What a lovely evening.
I wish it would last forever.
Forever's a long time, baby.
I can't think in those terms.
I never could.
But when something is good...
don't you want it to last forever?
Sure, but good things never do.
Not even us?
Are we so good?
Aren't we?
Well, now that you come to mention it, no.
Not anymore.
I...
Come on, Mimi, let's stop kidding ourselves.
I don't understand.
Look, it was sweet while it lasted.
Boy, it was sweet, but it's going sour, isn't it?
Well, isn't it?
I'd been hoping that you'd take the initiative...
but, no, you seem quite happy to let things drag on this way.
Well, I'm not.
I'm degrading myself by degrading you.
We're degrading each other, for God's sake.
Let's not spoil a beautiful memory.
Let's quit while we still have a few shreds of dignity left.
But I love you. All I want is you.
I want to marry you. I want to give you babies.
I want to give you the rest of my life.
I don't want the rest of your life. I want my own.
Can't you get it through your head?
What did I do wrong?
Did I ever harm you?
Oscar, tell me.
Even a criminal is told his crime.
What did I do?
You didn't do anything.
You exist.
That's all.
I understand.
Did I miss her?
Sure, I did...
but I also experienced an incredible sense of freedom.
The future seemed bright with promise...
peopled with a thousand alluring images...
most of them female.
Oh, shit.
It's me.
I'm here.
I'm scared.
What?
I can't live without you.
I'm afraid you're just gonna have to.
I won't.
We've been through this before, haven't we?
So why don't we give it a rest?
Look up some friends. Have some fun.
We just went over the top, that's all.
In a few days...
you'll be grateful to me for having made the first move.
Was she play-acting?
I couldn't be sure.
I called her old roommate.
No dice.
I spent the rest of the day wondering...
and half the night drinking.
I was waiting for you.
I can see that. I wonder why.
You know why.
I know I'm wrecked and I'm gonna crash.
- No. Wait. - Let go of me.
I want to tell you something.
There's nothing more to be said.
- Please!
It's not going to make it any easier on you.
You've got to listen to me. Please. Please listen to me.
Oh, for God's sake.
Rita, veux-tu. Rita.
All right. You'd better come in.
Do you want one?
All right.
What's so important?
It's true what I said.
I can't live without you.
If that's all you came to tell me...
Please, don't throw me out.
Give me one last chance.
I'm ready to live with you on any terms, any at all.
I can bear anything as long as I'm with you sometimes.
You can shout at me.
You can hit me.
You can have other women.
I don't care what you do, but, please...
don't send me away.
Even if you don't love me anymore...
keep me with you out of pity.
There's nothing I wouldn't do to stay with you.
Please. Please.
Please.
I beg you.
Please! Please!
I beg you.
Everyone has a sadistic streak.
Nothing brings it out better...
than the knowledge you've got someone at your mercy.
If she really fancied living in a living hell...
I'd make it so hot, even she would want out.
Yeah, it feels so good.
Yeah, it does, Cindy.
Cindy?
I mean Minnie, uh, Mimi.
Sure, I'm on.
Yeah, why not?
Round up a couple of chicks. We'll make a night of it.
Who?
Oh, you bet.
She's the best piece of ass this side of the river.
All right.
Yeah, I'll see you there.
Dinner's ready.
I'm eating out.
Tonight?
What's so special about tonight?
It's your holiday.
What holiday?
Thanksgiving.
I wanted to surprise you.
All right. Let's see what you got.
Christ, what is that?
Turkey.
I cooked it for you special.
Cremated it, you mean.
That's it. I'm off.
Won't you even try a little?
You're joking.
I have too much respect for my dentist.
Listen, in the future, forget about cooking.
Stick to what you can do.
Which reminds me, what happened to your dance classes?
Dancing has to come from the heart.
So?
My heart is broken.
I was getting to her at last.
I'd achieved the impossible.
She was losing her looks and her figure...
wasting away...
breaking out in nervous rashes...
developing spots.
We were just admiring your new hairstyle.
Really?
Susan here thinks it suits you. I do, too.
I can't put my finger on it, but it reminds me of something.
I know! Rita!
Rita?
You know Rita.
Rita. The neighbor's dog.
Just a minute. Wait.
What's that? Looks like a zit.
It is.
And your nose is shiny, too.
I'm not a makeup artist, but I could do better than that.
Hey! I didn't know we were having a Halloween party.
She was so easy to hurt...
it was getting to be like shooting fish in a barrel.
Not now, for Christ's sake!
Can't you see that I'm trying to work?
Anyway, have I ever asked you to clean the house for me?
No. So stop playing the martyr.
Take that thing off your head.
It makes you look even uglier than usual.
You're really letting yourself go.
I'm ashamed to be seen going around with you these days.
What is it now?
I expect...
What do you expect?
A baby.
What did you say?
I'm going to have a baby.
Oh, my God.
How long have you known?
Only since yesterday.
Two months, the doctor says.
What are you going to do about it?
Do about it?
Look at me.
Do I look like a daddy?
Can you see us bringing up a child in this place?
I'm pushing forty.
I haven't even sold a single book yet.
The world doesn't know I exist.
Not a day goes by that I don't think it might be better...
just to kill myself and be done with it.
Would it be fair to saddle a child with a father like this?
Be honest.
They'd told me there were complications...
but I wasn't prepared...
to see her looking like a marble figure on a tomb.
For a moment, I almost weakened.
You came.
Why wouldn't I?
I brought you flowers.
You're here.
Nothing else matters.
I've been thinking, that when you're on your feet...
we'll go away together, just the two of us.
Go away?
Yeah. Far, far away.
Shit. No room.
You look pale, baby.
Feeling all right?
Pardon, Madame.
Excuse me.
Oh, pardon. Je m'excuse.
Look. There it is.
That's what you need, baby.
I can just see you luxuriating under one of them palms...
with a tall glass in your hand.
Oh, hell, I can't sit through the whole trip this way.
I'm gonna get them to stow it somewhere.
I'll be right back.
Your baggage has already been loaded...
and it can't travel without you.
No. This is all I've got.
Vous n'avez pas de bagage dans la soute?
May I see your ticket, please?
Voulez-vous que je fasse une annonce...
pour savoir s'il y a un médecin à bord?
I shall have to check with the Captain.
I could picture her looking out the window...
at that beautiful moon...
the same one I could see...
but I bet it didn't look the same to her.
Depends on your state of mind, the way things grab you.
To her, it must have been poison.
To me, sweet as a peach.
I don't know about you.
Sometimes I think you make things up as you go along.
I wish you were right.
My imagination isn't half that fertile.
I might have made it into print after all.
I mean, if even half that story were true...
you'd be too bloody ashamed to tell it.
Boy...
you still don't know me at all.
Are you still angry with me?
I don't know. I'm confused.
I wanted you to hear it.
I'd sooner have heard it from you.
I leave the words to him. They're all he has left.
When can we be alone together?
I mean, you know, really alone.
First hear the rest of the story.
Then we'll see.
Here you are. I wondered where you were.
You missed dinner.
I completely lost track of time. I'm really sorry.
Never mind. Dado's been keeping me company.
Good. How did the bridge go?
- It was a disaster. - Really.
We had very, very bad luck.
Never had such terrible hands in my entire life.
Never mind, Dado. Unlucky at cards, lucky in love.
May I offer you a drink?
No, thanks very much. I think some other time.
Are you coming, darling?
Smarmy bugger.
I bet he'd like to climb inside your pants.
You can talk.
What do you mean?
Oh, God, Nigel, I'm not a complete fool.
Those sessions with that American freak.
I know what the attraction is. It isn't his big blue eyes.
I'm sorry. I don't follow.
It's his wife you're after.
You've got the hots for her, haven't you?
What? I feel sorry for the girl, that's all.
Yeah, so sorry that your tongue's hanging out.
Now, just watch it, Nigel.
Anything you can do, I can do better.
Oh, God.
Darling, I cannot understand why you won't take a Dramamine.
I told you, they knock me out.
Surely, now, it's better to sleep than to suffer.
We look forward to welcoming you...
to our gala fancy dress ball tonight.
I'll be all right.
See the new year in and dance till dawn...
to the music of Danny Garcy and his boys.
For those without costumes...
the stewards can supply funny hats and...
Funny hats. For God's sake.
Here.
Here, take another.
You like me taking pills, don't you, Nigel?
If it's not one kind, it's another.
Don't know why I bother.
Sorry, darling. What are you talking about?
The pill, Nigel. The pill.
We don't do it often enough nowadays to make it worthwhile.
Oh, really. Come on, please.
What are we doing here?
What are we looking for that we can't find at home?
Seven years. Look where it got us.
I realize something now. We shouldn't go to India at all.
I'll be spending the whole six months in bed.
Sorry, darling. I'm not with you.
Too right, you're not. You're somewhere bloody else...
and I know where!
It's like a drug.
Actually, That's all getting very boring.
If you're so obsessed...
with your dirty-minded little cripple and his sexy wife...
why don't you just go back for another helping...
and leave me in peace.
Fine! If that's how you feel, I damn well will.
In time, Mimi became a distant memory...
a closed chapter.
My sense of freedom returned with a vengeance.
I hadn't dumped Mimi for one particular woman.
I'd swapped her for all womankind.
And I resolved to make up for lost time.
No more emotional entanglements.
I just wallowed in female flesh like a pig in clover...
ricocheted from bed to bed...
grabbed whatever was going...
hurried on.
Every day held the promise...
of some new, short-lived sexual experience...
the shorter, the better.
Every time I looked into one woman's eyes...
I could see the reflection of the next.
After two years of screwing around...
I gave up all pretense of writing...
and turned night into day.
Like Dracula...
I rose at dusk and retired to my pad at dawn.
Il faut qu'je rentre. Il faut que je rentre, Oscar.
Mais non, on s'amuser. The night is young.
Moi, il fatigué. Je me lève dans deux heures.
Arrete tes couneries. On va rigoler un peu.
Non! Arrete!
Something's fucked up.
I was luckier than I deserved.
Just a concussion and a fractured femur...
that had kept me lying there like a mummy for weeks.
None of my conquests...
bothered to check if I was still breathing.
Well, I'll be damned.
Jesus.
So you didn't kill yourself.
What for?
I was dead already.
You're looking great anyway.
I'm feeling great.
Here. I brought you these.
Thanks.
May as well sit down while you're here.
Where you been all this time?
You bought the tickets. You should know.
Martinique? You stayed on?
What have you been doing with yourself?
- Working at a hotel. - Waiting tables?
Till the manager found out I could dance.
Then he put me in a floor show.
Kind of him.
Yes. He was very kind.
He almost restored my faith in human nature.
Only almost?
He did...
until I remembered you.
Touché.
What are you doing back here?
Just visiting. I heard about your misfortune...
thought I'd see if you needed anything.
You know what I really need, baby?
I need you to stay out of my life.
You haven't lost your charm, Oscar. I should have known.
Well... good-bye.
Remember the carousel?
Sure, I remember the carousel.
I remember it like a trip to the dentist.
Easy! Easy!
Stop!
Asshole. Did you think I'd forgotten?
She came to see me when I got out of intensive care.
She said, "There's bad news and there's good news.
"You're paralyzed from the waist down, permanently."
"OK," I said.
"Let's have the good news."
"That was the good news," she said.
"The bad news is that from now on...
"I'm taking care of you."
We were a couple once more.
She moved back into my place and looked after me...
with a strange kind of devotion to duty.
She was my cook, my housekeeper, my jailer...
and my nurse.
Oh, couldn't you...
I mean, it makes my leg shake...
if you always shoot me in the same spot.
You see? It makes the leg shake.
Couldn't you find some other place?
- You want me to have another go? - No, the next time.
Look what you made me do, silly.
My God, you're not going to use it again?
None left.
I'll get some more tomorrow.
It crossed my mind she might still love me...
in spite of everything.
After all, it's no fun hurting someone...
who means nothing to you.
Hey, Tiger. Come and get it.
Aren't you having any?
I'm going out.
Nothing in it?
Like what?
I don't know. Maybe tomatoes, mushrooms?
Would you like some mushrooms?
Well, yeah. That would be nice.
You want some, go pick some.
Yes, I do.
Oh, no, he's not available.
Who's calling, please?
No. This is his nurse speaking.
What the... Who says I'm not available?
Ah, you heard.
Yeah, very sad.
Who is it?
No. Quite impossible, I'm afraid.
He's completely incapacitated.
I will.
You're welcome. Good-bye.
Who was it?
"Paris is out. Vieux jeu."
Beverly, you mean? What did she want?
What did she want, for God's sake?
How would I know?
You might have let me speak to her.
I said, you might have let me speak to her.
I heard you.
Jesus, Mimi, I never get to see or speak to a soul these days.
It's like I'm in solitary.
Is it?
Look...
I know I deserve all I get.
I treated you like a monster.
I am a monster.
Tiger! You don't have the right to criticize yourself.
That's my privilege.
- I know. - I earned it.
But I promise, I will never hurt you again.
You... hurt me?
Very funny.
And don't play with your zizi while I'm gone.
There is no point.
Thank God you're home.
You missed me?
As much as you missed me after you dumped me?
Oh, no, not that again.
Please, let's not have a scene.
Why not? I love scenes.
I've developed a taste for them.
In fact, I can't do without them.
What is that?
What do you think it is?
What do you expect if you go out and leave me alone all night?
I wet myself, of course.
Oh, poor Tiger.
I'd better change your diaper.
God, you stink.
Why don't you just finish me off?
Why don't you O.D. me...
or push me down the stairs or something?
I almost forgot.
It's your birthday, isn't it?
Is it?
I didn't remember.
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday, dear Oscar
Happy birthday to you
Although she kept me starved of human contact...
she enjoyed taking me out...
because she knew how much it hurt to be reminded...
of the simple little pleasures that were denied me forevermore.
Antoine, laisse le monsieur tranquille...
tu vois qu'il a bobo.
Funny. You might have been good with kids.
Who knows?
You never will. That's for sure.
It wasn't that I just didn't want that child we made.
I didn't think I was worthy of it.
You could still have some.
No fear of that.
I'm a safe fuck these days.
What do you mean?
That abortion you so kindly paid for...
left me with an infection.
I was quite ill in Martinique.
Almost died, as a matter of fact.
You never told me.
Well, I'm telling you now.
Oh, Christ, what a shit I was. I despise myself.
I hate myself.
I hate myself worse than you could ever hate me.
Don't kid yourself, Oscar.
No one could hate you more than I do.
Why do you stay with me?
You really don't know?
Because you're precious to me, more precious than ever before.
Here.
So there it was.
We needed each other, she and I.
It's getting awfully cold.
Mimi, the water's getting cold.
Oh, merde. It's run out again.
I must speak to the concierge about it.
Don't go away.
Ouais? Ouais et toi?
Non j'peux pas je suis vraiment cassée.
Non je voudrais bien mais je suis vraiment cassée.
Quais m'en plus j'ai rien à m'foutre sur le cul.
Vous bouffez a quelle heure?
Ah, laisse tomber ouf.
C'est wrai?
Ah, c'est cool de l'avoir invite pour moi.
Moi remarque j'sais pas je me le ferai bien quandmeme.
Ouais?
Ah, ça doit etre beau.
Ouais, tu me la passeras?
Ouais?
Ouais.
That was great. Thank you.
You didn't know I could cook, did you?
Thought I could only shake a leg, huh?
- You shake a leg real good. - Better than I cook?
Sure... Well, I mean, um, no.
You cook real good, but you could dance even better.
You don't work at it.
What's the point?
I could never dance as good as you.
Sure, you could.
Come on. You're special.
Isn't he special, Tiger?
Absolutely.
You see? He loves to watch you dance.
He thinks you're gorgeous.
Right, Tiger?
Right.
How about that? Look at that.
Get a load of that. Come on.
Hey, Mims, you're crazy.
Come on.
Isn't that something?
And he's not gay, either. That's very rare.
Show him your extension.
Come on.
How about that, Tiger?
You should try it sometime.
Come on, Basil. Dance a little for Oscar.
- I don't know. I ate too much. - Come on.
The poor baby gets so little fun out of life these days.
No entertainment at all.
Well?
Come on! Don't stop!
Dance! Dance!
I'd grown accustomed to being only half a man...
but that night, I really hit rock bottom.
It was a kind of catharsis, I guess.
We both knew we'd never rediscover...
the same extremes of passion and cruelty...
with another living soul.
Monsieur Oscar Benton...
consentez-vous a prendre pour espouse...
Mademoiselle Micheline Bouvier?
Mademoiselle Micheline Bouvier...
consentez-vous a prendre pour epoux...
Monsieur Oscar Benton?
Conformement a la loi je vous declare unis...
par les liens du mariage.
We were like the survivors of a catastrophe so terrible...
it formed a bond between us...
shared by no one else in the world.
So the relationship had come full circle.
We'd reached a plateau.
The dust has settled since then, but I live in constant dread.
I'm forever afraid of losing what's left of her heart...
to some lucky bastard.
It feels strange to be confessing this...
to someone who's hoping he'll be the one.
Now don't deny it.
There's only room in this cabin for one hypocrite.
If you're not going to stay and have another drink...
you might as well go.
There's no more to tell.
I think I understand you better now.
And her?
Yeah, and her.
Shit, shit, shit.
Look...
Let's be adult about this, shall we?
Yeah, adult. That's the word.
Anything I can do, you can do better. Feel free.
I won't object if you have a little fling...
with that Italian, for example.
Taking the plunge at last?
I think I need a drink.
I said, I think I need a drink. Can I get you one?
Can I have a whiskey, please? No ice.
That was some stunt.
Pretty good for a guy with two left feet.
Well, I don't pretend to be a dancer.
Just kidding, Nigel. I'm not so hot myself.
Will you look at that Latin lover boy go?
Watch out. He'll snap her up.
Almost time.
Where is that English rose of yours?
She'll miss all the fun if she doesn't hurry up.
Fiona's not much of a sailor. She's flat out on her bunk.
That is a disappointment.
Yeah, yeah. Dosed herself on Dramamine.
Pity. Mimi and I were hoping...
to crack a bottle of champagne with you later on...
the two of you.
A little farewell get-together with our special friends.
All right, folks, this is it.
You got something you want to do this year...
you'd better hurry up.
We've got only about ten seconds left.
Nine... eight...
seven... six...
five... four...
three... two...
one!
Well, baby?
Happy days, Oscar.
Sure.
Happy days.
Your good health.
You notice that I do not say, "Happy New Year."
To those whose gaze is focused on eternity...
one year is the same as the next.
You don't say.
In that case, cheers.
Deliver a bottle of champagne to room A-29.
On my tab.
Oscar Benton. OK?
All right, boys and girls, that'll do.
Come on, stop that.
Is this any way to start a new year?
Peace! Let's have some peace!
Shalom! Shalom!
All right, all right. Settle down, boys and girls.
Why?
I thought...
You thought what?
But you said...
I mean, I know how your story ends now.
No, you don't.
Not yet.
I think...
I think I've fallen in love with you.
Come on. I'm just a fantasy, an amusement on a boring voyage.
You mean it's still just a game?
Did I ever say it wasn't?
But...
I'm truly, sincerely in love with you.
That's why you will never have me.
You're hurting me terribly.
The way you're hurting your wife?
She doesn't know about us. She knows nothing.
She's looking right at us.
Having a good time?
Darling, this is wonderful.
- Yes, isn't it? - How are you feeling?
Good as new, thanks to your ministrations.
There.
Now you can make your New Year's resolutions.
Do you think it's safe to drink on an empty stomach?
Who wants to be safe?
I'm feeling dangerous tonight.
That's the spirit, Fiona.
I knew that your presence...
would add a little spice to tonight's proceedings.
That was a very kind thought of yours.
I've never seen my husband...
in action with another woman before.
Oscar had me woken with a bottle of champagne.
You call that action?
I don't think he was getting anywhere with her.
It's a shame.
Maybe I made a mistake about you, Nigel.
Maybe your wife would've been a better bet.
Come on, stop sulking, man.
You ought to be glad they're getting it on so well.
Come on. Put a funny hat on. It'll make you feel better.
Throw some streamers at them.
Attaboy!
It's the "Titanic" all over again!
Nearer my God to thee
Nearer to thee
I know how you feel, Nigel.
I've been a loser all my life.
Join the club.
Don't touch me!
If you weren't a cripple, I'd knock your fucking head off.
Go ahead if it'll help.
I deserve your hatred.
I'm abominable. I'm pathetic.
No, not that way, Nigel.
Nigel, you better hurry.
There'll be nothing left for you.
Bloody hell!
Is she here?
Did you ever see such an allegory of grace and beauty?
Two nymphs sleeping off their amatory exertions.
You really missed something, Nigel.
Fiona was a revelation.
All fire.
I doubt if you've ever really made the most of her.
Swine!
Get your goddamn hands off me.
You prick.
You don't deserve to hear the rest of my story.
My.
Here, give it.
Just give me that thing, all right?
Otherwise you're going to hurt somebody.
Come on, man, Don't be a bloody fool.
- Give it to me. - Hurt somebody?
Not anymore.
We were just too greedy, baby.
That was all.
Hello, sweetheart.
My father says to wish you a Happy New Year.