To my first master, Jean-Pierre Melville -V.S.
COUP DE GRACE
THE BALTIC STATES 1919/20
Directed by VOLKER SCHLÖNDORFF
I recall little of these far-off struggles against Bolshevism
in Livonia and Kurland.
It is said that the dead ride quickly,
but so do the living.
Michel!
Take the horse.
For Konrad, it meant going back to his childhood.
Kratovice was in that lost borderland of Eastern Europe
where Russian or German place names no longer meant anything.
The master is back!
Sister!
Welcome, Reval!
To the health of the Prodigal Brother!
- You're unrecognizable. - What?
Unrecognizable!
You too. Did you cut your hair?
You're more beautiful that way.
Merciful Lord!
Aunt Praskovia!
I prayed for you day and night.
The Blessed Virgin heard me.
What a joy to see you, my boy. You look pale.
We've been fighting.
I can see. You haven't shaved.
Lhomond, he's a true soldier.
Always on the go.
Very brave.
Our comrades in arms,
the officers from Kronstadt.
The mind raises itself.
The body remains on the sofa.
On your way here, you could assess the military situation.
Bolshevism is infecting the entire population.
The enemy is invisible.
By day it hides in the woods.
At night it comes to the villages to be fed by the inhabitants.
I've set your nightshirts to warm up in the flue of the stove
like in the old days.
Where is Sophie?
She won't appear again tonight.
The young mistress dines in her room.
Thank goodness they're back.
I'm very glad they've arrived, my dear.
Now I'm very tired.
Goodnight, Aunt. Sleep well.
Good night, Sophie.
The men lack discipline.
Neither war nor revolution are ruining the land as much as its saviors.
Just tell yourself it's a foxhunt that'll last until the war ends.
Sophie had changed.
Until our arrival, she had been but a frightened prisoner.
Her brother Konrad's presence restored her to her role
as mistress of the mansion.
The smell of the fields after a battle is unmistakable.
The first dead body.
It leaves an indelible impression.
A hand that springs from the earth,
blue-hued lips on white teeth.
Prepare for it all you like, but it's always the same horror-
mangled bodies, shattered skulls, deathly faces.
And you wait impatiently for the cry that will begin the attack.
The fields will turn to marshes if the sewers aren't repaired by spring.
The servants have left.
Except Mila and old Michel.
We'll get it back in order as it was before.
- Look, a carp. - Fantastic. Put it in the bag.
After the war, we'll turn this house into a place
where writers and artists can meet to talk,
work and live together.
Good morning.
First man.
- Good morning. - Morning, Erich.
- Where were you? - At the pond.
We went fishing.
Are there still fish in our pond?
I'll cook it with fines herbes.
We must draw up an inventory to know where we stand.
Let's go. The men must be deloused.
They're incredibly filthy. Paul can't do it all.
I hope you enjoyed your meal!
What a nice surprise.
Coffee! Like before the revolution.
But there's no sugar.
Just as long as you're here.
It's completely out of tune. There must be something inside.
A bullet.
Will you dance?
Not now. Look at those pictures.
Aunt Praskovia when she looked human.
Aren't there any of you?
The young blonde-haired girl is me.
It's inscribed " Sonja."
I dislike nicknames.
Everyone used to call me Sonja.
I prefer Sophie.
Are you comfortable?
Did you enjoy the meal?
And the apple?
Wonderful.
You're quiet, Aunt.
What do you want me to say?
Alarm.!
Two men on guard.
A mortar near the pond.
Merciful Lord. They'll kill us all.
Keep calm. It's nothing.
We'll bring them to their senses.
There's only one thing to do: Cut off their heads!
Turn out the light!
Orders from the commander of the Landwehr.
In the fight against the Red Terror, I order:
1 . Each member of the gang is declared an outlaw
whom anyone can kill or wound
to put out of action.
2. The commander's cashier
will pay a reward for each Red killed
amounting to 100 Eastern rubles.
3. The same amount will be paid
to anyone giving information
leading to the capture of a Red.
4. Each inhabitant is duty-bound
to give relevant information to the military
as quickly as possible.
Those who do not denounce the Reds
or who assist them
will be executed immediately.
Stop, you bastards!
You stupid fools!
Who are you? Leave him be.
Are you German?
Yes...
and there are more Germans around.
We'll get rid of you.
How did you get to the other side?
I was a prisoner in Siberia.
And you were recruited by the Reds? What did they promise you?
Where do you come from? - Darmstadt.
What's your job?
Fitter.
Do you still have any relations in Germany?
Are you a Communist?
Yes.
I don't care what you do to me.
May I come in?
Of course.
Thank you.
It's quite late, Sophie.
I'll just smoke a pipeful.
Why did you come to Kratovice of all places, Erich?
Where should I have gone?
You could have stayed in Paris or Berlin.
No one forced you to fight in this war.
I'm an officer, and useless in Berlin.
What are you defending here?
Your mother lost everything before the war.
Perhaps I like lost causes.
In any case, I've always fought for them.
At least you've none of Konrad's illusions.
Konrad's beliefs are truer than yours, Sophie.
His don't come from books, but from life,
from your family tradition.
The new era has no use for our tradition.
No one chooses his own story.
Oh, yes.
You should go to bed, Sophie.
Do you have a mistress?
Some woman must be waiting for you in Germany or France.
Franz tells me women are fond of you.
I have no mistress, Sophie.
You don't want to talk about it.
My affairs with women have been short and trivial.
There's nothing to say.
A brief affair can be beautiful.
Women want lasting relationships.
Friendship means more to me. - Than love?
It's more reliable.
You've only met the worst sort of women.
On the contrary, I thought them the best.
In any case, they didn't try to play a part in my life.
Sophie barely hid her sympathy for the Reds,
especially her friend Grigori Loew, son of the Jewish tailor and midwife.
My brother is back.
How is the young man?
Isn't Erich von Lhomond here, too?
That's right.
How did you know?
The whole village knows.
They're afraid of him.
He's an excellent officer.
Pity he's always on the wrong side.
Are there more soldiers coming?
Who's likely to come here?
Erich will try to hold the house as long as he can.
There are enough mercenaries and adventurers at home in any war.
What can a von Lhomond do in Berlin?
An out-of-work officer! He prefers to lord it over everyone here.
You should take care of your hands.
Erich came back for us.
The material is beautiful.
Very easy to alter.
May I take it?
Of course, but we'll need it for the meeting.
I'll bring it back.
There's a table inside.
It's nice here.
Do you trust me?
The day is not purer than your heart.
Why shouldn't I trust you?
I must tell you: I'm in love with you.
And if you want...
I have no hope of earning my living anywhere in Europe.
It doesn't matter.
I couldn't offer you the life you deserve.
You're mocking me.
You don't even know me.
We spent our childhood together.
I remind you of your brother.
You think I am as honorable as he is.
I'm not the man for you.
It doesn't have to be serious.
With you it's always serious.
You must go. They're looking for arms. They're taking men up to the house.
There are no arms here. You're dangerous for us.
If they follow you, they'll find me.
I wanted to return the paper.
Do you have any books for me?
What's the use if you go on living as before?
What can I do?
Stay where you are.
Is it Konrad or Lhomond who keeps you there?
What if I joined you?
What would Lhomond say?
My mother will know where I am if you need me.
"Always follow the voice of your heart. Grigori."
End of the game.
You're not concentrating.
Lhomond, don't be a killjoy.
Blankenberg, come and play.
I saw you in the village.
What were you doing there? - Visiting a friend, but he was away.
It's dangerous to cross the lines.
Everyone knows me there. No one would dare touch me.
Suppose they took you hostage to make us surrender.
Would you surrender?
Typhus.
It's impossible to go on like this.
What's the situation?
No more alcohol or morphine.
Four weeks without typhus vaccine.
I've opened the last box of dressings.
I know. We couldn't bring any.
Konrad cabled Riga yesterday.
Meanwhile, I'm in this mess.
Forgive me. I'm tired and depressed.
And how are you?
I wanted to talk about Sophie.
What's this about some Lithuanian soldier?
You know about him?
Who was he?
The same scum that war stirs up everywhere.
Unfortunately, he met Sophie. - What happened exactly?
A classic rape.
A sergeant.
He was here a few days.
One night he was drunk and assaulted her. You can imagine the rest.
Konrad wasn't here.
Fortunately, he never found out.
Sophie was afraid she was pregnant.
It really upset her.
Chopin was here.
He wanted to kill him,
but he was wounded at that moment and sent behind the lines.
You should look after Sophie.
It will be good for her.
I'm so fed up with all this.
Where were you before?
On the Western front.
Douaumond.
This isn't a war anymore.
Why did you come?
You should have stayed at home.
Positions.
Prepare...
aim...
ready...
fire.!
I'm sorry you had to hear that.
It wasn't the first time.
I'm on patrol. Would you like to come?
All right.
- Everything all right? - Yes, sir.
Awful weather. Looks like rain.
- Take a gun. - I don't shoot.
That's a pity.
You used to have a steady shooting hand.
The panes must be replaced.
If there's no glass, use oiled paper.
Even if he died an atheist,
he was born a Christian.
He was just a young fellow,
the kid from Darmstadt.
If you really loved another woman,
it would be easier for me to give up.
Then you don't know yourself very well.
You'd do everything to separate us.
Texas.
Good morning.
It's so deserted here today. Where are my brother and his men?
Gone to Riga, to the main quarters.
The telephones don't work.
Nobody is familiar with the military situation anymore.
But if you ask me, they just wanted some fun.
You should have gone, too.
I don't like that sort of fun much.
Don't look at me like that. I feel ugly today.
I adore you, Sophie. You're not ugly.
But you look sad.
Isn't there anything I can do? I'd like to help you.
We went to Riga to discuss the details of the next offensive.
We learned that the Allies favored the Soviets,
depriving our obstinate resistance of all meaning.
Careful of the ice.
Imagine being killed in a car.
During the war!
Take that to the kitchen.
That's my sister Sophie.
Forgive me, ma'am. Borschikoff!.
There was no medicine in Riga.
But we got a case of champagne.
Sophie, what is it?
You look pale.
We could've been even paler!
The trip was for nothing.
Until we meet again
On the green shores of the Baltic
Ah, the doctor!
A specialty from Riga.
Real French champagne.
Not like our Hungarian ladies who tried to pass for French.
That Russian was a real Moscow Jewess.
Erich fell for the Parisian charm of a Hungarian
named Madeleine.
She clung to him like an octopus with her long, white-gloved fingers.
At 5:00 a.m. they wanted to go for a drive.
They seem to miss that so much.
In the snow.
"Snow as you start is bad for the heart."
Or was she really a Parisian?
Erich, you should know. You were with her.
She said she sang in a Budapest cafe.
That girl was no singer!
Good evening.
Franz, you're just in time.
Real champagne.
They brought it from Riga.
They had great fun.
They met a Frenchwoman
but later discovered she was Hungarian.
The population is against us. Germany no longer helps us.
We should go to Canada and start over on a farm.
Begin a new life and forget Kratovice.
Erich brought me some candy. He thinks of everything.
Which is your favorite?
- Marzipan. - This one here.
Thanks.
If we give up now, none of this will mean anything.
The struggle, the casualties.
No one cares about us now.
- Would you like to go for a walk? - Gladly.
As long as we resist, we can't be destroyed.
We must hold out at all costs.
Good night.
Good morning, Aunt.
Some candy-your favorite.
Wonderful!
I love candy.
Put the rest in the chest in the drawer.
Your great-aunt would not have allowed it.
She was very strange.
She always said someone would come to tie your laces.
She never said that to me.
She didn't like me. You were her favorite.
No, it was Mother.
Your mother...?
I get muddled.
I must be getting senile.
I didn't want to marry so early.
My God, 19 was early then.
I didn't want that.
You never did get married.
I didn't get married. I was too young.
I didn't want to marry at all.
I wasn't interested in marrying.
What are you doing over there?
Standing by the window.
Erich and Konrad are playing in the snow.
That's more than he ever hoped for.
You know who I saw in a dream last night?
Me?
No, me... dead.
In a cemetery, near the family tomb.
With my throat cut.
You mustn't take it seriously, Franz.
We're all afraid.
I'm going to die soon, Sophie.
The house is calm. It was a dream. You're safe here.
- Where did you find him? - Behind the pond.
- Who is it? - Franz.
My condolences.
He was always punished for other people's actions.
Easy!
Texas?
Nothing to report.
I'm going to bed.
- What is it? - Sophie.
Have you seen Texas?
He's lying in the pantry.
Look at him.
He dug up a grenade.
He thought it was a truffle.
Are you all right?
Would you care if I died?
If I was happy, I wouldn't mind dying.
Are you happy?
You don't look happy!
Go away. I'm so ashamed.
I'm only doing what I would do for Konrad or any of our friends.
Get undressed. Everybody gets a new sheet.
Burn it all. It's the best way to fight infection.
Two more deaths last night. Typhus.
Come here, Paul.
Sophie shouldn't be working here. She's too fragile.
No, she's too useful.
- Get someone from the village. - You know we can't.
Can't you see she's just asking to catch typhus?
I don't care about her reasons. No one asks why I do this.
She's great with the sick.
- May I have a taste? - I made them for you.
They make my mouth water.
Is this how you charm the young men of the village?
I don't think so. They want something else.
You can offer that too, can't you?
Put the apples in the cellar.
Can't you do that somewhere else?
Do you enjoy humiliating me in front of her?
I enjoy talking to Mila.
Don't tell me you're content with such trifles.
Do you like her because she won't play a part in your life?
Why do women always fall in love with men who are not meant for them?
So who are the women meant for you?
Whores or farm maids?
At least you see clearly in your hysteria.
If I needed a woman, you're the last one I'd think of.
Will you stop looking after me? I'm not afraid.
The old woman and Konrad are living here too.
If you want to die, that's your business. I'm responsible for the others.
Responsibility and discipline! Everything else inside you is dead.
You're incapable of passion!
You cling so tightly to life, Erich.
Everybody out.!
What's the matter with the horses?
Stay calm.
Damned bastard!
Get the horses out!
- Chopin. - Plessen.
Glad to see you, Reval.
Nothing serious, I hope.
I'll find Lhomond.
- Erich von Lhomond? - You know him?
Met him in Riga. A long time ago.
We had the same teacher. He was an excellent student.
Good to see you again.
How many men did you bring us?
I'm sorry. That's not my mission.
Von Wirtz sent me to recall you.
The Baltic States must be evacuated of German units by the end of the year.
The Allies will control the retreat.
The horses are not for your pleasure.!
I told you, your escapades endanger all of us.
You weren't so touchy before.
I didn't mean to cause trouble.
They act as if it were peacetime.
What impudence!
Good morning.
How nice of you to come, Lhomond.
- I came to see how you are. - I'm fine. Everyone has forgotten me.
An early taste of Christmas. Mila made it.
Even Sophie has forgotten me.
- May I? - Sit down. Do you know what I'm doing?
I'm cutting toilet paper.
Sophie is going out with Volkmar.
He's a charming man.
Tell me, is it true Volkmar is going to marry Sophie?
Have you heard that?
Is that a rumor going around?
I've heard it's true.
She should get married soon.
She's of an age... really of an age.
His father had an affair with Rasputin.
Don't you believe it? - His father and Rasputin?
No, the father of what's his name- Volkmar- had an affair with Rasputin.
He must have been a queer.
He was everything at the same time.
I'll cut this one and then you take over.
That's a peculiar shape.
Yes, each one is a different size.
You're better at this than I.
A second time.
You make a hole to put the string through
so we can hang it up.
I like Volkmar.
He's a smart fellow.
Oh, we'll have to wait and see.
You can stop cutting. It's driving me crazy.
We don't need that much.
Come in.
I'm sorry I talked to you like that.
Sit down.
No, thank you.
Cigarette?
Thanks.
Gen. Broussaroff is surrounded at Gurna. It's a dreadful situation.
Soldiers' councils have been formed.
I suggest we get him out.
We can deploy some troops beyond the river at Olida
to mine the railway and cut off the Reds.
It won't be that easy.
I'll join you with my troops.
Thank you, Plessen.
Do you have a medic?
- Bring him, too. - Of course.
We leave after Christmas day.
For the party tonight, please listen and take note::
Wine is always served on the right,
food on the left,
and plates on the right as well.
Now we just need some mistletoe.
I'll repeat once again:
drinks on the right,
dishes on the left.
Is there a pianist for me?
Here he is.
Can he play?
To have some fun, to play around
You're behind.
Wonderful
Then, when it ends
A whirling waltz
Faster.
He held me against his heart
So tight against his heart
You gentlemen, all my cavaliers
You are my passion
And you too,young lieutenant
I love you too
He twirled his moustache
He twirled me around
There you are. Come and join us.
Midnight?
The midnight kiss under the mistletoe.
May I, Sophie?
Blankenberg, your turn.
At last.
- You're mad! - Leave him.
Disgraceful behavior! I demand satisfaction.
I understand your irritation, but it's no reason for a duel.
Aren't there enough men in the ward already? Come on.
Find a second!
Stop it now!
Time for bed.
Go away.
Can you hear me?
I love you.
I beg you to forgive me.
Forgive me.
It is I who asks forgiveness.
I'm not worthy of your love.
I should have waited.
I never loved anyone but you.
Dear Sophie, I am packing.
Wait until I return from Gurna, please.
I love you.
Get ready to leave!
Michel, bandages!
No, I must go on.
Erich and his men are surrounded.
I must see von Wirtz.
The telephones don't work.
I could have died a hundred times on my way here.
That's probably why Erich sent me.
Saddle a horse!
Erich wouldn't do that.
Move!
I don't blame him.
In his place, I'd have done the same.
I must go.
I've been offered a job.
I'll leave the army.
Sophie, will you be my wife?
It can't be.
I thought so.
Erich is very clever.
He takes the sister to get the brother.
You know what happened in Riga?
The Broussaroff operation is a failure.
We still don't know whether we'll be able to retreat.
What is it? What's happening?
Why doesn't anyone tell me?
It's over.
The end!
- Are you going out? - I'm leaving.
- Where are you going? - None of your business.
I realize that the life I've led until now -
I've had enough! I can't go on!
Your honor, your war, your " manly" friendships!
The war is only a pretext for your pleasure.
If that's what you want, take a stable boy,
but don't use me as an alibi.
Did Volkmar tell you these stories?
Didn't I say you'd despise me one day?
I didn't think you'd use Konrad in all this.
Streetwalkers shouldn't pose as the vice squad.
Paul is dead, too.
I know.
Any news from your wife?
She had a child. In Warsaw.
In the clinic. She's all right.
Your second.
Yes, two girls.
Where are you going?
I can't tell you now.
Erich has sent me.
I knew Sophie well enough to know she'd never be seen again at Kratovice.
But I was sure our paths would cross again one day.
Even had I known the circumstances of our future encounter,
I would have still just let her go.
Four men!
Search the house.
Have you seen the countess?
Not for a long time.
Not since last autumn.
Think carefully.
When did you see her?
I haven't seen her.
What about this jacket?
A peasant paid me with it.
No one here.
- No arms? - No arms.
Get out.
- Some tea? - No, thank you.
Just a glass.
This is enough to arrest you.
The countess rested here Thursday evening.
She left during the night.
Why did she come?
She wanted to see me.
Was she pregnant?
She's not one of these peasant girls.
Then tell me the real reason.
She needed some men's clothes. I couldn't refuse.
She tried them on where you're standing.
Did she leave alone?
- She had a guide. - Who?
He has not returned.
Where are they?
If I knew, sir, I don't think I'd tell you.
I alone fought her revolutionary ideas.
She knew all our plans.
She betrayed our operations to Loew.
Hence our defeat.
The inevitable failure of Operation Broussaroff,
the surrender of Kratovice.
No one could have suspected her.
What a perfect cover.
She's not Mata Hari.
A radio message from Riga.
They're sending a train to Marba.
Sophie's disappearance was enough to give this house, now bereft of women,
the stillness of a monastery,
and it soon reverted to what it had been in the past::
an outpost for German knights.
Finally we could defend Kratovice no longer,
and we left for Germany while the roads were still open.
Stay here!
Four of you go around back. We'll divert their fire.
Let's go.
March!
Out!
All of you!
The young lady.
- Take them away. - Let's go, on the double!
Where are the others?
Who gives you orders?
Take off your cap!
Was Loew your leader?
Take him away.
Get out!
The woman!
Don't expect information from me.
I'll say nothing. I know nothing.
I didn't bring you here to get information
but to clear some things up.
Thank you.
You know neither side is taking prisoners.
I know.
I saw Grigori's mother.
She said you were married.
No.
But you slept together.
You thought I was engaged to Volkmar.
I always told you everything.
Grigori was very good to me.
I don't know what I'd have become without him.
Was it hard for you there?
No, I was all right.
Have you any family in Germany?
You want to take me back to Germany?
Is that Konrad's idea, too?
Konrad is dead.
My condolences.
Do you want to die, Sophie?
What will you do with the others?
I'll do what I can for you.
I don't expect that much.
You don't want to owe me anything.
It's not even that.
Stop it. It's not like you.
The train was attacked on its way here.
It won't be here until tomorrow.
Give me a light!
Take out the prisoners one by one.
On your knees!
She demands -
The young lady requests -
She'd like you to do it.
Line up for a picture.
Ready.
All aboard.