The following photoplay is timeless.
The story is a true story.
It is also a very old story that was first told in the Bible.
It is timeless and topical,
and is still being played in many parts of the world.
This picture was entirely made in our neighbouring republic Mexico,
at the kind invitation of the Mexican government
and of the Mexican motion picture industry.
Its locale is fictional.
It is merely a small state a thousand miles north or south of the equator-
who knows?
Who are you?
Why are you here?
I belong here.
No.
I know all the men in this village.
Are you from the police?
I'm hiding from the police.
Oh.
You're a criminal?
Did you steal or did you kill somebody?
No.
I'm a priest.
This was my church.
Please.
What's your name?
Maria Dolores.
And your baby's name?
My name - Maria Dolores.
And your husband?
I have no husband, Father.
This one has not been baptised.
Could you give her a name, Father?
So when she grows up to be married in a church,
she can be called by name.
Will there be churches again, Father?
We must hope so.
In the village they have no hope.
They say the priests have all left us,
that the church is dead.
In the village are many babies that have not been baptised.
Is that why you have been sent here, Father?
Perhaps.
And you're not afraid?
Oh, yes, I am afraid.
Go. Summon the others. Tell them to bring their babies.
They will not come for me, Father.
The men, yes.
The women... no.
Perhaps they will come for me.
Maria Dolores, I baptise thee in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
Amen.
I baptise thee in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
Amen.
Attention!
Detail, dismount!
Dismiss!
Where's the chief of police?
I wouldn't know.
You, get out of here!
All right, bring these people in.
- Drunk and disorderly. - Fine five pesos.
- Drunk and disorderly. - Five pesos.
- Alcohol on his possession. - 20 pesos.
- Drunk and disorderly. - Five pesos.
But Your Excellency, I have no money.
I am not "Your Excellency"!
Won't you people ever learn?
I'm an Indian like you are, and like you.
And like you. And I'm proud of it.
Stand up straight.
Let him work it off cleaning out the cells.
Found wearing a holy medal under his shirt.
60 days in the bullpen.
- What of the rest? - All drunk.
- Oh, dismiss them. - All right. Come on, outside. Hurry up.
Everybody outside. Hurry up.
- Thank you for doing my work. - Somebody's got to carry on.
Well, where were you?
With the governor.
- He's in splendid health. - You don't look very happy.
The governor and I are friends. We understand each other.
- He asked a few questions about you. - About me? What about me?
Well, he had a copy of your report on his desk.
- You know how he feels about the clergy. - I feel exactly the same way.
We shot the last priest six months ago.
- The governor doesn't seem to think so. - Well, he's wrong!
I tell you, the last priest was shot six months ago.
Do you wish to argue with the governor, my boy? That's stupid.
Remember, he gets information we don't get.
- Oh, there's no doubt about it. - What's the name of this priest?
What's his village? What's his parish? Where was he born?
That's the trouble - nobody knows anything when it comes to these traitors.
Nobody talks, no one knows their name.
They go from village to village and the people hide them, the superstitious fools.
They do anything to hide a priest.
How does he expect us to find a man when we haven't got a photograph?
This time, the governor says we have.
You can tell he's a priest by the collar, that's all.
Not a good picture, but it's the best we've got.
They all look alike to me. I've shot him a dozen times.
The governor says we must have this priest before the rains come.
I know how to get this man before the rains come.
You know what I'd do? Take hostages.
Take a hostage from every village.
Then if the people don't report him, if they don't turn him in,
shoot the hostages, then take more.
It'll cost lives, yes. But we've got to drive these people out of the country.
What are you doing here?
Why did you leave your village?
My father made me leave.
After you left.
I meant to come back.
I had work to do.
We're making a better world, Maria Dolores. For him too.
It's a girl, like me.
- What's her name? - My name - Maria Dolores.
How do you live?
Do you work?
I work in the canteen.
Oh, Lieutenant.
Hey, you, what are you doing here? Get out!
I've got 'em all corralled in the plaza.
Are you the head man of the village?
S, señor.
You know what we're here for, don't you? We're looking for the priest.
You know what a priest is?
A traitor to the state!
Anyone who hides him is a traitor too!
I know he's here. This was his village.
Up there was his church.
This is a very rich village -
it seems to have lots of wax candles.
They were burned there last night. There was water in the fountain.
Where's the priest? Point him out.
You superstitious fools! Do you still believe what the priests told you?
All they ever wanted was your money. They took it and what did they give you?
Anything to eat? Did they feed your children?
No. They filled you full of lies.
They talked to you about heaven. They told you to be meek and humble.
Everything would be fine when you die.
They want you to die, these priests, not live!
They preach against the revolution, because we want you to live, not die.
Where's the priest? Point him out.
There's a reward of 1,000 pesos. Point him out.
Why don't you trust me?
I'll find this priest. You know why? Because we're taking hostages.
And if you don't give up the priest, we'll shoot the hostages.
Can't you see I'm one of you? I'm doing this for your own good.
This priest is a coward. If he were half the man you think he is,
he would have given himself up to save you.
Is it worth dying for a man like this?
Why don't you trust me? Give him up.
I don't want to see any of you die. You're my own people.
Can't you understand? I want to give you everything.
All right, I'll take you.
- No! No! - Tally-ho!
No.
- Excellency, take me. - Why should I take you?
He has a family. They need him. I'm no good, Excellency. Take me.
If you're no good as a man, you're no good as a hostage.
What will you do now, Father?
I'll go to Puerto Grande.
Sell the mule.
Take a boat, get out of the country.
It's better that I go, Maria Dolores.
I haven't been a good priest.
I don't understand, Father.
I'm afraid I don't understand myself.
Be careful of the police, Father.
Oh, what a fine mule.
A beautiful mule.
You must be rich.
You come a long way, yes?
- How far is it to Puerto Grande? - Oh, two, three days.
With a mule like that, maybe one day.
Why you want to go to Puerto Grande?
I have business there.
What a beautiful bag.
What do you have in the bag? Jewels? Money?
A pistol, maybe?
- Who is that man? - The Gringo.
Very brave man. He held up a gringo bank, stole 100 dollars,
killed two or three people. Very brave.
Who put that up there?
Why, the police, of course. That's their business.
- How long ago were they here? - Oh, two or three days.
Don't worry, they won't come back.
You think I'm worried?
Why do you ask about the police?
I'm sorry if I offended you about the police.
Don't go. Stay here, it's better. The river, it's nice.
It's too hot to travel.
- Ah, you went so fast you almost lost me. - What do you want?
I'm going to Puerto Grande too, on business.
It's more safe to travel together. Me, I can protect you.
- You wouldn't refuse me, would you, sir? - Why do you call me "sir"?
Oh, I can see you're an educated man. But you are tired.
There's a place down here we can stop and you can sleep.
- I'm in a hurry. - Why are you in a hurry?
It's not good to be in a hurry. It's dangerous to travel at night.
Gringos - wild animals, snakes, they eat you up.
- They never touch me because I'm poor. - I am also poor.
Oh, no, you have a mule, costly clothes, a rich bank full of money.
But you have no gun to protect you.
Oh, you have a light.
Isn't it beautiful?
A wax candle.
They cost a lot of money, real wax. It's the kind they used to have in the churches.
I haven't seen one since the old days.
That makes everything fine.
It's nice to be comfortable.
It must be wonderful to be rich.
Go ahead, sleep. You're tired.
I will watch.
I'm never tired.
- Why are you going to the city? - I'm keeping you company.
I'm protecting you.
I'm your guide.
- You said you had business there. - Me?
When did I say that? Why should I tell you lies?
I'm giving up my time to help you, to guide you.
You would get lost.
But you don't trust me, just because I'm trying to do you a good turn.
Cos I'm trying to be a good Christian, you don't trust me.
You don't trust me.
Ah, good wine. I never had wine like that before.
What a lovely taste.
It's against the law to have wine. See? I'm protecting you.
What's the matter?
It wasn't consecrated, was it?
The wine wasn't blessed, was it, Father?
- Why do you call me "Father"? - Don't be afraid, I'm a good Christian.
You're wrong.
I can find out easily, can't I?
All I have to say is, "Hear my confession, Father."
Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.
You cannot refuse a man in mortal sin, can you?
The light! Don't! Don't!
Father.
One third-class.
Father.
Please, Father.
- Why do you call me "Father"? - Don't you know me, Father?
I am Luis Suárez. You gave me First Communion.
My mother is sick. She's dying.
I have no wine for the Mass.
Is there any in the house?
It's forbidden, Father.
Can't say Mass without wine.
It would be better if I went with him.
All right.
He's a very big man. He is a cousin of the governor.
He can get you anything. Get you plenty brandy.
- I don't want brandy. - What do you want, then?
- I told you - wine. - Wine is hard to get.
It's got to be wine.
So you want some brandy, do you? It's against the law.
Not brandy, Excellency. I don't want brandy.
Isn't beer good enough for you?
I could have you arrested.
I wouldn't have troubled you if this man hadn't told me...
Hey! Just a minute.
Come here.
I am not a hard man. Sit down, sit down.
To the contrary, I always try to oblige my friends,
when it's in my power and does no harm.
I have a position, you understand?
- These drinks come to me quite legally. - Of course, Excellency.
- And I have to charge what they cost me. - Of course, Excellency.
- Otherwise, I would be a ruined man. - Of course, Excellency.
- Are you a talker? - He's my cousin.
Not directly, you understand. By marriage. His wife is related to my uncle's sister.
I don't mind your telling the right people, you understand?
- Here. This is good stuff. - That's brandy, Excellency.
- Very good brandy. - But I don't want brandy, I want wine.
In these days, you take what you get.
Then I think I'd rather have my 20 pesos back.
- How much? - 20 pesos.
How about two bottles of brandy?
- One brandy and one wine, please. - It's the finest brandy you can get.
But I'm a wine drinker, Excellency. You don't know how I long for wine.
- How about a bottle of gin? - No, no. Wine, Excellency, please.
I was saving this for the chief of police. He is a great lover of wine.
- Now take it or leave it. - Thank you, Excellency. Thank you.
Will you honour us by having a drink with us?
Well, I don't mind. It's a hot night.
I'll fix you up.
Ah, here we are, here we are.
Ah, no, no. Wait, wait, wait. It's too hot for brandy.
I haven't had a glass of wine in a long time.
Come here. You don't mind if we sample it, do you?
Of course he don't mind. That's what he wants - wine.
You don't care where you drink it, eh, cousin?
Ah, here we are.
If you'll excuse me, I think I'll have brandy.
What did I tell you? Brandy! That's what he wanted all the time.
I knew it.
Here's to a great man - our governor.
Very good. To my cousin, on my mother's side.
Figaro! Figaro!
- Figaro, Figaro, Figa... - Excellency!
Shut up! Figaro!
- Care for another drink, Excellency? - If you insist, if you insist.
If you insist.
I think I'll try the wine now. It is smoother than the brandy.
- Excellency... - Here you are.
Please.
- Cousin, what's wrong? - I want to take some of that wine home.
- What for? - For my friend.
Oh, you have a friend.
Once I had a friend myself - my mother.
You want me to tell you? Sit down here, I'll tell you all about it.
Although now she's dead, you know.
Oh, with your permission.
Thank you. Thank you very much.
I think I'll try another one.
In fact, I think in the future, I'll drink nothing else but wine.
- Me too. - How about yourself?
No, thank you. I think the brandy is much better.
That's right. That's right. I'll try both.
I...
I'll try both.
Come in, come in. Ah, never mind. Sit down, sit down.
We are having a little private party.
- Care for a little drink, Excellency? - What have you got?
- Wine and brandy. - Try both. Very smooth.
What the gringos call a cocktail, I believe.
I don't mind.
- This gentleman isn't drinking. - Oh, here, man.
Here, have a sip, have a sip.
That's a good thing.
That'll set you up. Another one, like a real man.
Figaro!
- Brandy, huh? - Let's go.
Take him to the bullpen.
Attention!
- Another one? - Brandy, sir.
Brandy? I see no brandy.
- You can smell it. - I smell your breath. That's enough!
Take his name, Sergeant. Get up.
Bullpen.
Haven't I seen you before?
What are you doing here, Father? Who caught you?
Who gets the reward?
- The men who caught me, I suppose. - Who? Who? Who?
- The police. - Oh, the traitors.
So that's why they got me drunk? You can't believe a soul these days.
- You're educated. Advise me. - Where are they taking him?
Don't worry about him, Father. Worry about me, I'm a poor man.
I have so much to worry about, Father. It's your duty to help me. Advise me.
Why don't you tell them now? They'll give you something.
Something? Why shouldn't I get it all? I found you. It's mine, it belongs to me.
Help me. We must trust each other.
Hey, you. Come here.
- Jefe wants to see you. - Where are they taking him?
Through the town. It impresses the people.
Stay away from that crumb. He's a police squealer.
Brandy, eh?
Very, very serious.
Against the law, you know.
Where's the evidence?
Oh, yes. Lieutenant broke the bottle, eh? Too bad.
Ask him where he got it. At the Hotel Splendide.
Poor man like this? The Splendide?
You got it from a stranger, didn't you?
Yes.
And you don't know his name, do you?
No.
- Did he work off his fine? - He's all right.
Dismissed.
All right, fellow, all right.
Father, here I am.
Father! Father!
Father!
Father! Father!
Did you see the priest? I mean, a man?
Wait! Thief! I was a rich man! I had a million pesos! Why did I trust him?
Father!
It's OK, sister. Give the change to...
Good night, Father.
Please.
Father, we thought you had gone.
We thought you had left this land.
It was not to be.
You must get over the mountains. That's the only way now.
I'll go with you. We must start right away.
- If I could sleep... for a few hours. - I'll get you some food.
But we must start right away.
Please.
The reason I'm going with you, Father, is that I know the way.
Besides, you will be in less danger.
They will think I'm your wife and Maria Dolores your baby.
I hope you're not offended, Father.
Are you?
You're not angry, Father?
Father!
- What's in there? - My baby.
Please! She's asleep.
Keep watch for new boots, will you?
What have you got under here? A priest maybe?
Maybe a sergeant.
Maybe a drink for a sergeant, huh?
Viejo/
How about a little cup, hm?
Hey, what have you got in there?
A kiss for a sergeant maybe, huh?
Perhaps.
Awful noisy out here. Let's go inside.
Come on, what are you afraid of?
Don't you want me to dance for you?
Dance? Sure, why not?
I can't dance in this dress.
OK.
Go ahead.
Father! Father!
It's the police! You must get away.
Out through the cornfield. Get across the river and wait for me.
Maria Dolores, shh!
What kind of men are you? Are you swine, enticed by the first girl to show her legs?
I'll get your stripes for this, Sergeant!
And you, with your fancy dress and your bare legs, what are you?!
What are you? Tell me.
I don't know, Juan Rafael.
What kind of a woman am I?
Did I hurt you, Maria Dolores?
No, Juan Rafael.
No.
They found the priest. Let's go.
Pablo, Miguelito, hide!
Go on, Father. Beat it.
Get on the other side! Beat that corn down and get the priest!
Five years. It's a long time.
I know from experience.
- You've shown great courage, Father. - Oh, no.
No, it wasn't courage, Doctor. I can't deceive myself.
It was only pride.
Yes, I see it now. It was pride.
The first year...
Well, the whole thing seemed fantastic.
I couldn't believe there was any real reason to leave.
Things like that have happened before.
I thought I'd stay another month and see if things got better.
And then another month and another month. You know how time goes by.
Yes.
Then I began to lose grace.
I began to have pride.
I began to think I was a brave man.
Who knows? A martyr.
I suddenly realised I was the only priest left in the country.
Those who weren't shot had left, they went.
I can't blame them. They were quite right to go.
But in my growing pride, I couldn't understand that.
Oh, don't be so hard on yourself, Father.
A man is entitled to a little pride.
Not in my profession. I was building a fine lie and wearing it like a proud cloak.
The strange thing is that,
all the time, I knew in here I wasn't cut out to be a martyr.
When the real test came, I couldn't measure up.
I didn't have the courage.
I was afraid to give myself up.
I let men die for me.
Innocent people.
Well, finish your coffee.
- Doctor, it's time for Father's nap. - Thank you.
Thank you, Doctor.
Father. Don't be frightened, Father. I'm your friend.
- I'm here on an errand of mercy. - Have you brought the police with you?
The police? No, I'm here to do good. Believe me, Father.
I want to make up for my sins.
I have two mules outside. Hurry, Father, the man is dying.
- What man? - The Gringo.
The Gringo - the Americano, the man the police want.
He robbed a bank. You know the man I mean.
He's dying, Father.
He wants you to come. You cannot refuse a man who is dying, Father.
He has so much to confess.
- He's never betrayed his friends. - Neither have I.
Neither have I! You don't trust me.
Go back where you came from. You think I'm a fool.
The man is dying. He wants a priest.
You're lying.
No. No.
I'll prove it.
No, the other side.
- Will he still be alive? - Yes. Yes. Yes, Father.
Father.
Did you call?
Father.
Beat it, Father.
When did you last receive the sacraments?
Ten...
fifteen years, I guess.
- Beat it, Father. - Don't you want to confess?
No.
You did when you wrote this.
I... I didn't write that, Father.
Beat it. Get out of here.
Don't be a sap. Get away!
You're dying. You're given this chance to confess, you won't have another.
- Father. Father. - Yes?
Get...
Get my gun, under my shoulder.
Get my gun, Father. You're gonna need it.
You have no gun.
Lie still. It's not there.
Listen to me, you believed once.
Try and understand.
This is your chance. At the last moment, like the thief on the cross.
I know you've sinned a great deal, but that only belongs to this life.
Forget about me, Father. Skip it, skip it. Take the...
Oh, Merciful Father,
the souls of the departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.
Amen.
Have you finished?
Yes, I've finished.
You've been tried and found guilty.
Couldn't I have been present at my own trial?
It wouldn't have mattered anyway.
- When do I? - In the morning.
I brought you a lamp.
It's hard to be alone on a night like this.
I'd rather be alone.
I have so much to think about.
May I ask you a question, Lieutenant?
- When did you lose your faith? - When I found a better one!
Look, priest, I have nothing against you as a man. My viewpoint...
I know that.
I'm the sort of man you lock up every day and give money to.
I hate your arguments.
If you see somebody in pain, people like you say perhaps pain is a good thing.
Right now you're shivering cos you're afraid of a little pain when you're shot.
Well, I'm not a saint.
I'm not even a brave man.
I'm a coward.
But the priesthood is large, it's tremendous.
I was always too small for it.
You know, it's very strange,
but I'm beginning not to be afraid.
- Even you believe in God. - That's not true!
Of course you believe. That's why you're afraid.
You want to kill God and you can't do it.
That's a lot of nonsense. You can't tell me you're not afraid.
- Listen, priest, do you want to die? - No.
Well, maybe I can help you. I'll go to the governor myself.
Renounce your faith publicly tomorrow.
Say to the people you've been telling them lies.
I'm sorry, Lieutenant.
In the village, there's an Indian woman.
Maria Dolores.
Yes, a good woman.
You baptised her child, didn't you?
Yes.
Can I get you some brandy? It'll make it easier in the morning.
It's very kind of you, but no, thanks.
- It'll make you forget. - No.
I want to live my death.
Father.
Ready?
Get going.
Well, that's the last one, eh?
If you want me, I'll be in the Hotel Splendide.
Squad, halt!
About face!
Forward, hut!
Your blessing, Father! Your blessing!
- You can't sell a blessing. - Forward!
Go home and pray. Give the money to the poor.
March!
I am the new priest.
I am Father Serra.