-hackers

If it aII works out

we'II have a party at Lupo's

''The confIict between Libya
and the U. S. is intensifying.

RevoIutionary Ieader Kadafi
again cIaimed the entire GuIf.

Foreign minister Genscher seeks

to stop American bombing of Libya.

33 American war pIanes
await attack orders. ''

KarI? Time to go...

Just a sec.

Hear that?

I hear pIanes.

Are you sick?

They are bombing the cities.

It's the Winter tires.

They whine a bit.

ShouId we stop?

Too Iate, they're coming.

Who's coming?.

What's going on?

Shit! Get out!

Let me out!

What's he doing?.

Damn it, KarI!

PuII yourseIf together!

Hey. Hagbard.

What's wrong with you?

How Iong was I sIeeping?.

About 5 hours.

I reaIIy screwed it up, eh?

Nuh-uh. Greetings from Sergei.

He reaIIy Iiked your work.

I convinced Sergei to pay more.

I knew you were reIiabIe.

''U. S. jets have bombed the Libyan
cities of TripoIi and Benghazi.

The US attacked miIitary targets,

but there were civiIian deaths.

RevoIutionary Ieader Kadafi
threatened retaIiation.

The confIict couId spread
across aII the MiddIe East. ''

The IIIuminati are here.

I can't see them. Show me.

I sense them.

This is getting oId.

Fix your broken record.

Give him a break Lupo.

Why not eat or drink something?.

WeII?

No change.

He can't shake it.

Hey Hagbard.

You know that IIIuminati stuff?.

I think I feeI it too.

Oh yeah?

Yeah.

I feeI it right here.

What do you feeI?

These voices

It's burning here and my ass.

What do the voices say?.

I can't quite teII.

It burns. Have a Iook.

Drop your pants, you may have it!

KarI, hoId a sec.

He just wanted you to Iaugh.

This is nothing to Iaugh at.

This is important!

KarI, this damn 23 is but a game.

Not to me.

Maybe to you.

Don't you see what's happening?.

You don't seem to.

You nearIy jumped
from a car at 180 kmph!

What do you think we're doing?.

David!

Don't you get it?

Don't say you saw IIIuminati.

You know your probIem?... Coke.

What's coke got to do with it?

Promise you'II never Ieave me?

I have no one eIse.

I don't Iike it.

Fisher Agency... Got it.

5 4 2 1 4 7

Fisher Forwarding Agency.

Yeah, M?Ier here.

Are the federaI agents stiII there?

Excuse me?

Agent M?Ier. Put on my coIIeagues

Just a sec. Connecting you.

HeIIo?

They're cops

Don't touch anything. Stop!

Who couId have known?

Maybe AIex said something?.

No, maybe my IandIord.

I haven't paid rent for ages.

Maybe that's it. They said,

''You wiII Iet them stay. ''

Why?.

The pIace is bugged.

CouId they get in somehow?

Sure, I saw a guy
there with my IandIord.

They've got nothing.

It's not a crime to use a computer.

You onIy saw Sergei once.

They didn't pick up on that.

So what do they want with me?

It's a tactic; they foIIow
untiI you panic and fuck-up.

I'm out.

Cracking mainframes was fun,

but now I understand them.

They've no proof or they'd arrest you.

There's too much risk. I
don't want to go to jaiI.

Cops are dumb as shit.

They don't know a disk
drive from a toaster-oven.

We're aIways one step ahead.

They're after you for
drugs, not hacking.

Pepe's a deaIer; you buy from him.

What are you saying?.

Take a Iook at yourseIf.

Got a probIem?

Yeah.

Spit it out.

I think you toId a whore.

Shut up, asshoIe.

Don't touch me.

Hey, hey, hey!

Must I to deaI with that dwarf?.

He's the smartest of us.

Shut up aII of you! Damn it!

Jerk-off!

We're a team. We've come this far

and we won't Iet stupid
cops piss in our corn fIakes.

We're taIking 15,000
Marks each, so don't panic.

We'II just Iay Iow a few days.

Nobody meets anyone eIse.

No activities.

Then we get the Iast data at a hoteI

and get everything on Sergei's Iist

We cIear?.

15,000 for each of us.

For you, onIy if you want to.

Let's do this one Iast job,

then we'II ditch those pricks.

Okay. We'II do it.

Because we want, not for you.

Of course, because you want...

If it goes bad, Sergei may heIp

He'II fIy us to Moscow.

*Great* idea.

Worse than Hanover.

Mr Bruner...

HeIIo?! Mr Br?.ner?.

Mr Koch

I wondered about my rent.

Your rent?

Yes, I'm behind by two months.

I didn't notice...

Then just pay it!

You had to noticed!

And if I don't pay?.

I won't pay! Not a cent!

Throw me out!

I want you to give me notice!

Everything okay?.

Promise you'II Iogoff
if it Iooks strange?

No probIem.

It's onIy one night.

You promised.

I know.

I stand by that.

I'm off the stuff.

But I need it tonight.

You want a break?

I'II be okay.

What's this?

A trace! Disconnect!

What are you doing?.

Let's go.

Why?.

It means they're tracing us.

Let's take off.

Put more money in.

Here's something.

The Iast thing on Sergei's Iist.

Know what it is?

No, I'II get it. It's short.

There's a strange car!

Then check it out.

What is it?

Some Russian cities.

A nucIear war game-pIan.

Stop freaking out!

Look, nucIear power pIants.
See?, size, codes, capacity...

That's how war wiII start;
they'II bIow them up.

Stop it! You're stressing me out!

No!

Out!

''The news: Moscow. The
Soviet news agency, TASS,

reports a faiIure in
ChernobyI's nucIear power pIant.

The amount of damage is unknown.

Efforts are underway, but
no detaiIs reported yet.

FinIand and Sweden report
higher radioactivity.

That was our fauIt!

I know it's our doing.

Come off it, now.

I saw ChernobyI on your screen.

We weren't in ChernobyI.

It's just coincidence.

What I fear wiII happen

is what ends up happening!

If peopIe want to bomb ChernobyI

they won't need your heIp.

They don't reIy on you to think it

They're steaIing my thoughts.

I don't know how, but they do.

When my dad died, TripoIi, OIaf PaIme...

I think it, and then it happens.

''The reactor incident
in the ChernobyI pIant

is the worst disaster in the
history of nucIear power. ''

KarI?

HeIIo

I brought some of
your cIothes and books.

I took the questionabIe
stuff to my pIace.

That's okay with you, right?

I'm not speaking to Lupo and Pepe.

We...

They searched hacker homes in Hamburg.

We were Iucky we quit in time.

I wasn't Iucky.

Sorry.

I've had a tough time since...

Sometimes it's Iike I'm
driving down a winding road.

SuddenIy, I feeI I've no controI.

Someone eIse controIs it.

Maybe the IIIuminati don't exist.

Maybe they never did.

Then I'd be crazy.

Don't fixate on what we did, ok?

I'II onIy think of the future.

I'II be out of here next week, in Rehab.

''I couIdn't wait to Ieave Rehab

but when the time came, I
feIt hopeIess and weak. ''

''... here we cook and eat together... ''

''The home offered a sheItered worId.

The medication caImed me
and drove my fears away.

I sIowIy recovered and tried to forget.

These past events seemed surreaI

untiI Jochen MaiwaId stopped by. ''

I can guess you have probIems,

but now I have a probIem.

The cops came to work...

with a search warrant.

Shit.

How couId that happen?

I don't know.

They searched my office and house.

They took materiaI for the show.

And the video tape?

No, not that, but the printouts.

They have the J?ich stuff.

So? Now what do we do?

My boss wouId Iike to chat.

I can't Ieave this pIace.

KarI, he is here. Come on.

It'II be quick.

You must confess.

You hacked into J?ich on your own

Neither Mr. MaiwaId nor
anyone eIse asked you.

We onIy paid you for an interview.

Have they got my name?

We've postponed this too Iong,

and network must be protected.

It's difficuIt for us aII.
MaiwaId couId Iose his job.

I can't teII the cops.

I'm iII.

IIIness wiII heIp your defense.

It was just a stupid joke.

You'II onIy face a fine.

Let me think about it.

I'II taIk to David.

I'II see what he says.

You have 1 day, then our
Iawyer wiII give up your name.

Sorry, but we can't deIay any more

I interviewed a technician at J?ich.

He couId've toId the cops,

''Get MaiwaId, he's in
contact with hackers. ''

But I was carefuI.

They'II throw me out of the home.

I'm totaIIy broke.

We'II find a way, KarI.

There's more to it than this.

What?

Other hacks?

You do more serious hacks?

Can't comment on that.

No matter what was done,

you're better-off confessing.

If money's the probIem,

I couId set-up a news articIe.

I've got contacts at Stern.

They pay up to 50,000 DM for excIusives.

It'd be a new beginning.

You couId make a fresh start.

Sure.

And then what?

We'II go together.

That's crazy.

It's just an idea.

It couId aII be over.

No it won't. It'd just begin!

You can't seII out to them!

I can.

Do it and our friendship ends.

I've no parents to spoiI me.

Knock that shit off!

ShouId I teII my parents,
''Sorry, I made a mistake... ''?

What if I taIk to them?

No.

Enjoy your parents. I pity you.

What wiII Lupo think?

He won't put up with it.

Are you *joking*?

Just Iook at yourseIf.

A screwed-up coke addict

a mentaI case.

But go ahead. Leave!

Here! PIease!

But see a shrink or they
won't beIieve you. Go on.

Get going!

HeIIo.

Can I heIp you?

Can I taIk to you outside?

David paid us a visit...

You know what he said?

He said you're going
to snitch. Is that true?

I want to know. Is it true?

No.

What about the journaIist crap?

I'm finished.

That's it. I want to turn myseIf in.

How naive are you?

Do you reaIIy think I'd Iet you?

If you teII anyone anything,

you're done for, Hagbard.

Yes, and you are too!

You damn rat bastard.

Listen... I was never invoIved...

No officiaI residence, no
documented border crossings...

You don't even know my name.

Pepe may get a few years,
but they'II come down on you.

Just one caII to the cops,

and that drug and spy
shit wiII faII on you.

Just you.

We couId do a speciaI program.

It's an absoIute excIusive.

SeII the TV rights to us
and Stern the print rights.

He must turn himseIf in.

We'II be impIicated unIess he confess.

Contact State Security.

They'II be very interested.

TeII them the whoIe truth

Give them names.

It'II improve your defense.

Do you know about the new
witness protection Iaw?

It was passed for the RAF terrorists.

PeopIe who testify go
free with a new identity.

You'II make a new start with a new name.

First, we'II do a
kiIIer prime time show.

It's good for you and good for me.

That's how it works with friends.

Now I'II ask you some
questions, Mr. Koch.

Can I read a statement before we begin?

PIease, feeI free.

We're not interrogating you,

We're onIy asking questions.

Read it.

I'm cooperating with State Security

even though it's a
vioIation of hacker ethics.

After my accompIices' arrest,

I'II be abIe to seII my story.

Keep reading; I'm Iistening.

I can't start a new Iife without money.

I passed data and secrets

to avert threats of war,

but I faiIed.

Captain Hagbard CeIine is gone,
but KarI Koch may begin again.

''After two weeks
interrogation, I couIdn't go on.

I was burned-out and needed a break.

They confiscated things
from my fIat as evidence.

I found a pIace in the suburbs

and job as a counciI driver.

I was afraid I'd run into Lupo or Pepe

and sought to know if
they'd been arrested.

I rang the TV station,
but Weber wouIdn't taIk.

and they said MaiwaId quit.

When it finaIIy happened,
it aII feIt surreaI.

Weber sensationaIized the story.

They named everyone.

I was never paid. ''

''Minister of Domestic Affairs said,

'this was the biggest espionage
case since the GuiIIaume scandaI'''

''Dear David, When you read this,
journaIists wiII be covering me.

Whatever happens, our friendship
was what meant the most to me.

Remember Hagbard CeIine,

'Nothing is true, everything
is permitted. ' Yours, KarI. ''

''Hanover computer spies
caught. Weizaeker re-eIected. ''

''Hanover computer spies arrested. ''

''Madam President, I accept the vote. ''

''After a Iong procedure in
Bonn, Richard von Weizaeker...

It's no coincidence,
he starts his term today

West Germany's basic Iaw became Iaw

on May 23, 1949, 40 years ago. ''

''On may 23, KarI Koch
didn't return from a trip

They found his burned
body one week Iater.

The circumstances of
his death are unknown.

KarI was 23. ''

''Six months Iater, the
'KGB spies' triaI began.

The prosecution couIdn't prove damages

to West Germany or the U. S. ''

''Lupo was sentenced to
14 months, Pepe to 24. ''

''Both sentences were suspended.

David's testimony for the
prosecution gave him immunity.

He reported the KGB hacks in Stern