Hammamet (2020) - full transcript

In recent years

we have been in continual conflict

with the conservatism, the immobilism,

the rhetoric and the laziness

that ails politics in our country,

but we have contributed
to a long period of stability,

taking responsibility at the forefront.

With our contribution,

Italy has emerged from a crisis

of deep stagnation and lack of confidence.

In 1987, the Italian GDP



exceeded that of England.

We have become the fifth industrial
power in the world

after the United States, Japan,

Germany and France,

gaining ground in the scale of values

and in international prestige.

The medal that
will commemorate this convention

in this factory
full of memories and values

of the socialist,

working-class and democratic tradition,

is dedicated to Sandro Pertini
whose portrait it bears.

To Sandro Pertini we shall dedicate

the socialist victory in June!

I've lost a zero.



1,097 votes, secretary,

of which 1,067 are valid.

Elected with 995 votes,

equal to 92.3%.

A so-called Bulgarian-style majority.

Talking of Bulgarians,
were there any here?

- No one.
- Maybe you didn't recognize them.

You know that Italian communists
are like radishes,

red on the outside,
but white and tasty on the inside.

Go ahead, I'll be right there.

Some friend you are,

at last I see you.

Have you eaten?

- Come to lunch with us.
- No, I want to talk to you alone.

What is it?

They come into my office,

at night, but they're not thieves.

They open drawers, go through the books.

- They are looking for evidence.
- Evidence of what?

We have to do something.

What?

The opposite of what you just said.

You didn't hear my speech.

I heard enough to realize
you're still keeping your eyes closed

and if you try to open them,
those near you cover them at once.

The Church has received money for
centuries and no one ever condemned it.

But we're not the Church,
we're dogs that have entered it.

- And they use sticks on dogs.
- What frightens you?

You write me a letter a day,
you see danger everywhere.

Don't you like your comfortable new life?

My life is not comfortable.

Take a vacation, go with your wife.

- She's such an intelligent woman.
- She left, last month.

I'm very sorry.

It's bad being on your own.

I'm not on my own, I've got my son.

He'll be grown up by now.

- What does he do, study?
- Law.

And you're not pleased?

Write to me about these things,
not your paranoia!

My private life is not important,

let's talk about the party.

If it goes on like this,
there's a risk it won't survive you.

It's bad to sleep in a cold bed.

You lived for twenty years with
a beautiful woman in a nice house,

that's what you don't survive.

You always measure things
with the wrong metric,

you speak of world systems instead
of dealing with issues in your house.

Can't you see it's all imploding on us?

These people who clap for you
are profiteers,

they're the ones who climb
aboard the victor's cart.

Why didn't you get up on stage
and say these things?

I'll never speak,

others will do it, many others.

And what will they have to say?

I'll leave that to your imagination.

What have you come here for?

To be the good soul.

The angel of deliverance!

You're a little man who plays it safe.

- My resignation.
- It's not me you should give it to.

- You put me there!
- Careful what you do.

Are you threatening me?

Go home, Vincenzo, get some rest.

You should have the money.

Shall we go?

Tunisia, end of last century.

Stop!

It will be easier
after crossing the river!

- How much longer to the camp?
- Two hours at most.

How did you get here?

Jeremiah, come down...

He got in through there!

- How?
- He climbed the wall.

- I saw him.
- He went that way.

He must be hiding.

- He can't get out of here.
- Let's look for him.

Let's split up!

President, please, go inside.

Please.

- President, go back inside!
- No, I'm staying here.

- It's dangerous.
- I'm staying here!

There's danger, President.
It's dangerous for you.

- Dad, come back inside.
- You go back in!

Where's Francesco?

Francesco, hurry up and get inside!

- Can't you see what's happening?
- Mom, look.

C'mon, move it.

Speak, who are you?

Bring him here!

"I believed in a man who was once a giant,

but now he's more like
the dwarves who surround him,

those who say he's right
every minute of the day,

the only thing he cares about.

You really didn't know the disease
had become an epidemic?

There was a price for everything
and everybody demanded it.

You need a permit? Pay.

You want the contract? Pay.

They're delaying your pension? Pay.

I know, you'll say: 'That's right.

Everybody did it.'

And we, precisely because of it,

were not more blackmailable than others.

You were mistaken,

our adversaries had been preparing
this plan for some time, to eliminate us,

but all you thought about
was sculpting your monument.

And you didn't see that all those rats,

the ones you kept at your side,

were gnawing at the pedestal.

I don't think you stole,

to do that, you need
to be cynical and you're not.

You're simply a victim of yourself,

of your pride and boundless arrogance...

The pool water
has carried away many words,

the stab wounds have remained.

Did your father
really think that about me?

My trusty Vincenzo?

I never opened this letter,

I just had to deliver it, in person.

And why?

He said: "Watch his face as he reads it.

And then tell me about it".

It's late now, you've taken too long.

But I'll tell you a nice story.

I'll tell you who your father was.

We'll have plenty of time,
from today, you'll stay in my house.

Better than rotting
in a Tunisian jail cell,

wouldn't you say?

Wouldn't it have been easier
if he'd called like everyone else?

At least he wouldn't have
been reduced to that state.

What if the soldiers had shot him?

- They would have killed him.
- He would have had it coming.

Take Grandpa his coffee.

What a circus.

- General.
- Commander, coffee.

Excellent and abundant.

Well, what news do you bring?

Are you ready to face the day?

Are you ready?

Mom!

What do the doctors say?

Why don't I remember you?

I never followed my father around.

Where were you when he died?

At a friend's house.

I heard about it on TV.

Don't touch me! Keep away from me!

It's been like that for ages,
it's nothing to worry about.

Don't even think about amputating.

I'm sorry, President,
but you're risking gangrene.

I don't even know if I can save your life.

I'm leaving!

Let go of me!

Dad, calm down.

The leg can be saved.

Doctor, how long have you
been a surgeon? For forty years?

You've saved many people's legs.

- Normal people, never a president.
- I'm not president anymore!

Let them in!

Everyone must see this leg.

They say I have fun in Tunisia!
This is how I have fun!

Send in the photographers! Fuck!

There are no photographers.

Go in, please don't tire him.

Come closer, take a seat.

See the state I'm in?

It's going to be all right,

you'll get better.

Time's up.

Don't say that.

Did you ever see your father suffer?

Many times.

He was a sensitive man.

No, much more than that.

Among so many scoundrels,
your father was...

a pearl in the dirt.

The comrade who was all family and party,

a party member without blemish,

a leech,

who, like many, lived off favors from me.

Did he have a mistress?

I don't know.

There's usually a woman in the mix,

one who makes you believe
you fuck like a god,

so it goes to your head.

Toward the end
your father played at being a judge,

he set himself up...

as an inquisitor.

Him!

A politician needs
to see things from above,

he needs to know
that venial sins will be ignored,

because there's an ultimate...

more important motive to be obeyed.

But an ordinary Vincenzo
can't understand this.

He threw himself out the window,

believing he was expiating
the sins of others.

Did it do any good?

I pay for those sins in life,

every day.

In that letter
the death knell rings only for him.

I'm tired.

Garibaldi was wounded

He was wounded in the leg

Garibaldi who commands
Garibaldi commands his soldiers

Garibaldi had a crony
His name was Nino Bixio

He came from Busto Arsizio
and enrolled in the Thousand

They reached Calatafimi
And faced the French

Who were surprised
By the fury of the islanders

Garibaldi loved Anita
Who was his favorite

But the love didn't last long
Because then Anita died

General.

Will you tell me if the leg
is still attached?

Yes? Very good, thank you.

So, what news do you bring?

Have they landed? Yes? Where?

Maybe in Marsala?

That's where they landed.

And how many were there?

Three? So few?

More!

- Twelve.
- More than that.

- Thirty.
- More than that!

- Forty.
- Go higher, there were lots!

- Fifty.
- I'll give you a clue: more than 100.

A lot more.

- A hundred and eighty.
- More!

- Three hundred?
- Keep going, you're getting there.

- A thousand?
- A thousand! Bravo!

There were a thousand.

Hello?

Who gave you my number?

They write: "He accepts the nomination."

What does "accept" mean?
You're the ones who nominated him!

You! You!

He's a judge, who could have
investigated you, but didn't.

Is that any way to thank him?

Or is it part of a deal?

They chose the worst,

a guy who said
I made up the illness to avoid court.

Whereas in fact,
they nearly cut off my leg.

The Parliament is held in check!

Who makes the laws now, the people?
Or the prosecutors?

Is this your revolution? You can keep it!

It's false.

It's false like its heroes.

That kid, Fausto, where is he?

- I don't know.
- Get him to come here.

He's not in the house.

I asked you to keep track of him.

You can't do anything for him.

Good morning.

French?

German?

Ah, Italian!

Wife? Girlfriend?

Everything beautiful for beautiful woman.

Earrings? Bracelets?

Berber necklaces made by hand,
silver brooches.

Many other things... l make good price.

Red coral, pink coral,

blue coral.

I want to buy a gun.

We'll be hunting each other down
till we die.

I don't care, as long as we're together.

If you're thinking of another woman,
stop, you're right only for me.

We're made from the same mold,
we're bad, you and me.

That's why we'll get on.

Did he find the plane? Where is it?

- I'm in charge.
- I noticed.

- Where's the money?
- Upstairs.

Get the suitcases to take it away.

- Put something in for me, too,
- I already have.

The glamorous appearance of our showgirls,

both godmothers and chastisers
of our contestants.

You were much better
at climbing in this time.

I didn't climb in,
they recognized me at the door.

Like someone who lives here.

But you do live here.

Come.

- Have you eaten?
- I'm not hungry.

I am.

I want some pasta, but you make it
because I don't know how.

It's a secret, pasta is poison for me.

I'll wash the dishes.

That way, we'll get rid of the evidence.

Everyone's sitting in the board meeting,
the door opens

and he enters, your father,
but he doesn't dare step in.

Everyone looks at him,
they grow worried, they're right,

because they're thinking
of a sudden strike, an accident...

I smile at him and motion him
to sit at the table.

I have him sit in the chair next to me,

I introduce him and then
everyone starts to laugh.

But only had Vincenzo not put on a tie,

but he hadn't even taken off his overalls.

He stayed dressed as a worker.

It would have been better
if had stayed a worker.

He wouldn't have become...
how did you define it?

"A leech"...

I never said anything like that.

You spoke about him as if he were a thief,

a profiteer...

When did I say these lovely things?

In the hospital, the other day.

I'll never have to set foot
in there again,

they drug me.

You know
I don't really think those things,

otherwise you wouldn't have come back.

There was a car in front of the house,

they were spying on us.

Dad stopped going out,

he was always there watching the news
with a suitcase ready.

Packing his suitcase in front
of the carabinieri vexed him.

Come with me.

Come!

Do you recognize him?

What did I say?
He never took those overalls off.

The day of the arrest they tell the press

to splash you over the front page.

Presumption of guilt before the verdict.

And then the interrogations,

they wanted confirmation
of what they already knew.

Money, that they called "dations".

And names.

Mine, whoever named me
was immediately released,

or else you'd have gone back to prison.

My father was interrogated, too.

I know.

And he got out right away.

He didn't name me,

I knew him too well.

What's in that backpack
you take everywhere?

- You want to check?
- I'm not a cop.

The term "the people" indicates

the communion of intent
that animates a nation.

The underlying notion of "the people"

nurtures the universal
self-awareness of a nation.

Almost supernaturally.

Am I going too fast?

But now it's no longer
"the people" as a nation,

instead, it's just "people".

The call is not to "the people",

one does not speak
in the name of "the people",

but rather just to "people".

"People", a term that alludes

to anonymous individuals,

without distinction of history,

of class...

Why didn't you tell me he's back?

You always get attached to misfits.

He's just someone who's suffered.

And he's intelligent.

You've said that about many
who have turned their backs on you.

Intelligence is a double-edged sword,
but I prefer it.

What can you do
with the loyalty of an idiot?

- I'm going to get Mom.
- Take him with you.

I want him to run an errand for me.

It mustn't be easy for you.

What?

Being your father's daughter.

I'm proud of it.

I always had to share
my father with the party, too.

We always had a guest at the table,

politics, at lunch and dinner.

Your father was a comrade
who gave his life.

- And who are you?
- The only one who loved him.

That was your duty.

I'm sorry that you lost him,
but what did you come here for?

To deliver a letter.

Don't play with me!

It's enough the way you came
into our house, like a criminal.

Are you scared of me?

Get out. Get out!

Mom, Merry Christmas!

My most heartfelt regards, madam,
and Merry Christmas...

Have you seen the latest?

Go take a look in the garden.

You simply turn this switch and
you'll have everything you want:

drama, comedy, musical entertainment...

The plane landed here, in Italy.

In here, there's a really bad,
dangerous guy.

So, the Americans arrive
and they want to kill him.

These are the marines and they say:

"Give us the bad guy or we'll shoot!"

But my grandpa is in charge of Italy.

And he says: "Look, he's not a bad guy,

I won't give him to you,
because this is our home".

And he sends the carabinieri,
and this is them.

"Give us the bad guy", say the Americans.

And my grandpa: "Never!"

So the Americans
piss their pants and leave.

And we win the war!

Turn that thing off!

Don't you dare!

You know why I like this beach?

Because it's dirty?

Because on a clear day you can see Italy.

It's like my wife was born here.

Sometimes I say to her:
"Why don't you leave?

Go to Milan, see your family,
your friends, take your mind off things".

"Take my mind off things? Off what?"

She and I were distant for years,

only here am I her husband again.

She plays at looking after me,
but she's not capable of it.

Luckily.

Anita is something else again.

When I look at her I feel
the harm they're doing me,

because that harm gets to her first.

And she can't accept it.

And your son?

I know what he's thinking of doing.

They say "political inheritance",
but I'm not leaving him an inheritance,

if anything, it's a curse.

He worries me.

Like that boy over there,

he's fragile, insecure,

I don't know
if I'll have time to help him.

I've made him a general.

Are you hungry?

That means I'll eat your share, too.

- Aren't they eating?
- Who?

Your wife and daughter?

They're too fussy,

worse for them.

Sorry, the sand makes it hard for me.

Just smell that!

General!

- Is the chow ready?
- I don't know.

Go and check, run! Run!

He needs to lose a bit of weight, though.

I found out the day
we won the party convention

that I was sick.

At the finest moment in my political life.

The comrades were celebrating,

applauding me, I was thirsty, too thirsty.

The more I drank, the thirstier I became.

They say it's hereditary,

it can't be cured, you live with it.

You live with it until the end.

Like life itself.

Why did you stop? Keep going.

Keep going!

What did they say at the hospital?

They didn't even let us in.

I'll speak to them today.

Your wife needs to be admitted,
she needs treatment.

What the fuck are you doing? Piss off!

Wait for me over there.

I'm sorry.

I'll speak to someone who matters,
even the minister.

I'll see to it personally.

Don't bother, sir.

It is Allah's will.

As we say: the poor die first.

We'll do everything we can
to see Allah keeps waiting.

Be strong.

Bye.

If you find someone in need
you have to help them,

but not if you're in politics.

I don't get it.

If you're in politics
you have to help everyone.

There was a lot of poverty
in Milan, too, you know.

During the war I was an altar boy,

I went around with a priest
who gave the last rites.

The first dead person I saw was like me,

a kid.

I thought: a bomb must have killed him.

It was hunger,

that you have never known
because of your father

who didn't allow it.

C'mon, I'll take you somewhere
I feel at home,

it's full of people who like me.

You could shoot a whole film there.

Where's your security?

In some dive bar, as usual.

- Can they do that?
- I order them to.

So they're not up my ass all day long.

When he was in a good mood,
your father did impersonations.

He was very good at it.

- He did me, identical.
- I don't doubt it.

But he did everyone.

He did that
Christian Democrat from lrpinia.

"Even with our political diffewences,

our commitment must be an instwument

of Parliament."

Hilarious.

Guys, see that?

What do they want?

They're tourists.

I think it's him.

It is him, yes!

He's here at the beach
living the high life.

Who is it, Dad?

The most disgusting thief we've ever had.

- Why, what did he steal?
- He stole Italy.

Where have you stashed the treasure?

- What treasure are you talking about?
- The money you stole.

I didn't steal it, you threw it at me.

They were coins
that I picked up one by one,

then I deposited them
into an offshore account.

That's my treasure, small change.

Thief, you ran away!

Have you come especially?

Have you come especially
to my home to look for it?

- Thief! Go back and stand trial!
- My home is open.

You can dig in the garden to look for it,

lift up the beds.

Where did you find that change,
in kids' piggy banks?

Did you break
the alms boxes in sacristies?

Did you attack beggars?

On trial!

Shame on you!

Let's go home.

Is it raining?

No, it's a nice day.

Then why do I feel so awful?

- What do you feel?
- Your brother needs to have another kid.

- He just had his first.
- One's not enough.

Help me convince him,
if I tell him it's worse.

You need to have at least two kids,

because if one dies, you've got the other.

Not having any kids
is the most terrible thing.

Cut.

Cut, cut,

then I'll give you a thousand lire
like when you were little.

Is that Vincenzo Sartori's son over there?

- Didn't they commit him?
- Commit him where?

What's he doing at our place?

Ask him, you know each other, right?

A few months at high school,
then one day he disappeared.

Francesco! Did you see
he's been made a general?

- Who made you a general?
- My grandpa.

Do you remember
that first night when I met him?

I hated him straight off and I told you,

because I don't mince words
and I'm sincere.

Then I wondered: how could you
marry a man like that?

Who doesn't respect women and uses them?

But then I changed my mind, you know?

I know, dear, I know it so well

that we risked not being friends anymore.

But time is the best medicine, right?

And now we're all here
celebrating Easter like sisters.

How's Dad? What do the doctors say?

He needs a bypass but with diabetes
the operation's risky.

- Even worse in Tunisia.
- And does he know?

They've told him every way possible.

I can imagine how he took it.

If you can imagine it,
why don't you do something?

You're always the same, you think
I'm distant because I can't stand him.

I only do what you're not able to.

Really? So why is
nothing happening in Italy?

Things are starting to move.

But it takes time, it's only normal.

In political speak, Dad has to die.

It would be the perfect solution,

to get everyone out of a spot,
but this time they won't win.

And while you play the loving daughter,
I'm fighting for him.

It's the least you can do,
he's your father.

Why doesn't he speak to me?

You know what he's like.

It's his way of saying
how much he misses you.

So, in Khartoum, the White Nile

mixes its waters
with those of the Blue Nile.

Look there's an illustration.

Today we'll make an exception.

Not all of it, though.

It's almost like a normal Easter.

Is your daughter leaving because of me?

No, actually,
it's just as well you're here.

She needs distraction.

Do you know how to give injections?

What's this? Always with this backpack.

You're like a bersagliere.

Money for politics
is like weapons for warfare.

You can't do politics if you don't
have money to pay even a small thing

like rent for the local branch office.

Then there are electoral campaigns,

party conventions,

newspapers to present your ideas in.

I'm sorry if I disappoint anybody,

but democracy costs.

Democracy costs, but nobody
understands the pharaonic apparatuses.

Even suckling pigs cost,

singers in squares cost,

raffles cost.

Everyone did that
in every square in Italy.

The political party funding law has been
violated, by everyone, though.

By all the parties.

That's why Parliament
had to find the solution,

it had to be a political solution,
not a judicial one.

But the violations are crimes.

The major opposition party wasn't touched.

I deduce that it wasn't justice,

but something very different, dark...

and manipulatory.

One can't do justice
by abusing one's own power,

threatening prison to get names,

confessions, co-plaintiffs.

In the prosecutor's office in Milan
there was a bright spark

who said: "We don't jail them
to make them talk,

but if they talk, we release them."

You were convicted
with a definitive judgment.

Twice.

The latest, a few weeks ago.

In absentia.

As usual, on the basis of testimony

obtained, we have seen how,

and of prejudice:

he must have been aware of it.

That holds only for me.

But it won't end.

It won't end.

Why don't you appear in court?

I'm not going to someone who says:
"if this guy doesn't speak,

I'll lock the cell and melt down the key".

I didn't make that up,
it was in the papers, he said it.

Cut that bit out.

Turn it off.

- How was it?
- Good.

I thought that sooner or later
you'd make friends.

- Who?
- You and my keeper.

Anita.

You don't know what she'd do
if she saw me now.

She thinks that you have to
add years to your life,

but I say you have to
add life to your years.

- Care for some?
- No, thanks.

In Arab sweets there are
all the local fragrances.

These are my favorites,

in fact, I save them till last.

- Did he make a fuss?
- He didn't even wake up.

You're such a good boy!

I tried to do it once,
he screamed like a wild animal.

Sit next to me, let's talk for a bit.

I'm rather tired.

I've wanted to ask you something
for a long time.

- What happened to your mother?
- Missing.

The last postcard
she sent me was from Laos.

What was she doing in Laos?

What she's always done.

The adventuress.

I'm glad to have you here in my home.

Thank you.

Good night.

It was used in the Second World War,
but it's still here.

Incredible.

There were English soldiers in here.

The Germans must have hounded them
for miles, then something happened.

They ran out of fuel,
or maybe they surrendered.

The communists sent tanks
into the squares to restore order.

Do you know why?

Because a tank doesn't have a human face.

With a gun it's different,

you have to show your face.

Would you be capable of it?

Of shooting someone
looking them in the eye?

It's in your backpack, isn't it?

What?

Your gun.

I know you've got one.

Is it because of your father?

You want to punish me,

for something I didn't do.

You've been preparing for a while.

See them?

If you get your gun out,

point it at me,

they'll empty their machine-guns into you,

but as soon as they open fire,
I'll grab you and we'll go together.

Or not,

I want to suggest the perfect crime,

turn on the camera,
I'll tell you things no one knows,

or even imagines.

My truth.

You can use it as you like,
I give you my permission.

That way you won't leave empty-handed.

How's the light here? Come.

Come, turn the camera on.

Is it good here?

I'm ready.

President, is everything all right?

Yes, everything's fine.

Where's the young man?

I don't know, around here somewhere.

Remember that terrible figure we cut?

When?

In London, with the Queen.

Do you remember?

Barely anything.

I was thinking about it,
it still makes me laugh.

I don't recall cutting
a poor figure with the Queen.

They'd told me so much about
Her Majesty, about etiquette.

I didn't know a word of English.

Me neither.

Actually, we cut a poor figure together.

There were interpreters.

Yes, but I got it into my head

that I had to do it on my own,

I prepared a speech

and practiced it with native speaker

until I was perfect.

- And then?
- Don't you remember?

The entire speech, word for word,

in the end, I said it in French!

You did the right thing.

You showed the perfidious Albion what for.

Sorry to bother you.

- What are you doing here?
- Help me meet him.

Just once.

- Maybe the last time.
- There was already a last time.

I don't want war, not with you.

Does he say he doesn't want to talk to me?

I call and each time
a different voice answers.

Or is it you pretending
not to recognize me?

You say: "The President is out".

What kind of lie is that?
At least make up something else.

You shouldn't have come here.

I'm staying until you set up a meeting.

I can stay months, years.

I'm not moving from here.

Anita!

These are old,

I'm going to throw them out.

Leave it, please.

What are they doing here?

Your mother...

She knows I'm easy to please.

Women like her are back in fashion,

they're interviewed,
they get invited on TV shows.

And they all talk.

She never did,

not even when it was to her advantage.

Who says it wouldn't be
to her advantage today?

You talk like that because you're mean.

I must have got that from somebody.

What on earth did you see in her?

She was a part of my life.

I still think about her,

the more I'm alone,
the more I think of her.

She'll be the last thing I see

before I close my eyes.

- Let's go back.
- We're here now.

You look splendid.

- She gave me this shirt.
- I put it out especially.

Take all the time you want,
I'll go for a walk.

Yes?

Who is it?

It's me.

It's you!

I'd lost hope.

I know how hard it was
for you to come here.

Much more than for me crossing the sea.

The room's ugly,

but there's a big bed.

Will you sleep with me tonight?

- How did you know I was here?
- My daughter.

Who knows what she said, she hates me!

- She brought me here.
- I don't believe it.

Why did she do it?

I'd like to know that, too.

It's hot.

I've missed you.

A lot.

You've just shaved?

You look good.

It's not like they say on TV.

I wanted to come because I was frightened.

Let's not talk about sad things now.

Now you're here with me.

Like I remembered you,

maybe a little thinner, let me see.

I have to go, I'm sorry.

I'm sorry.

But why?

Did I say something wrong?

I don't need much.

Half what I feel for you.

You left suddenly,
you were thinking of yourself,

of your family, it was right, but me?

- You were in good hands.
- Not so good.

It was hard for me, too.

Everything will be all right.

I have so many things to tell you.

To remember them all, I wrote them down.

We'll talk later, but now just lie down.

Lie down, you must be tired.

Come.

Come on.

There.

Like that.

No one can understand you the way I do.

Do you maintain that only
an international mandate

can allow the UN

to undertake a definitive act of force?

I don't believe that it will come to

such a dramatic, such a terrible solution.

I believe the raids have led

Serbia to a result

for which Miloŝević will not
be able to hold out any further.

I believe that even
if the current diplomatic effort

were not to be concluded immediately,

the only way out
for Miloŝević is surrender.

The deployment of ground troops
with what it entails,

seems like a distant hypothesis to me.

If a necessity of this kind were to arise,

I don't think it could happen without
a resolution from the United Nations,

to which the Italian government
would have to comply.

In that case, a problem would arise

because we know that three
of the parties that make up the majority

are absolutely against this solution,

so at that time the government would...

Look who's here!

But weren't you dead?

You don't die
of prostate anymore, my friend.

And you? How are they treating
you in your new homeland?

Hamdullah, as they say here.

Hamdullah, means all's well.

Cross the threshold of my palace.

A beautiful house, but nothing special,

it's not even by the sea.

So, where's your court?

- Where are you hiding it?
- I'm hiding my health from you, too.

But you look very well,

younger than you did five years ago.

It's Tunisia that's not good for you,
go somewhere else, travel.

- You still got a passport?
- Yes, more than one.

In one, in the photo I'm wearing a wig,
in another a false beard.

A mustache...

No, no, pasta for me, too.

I asked for pasta,

go to the kitchen and ask for pasta.

If they make a fuss,
say it's for our guest,

he's very hungry,
he's always been a glutton,

for everything, am I right?

It's true, no one knows me
better than you.

In my party they were all jealous of how
well we understood each other.

Adversaries, never enemies.

How I'm used to it.

You, a little less.

You starting again?
I'll kick your butt out of here.

With all due respect for your seniority.

As ill-mannered as ever,

conceited, arrogant,

boorish.

Everything a politician should not be.

And you're a great politician,
but you're digging your own grave.

A sermon!

All I needed was a sermon,
now I can die in peace.

No, you have to live to be a hundred.

On the understanding that I go after you.

In fact, I'll carry your coffin
on my shoulder.

Even though it'll weigh a ton.

So...

Why are you here?

You've always been masters
of the turn of phrase,

I say and I don't say...

You invented obscure talk.

Neither lies nor truth,
only smoke sold well.

Smoke gets in your eyes,

it blinds you.

- So, what do you want?
- Me? Nothing.

To reassert our friendship, that's all.

I understand you're no longer used to it.

The first clear words,

pity I don't believe them.

And you're wrong, as usual.

What would you say if I told you

I want to join your party?

That you're too late,

the party doesn't exist anymore.

Another mistake, the most serious,

the party's dissolving
because you insist on staying here.

- From where you can't defend yourself.
- But that's all I do!

The problem is another.

When I'm gone,

who will defend me?

Sometimes you have to bow down

to be able to straighten your back.

You know I like horses,
I go to the races, I bet.

But no one can tell
if I'm excited or nervous.

If I win or if I lose,

I'm always calm, unflappable.

You see...

I don't have the vice of gambling.

It's not a vice,

if it were a vice you'd have it.

You're not eating your pasta?
It'll get cold.

- Do you want it?
- You really don't want it?

- No, it's cold now.
- No, give it here.

In other times, this would
have been called a reshuffle.

You don't want to taste it?

Go on, eat up.

Eat up.

The famous "snout in the trough".

Maybe down here you don't realize,

but in Italy things are changing,
the worst is behind.

Behind who?

There's no point in judges being harsh,

in your condition, house arrest
is a foregone conclusion.

You just need to let a little time pass.

They need to forget you.

They need to forget me, why?

You don't want to be
getting back into politics.

You left politics,

you and all the others
when you bowed your heads.

Were we all supposed
to go into exile, like you?

You were the ones who assented.

All silent.

They were a little bit right, though.

We broke the law,

we took money.

To use for politics.

Yes, but some of it stuck to our fingers.

You rushed off to tell them that, too?

They already knew,

they just wanted me to tell them.

And I complied.

I spoke for days, for months,

and they wrote it all down,
who paid, who took.

They even told me certain names,

I didn't know them.

You're saying they're thieves?
Sure, I confirm it.

I even went in with a temperature

and in the end, they thanked me.

They didn't treat me
with such consideration.

Money... public money.

Once they told me that money's like water,

you empty a bucket of water
on the ground and then it's gone,

you don't know where it's gone.

Why didn't you understand these things?

Are you looking for my treasure, too?

Think of your own.

Unlawful funding? Whoever refused them?

But it was not all for the apparatus.

What apparatus? That army of whores?

I gave money to people
fleeing dictatorships.

Too bad no one noticed.

Another mistake.

Ours is a ferocious country,

but in the end it forgives.

Weren't you the one
who said that in politics

only mediocre men answer questions?

Nice phrases
for a book you give at Christmas.

I have two convictions
hanging over my head,

harsh and unjust.

If I return, I'm kneeling before
those who handed them down,

if I stay, I'll continue to weigh
on their conscience.

Which do you think is best?

They want me dead.

Fine, then let them pay.

Let them pay, too.

I'd like to understand
with my little mortal eyes

what will come later.

After death, I mean.

Is it true that God doesn't exist?

If he does, I'll be the last to know.

That's it?

He only writes now

to say nothing.

A page of nothing!

He wants to help you, he speaks
on behalf of the government.

And you wasted time with him!

Idiot!

If he'd ignored me like the others,
at least I'd respect him.

Anyway, he's always been
a despicable creature.

Cardiac decompensation,

complicated by a significant
alteration in liver function.

But the news is
we've discovered a tumoral mass,

located in the right kidney.

It has to be operated on urgently
and the kidney removed.

But the problem is the heart,
it might not withstand it.

Surgery in his condition is very risky.

I've always trusted them,

they've always taken good care of me.

At times, perhaps, I might have

disobeyed them.

Why aren't they doing anything?

They're afraid.

Really?

When the surgeons from Milan saw
the operating room, they fled.

The equipment is falling apart.

Well, let's get dressed and go home.

Let's go to Italy, Dad.

Everything's ready,
we have a plane at our disposal.

No one will touch you on arrival,
I have their word.

And you believe them?

You really think
they'd handcuff you at the airport?

In the operating room?

They'd be shooting themselves in the foot.

They don't want your death,
they don't need it.

They can hardly wait!

I gotta piss.

Madam, come!

The President needs you.

Go get me new clothes from home,

a suit.

Get me a white shirt, too.

Don't worry about a tie.

They wanted to send
an ambulance, I said no.

There'll be a car at the airport,

anonymous, like this.

From there,
we'll go directly to the hospital.

Until they take blood samples
you can only drink water.

Then no one will deny you
a cappuccino and a croissant.

Half a croissant and coffee without sugar.

At least I'll see Milan again.

Dad!

It was a race against time.

And the lamp in the operating room
didn't stay still.

But we did it.

Your father's strong, he'll make it.

They did it.

How did the operation go?

His son!

Tell everyone,

the "C" case is not closed.

I'm leaving serene.

Don't worry.

Is he back?

Who?

Fausto.

I was very fond of his father,

I think of him often.

Last night I had a dream.

I'm in parliament, but not in my seat,

the one I occupied for years,

I'm near the exit, with the ushers.

Maybe I'm an usher, too.

Someone's speaking
on the government benches,

but the applause

interrupts them,

more than applause,
it's explosions, ovations.

The deputies are all standing,

the Chamber almost collapses.

And that's when I notice
that it's the judge.

He's the one speaking.

Then, with one of those leaps

that happen only in dreams,

I join him where he's speaking,

I cut in to say

awful things about him.

Which are true for me,
but not for the Chamber,

which remains silent,

almost embarrassed.

The more I insist, the harder I go,

the more the judge laughs.

He looks at me
and laughs in my face, unperturbed.

Outside parliament
there's a labyrinth of alleys,

blind corners, I move easily through them,

but in my dream I get lost.

Maybe because I'm running away.

I don't know where to go, so I turn back,

as I turn the corner,

there they are, deputies, ministers,

they all come towards me.

The judge is there too, I'm ready.

They'll attack me, I think.

It doesn't matter, I wait.

But instead they're smiling.

The first is the judge
who shakes my hand: "Bravo".

He says: "Your words have opened my eyes.

They have opened all our eyes
because they are true, direct.

We should all do what you do.

Be courageous...

Courageous?

Where's the courage
in speaking badly of others?

Spreading poison?

That's what they do,
I don't do these things.

And if I did it this time, I was wrong.

I was wrong.

It's a dream, dreams are strange.

Don't get wet.

Do you need anything?

A glass of water.

Dad!

It took you a long time to come back.

I've been waiting for you,
I don't know for how long.

What did you do this time?

What did you do?

Rude!

Scoundrel!

Wrongdoer!

Thug!

Evil!

Good qualities?

None.

Damned!

- Come.
- lphigenia!

We're talking about politics here,
a noble thing.

Do you mean
it takes balls to be in politics?

Lots, which is why Parliament
is full of ballsacks!

- Bingo!
- Variety!

But what if you want to govern?

- So you need one in the Center.
- Between Right and Left?

You're talking about the Center.

I call the one in the middle...

- Don't be vulgar!
- Vulgar, me? Check this out.

Ladies and gentlemen, my lphigenia,

here we have a true prime minister,

in fact, the prime minister
of prime ministers!

- Do you know him?
- Who doesn't?

To know him is to love him,
if you do, you're successful.

- Or else?
- You gotta work.

Bingo!

Now choose!

Pay check A or pay check B?

- I prefer plain payola.
- Too late, they took it all!

Because any self-respecting
political chief is a thief!

I mean, chief.

Chief, thief, it's all the same.

- What if the chief is a thief?
- One, two...

He steals from the state and the party
He steals candy from a kid

You bet he did

He steals from his dad, from his mom
He steals from his niece

His stealing will never cease
The rip-off family!

Some time later, in Milan.

All he talks about is you and your father.

The tragedy has deeply affected him,

as it has me, as well.

Many have him on their conscience.

If it's not true that you know him,
tell him, don't pander to him.

- How long has he been here?
- Over a year.

See? He's always outside.

They gave him the biggest room
but he says it's suffocating.

Even at night, last summer,
he wanted to sleep outside.

I'm sorry, but what do I say to him?

You don't say anything,
he'll do the talking.

Listen to him, it'll do him good.

He's calm,

don't worry.

How are you?

It's lovely here.

It's green, and quiet.

Like at your place.

Where did you bury him?

In a small cemetery in Hammamet.

That's why I couldn't find him.

You looked for him? Why?

I know where my grandparents are,

I made a map,

I know where to find them.

Not my father.

I don't know where he is

and no one will tell me.

Why did you call me?

Did you ever meet my father?

I heard about him.

That day,

I was in his office,

he was there on the balcony,

he was reading a newspaper,
a letter, I don't remember.

He had his back to me,

I approached him quietly,

that's why he didn't hear me.

He didn't even turn around
when I pushed him over.

Then I looked down,

to make sure he was dead.

What are you talking about?

He was a criminal,

and I turned him into a martyr.

I tried to save my father,

but I wasn't able to.

Here is everything
he never said to anyone,

not even to you.

Put it away!

If they find it,

they'll use it to tarnish our country.

Go away.

Is there any hope he'll be cured?

The mentally ill are never cured,

because they are not sick.

Thank you, doctor.

Have you known him long?

Do you care about him?

It's the first time I've seen him.

Translation: Susan Adler

subtitles edited by Elvira de Majo
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