HOUSE OF SAND
MARANHAO STATE BRAZIL, 1910
Pedro, come here.
- There are some donkeys nearby. - This is the place.
The map is right.
We've been here before.
These are the lagoons. There will be water all over here.
We found it!
Come on!
We're settling here!
- We've found it! - Come on!
Vasco...
...I know I agreed to come here with you.
I never thought it would be easy.
I'm expecting a baby.
I waited to tell you until I was sure.
It'll be a boy, and he'll help me here.
This is no place for a child, Vasco.
This...
This is no place for anyone.
Please, Vasco, let's go back home.
Let's go back.
I never thought it would be like this.
This will be my only child. Let's go back.
There is no going back, Aurea.
There is no going back.
Look.
There's somebody over there.
There's some people, Mother.
Come on.
Tell them to load the grain on the animals.
My wife and her mother will stay in camp.
You, Tonho, and two men, follow me.
I bought this land with the lagoons around.
I have the papers.
Here's my name.
This land is mine.
You better leave, mister.
Can you read?
- This here is a deed. - Easy, boss.
Massu.
- They're fugitive slaves. - Come on, let's go!
We're packing everything up and moving out, everybody.
- Let's go! - Vasco?
- We're moving out. - Why are they leaving?
What's going on? Tonho, who gave the orders?
Stay put. Come back, everybody.
Those are fugitive slaves.
You go and trade all this for lumber and palm leaves.
Sorry, mister, but I'm not going back there.
Is it money you want? Take the money.
Take it. Everybody stay and set up camp.
Now, that's an order.
We're all staying. Everybody.
Get in there!
That's all I have.
We wandered around these dunes for more than a month.
We can't go back now.
My wife is pregnant, and her mother's sick.
Got anything else?
But I want lumber and palm leaves.
We can sleep in the house tonight. Go get Aurea.
Your husband told you to go inside.
I'm not staying in this house.
Bastard.
- I refuse to live here. - We'll see about that.
Let go of me.
I had my own house.
You only had debts.
Living here is too high a price for my debts.
I paid a high price for you too.
Get in the house.
Go inside.
Lie down.
This man is crazy. He'll kill my daughter.
He'll kill me and everybody else.
You have to get us out of here.
Ma'am, you know it's dangerous.
Take it.
This is all I have.
Look.
Can you get us out of here?
You thieves! Bastards! I'll get you!
Go to hell!
I can do the work myself.
I'll do it.
They ran away.
Go back inside!
Go on.
I can do it myself. I don't need anyone.
Go back inside!
- Come on, Mother. - Go.
I can't go any farther. Go on, you go ahead.
Come on, Mother.
Go ahead, my daughter.
Come on, Mother.
Let's go back, Mother.
Are you looking for fish?
I'm trying to leave with my daughter.
This is open sea. The boat is just for fishing.
Doesn't anybody ever come here?
I've never seen anybody coming...
...or leaving.
Mother of God. Holy Mother.
Jesus Christ.
Thank you.
No use crying, ma'am.
Better eat something...
...until the rain stops.
Mr. Massu.
Is your name Massu?
It's salty.
The fish is salty.
Do you make the salt?
No.
Where does it come from?
From my father's store.
Where's that, Mr. Massu?
On the island.
Island?
God bless you.
- Aurea! - Mother!
Aurea!
Mother.
That's the island.
Let's go.
Good morning.
Good morning, everybody.
Good morning.
Where is Massu's father's store?
Anybody home?
Go get them.
Grandpa.
- Good morning. - Good morning.
Could we have some water?
And something to eat?
We need help. The men ran away with everything.
Everything.
Even the food.
I have something here.
I have another question.
Don't you know of a village or small town...
...around here?
I was born here.
Never left this place.
But this man that brings you salt...
...couldn't he take us...
...out of here, to some town or maybe a road?
I don't know. You'll have to ask him.
When is he coming?
I don't know.
My father came here as a runaway.
He came and stayed.
People told him that slavery had been abolished...
...and that he could go back.
But he never went back to check it out.
I think he was afraid it was a lie.
In case anyone shows up...
...anyone who could take you both...
...somewhere else, I'll let you know.
Excuse me, ma'am.
Come in, Mr. Massu.
Has the salt man arrived?
Has he, Mr. Massu?
Only after the rains...
...if the lagoons don't flood over.
If you'd like...
...anything here that might be useful, please help yourself.
Take this tablecloth. Your wife will love it.
She's passed away.
She died giving birth.
But you do have a house.
A house and a son.
So take it for your son...
...and put it on the table...
...for eating dinner.
They're photographs.
Do you want...
...to keep it?
No.
Can I put it away?
Salt the fish before it goes bad.
Can you bring me some salt?
It's right here.
Your house will sink, ma'am.
- It's a bad place for a house. - We're not staying here.
Neither is the sand. It sweeps everything away.
This sand moves.
Now they'll know there's someone here.
Mrs. Maria.
Mrs. Maria!
Good afternoon, ma'am.
I brought Mr. Chico.
Mr. Chico.
It's a pleasure.
Massu, is this all he's brought?
- Doesn't he have a cart? - What cart?
Mr. Chico...
...don't you have a cart, or animals, or anything?
Aurea, get this crazy idea out of your mind.
Don't even think about leaving pregnant.
Where are you going from here?
Don't even think about leaving pregnant.
- Where are you going? - To the countryside.
And then you're coming back?
No, I'll go to the coast to get more salt.
The baby will be born in the middle of the dunes.
Can we take a boat from there?
No, the waves are too rough.
It's open sea, like here.
- When are you coming back? - After the rains.
We'll have to wait.
We'll wait.
Mr. Chico.
Hey, Mr. Chico.
The dune has come closer. The sand will drift down.
Let it drift. Did you bring my donkeys?
How long will it take for the goats?
It's hard to tell. It depends on the trail.
Was it hard to get here?
There's a lot of sand out there.
You can only trade the goats for cash.
Listen, some goats always get lost on the way.
If you bring me the money, we'll talk later.
Is Massu selling his too?
- He has nothing to do with this. - He has to come with me on this trip.
I can't make it on my own.
I'll ask the boys to help you.
They're useless, ma'am.
I can only count on Massu.
He's the right man for this journey.
- You're actually sinking. - Where do you want to take me?
Hello, Massu. To sell some goats.
I can take them to the island. I live there.
They can get to the island on their own.
I want to trade the goats for cash.
- No, you don't. - I'm going to sell my goats.
No, you aren't. We have nowhere to go.
She's already got the donkeys.
You...?
Did you trade our goats for donkeys?
Massu.
I'll leave you everything.
What about me?
You're coming with me.
I'm not going anywhere.
Massu...
...she'll pay you with sand.
Don't take it.
This...
This is a property deed.
It states who the owner of this land is.
This belonged to Vasco.
It says here, Jose Vasco de Sa.
And after he died, I inherited it.
But it was never actually mine.
I signed it...
...and the land belongs to you now.
This is yours, Massu.
I don't know what would have happened to us here without you.
But I need you to help us one last time.
Please sell the goats and bring me the money.
Mr. Chico will take us later. I've already spoken to him.
You've been struggling to get out of here for 10 years now.
Have you forgotten how things were out there?
No, I haven't.
But I don't miss it anymore.
You got used to it.
This sand, this sun, this place. This house is falling apart.
We can build another one.
What do you expect out there?
What could life offer you?
I refuse to bury myself here.
How can you live off 50 or even 100 goats?
Have you thought about it?
I'm leaving this place.
And you and Maria are coming with me.
I like it here.
Here, no man tells me what to do.
- No? - No.
What about Massu?
Want to eat something?
- Do you know what time it is? - Don't even know the month.
She doesn't wake up until dinnertime.
To do what?
She can play, help us...
- Why can't she be like everybody else? - Because she's not.
Since she was born, I've been waiting...
...for her to grow up to leave this place.
- Come here, Massu. - I'm coming, Chico.
Where is Mr. Chico?
- He's dead. - What?
He's dead.
Where did he die?
How did he die?
From a cough.
- A day and a half from here. - Where?
- A day and a half from here. - I want to go there.
He was laughing...
...joking, talking normally.
Suddenly, he started coughing.
Coughing and coughing.
He got all red in the face.
I pounded on his chest.
I blew into his mouth.
But it didn't work.
He couldn't breathe.
I'll go by myself, Massu.
I'm sorry.
Is this yours?
Where did you find this?
On the sand, close to my house.
House?
I didn't see any house around.
It's a two-day walk from here.
You walked for two days just to return it?
Yes.
The victory we celebrate here...
...is not only ours, but of all mankind.
This is a joyous moment that makes us forget our sorrows.
Let's celebrate with song, a lively song.
Through music, we overcome our grief...
...and enjoy a happy life.
As the Bible says, to each day, its own troubles.
Are you from around here?
No, I'm from the capital.
I came because my husband bought a piece of land here...
...and my mother came with us.
But he died.
He had already died when my daughter was born.
What was he looking for in the sand?
My husband was crazy.
- What about you? - Those men are scientists.
I'm just helping them get around.
- Scientists? - That's right.
Where are they from?
Some of them are Americans, English.
That one over there is Irish.
The Brazilians are all from the capital.
When are they leaving?
In three or four days.
That soon?
I wish I could leave today. I'm joining the air force.
Pardon me?
The air force.
Brazil has an air force with 33 airplanes.
I'll study aviation in Europe now that the war is over.
- I'll go by ship. - What war?
The war that's over. Didn't you know that?
I didn't even know it had started.
But the war lasted for four years.
And I've been here for 10 years.
I think.
You haven't told me your name yet.
Aurea de Sa.
My name is Luis.
Look how beautiful.
It looks like a city to me.
I haven't seen so many lights in a long time.
They say this is...
...the best sky in the world.
It must be.
Here, what's not earth is sky.
That's why they've come here.
- What's this? - It's called a geodesic marker...
...to know exactly where they took the photographs from.
What photographs?
The photographs they were celebrating...
...the Hyades, stars from the Taurus constellation.
During the eclipse, they photographed them.
1919.
Why did they photograph them?
In a few months, they'll come back...
...to take new photos from the same place...
...the same stars, but at night.
What for?
When there's an eclipse...
...the moon in front of the sun allows the scientists...
...to record the location of the stars, even with the sun.
- And photograph them? - Right.
By comparing the photos they'll take at night in a few months...
...they'll prove that the light of the stars...
...when it passes by the sun...
...it bends.
- So what? - And that's the proof...
...that space is curved.
If this experiment works, they'll prove a very important theory...
...that will revolutionize the world.
It'll be a milestone in history.
They tell this story about two twin brothers.
- Twin brothers? - Born on the same day.
One stays here on Earth, and the other is sent into space.
- One of them stays. - Into space?
In a rocket, into space.
When the twin brother comes back...
...he'll be younger than the one who stayed here.
Isn't that amazing?
Younger?
Yes. Don't ask me why, but he'll be younger.
I wouldn't want to be the one who stayed here.
Can you get me out of here?
My mother, my daughter and me. Would you take us out of here?
- But... - Until a town.
Just to the nearest town.
My mother is already old and my daughter is...
- I'll speak to them. - Will you?
Why not?
It'll depend on them, but I'll speak to them.
I will.
I'll speak to them.
I've spoken to them. They've agreed to take you.
- Are you serious? - Yes, but hurry up.
- They won't wait. - No.
- Want me to go with you? - No. I'll go faster on my own.
- Sorry. - No. Take it with you.
It's cold. Bring it back later.
I'll never forget it. Thank you.
Don't be late.
Go.
Maria!
Mother!
Maria!
Mother.
Maria.
Mother.
Maria.
Mother.
Maria.
They'll come back, my daughter.
Just wait.
Come.
- Are the scientists back yet? - Not yet, Maria.
Do you know what I miss the most?
What?
Music.
Sing a song.
No. I mean real music.
What is real music like?
It's hard to explain.
Come on, Maria.
Let's go.
Let's go back home.
Come on, Maria.
Maria. I'll just stay here and fix things up.
You go sleep on the beach.
Go, my daughter.
Maria?
Maria, my daughter.
Maria.
Sleeping all day, Maria?
- Is there any coffee? - There was this morning.
I didn't miss anything.
You've got nothing to miss, Maria.
You're right, Mother.
I don't fetch salt.
I don't salt the fish.
I don't make babies.
You make them. You just don't let them be born.
But there are plenty anyway.
Mirinho, how many you got?
Massu could make a little fence for all of Mirinho's kids.
His wife is young. In no time he'd have a corral full of them.
Why don't you get up the courage to leave here?
- I will, Mother. - So go ahead, leave.
You've got nothing to keep you here. Do something with your life.
What do you want me to do, Mother? The same as you?
I did something with my life.
I have a family.
This family isn't yours, Mother.
And you didn't decide to stay here.
Ask Massu.
Did you ask him what he did to hold us down here?
Aren't you ashamed?
No.
I don't know him.
You'd like to marry one of them, right?
Me?
It's more than I deserve.
It stinks.
- What's your name? - Massu.
Massu?
There was a plane crash and we're looking for the bodies.
Have you seen any here?
I saw one. I buried him over there.
Don't cry.
Whose jacket is that?
A soldier gave it to me.
The first time I was here, we could only get here by oxcart.
It took us almost a month to get here...
...plus the time pulling the carts out of the sand.
Have you been here before?
Over 20 years ago...
...with a group of scientists.
I even had a girlfriend.
Maybe she's someone's mother here.
- No. She wasn't from here. - She wasn't?
- Was she white? - Yes.
She came with her husband and he died here.
She went to get her mother and her daughter...
...and never came back.
What's wrong?
Nothing.
Something wrong with Maria?
No.
Aren't you coming in?
I'm staying here.
Are you spending the night here?
Miss.
I'm sorry.
I found this on a dead man on the beach.
- I thought no one wanted it. - No, no.
Keep it.
It's cold.
Do you have a cigarette?
In the tent.
Can you get me one?
Sure.
Where's my cigarette?
You have magazines.
What do you do here?
Me?
Nothing.
There's nothing to do here.
Aren't you married? Do you have any kids?
I'm not stupid.
But you are married.
Where is my cigarette?
Are you afraid?
Come here. You'll enjoy it.
You'd better go home.
No one's going home here.
Are you leaving?
Yes.
They're waiting for me.
Are you driving?
Yes, I am.
Where are you going from here?
Back to the base.
Can you take me home?
I'm sorry.
Some other time.
There won't be another time.
Thank you.
What's going on here?
Aurea.
Luis.
Massu, this is Luis.
Luis.
Can I talk to you for a minute?
Sure.
Please, come in.
Please.
Water?
I waited for you so long.
I went to get my daughter, Maria.
I pictured a little girl.
She was a little girl.
But not anymore.
Take my daughter away from here.
How?
Take her away from here.
Stay with her, if she wants.
I'm married.
Drop her off in the city, anywhere...
...so she can start a new life. Please.
Take her away from here.
She has nothing to do with this place.
She's so unhappy here.
What about you?
You wanted to leave so bad.
I kept this for you.
That's worthless by now.
It's money.
But it's too old. It's worthless now.
Take care of her. For me, please.
Okay, I promise.
Go.
Maria.
My daughter.
Man has set foot on the moon.
How, my daughter?
In a rocket.
A spaceship.
And he came back younger, didn't he?
No, Mom.
I think he returned even older.
What did he find on the moon?
Nothing.
- Nothing? - Nothing.
I heard he just found sand.
Sand?
Yes, sand.
{{{ the end }}}