The Polish Film Institute
A film by Macieja Pieprzycy
LIFE FEELS GOOD
The film was inspired by real events.
Sync and Subtitles: [ PAz ]
- Good morning. - Good morning.
Go ahead.
Mateusz
Give me.
Say something about yourself.
Mateusz.
My opinion is objective and professional.
The boy...
is mentally disabled.
You said it may turn out he...
He is understanding things.
Do you think he understands everything?
Then, give me an example.
He's excited when I prepare lunch.
and he salivates, so...
Just like my dog when its bowl is full.
and it wags its tail showing his happiness.
What is it, sonny?
You'll never be able to communicate.
I would send him to a special clinic.
No doubt.
- What are you telling me? - Telling the truth.
His brain is not working. He is like a vegetable.
I'll help you.
Mum, he doesn't want to.
A bit longer.
Again. Try a bit more, sonny.
The doctor said he'd never walk.
We'll see.
You started walking very late Matylda.
A bit more.
You'll repeat the year at school.
Why do you insist?
- One's dumber than the other. - Don't say it to Mateusz.
He doesn't get it.
You're ashamed of himself too.
Why don't you take him for a walk?
Ms Talarczyk asks me if he's still alive.
You promised to repair it.
So...?
Hi, sonny.
There you go. You can hold it.
What is it?
You've been drinking.
- Can I? - Wait!
Mateusz!
At the bip, it will be 33 minuts 15 seconds, past seven.
Mateusz
PROOF
Mateusz!
Your head is filled with warmth.
Your body is filled with warmth.
I'm giving you the force.
I won't come here again.
No point in torturing him.
I'm begging you. He's been better since last time.
Look...
Money here... won't help at all.
You have to accept it.
What is it, sonny?
What is it?
You'd like to say something?
Are you hungry?
Are you thirsty?
You want to say you love me?
If only I could understand you...
Now you know the truth.
When you're a vegetable, no one understands you.
You must know...
when a real man has had enough or disagrees...
he has to hit his fist on the table.
Get it?
Go ahead!
Great!
Once again, once again.
- What are you teaching him? - Things.
Look at this man! Again...
I was waiting for the right moment to show them who I was.
For now, I decided to learn,
and see what would happen.
Mum, come here, please.
Hang on. Just a second.
What is it, sonny?
What was it? What do you want?
- Easy, easy... - What is it?
Are you trying to stand up?
I'll help you. Very well...
You are walking!
He's much lightr now.
What did you want?
Nothing.
Darling!
One spoon...
Two spoons...
And now...
Three.
Thirteen spoons a day, ninety-one a week.
Almost four hundred a month... Minus thirty that I spit.
These were my maths classes.
That man was jealous of his wife.
When he was away she met another man.
That couple lives together but they never speak.
Watching neighbours was my social education course.
Parcels from Germany were my geography classes.
Do you see?
It will last for a year.
Lovely smell!
Tomek, look!
One is for Tomek, the other one to Mateusz.
Give him that one.
What is it?
It's for the fridge.
- How do you know? - This is for wrapping freezing food.
Our neighbour got it too.
What is it?
Dad taught me tools and technology.
Let it go.
- The knife will break. - Wait.
He also taught me... never to give up.
You can take it off now.
My favourite class was anatomy.
ls Tuesday fine?
Tits and stars... are two God's greatest inventions.
The space travel is no longer a dream.
Years of tests taught us how to make use of physics.
We've created reliable spacecrafts at the cutting-edge of technology
Rocket science has reached...
I don't know.
Cinema? For me it's fine.
- Why did you turn it off? - Do you think he understands it?
How do I look?
Matylda, where's my silver brooch? The silver butterfly.
Finally the right moment to show them I can comunicate.
Mum! Mateusz!
Sonny, what is it? What is it?
You may hurt yourself, Mateusz
Watch out!
Mateusz, please stop it! Mateusz, calm down.
Matylda, can't you help me for God sake?
Keep his head! Keep his head!
Mateusz!
Calm down...
It's over now. It's over now.
WIZARD
Look over there! That one...
That's Jupiter.
And that one... The brightest one...
That one is the Plough.
People think the stars are still.
But it's not true.
They move like mad all the time.
It's just us, down here on Earth...
we think they are still.
I couldn't decide who Dad was.
First, I thought he was an astronomer.
Look... The moon is moving!
Then, I thought he was a mechanic.
Very well.
Mum needs to rest. Mum will sit down for a bit.
He's getting heavier.
I'll fix a new one. Don't worry about it.
I even thought he was a criminal.
He got interrogated by our neighbour, a cop.
He came home exhausted,
saying that he had drunk too much to help him work.
Watch out!
Put the pillow there.
Ready? Let's go. Hop on!
Ready? Engines on. Three, two, one, go!
Dad wasn't an astronomer, a mechanic or a criminal.
To me... he was a wizard.
Go, go, go!
Wait for us!
- Dad! - Slow down!
Hold it. It's sticky
More glue.
Place it here... Here...
Hold it.
Ready!
On June 4, the Poles voted in the first democratic elections...
...since the Second World War.
The campaign was heated.
Sorry!
62% of eligible voters went to the polls.
The elections were peaceful and democratic.
Today, even nuns were allowed to vote, with a special permission.
Some people had never voted before.
Optimists notice the changes that were unlikely a few months ago.
The next election will be fully democratic.
See? We've succeeded.
I'll be back soon.
In 1989, Dad brought down Communism.
And now things, were to be better.
- Where are you going? - The city's all buzzing.
You promised to fix the lock.
Pawel!
Would you like to see the stars exploding tonight?
So...
Would you like to?
Deal.
High five.
It's some crap.
See? It can't be fixed.
I need to buy a new one.
But Dad is broke.
- Is that enough? - Not a chance.
Let me go, sonny.
Everything's fine.
Look after this. Dad is going out but will be back in no time.
I don't need them for now.
What kind of father you got?
Come for supper.
Put it away.
Mateusz what are you doing? Mateusz let go!
Stop it! You may hurt yourself.
Mateusz, you'll hurt both of us.
Mateusz, keep calm.
Mateusz, calm down for God´s sake!
Didn't I promise you?
I wasn't afraid he'd get hurt.
Nothing can hurt a man...
who made the stars explode.
Mum.
We have to go.
I was left with what he taught me.
"Not to give up" and his catchphrase:
'Everything's fine.'
In 1998, I met Anka.
Every night, her mum invited a different man...
to help her fall asleep.
BOYFRIEND
Matylda dreamed of a husband. and everyday, she went hunting.
But people don't always get what they wish for.
Come in.
Quick, quick. There's no one at home.
This one here... is Mateusz, my brother.
Hi. I'm Gosia.
All right, brother, get out.
They made worse noises than I did.
My brother made me realise,
I was missing out important things.
Rosinski intercepts the ball and passes to Mateusz...
He dribbles Maradona.
Rosinsky gets the ball and runs.
Will Rosinski score a goal?
Yes! Goal!
See you later, brother.
I'm Anka.
"Hi, Anka. I'm Mateusz. You're a nice girl".
'Where did they draw the treacle from?'
'You can draw water out of a water-well...'
'...said the Hatter; so I should think...'
'...you could draw treacle out of a treacle-well...?'
- In this case... - Ei, stupid?
'But they were IN the well...'
I finally knew who I was: someone's boyfriend.
I saw our future home, and kids crawling on the floor with me.
Do you know what I mean?
I decided to kill him.
Sonny, what happened?
You want to sit by the window?
Look what you've done to your old Mum.
You're a bad boy.
Your Mum knows you smoke?
- Not your business. - Drop it.
Shut up! You make me nervous.
Stop smiling! Don't dare to face me.
Drop the fucking cigar!
Drop it, drop it!
Fuck off.
Why are you doing this?
Have I ever hurt you?
Oh, Mike Tyson!
Moron!
Calm down!
What did you do to him?
- What did you do? - Nothing.
- Documents! - No!
- Documents, please! - Go away.
- Documents! - Fuck off!
It was a miracle.
But not the one I expected.
Mateusz? It's me.
We're going to my grandma's.
Mum wants to run away before he gets out of jail.
EVERYTHING'S FINE
Take aim... and bang!
You get a three-day pass if you score three tens.
Listen.
To those who are at sea!
My dear brother-in-law...
- Here's to you. - Let's drink.
- Toast. - Toast.
Eat something or you'll get drunk.
Do you want a sandwich?
- What do you eat on the ship? - Only tinned food.
Thanks for the beads.
- Yummy. Very yummy. - Don't butter me up.
Tamek...
we'll change your single bed for a double one.
We have to be together now.
- And when I get back? - It will take a while.
- What about Mateusz? - We'll move him to my room.
To living in harmony!
Here's to you, kids.
Listen... Mum you should think about Mateusz.
What do you mean?
Who's going to lift him? You're getting old.
Matylda!
- You are getting old, Mum. - Shut up!
- Don't argue. - Stay out of this.
Stay out of this? Take him with you.
- To my ship? - Who will lift him?
Mum has a sick back. Adam works all day.
Don't argue more.
I can take care of Mateusz.
Mateusz...
She only cares about Mateusz.
I dreamed of... adventures... and a change.
Them my dreams came true...
but the wrong way, as usual.
Let me change your clothes.
You're too heavy.
I told myself: 'Everything's fine.'
SMILE
- Take a look. - It's very light.
Light as a feather.
- You got the signal? - Very weak.
- And him? - What do you think?
Maybe a sedative?
I was waiting for Mum. I could tell her so much.
The wake-up call is at 6:30.
I hate it!
The bathroom was always occupied though my sister didn't live here.
I sometimes thought they were at the sports camp.
Other times... an holiday camp.
Sometimes I felt at home.
Almost...
Mum sewed for clients, but they sewed for nobody.
Yet, love looks the same.
And death comes in the same way.
I hate to be here.
I'm waiting for Mum to leave the hospital and take me home.
Good morning.
You remember our neighbours, the policeman family?
They send their regards too.
Oh, sorry.
Easy sonny. Eat it all.
Your little finger.
Sonny, I have to catch the train.
I'll come by on Monday.
I like you.
But I don't like you.
Lord, grant us strength in suffering. God loves you, Leszek.
Lord, grant us strength in suffering. God loves you, Marek.
Lord, grant us strength in suffering. God loves you, Mateusz.
Thanks be to God.
What if he hated me?
Why are you so sad?
It's gonna be a lovely day. Life feels good.
I hated that Witch.
She fed me in bed forcing me to bit my lips.
She had neither tits nor brain.
Hi.
I present myself.
I'm a new volunteer to feed you.
Another one who didn't guess I should sit up...
but I forgave her.
I came up with a ten-point scale.
My sister was the worst: I can only give her one point.
It's better to be a vegetable.
This one was... five.
Four...
Less than four!
Eight.
Mateusz are you OK?
More... eight and a half.
Tomek's sailing the ocean.
He sent a postcard.
From Borneo.
Where... I think it's an island.
'Hi, Brother... Yesterday I picked coconuts from a palm.'
'And ate crab meat. Tomek.'
I'm sorry, sonny.
I hated her.
Why was she leaving me among those morons?
Dad wouldn't do it.
I'll come by on Monday.
That was how I got into the boxing team.
They finally understood I was hurting my lips.
They tried to help me.
Mirka was to clean it. But no, she's busy eating cake.
She-'s like my Aunt Stefa. Too fat to pick up a banknote
She is running to her death. A spoon can dig you a grave.
- Hello. Come here, please. - Wait here Mateusz.
Hi, Zbyszek!
Everything's fine?
There, there. See?
Take a closer look.
- The aquarium. - No, look below.
- Is it dirty? - Yes, it is.
- Is it my duty to clean it? - No, of course.
But you can't turn an old woman into a girl.
The only thing I have to clean it is water.
Buy chemicals and I'll clean it the way it should be.
Dad said if a man has had enough,
then, he must hit his fist on the table.
Damn!
Mateusz, I'm talking to you!
I smiled for the first time in many months.
Everyone wanted to talk to me. What a great feeling.
Everything's fine.
Leszek - retardation. Marek - hydrocephalus.
and Mateusz - cerebral palsy.
Take a deep breath and you'll be fine.
So?
75% of new volunteers quit after I take them here.
3/4 give up.
It's a test.
So?
'Suddenly I thought:'
'Maybe tits aren't that important.'
Have I grown up?
WORDS
Old witch.
A bit more.
Shall we eat together?
Your turn
I play this piece when I'm sad.
I pretend I'm a ballerina.
He reacts when I talk to him.
He understands me.
LesZek, what's going on? Why didn't you shave, man?
Are you playing the ball, Marek?
He reacts.
It doesn't mean he understands.
You don't need words. A look in the eye is enough.
Maybe.
Coffee?
Not now.
We grew a special bond.
We no longer spent time only in the room.
Chocolate flavour, your favourite.
Tomek sent a postcard.
From Mauritius.
'Am sitting under a palm, making a toast to you, Brother. Tomek.'
- Hello. - Hello.
I'm Magda. I help with Mateusz
Hi.
Mateusz is celebrating his 25th aniversary.
Sorry, I don't have a gift.
So, will you join us for the cake?
No. No. I don't want to bother you.
Happy birthday.
- Goodbye. - Goodbye.
Would you agree that I take him for a walk outside?
Would you like to, sonny?
I have a gift for you.
Sometimes we want a moment to last forever.
It was such a moment.
Ahmed says in Polish: 'I´ll be your guide to Mount Sinai.'
Our group was named: 'Adam Malysz.'
The Russians were named 'Vladimir Putin'.
Good evening.
Hello everyone.
Can we join you?
Certainly.
Thank you.
Mateusz, This is my dad I told you about.
Hello.
And she is...
- Wanda. - Wanda.
My stepmother.
This one here... is Mateusz.
My fiancé.
Happy birthday Dad. I have a gift.
Thank you.
Do you remember tomorrow is Mum's death anniversary?
He's an adult.
Will you try on your own?
Here's to you, Dad.
Back to the story.
So every ten minutes we hear: 'Adam Malysz, camel, camel!'
It's the Bedouins who want to take us to Mount Sinai.
- For 150 dollars? - 170.
Let's sing for Dad?
100 years, 100 years to live, to live forever...
once again, once again to live, to live forever...
to live forever, Dad.
Thank you, darling.
She's always had original ideas.
Now you don't approve of cripples?
- It's not that. - So what is it?
Your name's Mateusz?
I apologize for my daughter.
Who's going to be the next? Do you have any idea?
A homeless guy last year, Today, him.
-Who's the next? - Stop it.
- Magda? - Stop it.
- If you... - Stop it.
- Let's talk... - Stop it.
Magda!
Wait a second.
What did you do to her?
You puked on her or what?
She quit.
Mateusz?
100 years, 100 years to live, to live forever...
once again, once again to live, to live forever...
to live forever.
Casablanca.
It took it four months to get here.
Where's this Casablanca, sonny?
In some Arab country, I guess.
Turkey?
The ﬂag is red and has a green star.
Matylda will come next time.
Her husband left her so she has to look after her kids.
Ms Talarczyk says hello. She was at hospital.
She's at home now, recovering.
Her son... become a policeman, exactly like his father.
Mr Talarczyk lost four kilos...
while she was at the hospital.
Maybe he lost even more.
Don't cry!
I know...
HUMAN BEING
I like you.
Here are the symbols.
We will use them to communicate, yes?
You can train now. Bravo! You've blinked once.
This is a symbol for 'warm'.
When I'll ask if you are warm, you blink, and I'll open the window.
Then, I'll ask you if you are tired.
If you blink once then we'll stop. If you blink twice then we'll go on.
'Warm' symbol. Are you warm?
What do we say?
Great! You've blinked twice.
You're not warm. I will not open the window.
And now, the symbol 'drink'.
Do you want a drink?
You do? You've blinked once. Very well. You want a drink.
Yes? I'll get you a drink.
Bravo! Wait.
One day Ms Jola came to our Centre.
I'll give you a drink...
because you blinked once to tell me:
'Yes I want a drink.' Here it is.
Can you hold it?
Mr. Jarek? I finished for now.
Adela... see you soon?
So?
See you soon!
Lie still.
Easy.
What's going on?
Wait!
Calm down. Calm down.
Calm dow, They are coming. Calm down.
Easy, boy. They'll take care of you.
What is it?
- Hello. - Hello.
What's up?
Mateusz, calm down.
Easy!
Hold him! Mateusz keep calm!
Silence!
That's it. Calm down Mateusz.
Injection, quick!
No, wait!
Wait.
Do you want to tell me... something?
We'll learn...
- He can't learn... - We'll see.
Mateusz, let's begin.
'YES' you blink once, right?
This symbol?
Symbol for 'Sister'. Sister, yes?
Finally others wondered who I was.
Dad was right: Everything's fine.
That's the one?
Another symbol: 'brother'.
What's in here? 'Brother'? Brother, great!
Mateusz...
That's how I became 'our Mateusz'
This is our Mateusz, Professor.
He didn't communicate for 26 years.
Please, go ahead.
This symbol? Mateusz...
'Goodbye'?
This column?
Yes.
This symbol?
'Not'.
- Easy. - Not too fast?
Yes, this page. Ask him.
This page, sonny?
This column?
This symbol?
This one was to say 'I'.
Did you want to say 'l' or 'Not I'?
'I'? 'I' yes.
So now we have 'not' and 'l'.
- Let's go on. - Shall I turn the pages?
Go on.
Yes.
- This one. - This page?
The last one.
This column?
This symbol?
'Vegetable'.
'Not
Not I vegetable?
Ask him.
You want to tell me you're not a vegetable?
What did they do to you?
Open your eyes.
- You like it? - Jola, where shall I put it?
Mateusz...? Where?
- There. - Mateusz, is it OK?
Mateusz, the reporter I told you about, is here.
Hi, I'm Ewa.
I'd like to write about your story
Don't worry.
I'll start with photos. May I?
Yes, please.
It's simple to use.
Everything is here. You can find what interests you.
One click and you talk to the world.
To someone in America for instance.
Homecomings are peculiar.
Objects look the same. Yet, something doesn't fit.
I'm the one here who really changed. [LIKE A BUTTERFLY]
So you've met your uncle.
Oh, you have a tattoo.
Take a look!
If you wish, I'll make you one.
It was nice to come back.
But it wasn't my home any longer.
- Hello Agniezka! - Hello.
- Good morning. - Good morning.
Can we talk?
- Something wrong with Mateusz? - No, let's sit down.
The article about Mateusz created us a problem.
Our head office...
They say if he's normal, he shouldn't be here.
This Centre... is only for intellectually Disabled.
He isn't one.
They want to transfer Mateusz to a different centre.
They will interview him.
Take a look.
It's a lovely center.
There's a park.
See this alley?
I know...
There are no mountains, but look at this lake.
Mateusz...
I know it's far away...
but I'll come and visit you.
- Good morning. - Good morning.
Go ahead, please.
Give me...
Say something about yourself, OK?
This page?
Mateusz?
This page?
This one?
Mateusz, tell us what day is today.
That's all.
He's a moron.
Let's go, that's enough.
Today is 11th August, 10.30 p.m.
The sky is clear with a new moon rising.
I am watching Mercury and Venus.
It will be a lovely day tomorrow
Mateusz didn't move out.
He still lives in the Centre for intellectually Disabled.
LIFE FEELS GOOD
In memory of Ewa Pieta (23 July 1968 - 23 Oct 2006)
Sync and Subtitles: [ PAz ] Credit to: Magdalena Cedro
Cast
English subtitles by Magdalena Cedro