Spread Your Wings (2019) - full transcript

Based on the real story of Christian, a specialist on wild goose migrations, and the adventure he and his son embarked.

---

...

*- 3, 2, 1...

* Go!

- Thomas!

Thomas!

Thomas!

- Maman!
- There.

It's the new software. I cannot
take care of you during the holidays.

You're going to your father's.

- In Saint-Roman?
- It will do you good.



- You're kidding?

- No.
You'll see, 5 weeks. It will be good for you.

It will get you out of your head for a bit.

- I can take care of myself.
- No.

You'll just stay stuck in front of that computer.
You're going with your father.

- I don't want to go.

- Camargue is nice.

There are horses, the ocean.
- Mosquitos.

- Mosquitos.
- Great, super.

I'm not hungry.
- Thomas, you're not excused!

- I studied a trajectory
for geese

which is less dangerous
than the one usually used.

I'm sure that this can work
- Hello.

- It will allow us
to save the species.



It's important to save a species, no?
- Hello.

- It's our duty...
- Christian!

I will tell you
one last time.

The ministry has cut off funding.

Other priorities, unemployment...

Wild geese,
it's the least of their worries.

Especially for an expedition
which has little chance of success.

Hello, madame.

- An endangered species,

is just as important
as unemployment.

- Mademoiselle has a meeting
with you, for the photo

on next month’s exhibit.
- Yes, of course.

(- 2 minutes!)

I'm not asking for grants,
you could just rubber stamp it.

It's required!
- You know the procedure.

Genetic testing,
analysis performed before it can...

as you put it, be rubber stamped.
- An exception...

- Even if this works
with your 20 birds,

it needs to be repeated with at least...

200 geese
to claim to have saved the species.

No, no. What I'm sayin is true,

I don't believe in your project.

- I explain again.

- No!

Listen, I authorized
your unpaid leave,

that's enough!
Enjoy your vacation

and shut the hell up about your damn birds!

Send in the journalist.
- Mademoiselle,

you can go.
- O.K.

- Hello, close the door,
please.

- No...

Céline,

let's go grab a coffee.
- You're a peach!

- Hey! Monsieur Le Tallec!

- What?
- Your project is so passionate.

- Really?
- It's great!

What I can't stand are people who
sit around doing nothing.

Our society takes for granted
the riches of nature.

If we don't take care of it,
we will destroy it!

- For sure.
You eavesdrop, is that it?

- It's my job,
I'm a journalist.

I can help you .

- I do appreciate it,
but you heard, it's dead in the water.

- Wait, you give up just
like that, without a fight?

You will let your geese die?

- Well, there it is.
I have to go, goodbye.

- Hey!

Take my card!

Call me!
- Yes, yes.

- I can help you!

- Yeah right.

[SAVE OUR MARSH]

[HANDS OFF OUR MARSH]

[ENVIRONMENT IN DANGER]

Son of a bitch!

- 3,500 people
signed the petition!

The prefect said that it would hardly
change things. What a shame.

Do you realize?
They're going to have to drain it all

for their industrial zone.
The could have fucking done it elsewhere!

- That's for sure.

- They'll have to drain
at least 50%.

Minimum!

It will no longer be a marsh but a pond.
- I know.

Oh!

Excuse me, I hear someone.

I'm happy to see you.

- Me too.

Yes.

- Are we going to find something!
- Yes, don't worry.

(It will be fine.)

Hi, Gérard!

He's the mayor. He is special
but he's a good guy.

- What's new, how about some eggs?

There's a lot.

I brought you twenty.

Softly

or we will make an omelet
and you don't have bacon.

- Always the funny one, Bjorn.

- One never jokes about bacon.

- OK.
Open the door for me.

- They'll be fine.

You got it?
- Yes, yes.

(Voilà.)

- If you managed to convince them,

the hardest part is nearly done.

One could say
that you won the battle.

Let's go.

[Bird Island — Ornithological Park]

Let's go, Christian!
We're a little behind!

- I don't know how
you can live in this mess.

- You worry about your eggs
and I'll take care of my apple.

- Stop drinking and driving.

- Come on, see you next month.

- What is that thing?

- I don't think that's a thing, it's your father.
- Dad?

That does it, I'm not staying here.

- Where's my blue vase?

- Broken.
- Shame.

- You want a soda?
- Do you have wifi?

- No, I had to get rid of the box.
- What?

- The waves,
they're bad for the eggs.

- The eggs?
- Yes.

To use the phone,

you have to go
to the top of the observation tower.

There's a signal.

At least... Sometimes.

- Damn it.
- Thomas!

You see.

He's 14.
- And growing.

- What is that robe?

- This, it's a frock.

Let me explain:
when the geese will hatch,

they must recognize me
at once,

without taking me for a human.

They must be wary
other humans.

Thanks to this,

they will trust me.
I'm sort of like their father.

- With that robe,
they will take you for their dad.

Is that right? Their daddy goose.

- That's the goal, anyway.
- You [informal]

You [formal] raise geese?

- You can be informal with me.

Yes, I raise wild geese.

It's a endangered species

This is what you [formal] were watching...
what you [informal] were watching.

I address you the same way.
What you were looking at on the map.

I'm studying, in fact,

a new, less dangerous,
migratory route.

Obviously, for them to follow it,

I have to show them the way.

- How does one show the way
to a goose?

- One flies.

Go ahead, help yourself.

- Thomas! Come down, sweetie, we're leaving.

- It was nice to meet you.
- Same here.

- Good luck.
- Thanks.

- Let's go.

Take care of him.
- Of course.

- Oh. My love!

OK. Thank you for being so welcoming.

- It went well.
- Great.

- He's very nice... Paul?

- No, Julien.

- Can you stop your thing?

- No, the geese need to get used
to the sound of the motor.

- Yeah.

Oh! Crap!

[The marvelous voyage of Nils Holgerson]

[through Sweden]

- Oh fuck!

Idiots! They don't give a damn!

It will never work this way.

- Crap! During the day, mosquitos,
and at night, the rat.

The stupid hamster which runs
around my room.

I can't sleep! I'm fed up!

- You're a genius!

Do you know that you're a genius?!

Genius!

* We have a couple Cricetus
in the garden?

- Hamsters? Yes.

- If we find an endangered species

where construction is planned,
the works stop

for how long?

*- It used to be 3 months, it went to 6.

Time for an investigation
that the prefect must order.

*- OK!
I have a favor to ask.

Yes, thank you, Jeanne, thank you!
I could kiss you!

Yes!

Are you there? I'm going to run some errands.

Do you want to come?
- No, I'm good.

- If you're afraid of the sun,
you can stay inside.

I still have your Playmobils, if you want.

It's good you're outside,
you're as white as an ass.

Careful, there's a mistral,
it will mess up your hair.

- Mom, it's me.

There's nothing to do here.
I'm bored.

Come get me, please.

- I told you you were a genius.
- Yeah.

- Here, here is the proof
that you're a genius.

- Yeah.
- Those noises in your room...

In the barn...

- And so?
- The hamster...

- That's hamster droppings?
- Yep.

Diane Eva?

Hello.
Christian Le Tallec here.

You remember, we met at...

Yes, of course, yes.

Would you possibly be interested

in doing a piece on a species
we could save?

Of hamsters.

- Nobody cares about
stories of rats and hamsters.

You have to stop with
all this nature stuff.

It interests no one,
it's no longer fashionable.

These stories for safeguarding
wetlands are boring.

This thing with corporations
which have been lying for years...

- Years? That's the problem!

Because even after all these years,

no one is doing anything.
For exemple,

global warming,
the consequences are disastrous!

Not to mention biodiversity.

The rate...
- It's no.

- Are you listening to me?

- No!

Leave me alone, I have work.

- Here, this is for tomorrow.
It's good, it's been approved.

- Christian!

Work has stopeed!

That's great!
- Hello, Gérard.

- They found droppings,
do you realize?

A sort of wild hamster

that lives here.
- A hamster?

- An association received a call,
they verified it

and bang!
They found the rat shit.

Speaking of shit...

Yes, Nicole?

Yes, what?
- Bye, Gérard.

- That's not my problem!

- He's weird.

- Yes, he's weird.

- Shit!

- Come, come. Enter.

- I did something stupid.
- How so?

- Is it serious?
- It's not serious, it's very serious.

Do you know why?

- No.

- We're going to be parents.

Ka, ka, ka!

It suits you very well.
- Very funny.

- Ka, ka!

Ka, ka!

Ka, ka!

Ka!

Ka, ka!

Do you know why I talk to them?
So that they get used to my voice.

Come. Come closer, look. Ka!

(Look, there.
He's starting to move.)

You see the little black tip coming out?
It's his beak.

Listen, can you hear them?

Can you hear them?
Look, they hear us.

It is the first time they have heard.
Ka!

He's actually answering us.

Look at that one!

His first look at us.

Come close. Come around.

Here. Here's this.

(Voilà.)

We're going to take him out to warm him up.

Voilà... Good.

Look at that.

Voilà.

What?

You were like this when you were born,
gooey and ugly.

Birds recognize the first person
they see as their parent.

It's called imprinting.

Thus, technically, you're his father.

- Really?

Here, now you're the father.

- OK, I'm the father.

But you're his mother.

Come, we'll put him here.
There you go.

He'll warm up nicely here.

- You. You're unusual.

You're really weird.

What would you think about
me giving you a nickname?

Akka? What do you think, Akka?

Shh!

- Don't forget, you're its mother.

- What's he talking about?
I'm not your mother.

- Stop.

That's good there.

- Is it hard to fly?

- On a day like to day,
with the wind, it's complicated.

- And... Can you teach me?

- What?
- To fly?

- How old are you?

- Dad, seriously! I'm 14.

- Licenses start at 15.

Maybe I can make

and exemption.
If you help me, I will teach you

2 or 3 things.

Starting with feeding the chicks.

- 2, 3 tricks?
- Perhaps 4, 5!

- Really?

- And put on your robe!

- Come on, I'm going to feed you.
Come.

Ka, ka, ka!

Come on, come on! Come, Akka!
You too, you come.

There you go. Let's go.
Come on, that's good.

Yes. Let's go, Akka.

To the table.

Ka, ka, ka, ka!

Akka?

Akka?

Akka?

Shit!

Akka? Akka?

Akka?

Akka? Akka?

Akka?

Akka?

Akka?

Akka? Akka?

- Ah.

Akka!

Don't do that to me again.

- You know, Thomas...

Bjorn messed up.

He mixed up the eggs.

- So?

- So your Akka,
is not a dwarf goose.

It's a barnacle goose.

- So what? It doesn't matter,
it's still a goose.

Look, she is very cute.

- Yes, it's serious.

You know,
it's necessary to never cross species.

- That's racism.

- I'm sorry, but it's necessary
to take her out of the group.

- No, no, no. No, never.

- OK... Let's go, we'll deal with that later.

Next step... You come with me.

You go ahead, imagine
the geese are behind you.

Pay attention,

that the geese don't get
in the mower.

Don't worry, I removed the propeller,
but you never know.

- Ka, ka, ka!

Allez, Akka! Don't fall behind.

Ka, ka, ka, ka!

Is that good? I did 3 laps.

- Two more, young grasshopper!

- You said you would teach me

5 ou 6 things.

- It's the demon's haste,

that of Thomas knowing how to wait.

Mix of Turkish proverb and of my own.

- Whatever.

Ka, ka, ka, ka!

- All distances are good,
there.

- Why are you taking them in the VW
to the arctic?

You could do it in the ULM

- That's a good question.
You know why?

In fact, birds recognize
as their place of origin...

Their house.

Not the place where they were born,
but the place

they fly from the first time.

As they are migratory birds,

instinctively,

they need to pass the winter
in the south and as soon as the snow melts,

they go to the north

for a lot of reasons, you understand?

- Not really.

- It's normal, I didn't explain it well.

Good, look. Here…

Here is Lapland,
and here there is a protected park

where the geese can nest.

It's peaceful there,
they risk nothing.

What am I going to do?

Here, this is home.
We will leave in the VW.

We go all the way up.

We go up to here.

And there? I will go down with them in the ULM,
they will follow me.

I show them the way.
It's the blue pins.

We go through the North Sea,
Denmark,

Germany, Luxembourg, not far
Hauts-de-France, at Bjorn's,

and then we go back down
to our place.

- Why didn't you
make a straight path?

- Why?
Geese would prefer

to take a completely straight path.
Except that completely straight,

is dangerous for them.

They will go through obstacles,
hence their disappearance.

There are many things
which are not good for them,

like airports,

electric wires, hunters,
light pollution.

Do you know what that is?

- That's the cities.
- Yes, exactly.

I chose this path
because it avoids all those dangers.

What's crazy is that they only
need to follow the path once.

They will remember it,

like they have GPS.

Imagine, from year to year,

what's going to happen?

There will be more and more geese.

The species will be saved!

It's crazy. Who is it thanks to?

Thanks to yours truly.

- I won't get to see the geese fly?

- Would it make you happy?

- Yes, a lot!

[You must wear a frock]

- It's a joke right?

- But that's not good, right? Thomas!
- You're here.

- Get off, sweetie!
- No, stop. Everything's OK.

There is no danger,
There are no wings.

- What are you doing?

- Thomas, are you ready?
- Yes.

- Good... Then...

I will release the geese, OK?

Good, you can start the motor.

- O.K.

- There.

- Hi, Mom!

Hello, Julien!

- Go, go, go!

Go, go!

Go! Go!

Go, let's go!

Go, go! Go! Go on!

Call them!

- Ka, ka, ka!

Go, go! Yeah!

- Go!
- Ka, ka, ka!

- Go!

Go...

- Come, come! Ka, ka, ka!

- Go ahead, take off!

(- Do you see the little one, there?)
- Yeah.

- Ka, ka, ka, ka!

- Yeah!

- Come on! Ka, ka, ka!

- Regarde!

- It'a crazy, no?
- Do you see?

- Come on, Akka! Come!

- They're following him.

- They're following, look!

- At this rate, they'll hardly
make it to the arctic.

- They're 3 weeks old!

Do you realize?

It works, I told you!

Bravo, Thomas!

Thomas, you're the best,
you're a champion!

Non, they'll return.

- Ka, ka, ka!

Ka, ka, ka!

Ka, ka, ka, ka!

Ka, ka, ka!

What are you looking for?

- My specialty!
Tell me what you think.

- It smells good!
- Thank you.

- There is still a problem.
- What?

- You can't just release them

or they will get lost
and die.

- Ah! They create quite a racket,

these birds!

- It's dirty. You'll take them back

to the aviary.
- Do you want me to serve?

- As you wish. With pleasure.

- Yes, then?

- And normally,

the path of migration,

it's their parents who show them.

If we can make them follow the ULM,
we've succeeded. Do you understand?

- Yes, I understand.

- You can stay in the air
for how long?

- It's good for... 5, 6 hours,
it consumes almost nothing.

It's necessary to pay attention
to climatic conditions.

- I would imagine.
- Very good.

Is it OK, Mom?

- What?

- Can I go

to Norway with Dad?

There's his friend!

- Who? Bjorn?
- Yeah.

He's changed a lot.

- It really reassures me
that Bjorn is there.

- It's rather a good idea,

no?

That he goes?

- Come one, please, Mom.
- Ah. This is harassment!

- Harassment!
- It's true.

- Big words.

- You don't leave me any choice.

- It'OK. He'll go to Norway in the VW.

- It's far and your VW is unsound.

- Ka, ka, ka, ka!
- Feed them tomorrow.

- As soon as I get up.
- Not before noon.

- He's up every morning at 8.

- Really?
- It's because he's interested.

- I'm happy.
- Good.

- Tiens. C'est bon?

Going to Norway,
he's not flying in that thing.

- Of course.

- Uh huh.
- You don't want to sleep here?

- No. Sweetie, I'll see you tomorrow.

- Bye, Mom.
- Until tomorrow.

- Bye, Thomas.
- Bye.

Ka, ka, ka!

Come on!

- Paul, are you ready?
- Oh!

- It's Julien!
- Shit.

Julien, are you ready?

- Yes. I'm here. I'm ready.

- What are you supposed to be?

- It's loaded with blanks.

It's so that they're afraid
of hunters.

- It suits you very well.

- Come on, let's go find the geese.
- Yeah..

(- Ridiculous!)

- Ka, ka, ka!
- Yeah! Ka, ka, ka!

- Ka, ka, ka!

Ka, ka, ka, ka!

- Ka, ka, ka, ka!

Watch out, hunters!

Hunters!
Evil hunters!

Oh no! Watch out!

- Listen to your father.
- Yes.

- Don't let him out of your sight.
- Yes.

- Don't just eat pasta.

- I won't make only pasta.

- Yes, you'll only make pasta.
- Yes.

- Call me if you have a problem.
- Yes.

- Promise.

- Yeah, yeah.
- Promise what?

- That you won't fly.

- What?
- Go on! Have a good trip!

- Have a good trip.

- Here you go!

Thanks!

Imagine that you're surfing
an invisible wave.

If you go too fast, you crash,
if you don't go fast enough, you fall off.

- Yeah.
- Ready to go?

You're ready.

You have to find the perfect balance.

It's called lift.

Yeah!

That, that's the windsock.
That gives you the wind direction.

Always take off against the wind,

that way, you'll fly.

Let's go!

Look where you're going.

So what is a U.L.M?
A wing and a trapeze.

You push on the trapeze,
and what happens?

- The plane goes up.
- Exactly, it goes up and you go up.

Pop quiz tomorrow, 8am.
Not really much of a surprise evidently.

Alright, my son, to work, to work!

It's not really good, right?

Not good.

I'll make pasta.

There you go!

Hold it steady.
Push forward a little.

What do you think, am I holding on or not?

You can do it. Look where you're going.

Look where you're going.

There you go. Good. Keep going.

Keep going, we're going down. Gently.

There are others there. Look.

Look at the flamingos!

- It's beautiful.

- What do you think, pasta?

- Ok. Let's get started.

- We're going to try landing. Are you ready?
Pull it toward you.

Pull it toward you!

Toward you!

Go ahead, pull!

Careful, careful!

It's ok. Here we go.

No big deal, we'll try again.

You guide and let yourself be guided.
- Yeah.

I guide and let myself be guided.

- There you go.
You guide and let yourself be guided.

Ah...

Come help me.

Or she has a cold...

- Do you still love Mom?

- Why do you ask?

- I don't know. Do you love her?

- Well...

She's...

She's a nice person, right?

She's with Paul now.

- You do that on purpose?
His name is Julien.

- I know but it's his fault,
he looks like a Paul.

He's a good guy, right?

- Yes. A good guy.
- Yeah.

That's what counts.

- But it's only been 3 months.

- Huh?

- I'm just saying...

it's only been 3 months
he's been living with us.

- Ah.

- What?

- No, nothing.

Come on, wake up.

Wake up. We'll be there soon.

Ok, in the first batch,
they're all tagged.

- O.K.

- Except one.

(- Ah! Shit.)
- Yeah.

This is what happens when we mix
coolers, eggs, geese. Beers.

- I don't underpstand.
A barnacle goose must have...

- What? She must have laid it
in a cooler? That must be it.

- We can't take this one!
- You explain that to him.

- What are you doing exactly?

- I'm injecting them with
a small electronic tag.

- Oh. The poor things.
- No.

Look, I'll show you.

It's tiny, It won't hurt them at all.

- Yes I see.

What are you doing with Akka, there?

- Nothing, we're scanning them, in fact,

to check that they are
all identified.

Look. You see, everyone has a number.

As they are migratory geese,
they must be vaccinated,

otherwise they cannot go out
of the Schengen area.

- OK.

- Everything is computerized now.
It's called progress.

- We advance technologically
but ecologically, we are going backwards.

- Yeah.

- Here, chip her, vaccinate her

and notate her. She leaves with us.

Go on!

- O.K.

Can you help me? Hold her?

- Yeah.

It won't hurt.
- There we are.

- There we are...

Take her back.
- Here.

Take her back to be scanned.
- Shh.

It's all over, Akka.
- Ah! Bravo! Well done.

- Is that you?
- Yeah.

- You hunted?

- We all hunted in the marsh.
We also fished.

We did it to eat.

The marsh is magnificent.

That was the good life.

It was about then I started to
get interested in birds.

- By killing them?

- Those things are not incompatible.

They wanted to drain the marsh

so we fought.
Of course, we lost.

I stopped hunting,
but I continued with the birds.

[polar circle]

(- Bjorn!)

(I was checking if you were sleeping.)

- Nothing beats a good beer!

- Come on!

Oh! No! What's this?

- You're a maniac!

I'll do 2, 3 hours. No more.

- Hi? Mom!

*- What time is it there?

- We are in the Arctic!

It's always day.

* Look!

* Do you see?

*- Shh!

[Not as glamorous]

- Yes!

- Everything's OK, Akka? Not too tired?

You'll see, you'll like it here.

In Norwegian
- It's been a long time, Bjorn. Here you go.

- Thanks.
- What did he say?

- He's happy to see me.

- Good...

You have the documents on you?
- Yes!

- Thanks.

Good...

OK, let us see...

We are going to take blood samples.

This time,
we will do everything by the book.

- What did he say?

- They want to take samples.
- What?

- 8 days?
- That's fine.

In Norwegian
No problem.

(In Norwegian)
- Of course.

(In Norwegian)
- Yes.

Fuck! Damn shit!

- You OK?
- It's fine.

- Johansen is no fun.

- It's true. I haven't exactly gone
out of my way to make him like me.

Once upon a time,
I would come here with students.

We would put dwarf goose eggs
in the nests of barnacle geese.

so they would adopt them
and they would learn about migration.

At first, everything went well.

But...

We didn't have authorization.

Then, Johansen asked us
to leave and...

They killed all the dwarf geese

so they couldn't reproduce
with the barnacle geese.

I will find a husband for your Akka.
- That will work.

- Yeah, that will work.
It has to work.

He's done everything for them.

Have you ever seen

a chick in its nest?

- No...

- OK. Let's go. That's enough.

It's been 10 days, I'm not waiting any more.

Here, Thomas. Put this on.

Here... Take this.

I don't want to lose the imprinting.

- I gave my word to Johansen.

- It will be find, look!
No one's around, we're completely alone!

It's Sunday, they're at Mass.
- Very funny.

- Thomas, come on.
Let's go, ladies.

Come on, everyone out. Come on.

Call them, Thomas. Go on.

Come on!

- Ka, ka, ka!

- Go toward the airfield.

Come on, let's go!

Drink a beer while you wait.

Come on, come on, come on!
- Yes, Akka!

Akka, Akka! Akka!

- Akka!

It's their first flight.
That's it, now,

the place is etched in their minds.

They will come back next year

to make their little ones. Look!

* Radio test!
- I'm receiving you.

*- I'm going to go. Its good?
- It's all good.

It's good.

You have them in your crosshairs.

Go, go, go.

They're following, they're following.

Ah! Shit!

*- Are they still coming?

- No, they stopped.
They don't care.

*- Son of a bitch!

- They've lost sight of you,
they're moving away.

They're going to the other side.

Try...

Come find them.
Try another pass.

*- What happened? Shit!

- I have no idea.

They don't care.

They're coming back toward us.
At first, they were following you.

Then they came back.
They don't care.

I have no idea!

*- Thomas, did you see something?

Shit!

What then?

There is something wrong,
but I don't know what.

- Maybe they're not ready.
- But they are.

They flew, They're ready.

It's not that. It's something else.

- The wind?
- What, the wind? That's nothing!

The wind, it goes. It's fine.
- Don't get mad.

- I get mad
when you say I get mad.

That makes me mad.

- Oh Fuck!

(In Norwegian)
- Put the boat in the water.

- Hi, Johansen.
- Hello, Bjorn.

- Hello!
- Hello.

What did I say?

Don't take out the geese
without my permission.

The test is positive
for bird flu.

- What?
- What did he say?

- The avian flu test
is positive.

- They were vaccinated!

- What's he going to do?
- They may take them.

- No, wait.

- If you can hear me, give me a sign.

Great.

Take the geese to the middle of the lake.

Calm down. Calm down.

(In Norwegian)
There is no point in getting upset.

- I called the Museum of Paris.

They are not aware
of your project.

- Apparently,
he called the Museum of Paris,

they are not aware of your project,
a record of vaccination...

Call them.

Christian.

Hey, Christian.

Go ahead, call the Museum. Go on.

- I signed the papers.

- Son of a bitch.

Christian.

How could you do such a thing?

Christian?

*- What do I do now?

- We...

* We don't have authorization.

* It's up to you to explain it to him.

- What do I do?

- Thomas, it's Dad.

I falsified the documents, you understand.

I'm a jerk...

I didn't have the Museum's
authorization... Which means...

They're going to take the geese. That's it.

They're going to take the geese.

- How could you do that?
Didn't you think of the consequences?

- Yeah
but you wouldn't have given me the eggs.

- Let's go Akka!

Ka, ka, ka!

- What are you doing, Thomas?

* Thomas?

Stop right now! Come back!

(In Norwegian)
- Quickly!

- Thomas, are you receiving me? Thomas!

Thomas!
- Stop him, Christian.

- Thomas!

The weather will change! Thomas!

- No!
- Stop!

Thomas!

- Shit. They're following!

It's not the ULM that they're following,
it's Thomas!

- Thomas, you stop right now,
you come back!

Thomas!

Thomas, no!

Come down!

Thomas!

Thomas!

(Fuck!)

* Thomas!

- Shut up.

O.K...

O.K.!

Engine speed... O.K.!

Wind speed... O.K.!

Fuel... O.K.!

G.P.S.... O.K.!

There you are. Be careful.

Ah! You too!

Stay close to me, girls.

We must find a lake

to land in
before it gets too nasty.

Ah! Over there!

OK...

I guide and I let myself be guided.

I guide and I let myself be guided.

I don't want to talk to you right now,
understand?

I need the battery
for the GPS.!

So ... There!

Airplane mode and voila!

Good ... I have to think about what comes next.
Come.

- He's not answering me...

He won't have enough food.
- Do not worry!

- And he has to land ...

Oh! Son of bitch. Son of a bitch...

- He's a smart one.
He's a smart one, your son!

- Yeah...

- I don't give a damn!

I don't give a damn about your stuff!
My son is outside!

Leave me alone!
- You're screwing us with all this shit!

- My son is out there! Do you understand?

I've got to get him, do you understand?

Stop, it's okay!
- Stop it, Christian!

You're just creating
more shit!

(In Norwegian)
- I'll talk to the chief.

Keep them in custody.

- Okay.

- Yes, Paola?

- I can move things around.

If Marc replaces me
on the plan part.

- No, Julien, thank you
but I...

You don't understand,
I'm going alone!

- I'm going to move things around,
I'm going to work it out.
- Julien! No!

I'm going to settle this with my family!

- Whatever you want...

- Go away!

Go away!

- Where is my son?

You promised me!

- Yes I know...

- Damn, you promised me!

- Shit ...

We're going to land on the beach

that we saw.
Fasten your seatbelts.

Raise your seats,
store your luggage.

Let's go!

- "Hallo"?

- Français?

(In Norwegian)
- Are these your geese?

- Ah...

Essence!

Essence, non. Carburant?

Carburant for the machine.
- Gasoline?

- My father's ... boat.

- Nils. Nils Holgersson.

(In Norwegian)
Thanks.

- Yes. You just told me
that it was going to take time

to call the Norwegian authorities.

I call him ... Excuse me
but I call the embassy if necessary.

(- I don't know who it is.)
- Answer.

Hello?

- I knew it!
You couldn't let it go.

- This is not the time.

*- It's all these jerks...

- Diane...
*- You'll show them!

- My son is missing.

- Missing? Missing how?

- My son is 14, OK?
14 years-old!

- He left with geese in the ULM

- That's your son?

He isn't missing.
He's here, he's flying!

- What? Where?
*- In the video!

* It's got 150,000 views.
- What video?

- You haven't seen the video?
*- Which video?

- Well naturally.

- Diane, which video?

- You taught him to fly?
*- Diane!

- Oui, pardon! Attendez.

Put it on speaker-phone.
I'll send you a link.

* Do you have it?

- Yes.
*- Cliquez.

- Video...

- You talk to me about a delay,
it's completely...

- Come on, come on. Thomas!

- I'll call you back.

- I will transfer the
coordinates to you.

Wait for me, I'm coming!

- Thomas!

Come on!
- What, Thomas?

- Look, he's alive!

He's alive, look!

- Where is he?

Where are you?
- He can't hear you.

- They're all following him.

(In Norwegian)
- I know where the kid is.

- There.

(In Norwegian)
*- A fire has been spotted.

- Understood.

(In Norwegian)
- Results are negative.

- Everything else is out of
my jurisdiction.

Let them go. Case closed.

- Who's that woman?
- A journalist.

- Yeah. Good...

- How did you find him?

- It wasn't hard.
Who is this Johansen?

- He's the guy in charge of the parks.
He left to kill the geese.

- And as for Thomas, how are we doing?
- I don't know.

- Does he have a cell phone?
- Yes.

It goes to voicemail.
- Give me yours.

When he turns it back on,

you'll know exactly where he is.

Good.

You take care of him,
I'll take care of Johansen.

- Doing what exactly?
- I'll figure it out.

Go on!
- Let's go.

- This is my island!

* Mine and mine alone.

I am the king of this island!

I can't do whatever I want.

Ka, ka, ka!

(In Norwegian)
- You can't come with me!

(In Norwegian)
- We're close, set us down!

- Up here, I'm in charge.

FGHL here,

we're returning to base.

- It's Thomas!
- Ah!

- "Everything's fine,
I'm going back to the park at Bjorn's."

- What?
- "A Bjorn's..."

- To my place.

- In France?
- No, no.

- Call him.
- He can't go to France.

- Tell him to stop anywhere.

- And?
- It's voicemail.

- Let's go Akka! We have to find
enough to eat for the crossing.

Come, let's go!

Shh. Don't make any noise.

- What is happening?
- Nothing.

- What's happening?

- No but it's ok. It's Thomas.

- What, Thomas?

- He's going to cross the North Sea.
- You're kidding?

- No, but it will be fine.

- You don't know if it's going to be okay,
Christian!

When we know nothing, we are silent.
You know nothing.

I entrust my son to you for 3 weeks!

You can't even
to take care of him for 3 weeks!

Stop lying. Stop your lying.

- Là, j'ai le point.

Bjorn,

he's here.

- He's gone 50 klicks.

He's more than halfway.

The wind must have cause him to drift.

- He has to head back east
otherwise...

- Otherwise what?
- Otherwise... Look.

This is open sea.

- He's, Thomas.
He'll make it.

- Don't go far!
Stay close!

Oh!

Akka!

Akka!

Akka!

Akka!

Have you seen her?

Where is Akka?

Where is she?

Akka!

Let's go, come on!

Let's go, come on!

Let's go, Akka!

Don't be afraid, come here.

You can rest.

- The last time we knew his location,

he was here.

- Oh! We have his signal!
We have his signal, there!

- Where is it?
- There! Look.

- Ah. I don't see anything.
(- Look, look.)

Shit! That's it. Good.
Here you have the coordinates.

- And?
- He's there.

- He make the crossing.
- He succeeded.

- Yeah?

Come on, come on!
- We're going!

- Come on, we're going.
- That way.

Bjorn, the map!

- Yes, yes.
- Come on, Bjorn!

(In Norwegian)
- Look, look!

- Look!

- It's him, he succeeded!

- Viens là!

Come on!

Come on.

Join your friends.

(In Norwegian)
He doesn't look good.

- Gasoline.

- Take this as well.

Thank you.

In Norwegian
Merci.

- Fill it completely.

- Yep.

- A dwarf goose, a hazelnut,
a small nut.

That also makes a dwarf goose.

- Yeah.

- There is the connection.

- We're going to eat?

- I'll take it.
- I can carry it.

- Thank you Thank you so much

- Come on, we're all here. Good.

- Thomas, a wave, please!

- You sleeping?!

- Christian!

Christian!
- Yeah?

- Thomas!

What?

Thomas?

- Thomas!
- My baby!

- Thomas!
- Thomas! The helmet, look!

- What's wrong?
Get some water.

- Thomas?

- Thomas! Shit!
What's wrong?

- You're in the hospital, sweetie.
You've been asleep for 20 hours.

You were dehydrated,
they put in a line.

- Where are the geese?

- They are safe at the park,

at Bjorn's.

Thomas...

I have to tell you something.

We're going...

We're going to stop here.

- What?

We're stopping here?

(- Yes.)

- An...

The geese, where will they go?

- They will go nowhere.

- I don't understand.

- We have no right to continue.
And...

We're going to clip their wings.

- This isn't the time.

- They're going to have their wings clipped?

- It won't hurt them.
Anyway, we have to,

otherwise they must be kept in a cage
and that is ...

That's worse.

- Worse than clipping their wings?

- I'm sorry, Thomas.

I shouldn't have gotten you involved,
it was too dangerous.

I didn't realize.

Voilà.

And...

- That's the solution
you came up with?

You're going to just stop everything?
Give up?

After everything we've done?

- I'm sorry.

- My love.

You know the good news?

You can leave tomorrow.

- I don't care.

- You can always start again.

- Don't you think that's enough?

- Do you want me to do it?
- No

It's up to me to do it.

This expedition
was nonsense,

right?

I sacrificed everything,
and for what?

For that? For geese?

Don't you realize?

I really think she was right.
I feel it in my bones.

- No.

No.

- Stop saying no!

- It's what I believe.
- I almost killed my son.

Do you get it? I almost killed him.
- Your son is fine.

- I'm a jerk.
- No. You screwed up but you did

something great.

You experiment worked.

The geese followed the ULM.

They followed Thomas, true,
but they followed. Right?

I'll tell you something, buddy.

You have to pull yourself together.

- That can wait.
- Yeah, yeah.

I thought about it.
He's already missed enough school.

Enough of this bullshit.

Speaking of bullshit ...
Without it, he cannot take off.

When does he get out?
- Tomorrow. They're keeping him overnight.

- Did you do that?

This doesn't make any sense?

It was completely reckless,
dear girl!

It's complete bullshit!

...complete bullshit!

He's only a kid.
- No, he's no longer a kid.

- You think I'm a jerk, is that it?

- I know.
- Camargue, all that...

*- It's the story of a teenager...
- Listen!

*- Who flies with birds.

* An expedition
in the footsteps of the journey

* of Nils Holgersson...
- Shh!

*- Who made readers dream.
It is a dream that father and son

* are about to make come true.

* Departing from the Arctic 20 days ago,
they will cross France

* from north to south, right to
the marshes of Saint-Roman,

* guiding around twenty
Laplandian dwarf geese.

* It's and endangered
species that they hope

* to reintroduce into the wild.

* This scientific
and humane experiment,

* this adventure has had
an extraordinary following

* and justly so.

* Here is the story from Éric Orlay.

- Sir.

- We'll just let it go,
we don't really have a choice.

It's just a kid
who flies with geese!

We have more serious things to deal with.
Just turn a blind eye.

- You're so beautiful!

- You too!

- Everything worked out.

- Go on, Akka! Let me sleep.

- I know you don't need
me to tell you, but be careful.

- Don't worry.
- It's pretty tight?

- Yes it's fine.

- You can hear?
- Yes everything is fine.

- Your little hands...

My sweet love. Be careful.

- All Saint-Roman awaits us!
- Yes, yes.

- He's no longer a kid.

- Yes!

- Let's go.

- Can you give me a push?
- Yes!

There you go, sweetie.

- Let's go, We have to go.
- Yeah, yeah!

- He's much faster
that we are, you know!

- Alright girls,
this is our last trip together.

Next time, you'll
be on your own.

I'm going to turn off the engine.
We're not having trouble.

It's just for us.

- It's going to be nice.

- I can't hear very well, there's too much wind.

What? What?

35 minutes? No, 5 minutes?

OK! OK! 5 minutes!

He arrives in 5 minutes!

5 minutes!

- Hello. Excuse me.

- Hello.

- Where is he landing, exactly?

- You see where it marked
"Thomas, hero"? Where the heart is?

- It's for the camera.

- OK.
- Thanks.

- Shift a little the way.

Move.

- There!

- Thomas!

- THOMAS! THOMAS!

THOMAS! THOMAS!

- Come on. Come on!

- Why did he go way over there?

- Wait.

Wait.
- Come on!

- What?
- This is just for us.

Look!

Look, there!

- Mom!
- Bravo, sweetie! You did it!

Oh!

- Let's go, stop, There! Oh!

- I swear,
your geese, to save our swamps,

it's better than your rat droppings!

- No, but it was a hamster, Pichon!

- Yes, Yes.
- A hamster!

- It's us!
*- The director of the museum...

* Thanks for being with us. Good evening.

* Can we talk
of a great adventure?

*- You know, in reality...

* It’s more like dressage

* than a real scientific
experience.

* How do you reintroduce

* geese that have taken humans
for parents?

* They will almost certainly
never return to nest in the Arctic.

* Ah, well ...
It was probably a great adventure.

* But, in fact...

* We can not
scientifically speak of...

* migratory transplant,
as Mr. Le Tallec claims.

- Christian, is what he said true?

If they don't leave
it was all for nothing?

- Yes. If they don't return
to the arctic, it's all for nothing.

If it works,
I will leave with lots of birds!

You know what, Pichon?
I'm going to save a species.

- When are they supposed to leave?

- End of March at the latest.

*- In reality,
to save a species ...

- So?

- I saw something there
but it was ducks.

Yeah.

- I'm sure they'll return.
- I have my doubts.

They should be here, right?

- Yeah.
What do you want me to tell you?

They may have decided to do
nest elsewhere.

They're free, right.

Don't worry,
I’m sure they’re fine.

- The geese are coming!

It’s them!

It’s them! Dad! They are there!

It’s them! It’s them!

They are there!

Dad, look!

It worked! It worked!

- It worked!

- Akka, I'm here! Akka!

Akka!

- It worked, you were right!

- Oh!
- It worked, my friend!

You were right!

You were right!

Yes! Yes!

It is so beautiful. It is so beautiful!

- It's a little thanks to you, you know.

- Welcome home.

- Over 420 million birds
have disappeared from the European sky

in less than 30 years,

while concrete
gains 80,000 hectares per year

in a country like France.

We must today remember
this Indian proverb:

"We don't inherit
the earth from our ancestors,

"we borrow it from our children."

- No ... Please, no.

- It's okay?

Look where you're going.

- Stop teasing me!

Slowly!
- There!

- What?
- Look!

Right in front of you! Look!

- Yes! There!
- Here!