Beauty and the Beast (1962) - full transcript

[NARRATOR READING]

I remember this place.

Eduardo and I came
riding here the day
before I left for home.

Three months ago.
It seems like
countless ages.

I hope you realize
you're a very fortunate
young lady.

Usually a marriage between
families such as ours

is hardly more than
a matter of convenience,
not an affair of the heart.

You don't know
how grateful I am that
you gave me the opportunity

to know him completely
before we were
formally betrothed.

You might pretend
to show just
a little sorrow

at the thought of leaving
your father to enter
into a new land, a new life.



I'm sorry to be so selfish,
but all I can
think of is Eduardo.

And in just a little while,
I'll see him again.

Silvio.

Yes, Your Excellency?

Tell him to stir up
the horses, man.

At this rate, we won't
reach Castle Alleta
until after dark.

Yes, My Lord.

Stir them up.[SHOUTS]

NARRATOR: For generations
the Castle Alleta had stood
as a symbol of authority

in the land where the young
Duke Eduardo had recently
come to the throne.

But now, Eduardo's subjects
were beginning
to become uneasy,

for there were things
happening in the castle which
they could not understand.

Their Highnesses
Prince Bruno
and Princess Sybil.

I'm sure, Eduardo,
if your uncle deigns
to pay us a visit,



he either brings bad news,
or hopes to find it here.

I trust that you are well,
dear nephew.

Why this air
of solicitude?

Well, there are rumors that
Your Grace might not be
enjoying the best of health.

I hope you're not disappointed
to find the rumors unfounded.

Your Grace, you do
us an injustice.

Then illness is not the reason
why Your Grace cancelled

the Fiesta of the
Throne of Alleta?

His Grace has cancelled it
on the grounds of economy.

I doubt His Grace's people
will be happy with
such an explanation.

It is I who must answer
to the people.

You will not reconsider?

Uh, the people certainly
will not object
to the expense.

EDUARDO: No.

Well, it is on your head
and not on mine.

Then this is the first time
you have expressed
satisfaction at not being

in my place.

Then, with Your Grace's
permission,

we will relieve you
of our very unwelcome
presence here.

You have it.Your Grace.

You were right,
they came here hoping
to find bad news.

Perhaps Grimaldi's
report was wrong.
Eduardo seemed all right.

Not to me. He's hiding
something. I could see
it in his eyes.

I'll send him back here,
let him sniff around
again.

We'll need more than rumors
to hold over His Grace's
head.

NARRATOR: The suspicions
of Prince Bruno were not
without foundation,

for Alleta was
ruled by Eduardo,
only by day.

When the sun would
sink beyond the
distant horizon,

Eduardo compelled everyone,
except his Chancellor Orsini,
to leave the castle.

As night shadows began
to engulf the land,

Eduardo and Orsini
began their lonely vigil.

Eduardo's subjects could not
be told that the young duke
was living two lives,

and that by day
he had to hide the torment
that gripped his soul.

For no one could know of
the evil curse that overtook
him when darkness fell,

a curse that only
he and Orsini must face.

Eduardo, you are
inflicting added suffering
upon yourself.

You would be
safe enough locked
within your own door.

No, Orsini. How do I know
what might come over
me when it is upon me?

Perhaps I should
have you chain me
to the wall.

You've never been violent.

I guess I should be
grateful for that blessing.

Orsini, what if I should
become a thing,
a thing of pure evil?

ORSINI: I dare not
even think of it.

To know that I have
to subject you to this every
night, it is enough.

The sun...
It's gone.

I can feel it coming.

I want to fight it.

How do you
defeat an enemy
you can't see?

Strange, you'd think
the place deserted,
and it isn't that late.

I didn't notice a guard
at the gates.
Did you, Silvio?

There was none,
My Lord.

In fact, there doesn't
seem to be a soul
about the whole place.

Well, wake them up.
Let them know we're here.

Yes, My Lord.

This is not exactly
the warm welcome
I pictured in my mind.

Nor I.

Of course, Eduardo
had no reason to
expect us so soon.

NARRATOR: On the shoulders
of Orsini had fallen the sad
and difficult task

of keeping Eduardo's secret
from the world, no matter
what excuses he had to give,

or what falsehoods
he had to conceal.

Someone is coming,
My Lord.

If you have business
with His Grace, return
after sunrise in the morning.

You're talking to
His Excellency,
the Count of Sardi.

Count Roderick?Yes, Orsini. Count Roderick.
And the Lady Althea.

Good heavens, man, are you
going to keep us standing out
here the rest of the night?

A thousand pardons,
My Lord.

If our arrival is an
inconvenience, perhaps we
should seek shelter elsewhere?

Forgive me,
Your Excellency.

Come. Silvio,
bring in the luggage.Yes, My Lord.

It's good to see you again,
Baron Orsini.

And you, My Lady.
And more beautiful
than ever.

You will forgive me
if I seem a trifle startled
at your arrival tonight.

Is it a state of crisis
that we arrived a few days
earlier than planned?

No. When did Your
Excellency leave Sardi?

A week ago.

Then the courier from
His Grace did not reach you?

With a personal message
from Duke Eduardo?

Concerning what?

My Lord, I would not
presume to discuss
His Grace's personal affairs.

Spoken like a true diplomat.

Well, we are here,
Orsini, take us to Eduardo.

He can tell us the
import of his message.

I'm sure he will see you
and the Lady Althea the
first thing in the morning.

We won't see him tonight?

I'm afraid not.

His Grace is indisposed.

Ill?

Oh, probably one too many
farewell bachelor dinners,
eh, Orsini?

Huh? Well,
I'm ready
for bed myself.

Come along with the luggage.

If your servants will just
leave the luggage here,

I will see that it is
delivered to your rooms.

Oh, very well.
That'll be all, Silvio.

See to
the horses, huh?Yes, My Lord.

Please stay closely,
My Lord.

Because of the darkness.

Well, I must say our meal
was more refreshing than
our reception here tonight.

You know, this
is the first time I've ever
had my food served

by the chancellor
of a duchy.

I'm sure Eduardo will
have a perfectly reasonable
explanation.

The entire place in darkness.
No servants about.

Locked doors,
no guard at the gates.

Eduardo's explanation
will have to be
more than reasonable.

Father, when you asked
why Eduardo didn't meet
us this evening,

it was you who
offered an excuse,
not Orsini.

Well, now. Bride-grooms-to-be
do have their farewell
bachelor dinners, you know.

Everything always
looks worse when
you're tired.

I'm sure Eduardo will have
your perfectly reasonable
explanation in the morning.

Good night, my dear.
Sleep well.

Good night.

[LATCH RATTLING]

NARRATOR: In the morning,
when the sun warmed
the countryside once again,

and the nightmares
of darkness were gone,

the young duke returned
to his duties as
ruler of the land.

And then, my neighbor, this
jackass, let his cow stray
into my vegetable patch.

Each of my wonderful
vegetables has been raised
by the sweat of my brow,

And that... That stupid fool
of a cow ate a whole row
of my very best carrots.

Therefore, I claim
the right to hold his cow
in payment for damages.

And how many of this man's
fine carrots did your cow eat?

It couldn't be many,
Your Grace. She has such
a delicate appetite.

Well, then, it is my
judgment that you
return to Benito his cow.

BENITO: Thank you, Your Grace.
Thank you.

But you must give to Pasquale
his damages, all the milk
your cow produces today,

because it was made
from his carrots.

PASQUALE: Thank you,
Your Grace.

You have my leave to go.

You seem to have lost
your uneasiness of last
night very quickly.

It seems so silly now that
I should have been disturbed.

Sometimes that imagination of
yours is a little too vivid.

You weren't so easy
in your own mind.Oh.

Eduardo!I see you, and I forget
all the words I rehearsed

to welcome you home.

Perhaps you might remember
with a little prompting.

They were meant to be
spoken in the special garden.

I seem to remember
such a garden.

Do you mind,
Your Excellency?

Would it make any
difference if I did?

No.

Ah, to be young again,
Orsini, and in love.

To be young again, yes.

But this and all
it represents, it is the
only love I've ever known.

[READING]

It's exquisite.

Wear it over your heart.

And when you look at it,
think of me as I am now.

I am thinking
of how much
I love you.

Althea, if something
should force me to...

To beg for a postponement
of our marriage,
would you grant it?

For how long?

I am hoping
I will not have to ask it.

Well, I'd be unhappy about it,
disappointed, but
of course I'd grant it,

if you thought it necessary.

Even if I could
give you no excuse?

Could only ask you
to believe in me?

To have faith?

Can there be love
without faith?
Without trust?

You are serious? You're not
trying to tease me?I am serious.

Do you fear to confide in me?

Are you trying to tell me
that you find yourself

in some great trouble,
from which you think
I should be shielded?

Since you have been gone,
I have learned that there are

certain things which
must be faced alone.

Then you would rather
I returned home?

For your sake only.

If it were in my power,
I'd never let you leave.

If you need help,
then it's my duty to stay.

From now on,
there's nothing
you have to face alone.

I hope you will never change,

no matter what may happen,

no matter what
you may come to think.

Hope and pray with me that
there will be no postponement
to our marriage.

When I found myself face
to face with her, I forgot
all your good counsel.

I could only remember
how much she means to me.

Yes, I knew it could be
this way if she returned.

That's why I prevailed
upon you to send a courier
to her father.

If only the courier
had reached him.

If only she had
not returned.

Did you suggest a possible
postponement to her?

What else could I do?
With the wedding less
than two weeks away.

She accepted it
on blind faith.

I felt like a cheat.

You gave her
no explanation,
I hope?

How does a man explain
why he would seek release
from the one thing

he wants most in life?

[SIGHS]

For her sake, it would have
been better if you could have
found some pretext

to break with her
completely.

No, I will not give her up.

To do so would be
to confess to myself that
there is no hope.

My son, I have given
a lifetime of service
to the Duchy of Alleta,

to your father
and now to Your Grace.

I beg of you
to be strong,

to endure,
for the good of your people.

Endure!

There have been times
these past three months
when I felt myself

beyond endurance,
going mad.

You must remember,
above all else,

that your uncle Bruno
has his eyes on this palace.

That he hovers over
you like a vulture.

Yes, he suspects something.

And if he ever found out
about you, we both know
that he would use it

as a weapon to prove
you unfit to rule.

And he would
not be far wrong.

Did you give Lady Althea
and Duke Roderick sufficient
protection last night?

I took the precaution
of locking their chamber
doors and keeping the key.

I did not unlock it
until this morning.

NARRATOR: As the sun left
the sky again

and the Castle Alleta
made ready for
the terrors of the night,

a new evil was waiting
in the person of the
interested observer,

who watched with shrewd eyes.

The man sent by Prince Bruno.

Still leading the easy life,
eh? Home at sundown?

Ah, it's too good to last,
but I hope it does.

Everybody in the castle
has been sent packing
for the night again?

Everyone but the Lady Althea
and Count Roderick.

What do you suppose goes on
in there after His Grace locks
himself in for the night?

I don't know. Never a word
is said when we come
back in the morning.

But to me there
is the feel of evil.

Ah, you talk too much, woman,
and about nothing.

Ah, can I stand you
a glass of wine?

Two glasses.
Speaking only
for myself, that is.

Well, it isn't my custom
to sit down to a glass
with a stranger.

I beg your pardon.
Allow me to correct that.

My name is Grimaldi.

Well, I have had
a trying day.

Well, come then,
let's be off.

[PATRONS CHATTERING]

Ah, there's probably
nothing to it at all.

Just gossip
among you servants.

Not much.
Being dismissed
from the castle

at sundown every night,
and not being permitted to

return to our work until
morning, isn't gossip.

Perhaps the Duke has
a liking for his solitude?

Then, what's changed him?
He used to be fond
of company.

Now, when old friends
of His Grace
call after nightfall,

they are turned away
by Baron Orsini.

And with poor excuses.

I still think it's
just a lot of talk.

I haven't dared
to breathe it to a soul
what I think.

Oh, come now.
We're all friends here,
I'm sure.

Well, is it possible
that the Grace has
sold his soul to Satan

and secretly in
the dead of night,

he, uh, celebrates
the Black Mass?

I told you that
it has the feel of evil.

It's exactly the same
as last night.

Every living soul
gone from the castle,

as if fleeing from a
plague or something.

Perhaps it's better
if we don't ask questions.

Oh, nonsense.
I made it a point to
mention to Orsini again

this afternoon, half-jokingly,
our astonishment at finding
the castle seemingly deserted

and in darkness.

In answer,
he gave me words.
Smooth words.

Even about your door having
been locked from the outside.

What did he say about my door?That you might
have been mistaken.

That perhaps
the door was only stuck.

Perhaps I was mistaken.

The sun is setting.

It is here. It is here,
reaching for me.

Eduardo, resist. Fight it with
all your strength and mind,

harder than you have
ever fought before.

I am trying to fight it.

Three months, Orsini.

Every night since
I took the throne.

How much longer
will I find the
strength to fight?

If only I could
be of greater help.

If only I could take
it upon my shoulders.

Leave me. I know what horror
it is to look at me.

I will leave you now,
but only to bring
you your supper.

Yes, come back.
We must not fail
to feed the beast.

I'm going to Eduardo
right now, get to
the bottom of this.

Father.

Father, please.

Then you know about it?
Eduardo told you?

No. I only know he's
in some grave trouble.

Trouble? All the more
reason why I should
have it out with him.

To decide whether
I want my daughter
involved in it or not.

Father, Father, I ask you
to have faith in him.

And in me.

Let me talk with him
again this evening.

I promise you, that if I think
there's anything you can do
to help Eduardo,

I'll let you know
at once.

Eduardo.

Eduardo, it's Althea.

ORSINI: I'm afraid
the roast fowl
is cold, Eduardo.

[SCREAMING]

The shock of
seeing you like this
was too much for her.

[PATRONS LAUGHING]

I had need of that.

From the look of your face,
you have need of another.

You look as if
you've seen a ghost.

If I didn't see one,
I heard one.

You sure it wasn't
a cat you heard yowling?

Luigi is a hostler.
He's closer to the castle
than any of us at night.

His room is
in the stables.

Tell us, Luigi.

What I heard was
a woman screaming.

Just as if she had
seen the Devil himself
inside the castle.

I'm no coward,
but her shrieks
curdled my blood.

I came flying here,
to be among humankind.

Come, come.
We're sitting here
like children

listening to stories
about hobgoblins.

I don't believe
in things supernatural.

You would, if you'd
been at that castle for
the past three months.

I tell you again,
what all of us know,

there is evil inside it.

So I spent a ducat
of Your Highness' money

on a few liters of wine
at the inn frequented
by the castle servants.

An investment
in loosened tongues.

Well spent, I hope.
At times you're a little
free with my money.

Go on, go on,
Grimaldi.

Well, I trust that
what I learned was worth
more than a ducat.

Come to the point,
man.

What do the servants think
takes place inside the castle
during the dark hours?

One of them, a laundress,
dared to whisper that
she believes His Grace

has allied himself
with Satan and celebrates
the Black Mass.

With that holier-than-thou
Orsini acting as his
altar boy?

It's ridiculous.

It may not be as ridiculous
as you think, Your Highness.

A hostler, with quarters
close to the castle,
fled to the inn last night

with a story of having
heard a woman's screams
from inside the castle.

Horrible shrieks
he called them,

and he was frightened
out of his wits.

But if you are
to be believed,

the only woman who could
be in the castle is the...
The Lady Althea.

Exactly so.

And why should
she scream horribly?

Now, what I've heard
may be no more than
old wives' tales,

but this I can assure
Your Highnesses,

the servants are in
a state of nerves
and dread.

And ready
to believe anything.

Grimaldi, could you
arrange it for me to

get into the castle
secretly at night?

I seem to have anticipated
Your Highness' thoughts.

The key to the courtyard
entrance to the wine cellar.

I, uh, borrowed it from
His Grace's wine steward
while we were singing,

locked in brotherly embrace.[CHUCKLES]

But he will miss it.
He'll report it lost.

Your Highness'
have a tendency
to underestimate me.

This is a duplicate
I contrived in the early
hours of this morning.

The wine steward's key
will be found on the floor

of the inn where
he will think
he dropped it.

Good man.

Your Highness flatters
my small talents.

Tonight, Your Highness?

Tonight.

You know now why I sent
a courier to Your Excellency,
with a contrived excuse,

in the hope of
delaying your coming.

But when you arrived,
I... I lacked the courage

to tell you of this horror.

I should never have
permitted you to enter,

no matter what the cost.

It's better that
I know the truth.

You say you're aware
of the nature of this
monstrous thing?

It is written
in the record
of judgments

pronounced
by Duke Francisco
while he reigned.

I need not recall
to you the character
of Eduardo's father.

He was not
a bad man in the
true sense of the word.

But he was harsh,
imperious, exacting.

He believed in his
divine right to rule,

and that all living things
in this domain,

together with
the product of their labor,

even their thoughts,
belonged to him.

Far different
from Eduardo's
way of thinking,

perhaps because I had
some small part

in forming Eduardo's
more liberal concepts
from his earliest years.

Orsini, please.

The explanation.

[SIGHS]

It was reported
to the Duke

that the alchemist-sorcerer
Scarlotti

had discovered a way
of transmuting base metals
into pure gold.

The Duke ordered
the man brought
before him and demanded

that he reveal the secret.

Scarlotti refused,

saying that the knowledge
was not meant for the
enrichment of any one man,

but belonged to all men.

The Duke, in a rage,
threatened Scarlotti
with the rack,

to torture
the secret from him.

Scarlotti had
no fear of torture.

And, in the end,
the Duke commanded that he be

entombed alive

for his defiance.

I can still see
his burning eyes,

hear his voice as
he spoke to the Duke
before he was taken away.

"Because power and greed
have made a beast
of the Duke of Alleta,

"I lay a curse
upon his house.

"For he who shall
follow you upon this throne,

"shall prowl by night
in the manner and in
the shape of a beast."

And he was
entombed alive?

Yes,

and because I protested,
secretly from me.

Probably in some remote
dungeon within these walls.

He was never
seen alive again.

And the masons
who walled him in were
sent out of the country.

The secret of his end
died with Duke Francisco.

I will not believe
there's nothing you can do,

that there's no answer.

Nor will I.

For having seen him,
I cannot think

of the sorcerer
as a completely evil man.

He may have relented
and in his tomb

left some clue as to
the removal of the curse.

But we've not been
able to find a trace of it.

Go back to Sardi.

Forget me.

Could I forget you?

Even with the whole
world between us?

Would it be so easy
for you to forget me?

Don't twist my meaning.

If you were ill
with a sickness of the flesh,

and I fled from you
as from a leper,

without waiting
to know whether
you would recover,

could I return to you?

Would you want me back?

Althea, if you are being
moved by compassion
or a sense of honor,

I can't bear your pity.

Not pity.

Love.

Don't try to deceive me
or yourself.

Now, right now,
when I'm holding you,

you're not seeing me.

You are remembering
the beast.

It is in your eyes.

You will never be able
to look at me again
without seeing the beast.

Go.

Go back to Sardi.

ALTHEA: If you were ill
with a sickness of the flesh,

and I fled from you
as from a leper,

without waiting
to know whether
you would recover,

could I return to you?

Would you want me back?

NARRATOR:
With an ancient diagram

of the intricate maze
of passageways
beneath the castle

as their guide,

Eduardo and Orsini
continued their daily search

for the tomb of Scarlotti,
the sorcerer.

This corridor is a branch
off the main corridor

to the wine cellar.

This wall is as solid
as the others.

There's no hollow sound,
no mark to show it has
been breached or re-sealed.

If Scarlotti's tomb is not
in this wing of the castle,

we are at the end.

[TAPPING]

[SOFTLY] Welcome to
Castle Alleta, Your Highness.

May I offer you
a refreshment?

[CHUCKLES] What a pity
His Grace was
not expecting you.

It's the first time
that I have ever been
welcome down here.

No, wait, listen.

It sounds as if someone
was tapping on the walls
down here.

[DISTANT TAPPING]

In that direction.

Yes.

Yes, perhaps
what we're searching for
is down here.

They seem to be searching
for something hidden
behind the walls.

Wait.

We may find out
what they're searching for.

Orsini, it is here.

We've searched too long.
The sun has set.

I feel it coming over me.

[GROANS]

Eduardo,
we've searched enough.

No.

Let's go back
to the dungeon.

It was like seeing
the hand of the Devil

reach out of the darkness
and transform His Grace
into a fiend.

Devils? Fiends?

You two probably
stopped at the inn
for a few measures,

to whet your courage
before venturing
into the castle.

What you thought
you saw came from
the bottom of a glass.

On the contrary, my dear.

If my memory
serves me right,

it came from the
very imaginative art
of a man I once knew...

Scarlotti.

And his black art.

You talk in riddles.

You've heard the
old wives' tale concerning
Scarlotti, the sorcerer?

Of course.
Ever since I was a child.

I'm beginning to think
the tale possesses more
truth than fiction.

You actually believe
the curse Scarlotti put
on the Duke Francisco?

"He who shall follow
after you upon this throne

"shall prowl by night

"in the manner and in
the shape of a beast."

He looked exactly that,
a beast.

And when did these
mysterious nighttime closings
of the castle begin?

Immediately after
the coronation of
Duke Eduardo.

Almost to the day.

Well, perhaps your
more enlightened mind

can think of some
other explanation for
what has been happening,

for what we have seen.

No.

To think that from his tomb,

Scarlotti has
given me the weapon
that I have needed

to rid myself of Eduardo.

Hail,
Duke of Alleta!

Oh, you can't.
The curse might fall upon you.

Listen to Scarlotti's
words again.

"He who shall
follow after you
upon this throne."

Eduardo followed
after Francisco, not I.

The curse was
meant for him.
None other.

Their Highnesses,
Prince Bruno
and the Princess Sybil.

Your Grace.
Your Excellency.

My Lady Althea.

Perhaps Your Grace
misunderstood my message?

I requested
a private audience.

I have no secrets
from my fiancee,

from her father,
nor from the Baron Orsini.

I am a little surprised
to find the Lady Althea
still here.

I see no reason why
she should absent herself

a few days
before her wedding.

I thought perhaps
the wedding might be canceled.

For the same reason
Your Grace canceled
the carnival.

For which I am
now sure he had
a very good reason.

You're wrong.

My wedding to the Grace
will not be canceled,

nor postponed
for any reason.

It would make a very
interesting union, indeed.

An unholy alliance.

Ah, now do not pretend
offense, nephew.

Or that you are
unaware of my meaning.

And what do you mean?

Since I am the next in line,
I'm here to demand

His Grace's immediate
abdication in my favor.

Or I will expose
his secret to the world.

Why this castle is shrouded
in darkness and mystery
from sunset to sunrise.

Why His Grace has never
dared to show himself
during those hours

since the day
of his coronation.

I will make public
what I know.

That the curse of Scarlotti
has fallen upon the son
of Duke Francisco

and that a creature
out of the foul
depths of hell

has succeeded to the throne.

You have no proof.

You are the proof, Eduardo.
The living proof.

Do you dare put it
to the test?

And if I needed more proof,
I see it written on her face.

And what do you see written
on my face, Your Highness?

Except the desire to drive
the point of this sword
through your heart.

Why, I only wish to do
Your Excellency and the
Lady Althea a kindness.

And you, too, nephew.

By permitting you to
step aside quietly,

without being driven out
by your own people.

As his trusted counselor,
Orsini, you should urge him

to submit to something
that both of you
must've known

to be inevitable
from the beginning.

I do not know how
you arrived at the truth,

but you will never
exploit it through me.

You're fools, all of you,
to lend him false hope.

When I come again,
it will not be in private.

And you will be glad
to flee this castle
like a slinking beast.

Go! Before I call down
another curse upon my head

for laying hands on you
in violence!

Your Grace.

He feels the crown
upon his head.

NARRATOR: With Bruno's threats haunting Eduardo,

the desperate effort
to find Scarlotti's tomb
began again.

Searching in the still
unexplored regions

deep within the foundations
of the castle,

Eduardo and Orsini
followed every possible clue,

hoping to find evidence
of the chamber

that had been sealed
many years before.

Then, suddenly,
there was faint hope.

[HOLLOW KNOCKING]

When I heard the hollow sound
beyond the wall,

I wanted to tear
the stones away
with my bare hands.

Oh, how I'm praying
that we find it,

and that it holds
all we seek.

These stones are
free now, Your Grace.
We can remove them.

EDUARDO: Remove them,
Mario. Quickly.

[GRUNTS]

Shall I squeeze through?
See what's on the other side?

Uh, no.

I want to discover that
for myself.

Thank you, Mario.
You may go now.
That is all.

Thank you.

In another moment,
we shall know.

ORSINI: Eduardo, what is it?

What have you found?

It must be Scarlotti.

ORSINI: It could be no one
but Scarlotti.

These are
the very garments he wore

when he appeared
before Duke Francisco.

No scrap of paper.

No sign of
what I'd hoped to find.

There must be!

Let's search everywhere.

ORSINI: Here. On the wall.

[ORSINI READING]

He was not
a creature of evil,

he did leave a clue.

Words. What do they mean?

The words seem clear to me.

Even if Scarlotti
did leave them as a riddle
to be solved.

Love is the clue.

The love of a woman,

a love so great that
she would not fear to
give herself in marriage

to the beast he created.

Because I've never feared
to marry you.

My love for you
has never wavered.

I'm so happy for you.

For us.

Let's be married immediately,
without waiting
for the announced date.

I'm ready now.

Then prepare
a proclamation, Orsini.

Tomorrow is decreed
the wedding date of
His Grace, the Duke of Alleta.

I shall never have written one
with a lighter heart.

Give him
a decent burial,
Orsini.

And then, after we took
the first two stones
from the wall,

Duke Eduardo,
for some reason,
sent us home.

You didn't see what was
behind the wall?

No, Highness.
It was all darkness there.

That must be the wall
we watched them sounding
just before the...

Did they say anything
that would explain

why they were so anxious
to find out what was
behind the wall?

Nothing I could
make head or tail of,

but they were
so happy and eager,

you might think
they expected to find
a hidden treasure of gold.

Grimaldi, you did well
to bring him to me at once.

I thought you'd be
as interested in his story
as I was at the inn.

You may go now.Thanks, Your Highness.

Why should they show
such a sudden happiness,

when they should feel
just the opposite?

Yes. What did they expect
to find behind that wall?

I must know.
And tonight.

A skeleton.
It's a tomb.

Scarlotti.
He always wore
garments like these.

This is why he was
never seen alive,

from the day
he appeared before
Duke Francisco.

What were Eduardo
and Orsini searching
for in a tomb?

Your Highness!

"Power and glory
and greed..."

[READING]

[CONTINUES READING]

Scarlotti.

This is what they
were searching for.

This is why
they dared defy me,

when I flung the truth
in their faces.

If any man knows the
secret of Scarlotti's end,

it is Orsini.

He hoped to find
this tomb, and in it,

some clue that might
lead to Eduardo's
release from the curse.

A woman's hand
shall hold the key?

Scarlotti's last taunt.

Even he could not
conceive of any woman

who could bring herself
to love the beast
that he had created.

But then he did not
know about the Lady Althea.

She could be the woman?

Well, she knows
that Eduardo is
accursed, and yet,

she refuses to postpone
her marriage to him.

She could well
be the woman.

And it could explain
the rumors you
heard this evening.

That Eduardo
had advanced

the date of his
wedding to tomorrow.

Ah, but these rumors
will prove to be wrong.

For I will
make sure tonight,

that there will
be no marriage.

Not with the Lady Althea.

[SCREAMING]

[GRUNTING]

Child! Child!

Althea, child.

Stand guard over him.

What is it?

The sound
of a struggle
awakened me.

And you...
You were gone.

Bruno and Grimaldi,
they tried to kill Althea.

Let me loose.

With your
wedding tomorrow,

you dare not
show yourself
like this tonight.

People are still about.

At the inn,
in the byways...

Orsini, this cannot
go unpunished.

Eduardo, it is
more important

that we know what
prompted this attack
on Lady Althea.

ORSINI: Look!

Their feet damp
with the night dew

left these imprints
in the dust.

Somehow they
obtained a key.

Come quickly.

Eduardo, come.

Now we know why
he tried to remove
the Lady Althea.

Somehow he

learned the secret
of Scarlotti's end,

came here, saw this,

and reasoned
the true meaning
of the riddle.

As we did.

That her love for you,

her woman's hand,
held the secret of the
lifting of the curse.

He will not harm her.

For tomorrow
he will be in chains.

Tomorrow
will be too late.

Bruno knows
at this minute

that it's life
or death for him.

And to live,
he must overthrow you,

destroy you
before the sun rises.

Marry her tonight.

Within the hour.

Father Amero's
known you all the
days of your life.

We can risk
the short drive
to the church.

When we tell him
of Scarlotti's curse
upon you,

he will understand.

He will want to help you.

To free you from it.

[PATRONS CHATTERING]

Silence.
Silence.

Listen to me.

For weeks now
you've whispered
amongst yourselves

concerning the mystery
of Duke Eduardo's castle,

and why it has
lain dark during
the night hours

like the
mouth of hell.

I will tell you,
all of you,

what I have told them,
your friends and neighbors.

That the castle
has become the
lair of a beast.

Half man, half animal,

spawned out of the
devilish obscenities

of witchcraft
and sorcery.

A beast with
fangs for teeth,

with claws for hands.

His head and his body
matted with the
hair of an animal.

His red eyes
glaring in the fury
of his blood lust.

I have seen this beast,

not an hour ago,
within the castle,

his talons clutched
at my throat,

and his fetid breath
panted in my face.

It is a beast
that stalks by night.

You, Spaldi.
Your first born lies

wasting away with
a fever for which
you have found no cure.

And there will be
no cure for her,

and all of you
will fall victims

to the same
devilish incantation,

unless we
purge ourselves
of this thing

harbored within
the castle.

I will kill this beast!

Let us kill the beast!

And I will lead you.

Now. This very moment.

To hunt him down,
to drag him out
of his den.

To send this beast back
to his master, Satan.

Follow me, then,
and arm yourselves
as we go.

[ALL CLAMORING]

Are you ready, child?Yes.

It won't be the
glittering state
wedding we'd planned.

Father, if it means
happiness for him,
for us,

I'd marry him
in a hovel,

with a wedding gown
of sack cloth.

Hurry, then.

[ALL CLAMORING]

Stop!

There's the Duke's carriage
coming from the castle.

Stop it.

[ALL YELLING]

Orsini,
what is it?

The shouting?
These torches?

It's Bruno.

At the head of a mob.

He's incited the
people to violence.

RODERICK:
Is there no other way?
They're coming toward us.

We will escape them,
if we reach the fork

in the road
before they do.

Turn back.
Turn back.

It's too late.

The only way we
can escape them
is to keep going.

Open the doors.

Let us see who flees
the castle so fast
at this time of night.

Drag them out.

[ALL GASP]

Behold the beast.

The monster of the castle.

Yes, you may well
look upon him in horror.

See who else tried
to escape with him.

Whatever your hatred
has brought upon me,

spare her.

Ah, this thing
whines of mercy.

Let's hear him bark.

He'll sit up and beg
before we get rid of him.

[ALL LAUGHING]

In spite of
what I look to be,

I am Eduardo,
your ruler.

He is Eduardo,
your ruler.

Can you imagine him,

that, with a crown
on his head,

sitting in judgment
over you?

[ALL LAUGHING]

I am guilty of nothing

but the desire
to save you
from his ambition

to rule in my place.

His place?

His place is
in a cage with
other foul beasts.

[ALL LAUGHING]

Hear me!

I did try to hide
the truth from you.

That a curse had
transformed me

into this,

a beast by night.

I had hoped to find
a release from it

before my secret
became known to you.

Have you forgotten
that the bands
have been published?

That he intended
tomorrow to be
his wedding day?

Look at her
and look at him.

The beauty
and the beast.

Would that not make
a lovely wedding?

[ALL LAUGHING]

He lies.

He is what
he looks to be.

A beast, who cast
his black spell
on my child.

Kill him and
stop this evil.

ALL: Yeah!

Wait!

Do you not know
that the hellborn

do not die
like humankind?

They rise from
their graves again.

There is only one
sure purge for evil.

The flame!
By burning!

[ALL CHEERING]

ALL: Burn, burn, burn.

Is that your judgment?

ALL: Yeah!

Then gather wood
to feed the flame.

[ALL CHEERING]

MAN: The flame.ALL: Yeah.

ALL: Burn! Burn!

Let it be done.

Althea, go back.

If she wants to
die with him,
let her.

The mark of the beast
is on her, too.

Put them both
in the torches.

Wait!

At least
listen to me.

If you believe
in his lies,

you do murder for him.

But the evil
you should fear
is in his heart,

not in this man
he seeks to destroy.

What he told you
of the spell cast
over him was truth.

He does not
deserve your hate,

but your prayers,
your compassion

and your love
for all he has
suffered innocently.

Love!

She asks us to love

that.

[ALL LAUGHING]

Yes, love that,

for an ugly face can
mask the goodness
hidden in one's soul.

I know now
the meaning of the words

I saw written
on the walls of
the sorcerer's tomb.

"Till out of love
with soul, fear free,

"a woman's hand
shall hold the key."

Scarlotti knew that...

That unless
it's strong enough

to triumph over all else,

over fear, over pride,

even over death,

love, even marriage,
are only empty words.

If you burn him,

then burn me with him.

Or I shall not live.

Eduardo.

I feel it.

Within me.

That I am free.

Deliverance.

It is still night,
but the beast is gone.

There is no escape
for you, Bruno.

Here and now,
I banish you
from Alleta forever,

and Grimaldi with you.

Yes, look at me.

See that I am Eduardo.

A man of flesh and blood.

A man who has been
made whole again

through the love
of a woman.

This woman,

who shall sit
by my side

for as long
as I live and
rule over you,

who will help me to be
worthy of your love,

and to govern with
justice and mercy
and understanding.

Go in peace.

The long dark
night has ended.

Forever.

[ALL CHEERING]