Smiley's People (1982): Season 1, Episode 2 - Episode #1.2 - full transcript
George Smiley continues his his investigation into the death of General Vladimir but discovers a number of anomalies related to his death. His former employers in the Secret Service simply wanted him to ensure that the General's death doesn't dredge up any old history. George is convinced however that the General was assassinated by the KGB and is puzzled by the possessions the police found - or didn't find - in his coat pocket. He retraces the General's recent movements and learns that a friend of his had brought him something important from Germany. A walk through Hampstead Heath turns up the information he had obtained. In Paris meanwhile, Madame Ostrakova is attacked by thugs who try to throw her in front of a car. Now in fear for her life, she again writes her friend the General in London.
SMILEY:
Bobchik...
Bobchik!
Bobby.
( keys jingling )
( man whistling tune )
If you've anything
for flat 6B,
I can save you
the climb.
Miller...
V. Miller.
POSTMAN:
Miller, Miller, Miller, Miller.
Miller.
Thank you.
( whistling )
Bywater Street, Chelsea.
MAN:
Right, sir.
Would you make that
Hampstead, please?
Which part?
The Heath.
( crows cawing in distance )
( wind blowing softly )
Moscow Rules,
Vladimir, old friend.
( traffic bustling )
( coin clinks )
Straight and Steady Minicabs?
I'd like to speak to Mr. Lamb,
please, one of your drivers.
Excuse me, this is
not a personal call.
I want Mr. Lamb to drive me,
and nobody but Mr. Lamb will do.
Tell him I'll need him
for a couple of hours or so.
My name is Sampson,
Sampson with a "p."
South End Green,
outside the bus shelter.
SMILEY:
"General, some men
are watching my house.
"I do not think they are
your friends or mine.
"This morning I had
the impression
"they wanted to kill me.
Will you not send me
your magician once more?"
( no voice )
Straight
and Steady?
Sampson
with a "p"?
SMILEY:
Would you please
switch off the engine?
I'm a private
detective.
I expect you get a lot of us
and I'm sure we're a nuisance,
but I would be happy to pay
for a little bit of information.
( pleasantly ):
Oh, yeah.
You signed a receipt
yesterday for ?17.
Do you remember
who your fare was?
Tall party, foreign,
white moustache and a limp.
Old?
Very-- walking
stick and all.
Where did you pick him up?
Cosmo restaurant,
Praed Street,
10:30, morning.
And where did
you take him,
please?
Charlton.
Charlton in southeast London?
Saint somebody's
church,
off the Battle
of the Nile Street.
Asked for a pub called
the Defeated Frog.
Frog?
Frenchman.
Did you leave him there?
One-hour wait,
then back to Praed Street.
Did you stop anywhere else?
Once at a toy shop going,
once at a phone box coming back.
Party bought a wooden duck
on wheels-- yellow job.
The phone call was local.
How do you know?
I lent him 5p,
didn't I?
Then he comes back
and borrows two 10p's
for in case.
You can tell your firm
I didn't
turn up.
Tell 'em what
I bloody like, can't I?
CAB DRIVER ( through glass ):
You ever tried to use a phone
box in London these days?
Awful-- you just can't do it.
They're either pulled to bits,
coins jammed in 'em.
No discipline, you see.
If I had my way, I'd bring back
capital punishment.
And repatriation.
Cheers.
Hello, Mr. Brownlow,
how are you?
Hello, sir, how are you?
How's Lady Ann?
She's very lucky.
I've bought her a present.
Could I pop it in your safe
for the day
and collect it later?
It doesn't tick, does it?
Only in wet weather.
I adore the bag.
( car horns blaring )
( doorbell rings )
( knocking )
Mrs. Craven?
Stella?
Stella?
It's me, Max.
Where's Villem?
His name's William.
Get that straight, Max.
William Craven.
That's his choice.
British to the core.
Not Estonian.
Not Russian.
British.
I want to talk to him, Stella.
I'm not asking him
to do anything.
I may even be able to help him.
I've heard that one
before, haven't I?
He's out.
He's gone to work,
where he belongs.
Then what's his lorry
doing outside?
He's gone to the depot.
They sent a car for him.
Then who's the second cup
for in the kitchen?
He's got nothing to do with it.
( speaking softly )
Shh.
Perhaps if you made that tea.
You're not talking to him
alone, Max.
I'm not having you
charm him off
the tree again.
It's about Vladimir.
I know what it's about.
They've been ringing
half the night.
Who have?
"Where's Vladimir?
Where's Vladi?"
What do they think William is,
Jack the Ripper?
He hasn't had sound nor sight
of him for God knows how long.
( baby whining )
Yeah, Beckie, darling,
do be quiet.
( speaking softly to baby )
I'm not usually
like this.
Who was asking
for him?
Mikhel, who else?
Remember Mikhel?
Our Freedom Radio ace?
Prime minister-designate
of Estonia, betting tout?
Half past midnight--
while Beckie's
cutting a tooth--
the bloody phone goes.
It's Mikhel doing
his heavy-breathing act.
( in Eastern European accent ):
"Where's V1adi, Stella?
Where's our leader?"
Why was he
so worried?
Vladi owed him money,
I expect.
50 quid.
Probably lost it
on a horse together,
one of their many losers.
"Look, Mikhel", I said,
"he's not here.
We're not hiding him
in the attic."
So he rang off?
Did he, hell.
He's a leech.
"Villem is Vladi's favorite,"
he said.
I said, "What for,
the 3:30 at Ascot?
Look, Mikhel, go back to sleep."
( door thuds shut )
William's right out
of this now.
He's not political
and he's not slimy,
and he's got over
his dad being a martyr.
He's a big boy now,
and he can stand
on his own two feet, right?
I said, "Right?"
Hello, Villem.
( with accent ):
Hello, Max.
How you doing?
That's the
way, huh?
I gather you've already heard
the news about Vladimir.
News?
What news, please?
He's disappeared.
I'm told his friends
have been ringing you up
at unsocial hours.
Friends?
( chuckles )
Old emigres.
Drink tea, play chess all day.
Politics-- talk crazy dreams.
Mikhel is not my friend, Max.
But Vladi is your friend.
Vladi was your father's friend
before you.
Brothers-in-arms.
Sure!
Vladimir, he was
my father's friend--
his good friend--
also of Beckie the godfather.
But not for politics,
not anymore.
Me, I am William Craven.
I got English home,
English wife,
English kid,
English name, okay?
Also English job.
A good job.
You know how much I earn, Max?
We buy house, maybe a car, okay?
When did you
last see him...
William?
Who, Max?
See who?
I don't understand you, please.
Tell him, Bill.
When did you last see Vladimir?
Long time, Max.
Weeks?
Sure, weeks.
Months?
Months.
Six months... seven.
At christening.
He was godfather,
we make a party.
But no politics.
And not since?
No.
What time did William
get back
yesterday?
Early.
As early as 10:00
in the morning?
Could have been.
I wasn't here.
I was visiting Mother.
Vladimir came down here
yesterday by taxi.
I think he saw William.
On his way,
he bought a toy.
The taxi waited an hour,
then took him back
to Paddington,
where he lives.
Vladi is
of Beckie
the godfather.
Stella don't like him,
so he must come here
like a thief, okay?
Vladi is
an old man, Max!
Who knows when he sees
his Beckie again?
He is friend of family.
Not of this family he isn't--
not anymore.
He was friend
of my father-- comrade!
They fight together Bolshevism.
So he bring to Beckie a toy.
Why not, please?
Why not, Max?
STELLA:
You said you bought
the bloody thing yourself!
Stella don't like
the old man, okay?
Is afraid I make more politics
with him, okay?
So I don't tell Stella.
She goes to see her mother
in Staines Hospital
and while she is away,
Vladi makes a small visit
to see Beckie,
say hello.
Why not?
Stella, listen to me!
So Vladi don't get
home last night.
Please, I am so sorry!
But it is not my fault, okay?
Max, that Vladi is
an old man-- lonely.
So maybe he finds a woman once.
Okay?
For this he was pretty
famous, I think, okay?
Okay? Why not?
And before yesterday?
You saw Vladi yesterday.
He came by taxi and brought
a yellow wooden duck for Beckie.
On wheels.
Sure.
Very well.
But before yesterday--
not counting yesterday--
when did you
last see him?
Monday-- I see him Monday.
He ring me,
we meet, sure.
Oh, William!
( phone rings )
I want you to go.
I want you to walk
right out of here
and never come back.
Please, Max, now!
I'm afraid Vladi's
disappeared for good, William.
It's in the papers.
He's been shot dead.
The police will want
to ask you questions.
I have to hear
what happened
and tell you
how to answer them.
Bozhe moy!
VILLEM:
For the others...
I give nothing.
For Vladi everything.
I love this man.
After the death of my father,
Vladi become father to me.
Sometimes I even
say him my father.
Not uncle--
father.
Perhaps we could
start with Monday.
With the first meeting.
Vladi took
the negatives,
like they were
sacred from a church.
In their envelope?
Sure, yellow envelope,
from Kodak.
He look at them slowly,
one after another,
till he find the one
he's all the time
searching for.
Just one? One negative?
Sure.
One frame or one strip?
Frame...
One small frame.
35-millimeter.
Like Agfa automatic
I have.
And on your journey,
all the way home from Hamburg,
you never once thought to look?
Was secret, Max,
military secret.
STELLA:
He wouldn't.
He's too straight.
Was Soviets, Max!
Was Soviet spies.
They kill Vladimir!
He know too much.
STELLA:
So do you.
So do we all.
That's all he said?
Just Max would believe?
Nothing else?
Nothing about the value of what
you have done, for instance?
Nothing... about there being
other "proofs," for instance?
Nothing.
No more.
SMILEY:
Nothing to explain
how he communicated
with Hamburg
in the first place,
set up
the arrangements?
Whether others of the Group
were involved?
Please think.
So, whom have you
told this to,
William,
apart from me?
Nobody, Max!
Nobody!
He hasn't
had time.
Do you think
Vladimir told anybody...
anybody you know of, that is?
From the group, only Mikhel,
which was necessary,
but not all, even to Mikhel.
I ask him, "Vladimir, who
knows I do this for you?"
"Only Mikhel, a very little,"
he said.
"Mikhel is my friend.
"But even to friends
we cannot trust.
Enemies I do not fear," he said,
"but friends I fear greatly."
Whoever may get in touch--
the police, the Group, anyone--
they know all they need to know.
Vladimir came yesterday
to bring Beckie a present.
He found William here,
they strolled in the garden,
talked old times.
End of story.
Were you here?
If they ask,
yes.
I came with the bad news.
Did Vladimir mention Hector?
VILLEM:
Of Hector nothing.
So he didn't mention him.
William said
he didn't,
for Christ's sake!
Did you bring anything else
for Vladimir?
Apart from what was
in the yellow envelope?
A present, perhaps?
Something he liked
and couldn't afford
in England?
Cigarettes!
On boat, I buy him
French cigarettes as gift.
Gauloises, Max.
He like very
much Gauloises.
No tax,
no filter.
Sure.
And the ?50 he'd borrowed
from Mikhel?
VILLEM:
I give back, sure.
All?
All.
Cigarettes was gift.
Max, I love this man.
For my father, I love him.
You haven't been
talking to anyone
on the other side
of the business, have you?
Anybody who might
help you get rid
of a tiresome
old man
who's making a bore
of himself?
No?
Well, well.
I've reached an age where
I'm allowed to ask, you know.
We have good news
for you, madame!
The X-rays show that
nothing is broken,
nothing is displaced.
You have a few lacerations and
a few bruises, but that is all.
You are free
to leave.
Madame.
I have friends.
They are good
people, but rough.
They give no privacy, no quiet.
We women,
sometimes we need calm.
You understand?
I understand,
but it is difficult.
Give me one night here.
This is not a hotel...
but you may stay.
You are very kind.
Max!
You came.
I am glad.
I had hoped, but I did
not dare to expect.
I was waiting for you,
nevertheless.
I waited all day until now.
He loved you, Max.
You were the best.
He said so always.
You were
his inspiration.
His example.
SMILEY:
I'm sorry, Mikhel.
I'm really sorry.
As we all are, Max.
As we all are.
Inconsolable.
But we are soldiers.
Elvira loved him
also very much.
He was a brother to her.
He instructed her.
Elvira?
My wife, Max.
Who do you think did it, Mikhel?
Was he betrayed?
Max, you know as well
as I do who did it.
We are all of us
at risk, all of us.
The call can come
at any time.
To the Bolshevites, we exiles
remain enemy number one.
Anathema.
Where they once destroyed
our culture and our churches,
where they can, they destroy us.
And they are right
to be afraid of us.
One day we shall defeat them.
They could have killed
Vladimir years ago.
Why did they choose
this particular moment?
Unless Vladi was
up to something,
I suppose.
Unless he provoked
them in some way.
Which he might
well have done,
knowing him.
Who can tell?
Well, you can, Mikhel,
if anyone can.
Don't tell me he
didn't trust you.
Our leader was
a secretive man.
This was his strength.
He had to be.
It was a military
necessity.
But not towards you, surely.
Come, you do yourself
an injustice.
Even towards me.
At the end, even towards Mikhel.
He came to see me
one evening.
I was asleep upstairs.
He gave the special
ring on the bell.
"Mikhel, I need ?50."
When was this?
Twelve days ago.
One week last Monday.
"General,"
I say to him,
"you are making
a conspiracy.
Tell me what it is."
He shakes his head.
"Listen," I say,
"if this is a conspiracy,
take my advice, go to Max."
He refused.
"When I have landed
the big fish I am hoping for,
"then I will go to Max and
I will claim our expenses
and perhaps many
things besides."
In my wallet I had ?50.
Fortunately that day I had made
a successful investment.
I give them to him.
That was very good of you.
It was my duty.
From the heart.
I know
no other law.
And this approach to you--
this request for operational
funds-- it came out of the blue?
There'd been nothing before,
to tell you he was
up to something big?
Some months ago, perhaps two,
he received a letter.
Here, to this address.
Did he receive so few?
It was
from Paris, Max,
addressed to the General
personally,
not to Mr. Miller.
I pressed him,
and he told me
it was a military secret.
( phone rings )
Uh...
um, yes...
Put me five each way.
Did he say any more
about the big fish?
Please, Max?
The big fish.
The operation he said
he was planning.
I wondered if he enlarged
on it in any way.
He asked for some maps.
I was
in two minds
whether to tell
you this.
You were
his vicar,
but you are not of our cause.
But as I trust you, I shall.
Maps of where?
Street maps,
city plans.
Danzig, Hamburg.
Lubeck, Helsinki.
The northern seaboard.
He telephoned.
Elvira!
We are having a conference here!
ELVIRA ( with accent ):
To Hamburg.
It was special call.
You owe him for this call.
?2.80.
You owe him.
How do you
know that?
He asked operator
to call him back.
And you were
present while
he did that?
Izvinite.
Izvinite.
She is distressed, Max.
Forgive her.
She has no discipline.
But he did telephone Hamburg.
Do you happen to know
the number also?
How could we?
He told us nothing.
He was entirely secretive.
So, what was your
last contact with him?
Yesterday afternoon,
he calls me.
I haven't heard him so excited
for many years.
"I have been fishing," he said,
"and I am happy.
"Stay awake.
I will be with you
at 11:00."
He never came.
To life.
To life.
Odd.
What is odd, Max?
He asked for me.
Always Max.
He loves you, Max.
Like we all do.
He never asked for Hector.
Never his postman-- why not?
That was always
the procedure
in the old days--
first the postman,
then the vicar.
Why did he cut out Hector?
Hector was
no good for him.
Oh?
He told me...
"Our good postman, Hector,
is like the city banks.
When it rains,
he takes away the umbrella."
Well, well.
It seems we've all betrayed him
somehow or another, doesn't it?
Not I, Max, never.
Really?
But you had such good reasons,
I'd have thought.
Envy, money.
A woman.
That is wicked talk, Max.
I never loved any woman
like I loved Vladimir.
( quietly ):
Not even her.
The Circus has no stake in this.
That's official.
He was shot and robbed.
End of story.
And I never came here, Mikhel.
You make the smallest fuss,
we'll stop your subsidy forever.
You'll have to rely
on the horses.
( metal clattering )
( water sloshing softly )
( quiet piano music playing )
( grunts wearily )
Oh, my Lord, yes.
( doorbell rings )
( doorbell rings again )
LACON:
George, old friend.
There you are.
Hello, Oliver.
Tried you earlier-- no answer.
In the neighborhood.
Saw the light.
You, uh, got back all right,
I trust?
Where from, Oliver?
Cleaning house?
Late for that.
Um... got some bits for you.
LACON:
I felt I owed you an apology.
We parted on
a sour note.
I was brusque.
Well.
How are things? Hmm?
You are done?
Finished?
I've had the Home Office
on the line again.
They've had
the pathologist's report
and the body
may be released.
Early cremation recommended.
I thought perhaps
if I gave you
the name of the, uh...
the firm handling things,
you might care to pass it on
to those concerned.
I'll get a pencil.
Unattributably,
of course.
Who the devil's Olearius?
A 17th-century
explorer.
Oh?
And where'd he explore?
China.
Good chap?
Do you mind leaving
that alone, Oliver?
It's not mine,
and it's worth
half the gross
national product.
Hmm.
You were talking
about undertakers.
LACON:
Oh, yes.
Sutherland's the firm.
Local chap.
Uh, Heath Street,
Hampstead.
Twenty-seven.
Have you got that?
Want me to repeat it?
No, I think I
have it, thank you.
Now, George, we have
a date, you and I.
A seminar on marriage
with no holds barred.
I've cast you as
my elder statesman here.
There's a very decent
trattoria near me,
and I shall treat you
to a slap-up dinner
whilst you give me
of your wisdom.
A Friday, say.
All right, Friday?
Gives us the weekend
to sleep it off.
Oh, a Friday
would be fine.
And you found nothing, hmm?
No snags, hitches,
loose ends?
It was a storm in a teacup,
was it?
As we suspected.
What about the phone bill?
What, uh... what phone bill?
I asked you for a breakdown
of all traceable calls
from the Baltic Library
and Vladimir's flat.
Oh, you mean these.
( chuckling ):
Yes, of course.
Reason I came.
Slipped my mind.
Anything else?
No-- no, I don't think so,
thank you.
( sighs )
( laughs quietly )
Funny about children.
Beggars keep you awake
when they're there;
when they're not,
you can't sleep.
Don't you think
you ought to try
all the same?
You look whacked.
Yes, I suppose I am.
Busy day.
Well, uh, cheerio, then.
I won't have a drink.
Best to Ann.
Out, is she?
Yes, she's out.
What,
gallivanting?
Some woman's thing?
Good works?
You'll find plenty of cabs
in the King's Road, Oliver.
Take care of yourself.
MAN:
Kirov betrayed me in Tallinn
when we were students together,
oh, many years ago.
He thinks I don't know this.
Now this fat pig spies
for Moscow Center.
Two nights ago,
in my new apartment in Paris.
The rue du Bac.
Kirov and I, we get
real Russian-drunk.
You know,
vodka, champagne, vodka.
And then,
then he started talking.
"Who is this Karla?"
I asked him.
"Is she beautiful?
Shall we sleep with her?"
He laughs at me.
He thinks I am ignorant.
"Karla is not a woman!" he says.
"Karla is a cover name
for a man!"
Max-- he is the most cunning fox
in the whole of Moscow Center,
this Karla.
So listen, then.
Listen to how we know
that Kirov is Karla's man.
Karla has asked him
to find a girl.
One he can use, Max.
Max, help us.
Give us resources of the Circus.
We return to Paris tonight.
And we find the girl.
And the girl will lead us
to Karla.
I know it...
And you, too.
I can read it in your face.
SMILEY:
I would need proof.
( footsteps passing by )
( footsteps recede )
( siren wailing in distance )
( dialing )
( phone line ringing )
MAN ( on phone ):
Guten Abend.
Blaue Diamant, guten Abend...
Hier ist der Blaue Diamant.
Guten Abend.
Blaue Diamant.
Antworten Sie bitte.
( loud music playing
in background )
( phone rings off )
Bobchik...
Bobchik!
Bobby.
( keys jingling )
( man whistling tune )
If you've anything
for flat 6B,
I can save you
the climb.
Miller...
V. Miller.
POSTMAN:
Miller, Miller, Miller, Miller.
Miller.
Thank you.
( whistling )
Bywater Street, Chelsea.
MAN:
Right, sir.
Would you make that
Hampstead, please?
Which part?
The Heath.
( crows cawing in distance )
( wind blowing softly )
Moscow Rules,
Vladimir, old friend.
( traffic bustling )
( coin clinks )
Straight and Steady Minicabs?
I'd like to speak to Mr. Lamb,
please, one of your drivers.
Excuse me, this is
not a personal call.
I want Mr. Lamb to drive me,
and nobody but Mr. Lamb will do.
Tell him I'll need him
for a couple of hours or so.
My name is Sampson,
Sampson with a "p."
South End Green,
outside the bus shelter.
SMILEY:
"General, some men
are watching my house.
"I do not think they are
your friends or mine.
"This morning I had
the impression
"they wanted to kill me.
Will you not send me
your magician once more?"
( no voice )
Straight
and Steady?
Sampson
with a "p"?
SMILEY:
Would you please
switch off the engine?
I'm a private
detective.
I expect you get a lot of us
and I'm sure we're a nuisance,
but I would be happy to pay
for a little bit of information.
( pleasantly ):
Oh, yeah.
You signed a receipt
yesterday for ?17.
Do you remember
who your fare was?
Tall party, foreign,
white moustache and a limp.
Old?
Very-- walking
stick and all.
Where did you pick him up?
Cosmo restaurant,
Praed Street,
10:30, morning.
And where did
you take him,
please?
Charlton.
Charlton in southeast London?
Saint somebody's
church,
off the Battle
of the Nile Street.
Asked for a pub called
the Defeated Frog.
Frog?
Frenchman.
Did you leave him there?
One-hour wait,
then back to Praed Street.
Did you stop anywhere else?
Once at a toy shop going,
once at a phone box coming back.
Party bought a wooden duck
on wheels-- yellow job.
The phone call was local.
How do you know?
I lent him 5p,
didn't I?
Then he comes back
and borrows two 10p's
for in case.
You can tell your firm
I didn't
turn up.
Tell 'em what
I bloody like, can't I?
CAB DRIVER ( through glass ):
You ever tried to use a phone
box in London these days?
Awful-- you just can't do it.
They're either pulled to bits,
coins jammed in 'em.
No discipline, you see.
If I had my way, I'd bring back
capital punishment.
And repatriation.
Cheers.
Hello, Mr. Brownlow,
how are you?
Hello, sir, how are you?
How's Lady Ann?
She's very lucky.
I've bought her a present.
Could I pop it in your safe
for the day
and collect it later?
It doesn't tick, does it?
Only in wet weather.
I adore the bag.
( car horns blaring )
( doorbell rings )
( knocking )
Mrs. Craven?
Stella?
Stella?
It's me, Max.
Where's Villem?
His name's William.
Get that straight, Max.
William Craven.
That's his choice.
British to the core.
Not Estonian.
Not Russian.
British.
I want to talk to him, Stella.
I'm not asking him
to do anything.
I may even be able to help him.
I've heard that one
before, haven't I?
He's out.
He's gone to work,
where he belongs.
Then what's his lorry
doing outside?
He's gone to the depot.
They sent a car for him.
Then who's the second cup
for in the kitchen?
He's got nothing to do with it.
( speaking softly )
Shh.
Perhaps if you made that tea.
You're not talking to him
alone, Max.
I'm not having you
charm him off
the tree again.
It's about Vladimir.
I know what it's about.
They've been ringing
half the night.
Who have?
"Where's Vladimir?
Where's Vladi?"
What do they think William is,
Jack the Ripper?
He hasn't had sound nor sight
of him for God knows how long.
( baby whining )
Yeah, Beckie, darling,
do be quiet.
( speaking softly to baby )
I'm not usually
like this.
Who was asking
for him?
Mikhel, who else?
Remember Mikhel?
Our Freedom Radio ace?
Prime minister-designate
of Estonia, betting tout?
Half past midnight--
while Beckie's
cutting a tooth--
the bloody phone goes.
It's Mikhel doing
his heavy-breathing act.
( in Eastern European accent ):
"Where's V1adi, Stella?
Where's our leader?"
Why was he
so worried?
Vladi owed him money,
I expect.
50 quid.
Probably lost it
on a horse together,
one of their many losers.
"Look, Mikhel", I said,
"he's not here.
We're not hiding him
in the attic."
So he rang off?
Did he, hell.
He's a leech.
"Villem is Vladi's favorite,"
he said.
I said, "What for,
the 3:30 at Ascot?
Look, Mikhel, go back to sleep."
( door thuds shut )
William's right out
of this now.
He's not political
and he's not slimy,
and he's got over
his dad being a martyr.
He's a big boy now,
and he can stand
on his own two feet, right?
I said, "Right?"
Hello, Villem.
( with accent ):
Hello, Max.
How you doing?
That's the
way, huh?
I gather you've already heard
the news about Vladimir.
News?
What news, please?
He's disappeared.
I'm told his friends
have been ringing you up
at unsocial hours.
Friends?
( chuckles )
Old emigres.
Drink tea, play chess all day.
Politics-- talk crazy dreams.
Mikhel is not my friend, Max.
But Vladi is your friend.
Vladi was your father's friend
before you.
Brothers-in-arms.
Sure!
Vladimir, he was
my father's friend--
his good friend--
also of Beckie the godfather.
But not for politics,
not anymore.
Me, I am William Craven.
I got English home,
English wife,
English kid,
English name, okay?
Also English job.
A good job.
You know how much I earn, Max?
We buy house, maybe a car, okay?
When did you
last see him...
William?
Who, Max?
See who?
I don't understand you, please.
Tell him, Bill.
When did you last see Vladimir?
Long time, Max.
Weeks?
Sure, weeks.
Months?
Months.
Six months... seven.
At christening.
He was godfather,
we make a party.
But no politics.
And not since?
No.
What time did William
get back
yesterday?
Early.
As early as 10:00
in the morning?
Could have been.
I wasn't here.
I was visiting Mother.
Vladimir came down here
yesterday by taxi.
I think he saw William.
On his way,
he bought a toy.
The taxi waited an hour,
then took him back
to Paddington,
where he lives.
Vladi is
of Beckie
the godfather.
Stella don't like him,
so he must come here
like a thief, okay?
Vladi is
an old man, Max!
Who knows when he sees
his Beckie again?
He is friend of family.
Not of this family he isn't--
not anymore.
He was friend
of my father-- comrade!
They fight together Bolshevism.
So he bring to Beckie a toy.
Why not, please?
Why not, Max?
STELLA:
You said you bought
the bloody thing yourself!
Stella don't like
the old man, okay?
Is afraid I make more politics
with him, okay?
So I don't tell Stella.
She goes to see her mother
in Staines Hospital
and while she is away,
Vladi makes a small visit
to see Beckie,
say hello.
Why not?
Stella, listen to me!
So Vladi don't get
home last night.
Please, I am so sorry!
But it is not my fault, okay?
Max, that Vladi is
an old man-- lonely.
So maybe he finds a woman once.
Okay?
For this he was pretty
famous, I think, okay?
Okay? Why not?
And before yesterday?
You saw Vladi yesterday.
He came by taxi and brought
a yellow wooden duck for Beckie.
On wheels.
Sure.
Very well.
But before yesterday--
not counting yesterday--
when did you
last see him?
Monday-- I see him Monday.
He ring me,
we meet, sure.
Oh, William!
( phone rings )
I want you to go.
I want you to walk
right out of here
and never come back.
Please, Max, now!
I'm afraid Vladi's
disappeared for good, William.
It's in the papers.
He's been shot dead.
The police will want
to ask you questions.
I have to hear
what happened
and tell you
how to answer them.
Bozhe moy!
VILLEM:
For the others...
I give nothing.
For Vladi everything.
I love this man.
After the death of my father,
Vladi become father to me.
Sometimes I even
say him my father.
Not uncle--
father.
Perhaps we could
start with Monday.
With the first meeting.
Vladi took
the negatives,
like they were
sacred from a church.
In their envelope?
Sure, yellow envelope,
from Kodak.
He look at them slowly,
one after another,
till he find the one
he's all the time
searching for.
Just one? One negative?
Sure.
One frame or one strip?
Frame...
One small frame.
35-millimeter.
Like Agfa automatic
I have.
And on your journey,
all the way home from Hamburg,
you never once thought to look?
Was secret, Max,
military secret.
STELLA:
He wouldn't.
He's too straight.
Was Soviets, Max!
Was Soviet spies.
They kill Vladimir!
He know too much.
STELLA:
So do you.
So do we all.
That's all he said?
Just Max would believe?
Nothing else?
Nothing about the value of what
you have done, for instance?
Nothing... about there being
other "proofs," for instance?
Nothing.
No more.
SMILEY:
Nothing to explain
how he communicated
with Hamburg
in the first place,
set up
the arrangements?
Whether others of the Group
were involved?
Please think.
So, whom have you
told this to,
William,
apart from me?
Nobody, Max!
Nobody!
He hasn't
had time.
Do you think
Vladimir told anybody...
anybody you know of, that is?
From the group, only Mikhel,
which was necessary,
but not all, even to Mikhel.
I ask him, "Vladimir, who
knows I do this for you?"
"Only Mikhel, a very little,"
he said.
"Mikhel is my friend.
"But even to friends
we cannot trust.
Enemies I do not fear," he said,
"but friends I fear greatly."
Whoever may get in touch--
the police, the Group, anyone--
they know all they need to know.
Vladimir came yesterday
to bring Beckie a present.
He found William here,
they strolled in the garden,
talked old times.
End of story.
Were you here?
If they ask,
yes.
I came with the bad news.
Did Vladimir mention Hector?
VILLEM:
Of Hector nothing.
So he didn't mention him.
William said
he didn't,
for Christ's sake!
Did you bring anything else
for Vladimir?
Apart from what was
in the yellow envelope?
A present, perhaps?
Something he liked
and couldn't afford
in England?
Cigarettes!
On boat, I buy him
French cigarettes as gift.
Gauloises, Max.
He like very
much Gauloises.
No tax,
no filter.
Sure.
And the ?50 he'd borrowed
from Mikhel?
VILLEM:
I give back, sure.
All?
All.
Cigarettes was gift.
Max, I love this man.
For my father, I love him.
You haven't been
talking to anyone
on the other side
of the business, have you?
Anybody who might
help you get rid
of a tiresome
old man
who's making a bore
of himself?
No?
Well, well.
I've reached an age where
I'm allowed to ask, you know.
We have good news
for you, madame!
The X-rays show that
nothing is broken,
nothing is displaced.
You have a few lacerations and
a few bruises, but that is all.
You are free
to leave.
Madame.
I have friends.
They are good
people, but rough.
They give no privacy, no quiet.
We women,
sometimes we need calm.
You understand?
I understand,
but it is difficult.
Give me one night here.
This is not a hotel...
but you may stay.
You are very kind.
Max!
You came.
I am glad.
I had hoped, but I did
not dare to expect.
I was waiting for you,
nevertheless.
I waited all day until now.
He loved you, Max.
You were the best.
He said so always.
You were
his inspiration.
His example.
SMILEY:
I'm sorry, Mikhel.
I'm really sorry.
As we all are, Max.
As we all are.
Inconsolable.
But we are soldiers.
Elvira loved him
also very much.
He was a brother to her.
He instructed her.
Elvira?
My wife, Max.
Who do you think did it, Mikhel?
Was he betrayed?
Max, you know as well
as I do who did it.
We are all of us
at risk, all of us.
The call can come
at any time.
To the Bolshevites, we exiles
remain enemy number one.
Anathema.
Where they once destroyed
our culture and our churches,
where they can, they destroy us.
And they are right
to be afraid of us.
One day we shall defeat them.
They could have killed
Vladimir years ago.
Why did they choose
this particular moment?
Unless Vladi was
up to something,
I suppose.
Unless he provoked
them in some way.
Which he might
well have done,
knowing him.
Who can tell?
Well, you can, Mikhel,
if anyone can.
Don't tell me he
didn't trust you.
Our leader was
a secretive man.
This was his strength.
He had to be.
It was a military
necessity.
But not towards you, surely.
Come, you do yourself
an injustice.
Even towards me.
At the end, even towards Mikhel.
He came to see me
one evening.
I was asleep upstairs.
He gave the special
ring on the bell.
"Mikhel, I need ?50."
When was this?
Twelve days ago.
One week last Monday.
"General,"
I say to him,
"you are making
a conspiracy.
Tell me what it is."
He shakes his head.
"Listen," I say,
"if this is a conspiracy,
take my advice, go to Max."
He refused.
"When I have landed
the big fish I am hoping for,
"then I will go to Max and
I will claim our expenses
and perhaps many
things besides."
In my wallet I had ?50.
Fortunately that day I had made
a successful investment.
I give them to him.
That was very good of you.
It was my duty.
From the heart.
I know
no other law.
And this approach to you--
this request for operational
funds-- it came out of the blue?
There'd been nothing before,
to tell you he was
up to something big?
Some months ago, perhaps two,
he received a letter.
Here, to this address.
Did he receive so few?
It was
from Paris, Max,
addressed to the General
personally,
not to Mr. Miller.
I pressed him,
and he told me
it was a military secret.
( phone rings )
Uh...
um, yes...
Put me five each way.
Did he say any more
about the big fish?
Please, Max?
The big fish.
The operation he said
he was planning.
I wondered if he enlarged
on it in any way.
He asked for some maps.
I was
in two minds
whether to tell
you this.
You were
his vicar,
but you are not of our cause.
But as I trust you, I shall.
Maps of where?
Street maps,
city plans.
Danzig, Hamburg.
Lubeck, Helsinki.
The northern seaboard.
He telephoned.
Elvira!
We are having a conference here!
ELVIRA ( with accent ):
To Hamburg.
It was special call.
You owe him for this call.
?2.80.
You owe him.
How do you
know that?
He asked operator
to call him back.
And you were
present while
he did that?
Izvinite.
Izvinite.
She is distressed, Max.
Forgive her.
She has no discipline.
But he did telephone Hamburg.
Do you happen to know
the number also?
How could we?
He told us nothing.
He was entirely secretive.
So, what was your
last contact with him?
Yesterday afternoon,
he calls me.
I haven't heard him so excited
for many years.
"I have been fishing," he said,
"and I am happy.
"Stay awake.
I will be with you
at 11:00."
He never came.
To life.
To life.
Odd.
What is odd, Max?
He asked for me.
Always Max.
He loves you, Max.
Like we all do.
He never asked for Hector.
Never his postman-- why not?
That was always
the procedure
in the old days--
first the postman,
then the vicar.
Why did he cut out Hector?
Hector was
no good for him.
Oh?
He told me...
"Our good postman, Hector,
is like the city banks.
When it rains,
he takes away the umbrella."
Well, well.
It seems we've all betrayed him
somehow or another, doesn't it?
Not I, Max, never.
Really?
But you had such good reasons,
I'd have thought.
Envy, money.
A woman.
That is wicked talk, Max.
I never loved any woman
like I loved Vladimir.
( quietly ):
Not even her.
The Circus has no stake in this.
That's official.
He was shot and robbed.
End of story.
And I never came here, Mikhel.
You make the smallest fuss,
we'll stop your subsidy forever.
You'll have to rely
on the horses.
( metal clattering )
( water sloshing softly )
( quiet piano music playing )
( grunts wearily )
Oh, my Lord, yes.
( doorbell rings )
( doorbell rings again )
LACON:
George, old friend.
There you are.
Hello, Oliver.
Tried you earlier-- no answer.
In the neighborhood.
Saw the light.
You, uh, got back all right,
I trust?
Where from, Oliver?
Cleaning house?
Late for that.
Um... got some bits for you.
LACON:
I felt I owed you an apology.
We parted on
a sour note.
I was brusque.
Well.
How are things? Hmm?
You are done?
Finished?
I've had the Home Office
on the line again.
They've had
the pathologist's report
and the body
may be released.
Early cremation recommended.
I thought perhaps
if I gave you
the name of the, uh...
the firm handling things,
you might care to pass it on
to those concerned.
I'll get a pencil.
Unattributably,
of course.
Who the devil's Olearius?
A 17th-century
explorer.
Oh?
And where'd he explore?
China.
Good chap?
Do you mind leaving
that alone, Oliver?
It's not mine,
and it's worth
half the gross
national product.
Hmm.
You were talking
about undertakers.
LACON:
Oh, yes.
Sutherland's the firm.
Local chap.
Uh, Heath Street,
Hampstead.
Twenty-seven.
Have you got that?
Want me to repeat it?
No, I think I
have it, thank you.
Now, George, we have
a date, you and I.
A seminar on marriage
with no holds barred.
I've cast you as
my elder statesman here.
There's a very decent
trattoria near me,
and I shall treat you
to a slap-up dinner
whilst you give me
of your wisdom.
A Friday, say.
All right, Friday?
Gives us the weekend
to sleep it off.
Oh, a Friday
would be fine.
And you found nothing, hmm?
No snags, hitches,
loose ends?
It was a storm in a teacup,
was it?
As we suspected.
What about the phone bill?
What, uh... what phone bill?
I asked you for a breakdown
of all traceable calls
from the Baltic Library
and Vladimir's flat.
Oh, you mean these.
( chuckling ):
Yes, of course.
Reason I came.
Slipped my mind.
Anything else?
No-- no, I don't think so,
thank you.
( sighs )
( laughs quietly )
Funny about children.
Beggars keep you awake
when they're there;
when they're not,
you can't sleep.
Don't you think
you ought to try
all the same?
You look whacked.
Yes, I suppose I am.
Busy day.
Well, uh, cheerio, then.
I won't have a drink.
Best to Ann.
Out, is she?
Yes, she's out.
What,
gallivanting?
Some woman's thing?
Good works?
You'll find plenty of cabs
in the King's Road, Oliver.
Take care of yourself.
MAN:
Kirov betrayed me in Tallinn
when we were students together,
oh, many years ago.
He thinks I don't know this.
Now this fat pig spies
for Moscow Center.
Two nights ago,
in my new apartment in Paris.
The rue du Bac.
Kirov and I, we get
real Russian-drunk.
You know,
vodka, champagne, vodka.
And then,
then he started talking.
"Who is this Karla?"
I asked him.
"Is she beautiful?
Shall we sleep with her?"
He laughs at me.
He thinks I am ignorant.
"Karla is not a woman!" he says.
"Karla is a cover name
for a man!"
Max-- he is the most cunning fox
in the whole of Moscow Center,
this Karla.
So listen, then.
Listen to how we know
that Kirov is Karla's man.
Karla has asked him
to find a girl.
One he can use, Max.
Max, help us.
Give us resources of the Circus.
We return to Paris tonight.
And we find the girl.
And the girl will lead us
to Karla.
I know it...
And you, too.
I can read it in your face.
SMILEY:
I would need proof.
( footsteps passing by )
( footsteps recede )
( siren wailing in distance )
( dialing )
( phone line ringing )
MAN ( on phone ):
Guten Abend.
Blaue Diamant, guten Abend...
Hier ist der Blaue Diamant.
Guten Abend.
Blaue Diamant.
Antworten Sie bitte.
( loud music playing
in background )
( phone rings off )