To Skin a Spy (1966) - full transcript

WITH THE LIVES OF OTHERS

- Mr Fabre!
- Please.

Box # 12. The person will be late.

They told me to go to Vienna,
and get in touch with Margery.

They mentioned leaks.

And they put Margery in doubt.

The crippled double agent...

I could not believe it.

Speaking for myself.

Did you have a good trip?

Excellent, yes.



They?ll wait for you at this
address, after the concert.

It?s a cafe.
Your recognition codes...

No need. The crippled
and me go back 15 years.

But is he hiding something, Margery...

It?s that, at this moment...

At this moment?

If you need to see me again,
ask for a freebie here...

...for the next concert,
as a foreigner.

Do you remember?

As a foreigner...

Right now, I need Margery.

There's a call for you.

Are you sure?

Well, a gentleman in a dark suit
who sits alone, that would be you.



Hello, yes? Ah it?s you.
You?re doing what? I?ll wait for you.

Get out... as fast as you can.

Hello? Hello?

I got your message.
Here I am. What?s the matter?

We?re leaving in 3 days.

Wednesday morning, to be exact.

In 3 days, we leave hell to others.

You even deserve to leave tomorrow.

I must leave everything in order.

The last unit arrives
Wednesday on the 7 PM train.

Hoffmann lends us
a room at the station.

You will arrive at 7:30.
All will be settled.

And at 8 PM,
we?ll take the train to Italy.

You won?t go directly to France?

Later.

First of all, the sun.

An old, sunny wall...

Peace.

An clear head.

In 3 days.

- You?ll stay and live there?
- Perhaps.

You can come to Weigelt.

I hope that my
possible presence won?t disturb you.

Did you think of
what I have to do when leaving?

Talk to him?
Leave a letter for him?

Always leave as you have come.

Like lightning.

- Do you speak French?
- Yes, a bit.

I?d like a free ticket for tonight.

A freebie? But why?

As a foreigner, passing through.

For special tickets,
talk to the director.

- His office is that way.
- Over there?

- Yes, first door on your right.
- Thank you.

Come in.

I asked
for a freebie, as a foreigner.

The management
temporarily suspended that rule.

Could I see a manager?

That would seem unnecessary.

Please remain seated and write.

If you want to live,
don?t fake anything.

"Box # 12.
The person will arrive late."

Unnecessary,
it was me who sent you that message.

Write all the same.

Perfect.

- You have your methods...
- Fast ones, I?m short of time.

Tell me about Margery.

Margery?

- You didn?t see him?
- He wasn?t at the meeting.

How did you get in here?

The tall blond showed me the trick.

Wolf... since his death,
I don?t know what to do any more.

Did they kill him?

I don?t know.
Help me to meet Margery, it?s urgent.

Urgent... For him or for you?

For him.

He started out here with me.

That was the most
persevering foreigner at the concerts.

He talks
of music and war better than anyone.

- You became his confidant.
- I?m proud of it.

With good reason.

When he enlarged the network,
he should have consulted you.

You know everybody.

He?ll
tell you the rest himself. Our stop.

That?s 100 m from here. 2, Ulrich
Platz, at the end of the court.

- Alright, I?m off.
- Tell me.

- If he doesn?t live there anymore?
- That?d surprise me.

- He would have let me know.
- And if he?s not there?

Well... there?s still Hoffmann.

He works at the central station.

He?s there every day.

Thanks.

Come over, we'll talk about it.

- Who is that?
- Chalieff.

- Is it at that point?
- You see... I?m grilled.

Carbonized. That was my last hideout.

- Is he in Vienna?
- Yes, with a band of scabby dogs.

His task is
to take out all the other networks.

I even
tried hard at avoiding to meet you.

Lucky that I stayed.

Perhaps you were wrong.

The one who contacted me
has been hit by a car.

- Wolf?
- Maybe it was an accident...

- The driver fled.
- Did you come to make fun of me?

- No.
- Why did you come?

I?ll tell you. But let?s not
rot in there for too long.

In Paris,
they think that you took a side road.

That?s not possible?

That's all they think?

That may surprise you,
but it leaves me cold.

When I was young and naive,

I don?t know
how I would have taken that. But today,

what they are thinking...
doesn?t come as a surprise from them.

- And you, what do you think?
- Nothing, I came to listen to you.

You are an accomplished controller?

What do you want me to tell you?

What more do they want to know?

Ah yes... there is
something they still don?t know.

That for me, it?s over.

Finished.

You?ll tell them...
Yes, I?m out.

If I still had doubts about it,
you just took them away.

They?re doubting me.

Really, their memory is too short.

You?ll see, Pascal...
It?ll happen to you too.

In Paris, that helps
to make themselves feel important.

Here, that?s all.

For the rest, if they
don?t have the monthly report yet,

it?s because I still need something

from a guy in Chalieff?s embassy.
I?ll have it tomorrow.

I'll give you
the coordinates of the network.

They are 20. It is intact.
You can be in control yourself.

Control, controller!
Your network, it?s not my business.

Then what is your business?

You?ve never dropped a bone yet...

Come on, go ahead.

I have to take your next dispatch...

...and ask you to go back with me...

Now that you want to leave,
that makes it all easier.

Right. Since I'm big enough to travel
alone, I'll see them from my side.

Is that all?

Yes.

Do they know that the Ricans
and the English have been liquidated?

- And that only we are left?
- Yes.

They ignore
how I?ve steered the boat this far...

- They think that they?ve paid you.
- Admirable!

You?ll become a great leader.

You?ve changed, ever since the day
they stopped you from killing Barsac.

Tell me... Why have they sent you?

You... impossible,
they?ve drawn lots!

No...

So... why you?

To them,
I?m the only man you won?t kill.

I believe they?re making real progress.

While we?re waiting,
is tomorrow still OK?

Yes, after lunch.

- 2 PM at the pub of the other night.
- The thing is that you come.

You have my word.

- Is this Master Weigelt?s?
- Yes.

I?m the new secretary.

- Do you have an appointment?
- I?m a personal friend...

...and I wish to see him.

Master Weigelt is expecting you.

- Good morning, master.
- Usually you call me.

- Do you have a new secretary?
- Don?t worry.

He doesn?t know
any more about it than the other.

What brings me
the pleasure of your visit?

I beg your hospitality.

Here? Out of the question.

For only 48 hours.

- You don't know anybody but me.
- But I trust you.

- Perhaps you?re wrong.
- You know very well I?m not.

2 days, that?s short. Maybe you like
to consult your charming friend.

That's not the point.

She's not here.
She only thinks about her singing tour.

Singer...

Stupid idea. She has all
that a woman could wish for.

I get richer
all the time, as you well know.

I offered her to travel,
to get out of town.

She refuses.

Do you put the key under the door?

I consider doing that...
because of the sequel.

Do you know the sequel?

Yes.

It's reassuring.

Well, as you say...

The spare room is all yours.

If you want to use it.

Margery is with Weigelt.

And Weigelt? How did he react?

- He tried to refuse.
- We run a great risk!

In the end, he accepted?

I don't want to mess with him.

Let's wait until Margery leaves.

Anna?

- Good morning, did you sleep well?
- Like an angel.

I'd have liked to greet
your girlfriend, to say thanks...

She?s in her room, sleeping.

That'll be later then...

Your order...

When does the singer perform?

You can't hear her today I'm afraid,

she is ill.

Ill?

Since yesterday. Thank you.

How did you learn?

They called me from her house.

Yes, I think he's here.
Hold on, I'll call him.

Hello, are you listening?
Something serious has happened.

They have taken out...

Kern works for me...

You'd better
come with us without any fairy tales.

The gentleman forgot his cane.

Leave it up to me.

Mr Kern?

Yes.

I?m happy to see you.

My friend, how have you been
since the Clifford affair?

You remember?

You see... Mr Weigelt
is at our service.

True, only recently...

But you can tell

how well we are informed.

I'll put my cards on the table.
You and me are in

the same trade.
So common ground should be possible.

Sit down, please.

Did the flowers arrive?

No.

Suvi, where are you?

Oh Suvi dear,
we surely got the day wrong.

Are you sure it's today?

100% sure.

I spotted the old Wiederwald, with
a hat that looks like a greengrocer's.

And your mother,
why the heck couldn't she come herself?

And Karl, he always
leaves me alone at the worst moment.

Karl is there.

Excuse me?

Yes, in there.

At this hour? He's crazy!

What's he thinking? He shouldn't
have married a woman but a robot.

Sorry, I thought you were alone.

- My wife. Mister?
- Fabre. My compliments.

You'll join us in a minute, I hope.

- Sorry, it's all the consternation.
- He?s a friend of Margery.

How is he? Are you French?

Yes.

Oh, so much smoke...
I like the French a lot.

Et Anna, what do you think of her?

- She?s great, right?
- Should be if she's French.

- No, she's Swiss.
- Should be if she's Swiss...

- You don't know her?
- I haven't had the pleasure.

- We count him among our friends.
- She's an exciting girl.

Excuse me.

Your wife is charming.

But as to Margery,
I prefer she doesn't know.

She knows only little.

I hope so.

Would it bother you
to tell me how all this started?

- You, Margery...
- Not at all.

Once I hired a singer,
Anna, whom you just heard about.

She and Ingrid have become friends.

Anna has class.
She lives in grand style.

Her protector is a lawyer.

Master Weigelt.

Anna had nice pictures of herself.
Ingrid wanted some too.

Anna got her in touch
with her photographer: Margery.

He has made
a series of portraits of my wife.

You know women:
when we take care of them...

Painter, hairdresser, photographer...
One day Anna asked Ingrid

to introduce her to a member
of the Russian embassy in Vienna.

Ingrid knows everyone in Vienna.

By way of a friend in the Defense
ministry, she fulfilled that wish.

That was the start.

And then Margery
knew how to contact you directly?

Through Anna
he knew that many of my clients

work with the government.
He told me it was about

keeping
foreign influence in check. I refused.

At last,
you accepted to please your wife.

No... I talked with others about it.

And right now,
about 10 well placed people

inform me knowledgeably.

And another 20 just for fun.

Who knows about
your network, except for you and Margery?

Nobody.

Thank you.

- Would you like a whisky?
- Yes please, thank you.

The concert hall,
does that mean anything to you?

- Yes.
- Do you know somebody there?

Nobody. In case of need, one drops
an envelope. Margery will be alerted.

The urgent need is to limit the damage.

For that, we need to know
who has been taken out.

That must be worth it.
Margery went crazy about it.

What time does
your singer arrive at the beer house?

Right now
she won't be going. She's ill.

- At Weigelt's?
- Yes.

- Does she work for Margery?
- I don't know.

The information
was only about last month?

Yes. He completed it 2 days ago.

2 days, are you sure?

He told me
he couldn't do it before this morning.

He was waiting for
a report from a guy of the embassy.

That's maybe
a new element which I don't know.

Yes, maybe...

A real house of cards.

- What if we break this cane?
- Too dangerous.

If it contains
microfilm, we might ruin it.

- Do you have a friend
who's radiologist? - No.

I know a radiologist,
but he's not a friend.

Anyway,
tell him whatever story you want.

As long as he X-rays
the cane without any questions.

- I'll try. - Get back here right away,
don't pass by the beer house.

Stay close
to your wife and wait for me here.

So?

Your behaviour is crazy.

You're playing
for time but we are not in a hurry.

And we know

already so much.
- Good for you.

Your latest
microfilm is still in Vienna.

I can even tell you
that it contains the minutes

of an interesting meeting
that took place in our embassy.

A meeting that wasn?t about
your country, nor mine, nor Austria.

Not about Europe,
not even about America.

Do you get my point?

He may already have talked.

He?s a professional.

Even worse, for a professional.

He knows too much.
The more one knows, the weaker.

Your lady friend,
does she know Margery?

No, she must have seen him
only twice or thrice.

I?d really like to meet her.

She?ll be discharged in 2 or 3 days.
But let?s keep her out of this.

- She doesn?t know about
your activities? - Obviously not.

Your specialism is war crimes.

- That borders on politics.
- Inevitably.

What?s more lucrative to you,
Margery or your clients?

I beg your pardon.

I have to know
where Margery is, before he talks.

That?s in the interest of all of us.

Could you
find out more, from your side?

I can try.

Can we meet again at the end
of the day, when you have news?

Not here, for sure.
Do you know the Arasch palace?

Yes.

Next to it there?s a square,
at the end of an alley.

I?ll draw you a map.

The entrance
of the gallery is on the left.

I?ll wait for you next to the fountain.

Hello? I connect you
with that department, please hold on.

Hello? A call for you.

You did a splendid job.
I?ll be over right away.

There?s a Frenchman with us, In Vienna.

He?s looking for you.

Who is it?

No use answering us.

May I ask with whom I am speaking?

I?m coming from Paris,
I?m a friend of Margery.

Margery? I don?t know him.

I went to the concert hall.

I asked for a freebie, as a foreigner.

They gave me your address.

What do you want from me?

To know where Margery is.

I don?t know his address.

Yes, I suspected as much.

Yet you probably see him often, right?

It depends. He knows where to find me.

He drops in unexpectedly.
It?s 2 or 3 weeks since he came

to meet somebody
at the 7 o?clock train.

- Whom?
- I don?t know.

- What train?
- The Orient-Express.

But since then, no news.

Is that really all you know?

Why work for us?

For the money.

I think for you, it's the same.

Perhaps.

- Unbelievable, Viviani...
- But still true, it's Viviani.

Good that you
called me, I won't forget that.

Outstanding job.

I?ve been thinking.

I think I can help you even more.

You have Margery.
Let my wife go, that?s all I ask.

There's still time
for the authorities of your country,

to take care of your case.

I'm listening.

I admit, we have Margery.

I'd have thought that from then on,
you could have benefitted,

with your wife,
from a dearly acquired security .

I'd have thought... but today,

a new element
prompts me to think the contrary.

Discerning traits:
left-handed and extremely stubborn.

He can only be bothered
for what is worth his while.

You won't get rid of him. One day soon,

he'll understand that you're mixed up

in Margery's clever ruse.

That day, you won't have long to live.

So I come to help you escape from him,

to wipe out traces,
change your appearance.

All you have to do
is obey me meticulously.

You know
that I like to work systematically.

We don't deal with dreamers.

They shot at me.

In the middle of town.
They're following me.

They wanted to abduct me. I fled.

They have...

Margery... has talked.

We have to...
we have to warn the others.

And Anna, where is she?

In a secure place, abroad.

In my pocket.

The more you know about it,
the weaker you are.

Leave, now.

Fast! The small alley there, fast!

Nothing... and yet, he wanted
to talk with me about his cane.

Do you think he already talked about us?

We?ll find out.

Anyway, Chalieff
has initiated expeditious action.

He?ll go all the way.

I think Margery hasn?t yet
given away the most important thing.

A chance that Weigelt

managed to get
his wife out of the country.

There?s you, your wife, the embassy...

and the concert hall.

That?s fun for you,
to humiliate me even more?

All this masquerade
just now wasn?t enough for you.

I don?t know
any more about it, nothing more!

In the state I'm in,
I'd tell you everything.

But even to save my skin,
there?s nothing more to tell!

Obviously...

Hello, Walter. Yes it's me.

No, there's no news.

He simply disappeared, it's hideous.

And the other,
how is he? Yes, yes. Alright.

But I?m calling you
about our charming lady friend.

I think... that she can go home.

You heard me right. Let her go home.

And do you remember
what happened to that poor Wolf?

A stupid accident.

- Right, yes. Exactly.
- No!

Wait...

The director of the concert hall...

They use him as rallying point.

His name?

Erfuhrt.

Erfuhrt.

I start with him,
it's the important node.

- What if they came first?
- That'd be a disaster.

And I can't leave anybody behind me.

You Kern, prepare to cross
a border in 4th gear when I tell you.

That will help you to save your skin.

For the moment, try to keep
your friends here as long as possible.

In case they try
to force the door, call the police.

That'll gain some time.

While waiting... try to smile.

Or to invent a new dance, whatever.

- Are you leaving already?
- I have to go.

I'll drop by later, perhaps.

2 champagne please.

Excuse me,
do you know where Mr Erfuhrt is?

He just went backstage.

Thank you.

We can't keep them here all night.

And tomorrow,
I have to go to the beer house.

Kern...

What do you read here?

- An M...
- And like this?

An M upside down...

No... that never was an M.

But a W.

Weigelt.

Yes, Kern.
That?s what Margery wanted to tell me.

His cane is at Weigelt?s!

We can only go and get it.

But the others may be there already.

- Do you have a revolver?
- Eh... Yes.

- Did you use it before?
- No.

Master Weigelt...

Bravo.

I?m not of a strong breed.

Yet, a bullet
in your belly and you?re in shape!

It's a pity for you, but me too.

So, all that, what was it for?

To make me believe
that my friend had talked.

I don?t know...
I don?t know any more.

They have come here.

They?ve taken Anna.

She?s disappeared among them.
Do you know what that means?

A nice girl always finds a way.

Shame on you all!

She doesn?t know a thing,
she can?t talk in her defense.

Her life depends on me. Only on me!

They've got me.

I obeyed.

Where is she?

They promised me that
she?ll be back tomorrow at the latest.

You fool...

For her, you gave away
Margery and Erfuhrt!

Even though,
you're still in the same hole.

It was them or her!

I had no choice.

And how do you
contact them, your friends?

The secretary...

They spoke of a transport company

at the Giessauf alley.

- Have they kept her over there?
- I don?t know.

Kern!

Bring him to me.

Call your boss.
At the transport company.

You?ll tell him that there?s news.

That Weigelt has documents.
That later, you?ll scan them.

You?ll explain to him
that one of your canes was commuted.

That is was fiddled with.
That it contained a microfilm.

And a small key.
A key to a briefcase.

And you?ll tell her that you
saw me hang around from your windows.

And that a car
just joined you, with 5 or 6 men.

You see, it?s simple.

Go on.

You choose...

Hello? Hello?

Yes, it's Karl.

I know, but it's something exceptional.

Yes, Weigelt found the documents.

Hello? Hello, yes.

Yes, it?s altogether by chance.

My eyes
caught a cane that I didn?t know.

And it was fiddled with.

It contained a microfilm.

And a small key of a briefcase.

Are you sure?
OK, lock the items in your trunk

and barricade yourself
in your apartment.

Don?t worry, we?ll be there.

Yes, she's very well.

Shall I take her with me?

Alright. She?ll wait
at a distance, in a car.

No, no, that's normal.

I have only my word.

I?ll help you still more,
but save her, I beg you!

He said that
she?ll wait a distance, in a car.

That would be easier.

Funny you never talk about Margery...

Do you think it's easy, for him?

Get up, Mr Margery.

Your discretion... wasn?t very helpful.

We?ve found your cane.

The microfilm.

And we?ve also found... a small key.

You will soon

see your friend too... the left-handed.

Assemble all the available men,

we're off to Weigelt's.

Hello, police? I've heard shots,

and there are men
who want to break the door.

7, Margariten str. 1st. floor,
at Master Weigelt's.

Please hurry up.

Paul...

I?ve come to look for you.

- My cane...
- It is with me.

- In Paris, you?ll tell him...
- To hell with them.

- And you, who are you?
- His friend.

Come on.

- I?m the daughter of Brabant.
- Commander Brabant?

Yes.

I didn?t know he had a daughter.

After her accident,
my mother became crazy.

Margery took care of me.

In Paris, did they know?

That you
worked together, professionally.

No. For him, I was at hand

He never liked them.

For him, my father died
because of a stupid bureaucrat.

He said the less
Paris would know about me,

the better.

It?s a point of view.

I think because of that,
Chalieff never even doubted

that I knew Margery.

They bled him like a pig.
Who did that, have you seen?

Nobody. Chalieff told him that he
had found the documents in my place,

at Weigelt?s.

Afterwards, he took his life.

Suicide?

Even before
you arrived, he was strung out.

We should leave tomorrow morning,
after his meeting at the station.

A meeting?

Do you know with who?

I don?t know, a certain Hoffmann.

That guy who
was supposed to lend him a room.

Ah, Hoffmann.

Do you know him?

Yes.

Does this mean anything to you?

It?s a key, to a briefcase.

Do you know why
it was important to Margery?

No, I don?t know.

It?s the first time I hear about it.

You are friends with Ms Kern.

Here.

It was his wallet
and what he had on him.

Because he's dead... you can
explain it to her better than me.

I will try.

Not all the guests had to leave.

Let her get rid of them,
and pack a suitcase.

In a couple of days,
I think she could come back.

You, you have
nothing left to do here either.

I still have
a small favour to ask of you.

Take this.

The information that Margery
had to get through to Paris.

It?s safer with you
than with me, for the moment.

If there?s
anything wrong, get rid of it.

Right. In a while,
you?ll take the Vienna-Rome train.

Wait for me at the first
stop after the Italian border.

Meeting at the
station lunchroom, from tomorrow noon.

If I?m not there in 3 days,
but there?s no reason I won?t,

call Paris, Colbert 23-48.

Ask for Mr Jacques.

- You got it?
- Yes, Colbert 23-48.

You?ll say
that you have an envelope from me.

He?ll come and get you.

Take this.

Thank you.

The employees arrive at 7:30.

The Orient-Express
arrives at 7 o?clock.

I only have to mark out
the route of your correspondent.

I thought it wasn?t
the first encounter...

That means that it isn?t the same.

Otherwise... Margery
wouldn?t have asked me, to mark out...

Yes, obviously.

- Very well.
- Marshal Rommel said:

"There are only 2 kinds of men."

"Those who don?t know
how to die and those who do."

Margery... knew.

That adorns him.

Vienna station.

Mr Margery?

Yes, it?s me.

I think it's up to you to open it.

Ah yes.

I checked myself. Give me the
documents and we?ll recount together.

I haven?t yet...
managed to assemble the documents...

How?s that?
But you wired that they were ready.

That?s what I thought.

- Lack of conscience?
- Not at all.

Did you have reason
to complain about the 1st transaction?

No.

Slow wit isn't very useful,
we have examples of it.

Everything
will become very hard for you.

When the French will find out
where they stand with you.

For certain.

Certainty isn?t
part of this trade, I believe.

I'll bring to your case
all the certainty that's needed.

- You?
- Yes, me.

That?d surprise me.

Did you hear? Gunshots.

- Hi.
- Hi.

- Did you have to wait long?
- I arrived this morning.

- Did all go well?
- It did, thank you.

Here.

Thank you.

Did you go to Margery?s meeting?

Yes.

So, was it important?

I didn?t see anybody.

Right... what are you going to do now?

Whatever.

Except what I did before.

I think I?ll go
to my uncle, in Lausanne.

He has a bookstore.

I?m anxious to see all that again.

To live there...

You?re lucky.

My coronel.
- And your friend Margery?

He won?t come, he?s dead.

- Dead.
- Yes.

- Who?
- Chalieff.

Ah.

Yes, ah.

Before he died,
he told me to give you this.

- He didn?t tell you anything?
- Yes, to tell you many things.

- That?s all?
- Yes, that?s all.