Give me something
Go, get lost!
Come on, give me something.
Go away, you don't deserve anything.
My baby hasn't eaten at all today.
The trucks will be here soon and i'll have a lot of customers.
Just a little something
Get out of here, wretch!
Go away.
Get in.
Go sit down
Excuse him, Caliph. Excuse his impudence.
His name is Seyf-o-Allah, as I said.
If you give your consent, he has courage.
Consent?
Thank you.
You've stopped the detox program again!
I've had a lot of problems.
Yes, I read the newspapers. But this is useless.
You keep disappearing.
You won't quit like this.
I'm exhausted, doctor.
Your heart's at risk.
This time I'll go through with it.
I'll be honest, you don't stand much of a chance.
They're all corpses of prostitutes from the refugee camp.
The murderer leaves the bodies where they will be easily found.
I tried to convince them to not give you the case.
I told them that you're as stubborn as a mule,
that you don't know where the limits are.
And besides,
you've got your own shit to deal with and you're due to retire.
But it didn't work.
They said you're the only one who can get to the bottom of it quickly.
It's your hometown.
You know everybody there.
City of love...
City of all good...
City of memories...
For my good work.
Thank you, God bless you.
- What's going on? - There's been a murder.
Take her away!
Get rid of these people.
Come on, move along.
- Is it yours? - No. No.
What the devil are you doing here? Get out!
Thank you very much.
Come on, boy, a tea for the gentleman.
Since the serial killer appeared,
the women here have reformed and now they're all puppeteers.
How's business?
I can't complain.
Do you want me to find you some customers?
- I'll take one third. Okay? - It's a deal.
You're a new face.
- I'm looking for a place to stay. - And you're probably alone.
With a little work you'll think you're staying at the Palace Hotel.
If you take on a taleb, he'll cost nothing and work like a mule.
A taleb?
The young men that the Master attracts, they're called taleb.
Every day they have to perform good deeds.
"Sometimes the spirit gets lost in the wind.
In those moments, it's contaminated by sin.
Of all the guilts, the evil that lives inside you is the dirtiest.
Because one part of you is human and the other part is still the devil.
No one can divide their life into two.
One part for God and the other for himself;
one part for the spirit and the other for the body. "
it's contaminated by sin.
"Sometimes the spirit gets lost in the wind.
Of all the guilts, the evil
Come on, the new brothers have arrived.
Each one of you will be assigned a new brother.
Hurry up.
Come on, quickly.
Take your clothes off.
They're photos!
It's forbidden!
Go back to your rooms and get ready for the ceremony.
Everyone out of the yard!
No possessions allowed here.
We give you all you need.
You, go away!
For my good work, sister.
What are you doing with our television?
It's forbidden!
"Life is a temple: it is religion, ritual and rules.
You have to bring all that you Possess on the path of religion. "
Excellent. Now you too know all of human knowledge.
Here, our Master has written all that is necessary for humans to know.
God willing, this knowledge will protect me from sin?
I've been praying forty years longer than you have...
but...
I am still as close as this to sin.
Master!
Satan.
Forgiveness!
8th victim...
10th victim...
11th victim...
A puppet...
at every crime scene.
- How many have been killed, sergeant? - A lot.
Was our neighbor the last one?
No. Another one's been killed in the next street.
- And a good job too! - What are you talking about?
The puppets will lead me to the killer.
The puppets...
The puppets... The puppets...
You can stop the execution...
Give him another chance...
Oh, God!
City of friendship...
City of companionship...
City of compassion...
City of sadness...
City of childhood...
City of intimacy...
Habib!
It's been a long time...
Very long...
- I thought I'd never see you again. - And I thought you had remarried.
After you left people understood everything.
They say that in that case of the movie theater fires,
you implicated some powerful people, and that's why you got fired.
I apologized and I got my job back.
What has been happening here?
I forgot to invite you in.
Come in.
You see, it's always the same.
They're still threatening us.
This time they said that if we continue,
they'll burn down the theater.
Is old Nanny still alive?
Since they burned her puppets, she stays in her little corner.
She dreams of staging her Marionette play into the main square,
to make "the children" laugh again after such a long time.
That's what she calls the people in town.
She says she won't die until she sees that day.
Nanny, look who's here!
Habib, do you remember?
I always told you: what kind of Husband was he?
He doesn't know how to move a marionette
and he's not even a good lover.
Hi, Nanny.
The puppet plays are more valuable than those marionettes.
Nanny has collected the very best of the last eighty years.
With things as they are,
these are safer with you. Take them.
Do you hear from our daughter?
She still blames me.
No.
I hope to see you again.
Forgiveness.
It is God who forgives.
If you forgive me, God will also.
I will pray for you. God willing, you'll be forgiven.
Sleep is the first door that Satan enters through.
The disciple who surrenders to sleep is no longer a disciple.
Master, forgive me. I give you my life as a bond.
Pleasure has seven levels.
Ignore the first level, and you will be brought down to the next,
and each level is deeper than the previous one.
Brothers, this thing is called grenade.
It's an excellent weapon.
One of these can kill at least ten people.
To use it, you press this lever, put your finger in this ring
and pull it hard.
Then, with your outstretched arm,
throw the grenade with all your might.
Now, brothers, a volunteer to give it a try.
Come on.
Watch closely. You have an outstretched arm.
Where are you going?
Bodily pleasure is the lowest level.
It's the story of the man who is digging in the earth to find roots:
if he keeps digging he will find treasure.
M A S T E R!
Forgive me!
Once you have opened the door to Satan, he will never leave.
Then I have no choice!
God willing, I'll be forgiven!
God!
Sir, I didn't know anything.
These wretches didn't tell me anything.
If it pleases God, He will pardon his sins!
If it pleases God.
Clean the courtyard.
Clean the courtyard!
Puppets for sale.
You want the stuff?
The money first.
Hurry up.
My community service, sister?
No, brother.
- You've got a quick hand! - I'm not a thief.
We've found your puppets at all the crime scenes.
Those puppets aren't mine, sergeant.
And you didn't steal the playscripts, either.
Those I took, but the puppets aren't mine.
Leila heard that someone at the bazaar had old playscripts,
she asked me to get them if it wasn't dangerous.
- Who is Leila? - We share the house.
She gave those poor girls the dolls.
You don't believe me? Ask her yourself.
Let me go!
This woman is being charged! Let me explain!
Shut up. Take him!
Let me go, let me explain. Grab that woman!
Where? Go and get the car.
Here!
This one had a record too.
Another streetwalker.
We fool ourselves thinking we can stop them all,
but their business is too good.
The murderer has religious motives.
- You shouldn't say that. - Shouldn't I?
Because then the case becomes political.
In this city, they find a woman's body in the garbage dumps every day.
But this time, because of the newspapers,
the whole world is hearing about it.
Hey you, this bastard doesn't want to pay me.
Can you teach him a lesson?
He's a little shrimp, if you go near him he'll shit in his pants.
I didn't want to go with him, but he insisted.
If you help me, I'll pay you.
Sir, for the love of God!
This is all I have, sir!
Take her away!
One!
Count!
Two!
How many?
Two.
Three!
What's going on? I was looking for you.
Wait!
Freeze!
I found Leila's house. The murderer was there.
The murderer? But we've already arrested him.
He gave himself up this morning.
I made it clear there was no need for headquarters to interfere.
We can solve the case ourselves.
This is our turf. We know its problems better than anyone.
- How many have been captured? - Several.
Every day there is a group of volunteers.
Each one comes here to give himself in.
Him, Mr. Rajabi!
We had orders not to make this predicament public.
Powerful people approve of these murders.
Therefore, we had to choose somebody.
- You! - If God accepts!
I've organized a press conference.
But since you're officially in charge of this investigation,
they want you to announce that we've caught the killer.
They believe it's the only way to clean up the city. For us...
The atmosphere is more important than the murder of a few prostitutes.
Let's say we do apprehend the real killer,
We have to find out who is behind these crimes.
This guy is not the killer.
Wait a minute! You're not going to throw all our work out the window!
one of the pretenders will just continue his work.
Here he comes!
He's coming!
How did you catch the murderer?
Who's the killer?
Can you give us more details?
The murderer still hasn't been caught.
The one thing I can say is that
since powerful groups cover the crimes
we can't stop the killings.
That's all.
You want to buy or smoke?
Smoke. The strongest you have.
- Are you a customer? - Aren't you ashamed before God?
Say your prayers!
So you're the bastard who's attacking the women of this neighborhood!
Well, do you want to kill me, Captain Valliant?
Kill me...
If you get your merits by killing unfortunate women, strike me!
I want to die and meet the one who wrote my fate.
Who will have the courage to point a finger at me in the next world?
What judge will be better than me,
who sold my body to save the lives of my children!
Kill me! Are you afraid of an old woman?
Come on, where are you going? Come back!
I want nothing more than to be freed of my suffering!
Come back here!
You coward!
Sometimes the body is the dressing
that reveals the spirit's beauty.
But I make them suffer.
The healer has rough hands, but he gives relief to the patient.
The medicine is bitter, but gives the cure.
Their eyes are full of terror when they die.
Terror...
The terror of death is like that of the shepherd when he meets the king.
The shepherd is afraid when the king's hand touches his shoulder.
But in his heart he is glad.
Life and death are united, like the river at the sea.
The murderer is looking for someone:
the woman who's connected to all the victims.
She's the only one who can help us.
You lit the fuse, now you can wait for the explosion.
Wait, I never saw you before.
You're not from around here, let me look at you.
How old are you?
Are you a refugee?
Were you evacuated?
Take this, it's not much, but you won't find more around here.
If you need money, get some another way.
Take them.
Do what you like,
but watch out for that butcher, unless you're hoping to die.
Come with me!
Get lost right now, or I'll arrest you!
Why are you getting upset, friend? I didn't mean anything!
- Just my luck! - Get lost!
Did you think better of it? Take it.
You can pay me back when you have some.
Everybody knows me here.
- I want to talk to you. - Bastard!
Wait, I need your help to catch the murderer.
Go away, brother, don't hang around here,
or I'll have them teach you a lesson.
If people know you're a policeman, they'll lynch you.
Go away.
Come on, kids!
What's going on?
What is all that stuff in the newspapers?
You approve of the murders.
We approve of the cleansing of the city.
But not through murder.
Habib, my friend, how could you think that?
If you help us, you help your city.
Catch the murderer!
- Will you help me? - Certainly we will help you.
- Even if it means telling me names? - Even names.
We will teach him a lesson.
I'll tell the boys to get busy on it.
But, Agha...
I'm glad to have seen you again.
They've relieved you of your duty, you have to appear before a military court.
You have to give a official apology to the Agha.
You really took a beating, brother.
I didn't expect you to come round so quickly.
If I hadn't brought you back here, like a dead weight,
who knows how long you'd have been lying there losing blood.
- How many days have I been here? - Not too many.
Don't worry, you're safe here.
Those bastards beat you up pretty badly.
You're wearing my poor husband's clothes.
He was from India, he was a gem.
He loved films, he sang and danced all day long.
I've never met another man like him.
He always said we should go to India,
but my heart belongs to this land.
Are you a refugee? - na
No what makes you think that?
When the talebans arrived,
they thought they were the masters of the people's faith.
My father was one of the first to get killed.
They said that the puppets were idols and they burned all of them.
Nothing matters anymore.
Yes, I say the same thing.
They've relieved me of duty.
I can't do anything.
I'm nobody now.
Yes, you're an addict like all the rest.
When you're high you've got big fucking pipe dreams.
- The old woman is alive. - Bring her to the car.
They're still threatening us.
This time they said that if we continue,
they'll burn down the theater.
City of bitterness...
What should I write as the cause of death?
Add this as evidence.
Write "drug related".
City of death...
City of injustice...
Hello, brother.
Have you chosen your catch?
Don't be offended, I am a friend.
I have a better spot for you. Come on, I'll show you.
Here you can make yourself at home, you'll have everything.
While you stay,
you will protect one of the sisters. That's a merit.
The one you pick will be your slave forever.
What, can't you see we have a guest?
Go bring some tea.
Don't think that the sisters here are professionals.
No, they are as pure as flowers. Now you wait here,
I'll open the door. The one you pick will be your wife.
I have to tell you that some of them are more expensive than others.
Why are you getting upset?
I'm going now, you stay here by yourself
and look as much as you like. Alright?
Are you upset about the price?
That's not a problem,
Whichever one you choose, she's on the house.
Are you happy with that?
What are you doing, brother, do you want to kill your sisters?
Muslims, help!
Give them shelter and some new clothes.
Hello, Morshed.
Tell the Master Morshed would like to see him.
The Master orders you to go to his house.
The Master invites you to enter.
It's not easy to tell you this.
The Caliph has ordered that you leave the school.
You have stepped over the limits.
I had authorization from the Caliph.
The authorization was for the prostitutes,
but you executed a man.
I was following our doctrines, those women are like prostitutes for us.
Because of this they've figured out that our group was mixed up
in the punishment of those sinners.
We're guests here and only have Permission to teach the doctrines.
We receive our permission only from the Caliph. No one else.
And now the decision of the Caliph is to interrupt your Jihad.
There's a risk that they'll close the school.
This would mean your death and exile for all of us.
My death is the key to paradise.
You said that the soldier of God has no fear,
then how can the Caliph have fear?
Silence!
You are a part of my heart, but if you try to break my faith,
I'll kill you with my own hands.
Go. Go and repent.
Go and punish yourself.
Here are the playscripts that you wanted.
You're soaked.
Who is the murderer?
Tell me.
Morshed.
Don't look at me like that!
He would have given me all the gold in the world.
With one word from me, he would have offered me the moon.
I was the first one to get out from under his control.
Up until now I've managed to escape him,
If I survive, Morshed will have lost his power.
Does he control the prostitution market?
And the others were punished on my account.
He was in love with me.
Or maybe he didn't want to kill me,
But this people are fanatics and do anything...
And use god as an exuse to get what they want, Come in.
You have to help me find the proof. - Come
You can't leave in that state.
You have to revive yourself.
Do you have a woman?
My wife is no longer with us.
You're a mess, it's easy to see that there's no woman to take care of you.
Here, put these on.
What are you looking at?
I had a husband, very rich!
He would get angry very quickly.
But he was a good man.
I've never met another man like him. He had five wives.
He kept saying, let's go to Arabia, you'll be my favorite.
But no, I told him, I am stuck to this land.
Come on, they're clean, put them on!
They've destroyed Muslim houses.
They've killed men and boys.
They've molested the women and girls of the Muslim villages.
Why? Just because we're Muslims.
They kidnapped my sister.
I've been searching for my sister for many years.
That's my little brother in the photo.
We were separated many years ago.
Eat something, you'll feel better. I'll go and prepare the pipe.
I'm not used to so much hospitality.
A man is like the beads on a rosary
and a woman is the thread that holds them together.
- We have to go now. - Can't we wait a while longer?
- Why do you want to stay? - Because my heart...
Calm down, you fool.
I let you run wild for a second and you go crazy.
Take this.
When they attack you, you won't have to stand there like a potato.
What kind of a policeman are you!
You have repented.
- I have thought. - Thought?
I am eaten alive by doubt.
No, brother, doubt is the enemy of faith.
If the Caliph is afraid...
No, it's not fear, it's politics!
Politics?
A soldier of God doesn't care about politics!
No, brother, I'm not listening.
Doubt is a worm that, once it has entered the soul,
can only be destroyed by fire.
Only death can answer our questions.
I have interceded for you with the Caliph.
The Caliph forgives your sins.
Prepare yourself, you're going to where you'll get your answers.
Sins? What I did was sinful?
Wait, Master! You must help me!
God chose you: you'll be a martyr and will go to paradise.
But I'm eaten alive by doubts!
I don't hear you.
I don't want to hear you!
They control the whole market, they're smugglers.
They have foreign ties.
I've been out of the country once.
Outside?
Morshed brought me back.
You said before that you wouldn't want to live outside.
- Did I say that? - Yes, probably just another lie.
There's not a lie in me, I'm an open book.
How did you end up doing what you do?
I was left all alone with my little brother to feed.
Why do you want to know all about me?
- Because I'm interested. - I'm interested... Of course!
The usual story.
No, I don't mean it like that.
Because you have something I lost.
So why don't you marry me?
What?
Take me with you.
I'll go anywhere with you. God knows I would be a good wife for you.
You said you'd never leave this place.
So?
If you're serious, you have to ask me to marry you.
- Do I have to ask you now? - Yes, it's not difficult.
Close your eyes and say it.
You should never postpone a beautiful thing.
I don't know what, but something's going on.
- What do you want? - I must see Morshed.
Can you understand English letters?
You must learn this book.
- Habib! - Stay here, I'll take a closer look.
Habib, there's something you should know about me.
About you? OK, we'll talk about it later.
Calm down!
It's a sin.
If Caliph orders, it's not a sin!
Listen carefully, brother!
You've caused so much trouble I'll be happy to kill you!
You will stay in the school until your passport is ready.
Nobody must see your new face.
What's going on? Someone is spying on us.
If anybody asks you, say you're one of the new ones.
What do you want from me?
You'll find out later.
Master!
Oh, it's you!
Hello.
I asked for someone who knows other languages,
but right now I'm busy.
We'll see each other tonight.
Why is the door closed?
The Master wants to see the new brother.
He told me to bring him to him.
God willing, you know how to keep secrets.
Yes, I try to.
I know that this is forbidden,
but doubt is an even worse sin.
For years I've been sending my best disciples as a gift,
but now that it concerns my most devout student,
I am taken by doubts.
I'm sending him to die on the path of God,
but it's not easy to recognize the path of God.
May God forgive me!
I want to understand some things.
Translate their words for me.
Is it OK?
"The soul is the battlefield between good and evil.
Faith and desire are in continual struggle with each other
Let your faith grow,
and let it guide your soul
so that it can do wonderful works and enter paradise.
He who works in goodness will discover how deep is the soul.
Do not prefer desire over faith. "
God has placed a light in the soul that life renders dull.
Here we purify it.
"Immerse yourselves in the depths of your souls
and meditate on your sins.
Break the seal the devil has pressed into the whiteness of your soul,
purify yourselves, repent and walk along the path that leads you to God.
The darkness of the well will reawaken your sight.
Only he who is not completely lost
will re-emerge empowered from that well. "
Now you too are a disciple.
- Do you know who I am? - I know.
Who are you?
I don't know who I am.
But you must teach me the marionettes.
are the only memory I have of my family.
Will you teach me?
I am indebted to you.
The shah had a beautiful and intelligent sister,
sweet and happy as an angel
The sister was madly in love with her brother:
the shah was the only star that shined in her heart.
One day the entire court left for the royal hunt,
And do you know what the sister saw during the trip?
A slave boy, as beautiful as a flower,
The sister fell in love with him at first sight.
And she was lost in love.
No, not that story, this part of the story should not be!
Why? Because the sister falls in love?
Because it's a sin!
But love is not a sin, it's a beautiful thing.
"It shakes you right down to your deepest roots
and fills your entire existence.
Love is the harvest time,
and it strips you down like the field just harvested.
It will sift you and separate you from your very skin.
It will grind you down to the finest flour, white and pure,
and you will be sacred bread at the glorious banquet of God.
The knowledge of love makes you a little kindling
in the hearth of creation. "
These words come from the very book you memorized.
Have you been in love?
I don't know...
I think so.
I feel something...
that could be love.
A woman?
Yes, a woman.
Sister... sister!
His sister?
The murders have created a whole range of problems for us.
Before they arrest us, mobilize your students
so that they'll be too scared to touch us.
Who's there?
Stop!
What did I say?
What?
While I was asleep, what did I say?
Something about your family, your sister...
I'm never sleeping again!
Are you worried about your family?
I don't have a family anymore, they were all killed except for...
Except for who?
What do you want here, anyway?
The murderer is someone from this school.
Who?
That's what I want to find out, and you must help me.
Me?
You're the only person I can trust.
Someone here is abusing the people's faith.
Watch, this hand reveals many things.
Seyf-o-Allah had a pure heart from the very first days.
- Seyf-o-Allah? - He was my best disciple.
We spent unforgettable moments together.
I would like to relive those moments before he leaves.
You are making him leave Despite your doubts?
Seyf-o-Allah has the smell of paradise about him.
His attraction to you must not rob us of the privilege
of that heavenly scent.
If you give Seyf-o-Allah back to me, I will let you remain.
You aren't who you say, are you?
Leila...
What is that stupid thing where they all go and look at themselves?
What's it called? Cinema!
They're all rotten! They shouldn't exist on earth!
Today we'll give them a taste of death!
A taste of death!
Shut up!
Today, anyone who reads corrupt books,
those who drink alcohol, or sing songs,
they're all rotten to the core!
Those women that show their faces to the men!
Today is the day of the great jihad!
A taste of death!
I was waiting for you.
Today our agreement is up.
You were to give back Seyf-o-Allah.
I came to you for a more important reason.
Stop your disciples, this revolt could end with their deaths!
They are going to bring God to the people.
With the sword?
What else could bring a prostitute back to the true path?
Love.
The forbidden chapter!
Now I understand how my best disciple, the masterwork of my life,
has been seduced.
With these words you have bewitched my creature.
The master wants you to go back to the school.
I have just spoken to His Excellency, the Caliph.
They have given me the honor of leaving my duties,
it has been decided that Seyf-o-Allah and I
will be transferred to a monastery in the mountains.
We will spend the rest of our lives in meditation.
Before leaving, I want to get to know you better,
for this reason, I have invited one of our brothers
to participate in our meeting.
You're a witness that if the accord had been respected,
it would not have been in my interest to reveal anybody's secrets.
This is the detective.
Please come in!
Who brought him here?
Seyf!
The day we took this, Seyf-o-Allah was there.
I've spoken with the Caliph about Seyf...
I don't care.
I'll go and get that damned man!
Let's go.
Seyf-o-Allah!
Here you are safe, there's no danger.
Leila.
It's not a serious wound.
You'll get better with some rest.
The wound has to be bandaged. I'll go get what's needed.
Don't move.
Freeze!
Have you seen Leila? Do you know if anything happened to her?
- Who? - Leila, the one with the puppets.
Ah, yes, she ran away
She went home.
Are you her brother?
What?
Are you her brother?
The one they said just turned up lately?
Her brother?
Leila!
That's my little brother in the photo.
We were separated many years ago.