I didn't mean it. You're not cheap.
What are you waiting for? Go!
Can't do it.
Why not?
My nerves.
I'm a coward.
You get to know these things about yourself.
Some people look inside, they find things nobody ever knew were there.
Like Jakob.
Then there's the rest of us.
You can't force a man to risk his life.
I'll keep it at my place. The power will come back.
And by then, the news will be even better, won't it?
Like cheese.
Kowalsky, you need a partner?
Take off your hats!
Hardtloff...
..."The Liquidator. "
What's he doing here?
What do you think?
Looks like it's time to pack our bags.
What does our prophet have to say about this?
What's the prognosis, doctor?
Supraventricular tachycardia. Could be.
-Good. Sounds serious. -It is serious.
How long can you live with that?
How long can we live with him? That's the question.
Feeling better?
Tonight is Shabbat.
Great.
We'll fast like every other night.
You're not a very good Jew, are you?
Hannah used to light the candles.
Don't you believe?
I believe we are the chosen people...
...but I wish the Almighty had chosen somebody else.
But you're still a Jew, aren't you?
In the eyes of the Gestapo...
...I'm the biggest yid they've ever seen.
The light!
No miracles for part-time Jews, huh?
You remember what you promised, don't you?
I remember.
I got better since then.
Now you want to listen to the radio. Well, you can't.
Why?
-I got rid of it. -Why?
-I gave it to Mischa. -Why?
What "why, why?" Always "why?"
He was driving me crazy.
-Gestapo! Open the door! -Under the bed.
It's not too clever, hiding under a bed.
This is not a discussion!
You!
If the Germans only knew the trouble they're going through...
...just to get your radio working again.
It's funny, isn't it?
May you die laughing. What do you want?
I want to listen to the radio.
I have to know what's taking so long. I have to make my wedding plans.
That's quite impossible.
Why is it impossible?
"Why, why?" Everybody's "why?"
It's not even your radio anymore. It belongs to everyone now!
You're waiting for someone?
Who is it? Tell me.
And then you'll tell everyone else.
Soon the Gestapo's knocking on the door for reaI.
You're hiding someone?
Yes. Why couldn't you think this quick in the ring?
Someone important?
Very important.
I'll tell you about it tomorrow. Right now...
...we need our privacy.
To think that of all people...
...my old manager, Jakob Heym.
Schmuck!
Mischa needs the radio.
All right. I lied.
I lied...
...because it's a sin to listen to a radio on Shabbat.
But you don't observe Shabbat.
Where does it lead?
The radio.
But you must do everything I say. Promise?
Promise.
This is your restaurant?
It was more of a café.
You sit here.
And don't move. If you move, the radio won't work.
I'll turn it on, and we both are going to listen to it.
But if I see you get up, the radio goes right off.
Now I turn it on.
It takes a moment for the tubes to heat up.
Once they are warmed up, you'll hear talking.
So it's heating up now.
We don't want him.
Good evening, ladies and gentlemen.
This is the BBC in London.
Tonight we have a speciaI guest...
...the Prime Minister of Greater Britain, the very Honourable...
...Winston Churchill...
...who is just now coming into the studio, putting out his cigar.
Good evening, ladies and gentlemen...
...and everybody in Poland.
-He likes the Polish, doesn't he? -Of course. We're his allies.
Mr. Churchill, if we only have a little bit of time...
...I would like you to update us on the events around Bezanika.
I'd be delighted.
That is my area of exper-
Gesundheit, Mr. Churchill!
Excuse me.
The cigar smoke gets up one's nose.
Where was I?
Bezanika, in Poland.
I know where Bezanika is. I'm not stupid.
And I was on the phone with Mr. Stalin...
...who told me his troops were doing wonderfully.
Is that not so, Mr. Stalin?
Da!
Does that mean it's nearly over?
That's a very good question.
He heard me!
We remind listeners not to ask questions...
...as that interferes with reception.
And please don't look at the radio!
But it's still a very good question.
And the answer is yes!
The whole megillah will soon be over...
...and that schmendrick Hitler will be gone!
And that brings to an end our speciaI bulletin for Poland.
We remind young listeners to brush their teeth before going to bed.
I turned it off now.
What about music?
Music?
Turn around.
Music.
Now, in memory of peacetime...
...which will soon be with us again...
...a little dance music.
From the Grand Ballroom in London, an evening concert.
May I have this dance, mademoiselle?
Do you know how to polka?
I'll teach you. Stand on my feet.
Here you go!
-Good morning. -Morning.
What's the latest?
He's not up yet.
Good morning.
But I have some good news.
I saw him yesterday. He's hiding a parachutist from London.
A parachutist?
Now they have parachutists.
How do I beat that? Flying tanks?
They need news, but I have no new ideas.
What can I invent now, Hannah? Submarines?
The latest. Ask anybody else!
I'm the only one in this whole ghetto who's got no news, Hannah.
Are you gonna work today, or is this a one-man strike?
-Come on! What are you doing? -I have to go!
Dysentery.
Are you out of your mind?
You're gonna commit suicide. That's a German toilet!
Can't wait.
You're gonna get shot, you crazy bastard.
" Massive traffic in Munich. "
" Miracle cure for haemorrhoids. " Shit!
"Sunny with occasionaI showers in Berlin. "
" Heidi, I miss you. Franz. "
" In memoriam. In memoriam. "
" LoyaI son of the Fatherland. " " Dear Nazis. "
News!
"The Luftwaffe Reserves beat the Kriegsmarine...
...3-2 in a hard-fought but fair game. "
Thank you. The Jews will rejoice at this news.
God, a miracle, please.
All right.
Your fa ther cleans up after horses
Listen to me closely I'll explain
Your mama sleeps nights in the park
You fa ther's doing time in prison
Your sister sleeps with a chazzer
No, get off, please!
Kowalsky, are you out of your mind?
Are you all right?
What does it matter, now that you...
...the illustrious pancake vendor, get to crap like a king?
So now that you've shared a toilet seat with the master race...
...maybe you'll feeI good enough to tell us the news.
Yesterday, Churchill addressed the Polish people.
In Polish?
You want the latest news or don't you?
Our apologies.
The main item...
...was that the Luftwaffe soccer team...
...beat the Kriegsmarine by 3 goals to 2.
That's it?
Want the latest news? That's it.
Churchill is on the BBC giving out German army sports results?
Nothing about a front line?
If Churchill has nothing more important to announce...
...it means to me the war is pretty much over.
That's right.
What if 3 to 2 is a code?
Could mean the Russians outnumber the Germans 3 to 2.
Or maybe they are 32 kilometres away.
I don't think so.
I think it means that maybe they are, I think, 32 hours away.
If we listen hard enough, maybe we can hear their artillery.
Yes, that's what the noise was last night.
My wife thought it was the heating pipes...
...but there hasn't been any steam for years.
-I heard it too. -You heard it too?
Yes, I heard it too.
"Et tu, Brute?"
I think it's time to organize.
Professor, did you hear this Avron? He plans to organize.
Well, maybe he's right.
Maybe we can save a few lives if we have an organization and a leader.
For God's sake!
The Russians may be pushed all the way back to Siberia by now.
Hardtloff is here. We know what that means.
What? You're going to fight the Germans barehanded?
And what do you suggest we do?
Just sit down and wait?
Hope is all very well, but sometimes it takes a little action too.
You will understand this.
It'll be a massacre.
All because these Jews believe the dreck I feed them.
But you started this.
And now you have to go on. Let's only hope that your lies were true.
Let's hope that.
What is it?
You know what it is.
Forgive me, but Jakob, he's right.
And I am wrong?
And you are wrong.
You smelled the cooking, Mr. Frankfurter. Come in.
-Mr. Frankfurter! -Papa!
I'm happy you still remember.
How's Mama?
You know how mothers are. She hasn't seen you in a few days.
So I said to myself:
"Today is Sunday. I'll see our daughter and bring her her things.
And that way, if they come to take us away...
...she'll still have her trousseau. "
It's beautifuI.
But is it what we need right now?
I know what you need right now.
I played Sherlock Holmes in The Hound of the Baskervilles.
I always insisted on authentic props.
Young man, I realized I care...
...about more people than my immediate family.
Perhaps I'm wrong and your friend Jakob is right.
While I'm baring my souI...
...I must tell you that I did not play King Lear three times.
I played it once, and I forgot half my lines.
Try not to get killed before you marry my daughter.
And remember, untiI the last line has been spoken-
The curtain cannot come down.
Well, gentlemen, I think the person we need...
...has to have physicaI as well as moraI courage.
He has to be a man who's proved that he is willing to take risks.
And I think he should also be a man...
...who's brought hope...
...hope and dignity to the ghetto.
Thank you, Esther.
Sounds like the professor to me.
We will see.
"Jakob Heym. "
You see? "Jakob Heym. "
" BlumenthaI!"
Thanks.
"Jakob Heym. "
-" Professor Kirschbaum. " -You see?
"Jakob Heym. "
Congratulations!
A little apricot liqueur.
I was saving it for a speciaI occasion.
Gentlemen! Jakob Heym.
-To victory. -To victory.
I get the door.
Gestapo! Open the door!
Why are you running? It's Mischa.
Good joke.
Very good joke.
I know, I know.
I'm not invited.
But I have something...
...I think you will find interesting.
My God. Where did you get that?
You have a radio, I have a gun.
German steeI.
We can count on them for something.
Now that you're the leader, what's our next move?
We have to wait for the signaI.
The signaI?
And then we start the insurrection.
The BBC said so.
What's the signaI?
Something very speciaI, like:
"The chicken is in the pot" or "The baby is singing. "
But our signaI is top secret.
I'm not at liberty to tell you at this time.
Further evidence that you are in the best position to lead us, Jakob.
But if I'm your leader, I will only do it on one condition:
You must be disciplined.
All of you.
Now we only have a little time left. Right, professor?
And in that time, if anybody, anybody does anything stupid...
...you have to answer to me.
Open up! Gestapo!
That's not Mischa.
Open the door!
Does the Jew Kirschbaum live here?
Professor Kirschbaum lives here.
Do you have an appointment?
-We don't need one. -Tell the professor this is urgent.
Wait here.
I shall tell him you are here.
Come in.
Take a seat, please.
We have some visitors.
Andre, dear.
Some gentlemen to see you.
Best luck, Jakob.
Shalom.
There's only two.
-That's two too many. -Give me the gun.
It's my gun.
I am the leader.
Gentlemen...
...what can I do for you?
Please get your bag. GeneraI Hardtloff has had a seizure.
That's the first good news I ever got from a German.
Hardtloff?
He's not my patient. I presume he has his own doctor.
Are you refusing?
I'll get your bag.
Thank you, Esther.
I put in the other pills, the ones for your heartburn.
With a little luck...
...you will not need them.
Unfortunately, I think I will.
Thank you...
...Esther.
He'll be back.
Thank you, sir. Thank you.
It's a nice place. It's a very nice place.
Come. Come on! Go!
-Sorry. -Idiot!
It's a great honour to meet you. I attended all your Berlin lectures.
Berlin? The good old days, yes.
Please sit.
Over here.
It seems that this little town...
...is home to one of the greatest cardiologists in the world.
I had the honour of teaching in Berlin.
And now I'm a professor...
...of latrine cleaning in the freight yard here.
I see.
Well...
...the ghetto is going to be emptied tomorrow.
I can see to it...
...you are not on the transport.
Why so generous?
I am surrounded by incompetents.
These doctors are unable to do anything for me...
...and the pain is unbearable.
Open the jacket, please.
Let me see.
I know this sound, sir.
I have a similar condition. It's pretty painfuI, isn't it?
But only here, I have a little problem.
On the one hand, as a physician, I'm obliged to help you.
On the other hand, if I save your life...
...you'll liquidate the ghetto.
And if you do not...
...my men will liquidate you.
This is the radio of the German Armed Forces Network. HeiI, Hitler!
We will now broadcast a special bulletin.
Our troops are engaged in the Battle of Normandy.
News...
Sorry.
Perhaps you would like to hear how the war is going.
But, of course, you have your own sources of information.
Your own radio.
-In the ghetto? -You think we are stupid?
We have informers.
I know you listen to the BBC, that you're dreaming about resistance.
Why don't you give me the name of the criminaI who owns the radio?
I'll save you. What do you say?
It's a hard decision to make, yes. It's a hard decision.
May I have a glass of water?
If it helps you to make up your mind, why not?
Water.
Thank you.
Excuse me.
Excuse me, sir, but I...
Poison!
It was poison!
You bastard yid! I forbid you to die!
You really shouldn't get excited.
Take my advice.
You know, I am a world-famous cardiologist.
World-famous cardiologist...
I'm a famous...
...cardiologist.
Esther.
Professor! Professor!
Stop. He's dead.
Rise.
You let this dirty yid defy me!
But, Herr GeneraI-
I want to see this radio here tomorrow morning!
Go!
Heil, Hitler.
Halt!
A criminal terrorist is hiding a radio...
...in the ghetto, in defiance of regulations.
Unless the man responsible brings himself and the accomplices...
...to the Kommandantur by midnight...
...10 hostages will be shot in reprisal.
A criminal terrorist...
...is hiding a radio in the ghetto...
...in defiance of regulations.
Unless the man responsible brings himself...
...and his accomplices...
...to the Kommandantur by midnight...
...10 hostages will be shot in reprisal.
Are you there?
What do you want?
Is that a way to greet a visitor?
Sorry.
Should I go to the basement, fetch a bottle of champagne?
No wonder you never had any customers.
So I wanted to tell you about that green stuff.
Never worked for Stamtisch...
...didn't work for me and it won't work for you.
The last cigarette before you tell me to turn myself in.
No, that's between you and Him up there...
...if He is up there.
No, actually...
...I wanted to ask you about the signaI.
I was wondering if that signaI must have come by now.
At least any minute now. What do you think?
What?
For what I'm about to say, I'd rather be in the dark.
I don't have a radio.
I've never had one.
And if I did, I wouldn't have had the guts to listen to it.
So how did you know where the Russians were?
-I made it up. Most of it. -I don't think so.
I don't think you can make that up.
The battle for Rudna, and for the tanks, the Luftwaffe, Churchill-
The jazz band. All of that.
Actually, the soccer score was genuine...
...thanks to your dancing that day.
And Bezanika, I really did hear that in the Kommandantur.
But as for the rest of it...
...it's lies...
...all lies.
Sometimes I amazed myself.
But it's lies...
...and wishfuI thinking.
You're telling the truth.
Finally.
Go ahead.
Tell me how much you hate me.
That was our dear friends, the Germans...
...and half the German army...
...they were tearing the ghetto apart...
...for a radio that doesn't even exist?
Don't tell Mischa. It'll kill him.
You're not sleeping.
You shouldn't ruin your eyes like that.
I'm not going to see my parents again, am I?
The Russians aren't coming, are they?
Yes, they are.
A whole battalion of them.
Straight from Moscow, with tanks and a big band.
Is that another lie?
Why should I believe you?
Would I lie to you about something like that?
I heard you talking to your friend.
But I understand why you did it.
You wanted to be...
...to be good.
That's from Hannah.
She told me she wishes we had a little girI like you.
Where are you going?
I have something I have to do, and you should sleep.
Why?
Questions, always questions.
I have to give the Germans my radio.
But you don't have a radio.
That's a problem, isn't it?
You know, maybe I'll go and explain it...
...all to my good friend in the Gestapo...
...and he'll see the funny side of it...
...and we'll have a good laugh about it.
That one's from me, maidelah.
Be carefuI.
Mischa, open the door. It's me, Jakob.
Has the signaI come?
Not yet, but I need your services.
-Are we rescuing the hostages? -That's being taken care of.
But your mission is to go to my attic.
I'll get my clothes.
Not now.
Tomorrow, if I don't show up at work...
...you must go to my place under the cover of darkness...
...and transfer here something speciaI I left for you to take care of.
The radio?
Something speciaI.
-I understand. -Good.
Where's my gun?
This mission does not require a gun.
It requires a good brain and a strong heart.
So I chose you, our best man.
Mazel tov.
Goodbye, my friend.
Dear Jakob:
You'll probably hold yourself responsible for my death...
...and if you look at it one way...
...you'd be right.
But when you look at it a different way...
...your imaginary radio gave me a reason...
...to keep going for a few more days, anyway.
Much as I'd like to, I don't hold anything against you.
With a bit of luck, you'll find some other schmuck...
...to shave you for free.
Until I see you again, I remain your best customer...
...Kowalsky.
Shalom, chazzer!
Remember me? The smart Jew?
Why are you out after curfew?
It's about my radio.
I must see the officer on duty. I wish to give myself up.
Maybe you're not such a smart Jew.
Keep going.
I know the way.
It's in here.
So...
...here we have the famous Jakob.
Did you bring your radio?
Yes and no.
Let's go!
Please! Please! Please!
Come on! Come on!
You're crazy. You're going to get us killed.
I have to go to Jakob's.
Rosa, go!
Halt! Halt!
The radio?
The hostages.
Nothing yet?
Another few more minutes, Herr GeneraI.
All right. Continue.
Tell us about the radio. I will see what I can do for the hostages.
-Look by the window. -There's nothing here.
It has to be here somewhere.
I hear something.
Sorry if I frightened you.
Who are you? What are you doing here?
I'm Lina Kronstein. I live here. But it's a secret.
You're Mischa, yes?
Jakob said you'd take care of me.
Take care of you?
Of course, we'll be happy to. Won't we?
Listen to me very carefully. This is very important.
Do you know where Jakob hid the radio?
-Of course I do. -You do?
I've heard it.
"This is the BBC from London. "
You actually heard this radio?
I'm not supposed to tell anyone.
Where is it?
Where is your damn radio?
Lina, where the radio is matters a great deaI to a lot of people.
Would Jakob trust us to listen to it?
Stop.
I'll show you.
I'll show you my radio.
Go, Lina. Go, go!
Forget about the radio, Mischa!
That...
...is my radio.
You've just told your last joke, yid!
Stop.
Go! Run there!
Run. Trust me, run!
Don't shoot.
Please don't shoot. Don't shoot!
It was you.
The Jew who was out after curfew.
And it was your radio I heard.
Excuse me, sir, is that a problem for you?
You're the one with the problem, my friend!
That's true.
That's certainly the case. I can't argue with that.
But to let a Jew hear a radio...
...that's a serious offense, isn't it?
You can shoot me, but you still don't have my radio.
So...
...we both have a problem, don't we?
May I?
You will stand up in front of the Jews...
...and tell them there was no radio.
You made it all up. Everything.
There is no radio, no resistance.
In return for your confession, I won't shoot you.
But you will put me on a transport to the camps.
It's the same thing, isn't it?
That's not much of a deaI for me.
You may be a good soldier...
...but you're not much of a businessman.
Excuse me for saying so.
Who knows?
You might survive a week in the camps.
Two weeks. Six months.
UntiI the Russians or the Americans or the British arrive.
You know how close they are, don't you?
There's always hope.
Isn't there?
What man doesn't want to see the next day...
...and the one after that?
You all know this man.
He told you he had a radio.
He told you that you should resist...
...the German authorities.
He will now tell you...
...that this was all a lie.
He will tell you that there never was such a radio.
And that resistance...
...is pointless.
Tell them.
Hey, you.
Tell them.
So that's how it ended.
I never got a chance to be the big hero and make my big speech.
I swear, I had a speech all prepared...
...about freedom and never giving in.
But somehow...
Yes, that's how it ended.
They all went off to the camps...
...and were never seen again.
But maybe it wasn't like that at all.
Because, you know, as Frankfurter says:
"Until the last line has been spoken...
...the curtain cannot come down. "
About 50 kilometres out of town...
...the train was stopped by Russian troops...
...who hadjust taken Bezanika and Pry.
Roll it out, roll it out Roll out the barrel
Sing a song of good cheer
'Cause the whole gang is here
Roll it out, roll it out
Let's do the Beer Barrel Polka!