That's Sadiel.
I recognize him.
This was shot 3 days ago by our agent.
Sadiel had just returned from a conference in Cairo.
He went back to Geneva for an important appointment.
The second car is the Swiss police.
They're protecting him.
That was the second time this month he met with a messenger.
Watch that man. He's the cousin of the head of state.
I got a report yesterday.
My agents say the meeting was decisive.
You know Lestienne, we have at most a few weeks before we have to act.
A few weeks?
The report is clear:
Sadiel's exile is nearing its end.
Sadiel reached an agreement with the head of state,
via that cousin.
Cognac?
Please.
Why would the head of state allow Sadiel to return?
Wasn't he sentenced to death in absentia?
Sadiel is very popular.
They want to calm agitated sentiments.
And before he fell out of favor,
Sadiel was the first counsel to the head of state.
Did he put conditions on his return?
Of course. Two of those are unacceptable to the US.
Colonel Kassar has to step down
as Minister of the Interior,
and even from government.
And once Sadiel is back...
...he'll take his country out of the American sphere of influence.
We can't allow that under any circumstance.
That's why there's an urgent need
for a meeting between Sadiel and Cnel. Kassar.
It goes without saying
that we'll remain in the background.
Do you have a solution?
Sadiel is protected in Switzerland.
It's my turn to show you something.
Sadiel and Kassar. When was this?
They worked together after independence.
You want me to make Sadiel go to Paris.
I think I have the right man for that.
François Darien.
What does this Darien do?
All kinds of things, a born loser.
Always has big schemes that never work out.
How did he know Sadiel?
During the Algerian war Sadiel was in a tight spot,
and he took refuge in Milan. That's where they met.
Sadiel really liked Darien and made sure he came over...
...when he made it into government.
Do we have file on this Darien?
Can we put pressure on him?
You can put pressure on everyone.
Freedom for Saigon!
It's over, I'm off!
I'll stay a bit longer.
Watch it, it can get dangerous.
I'll watch out, mam!
You fool!
I'll look what's up, then I'm off too.
See you this evening.
Come with us.
Let him, that one's for us!
I'm just doing my work!
Sure, we heard that before.
Come on!
Let me go!
Come on now and stop arguing!
Come, let's go.
I was provoked, by two guys I don't know.
That's what they always say.
Who are 'they'?
You, nosy guys like you who wanna play soldier.
Even the demonstrators, once they're here.
You resisted the police, during a public disorder,
and you were caught in the act of violence.
Impossible, it's a misunderstanding.
You're not unknown to us.
François Darien.
Were you in the Algerian resistance?
I got amnesty.
In 1960 you left France illegally. Why?
I wanted to start all over again.
Start all over again!
On May 18, 1960 you arrived in Milan,
with a fake passport on the name of Raoul Chapard.
14 days before that there was a house-search,
at Vignes street.
A young woman was arrested,
but a young man escaped,
getting out by shooting.
Neither of us was armed.
A policeman was shot during that operation.
Badly injured.
Partly paralyzed,
invalid for the rest of his life.
You know I was there. Why are you talking about it?
Files are forgotten, or just get lost.
But one day they appear, at a routine inquiry.
We had an agreement on this matter...
You'd forget about it...
and I would...
be our snooper.
Yes, that's the word.
But that's all history now.
If my information is correct...
you have much less to offer us now.
Didn't you have a lawyer?
Yes.
Let's go, François.
They'll take the matter calmly,
and won't rush into anything.
But keep quiet, don't do anything stupid.
I'm sure they'll hush the matter again,
but you have to offer them something. But what?
You get to know interesting things...
in leftist circles.
Tell them I won't do that again.
You could afford that in the 60s.
Now you're marked.
But there's no hurry. Think about it.
They promised not to apply pressure.
You leave your family to practice social medicine in a slum,
and for that loser.
He's not a loser.
Well, it's pathetic.
He needs me. - Come on!
Why are you so mean, Henri?
Not mean, just jealous.
They arrested me.
What did I tell you?
Hi!
Good evening.
I was just about to leave,
when I saw cops beating a girl to the ground.
Somebody had to do something.
That's when they took me in.
Didn't they keep you overnight?
No, I'm sorry for you.
Next time I'll have them beat me into the hospital.
Funny!
I've heard your tapes, great!
Nothing will remain of it in that bourgeois paper of yours.
OK, see you.
See you!
I'll call you tomorrow at the hospital. - OK.
Are you reading this shit?
I read all kinds of shit!
Right. See you.
Will you file a complaint?
Complain... bullshit.
Police have to beat people up, that's their job.
You let them beat you, or you hit back.
But crying won't help you.
Do you know I find you funny?
I thought you wanted to work?
4 hours of filming.
Interviews with North Africans and Portuguese.
I detest poverty, misery and charity.
Those Portuguese are pigs.
That's enough. You're getting on my nerve.
You on mine too.
You let the people make you horny,
as a cow would by the bull.
If you take it like that...
Attention!
Present rifle!
We only have to check our information now.
Excuse me.
How are things?
I found a contact.
He wants to help. Well, he'll have to.
But we'd like to know one thing.
You'll use this meeting solely for asking Sadiel into your government?
Only for that.
Sadiel refuses to negotiate with you.
I've rendered you some services.
Help me out now, then Sadiel has to listen to me.
The meeting is on French territory.
Nothing'll happen to Sadiel there.
Do I have your word?
François Darien, I've been invited.
You can park your car here.
I came on foot.
On foot?
Yes, from the bus stop.
I'll announce you.
Would you like coffee, cognac or a cigar?
A coffee, for starters.
Where were you at the table?
I've just come in.
I thought so. Wouldn't miss a man like you.
I know you from somewhere. Weren't you in Agadir last June?
No.
But you know Morocco?
Yes, very well.
So that's where we met.
Don't chatter so much,
rather take care of our African guests.
That's what I'm paying you for.
They're not all whores.
A few honest women can be found here.
Plus a few bankers, and young industrials.
You're still seeing to it...
...that Africa will stay French.
You look just as lost as I am.
I write some porno too, for distraction.
But that won you some prizes, right?
You are François Darien.
In '61 you wrote a beautiful...
report about the Algerian war.
How do you know?
I've read it!
What do you do now?
I get by.
Are you still writing?
Yes, a novel.
Half-way between fiction and documentary.
It's the story of a man who...
fights with the FLN against France.
He's arrested by the police
and forced to cooperate with the intelligence service.
All that while sticking to his ideals.
A reflection on political engagement,
on its ambiguity.
That's interesting.
Do you have a publisher?
I shouldn't have invited you two at a time.
What were you two plotting?
We better talk together than with those guests of yours.
What's against my guests?
They're boring and reactionary.
Even the women have right-wing cunts.
I'm a business lawyer, my friend,
have you ever seen solid leftist capital?
Barring the communists, of course.
I'm taking Darien for a minute, something important.
How long since you saw Sadiel?
About a year.
Do you know Garcin?
That TV producer?
He's doing a series about the third world,
and wants to talk to Sadiel.
Euro TV, one of my clients, participates,
that's why I thought of you.
It's a job for months,
and the pay is good.
What do I have to do?
Well, focus on the political side of the matter.
And above all organize the interview with Sadiel.
Visit Garcin tomorrow.
He'll brief you.
Yes?
Ah, it's you, excuse me.
Good morning, Sir.
So, did you think about it?
Yes, we'll focus on certain regions,
and some very representative movements.
For example the Middle East with the Palestinian Fedayin,
and the United States.
The US? In a program about the 3rd world?
Yes, the racial tension makes it a 3rd world region.
Got it.
Then of course Latin America.
I don't think it's possible to highlight all those issues.
Our goal is information, not propaganda.
First of all we have to persuade Sadiel.
Without him there's no program.
I know Sadiel very well.
We worked together for a long time.
I could persuade him,
but I'd have to go to Geneva.
OK, then go! As soon as you can.
Mr. Garcin, we're ready. - Yes, coming.
See you!
Did Lempereur mention money?
We pay your travel expenses and Euro TV your compensation.
Good for you, they're less stingy than us.
See you.
Hey, there's Sadiel!
Why did you attend that meeting?
I think the Palestinian issue is the greatest scandal of our time.
I wanted to tell the UN.
Did the Palestinian resistance ask you
to mediate with Jordan?
I'm at the service of the Palestinian people.
No more questions, please.
Do you want to join revolutionary forces?
Ask the CIA, they know all about the project.
Are you optimistic?
François, good to see you!
Mr. President!
Thank you gentlemen, no more questions please.
Why don't you drop by more often?
I'm not always in charge.
Politics is perseverance.
I haven't become disloyal to myself.
And you?
How are you doing?
Ups and downs. Mostly downs.
Come on, we have to talk about that.
We're being followed by a car.
I'd hope so! That's the police.
Kassar got me into 2 accidents up till now.
A blast in the apartment above mine.
I got official protection
The Swiss guarantee banking privacy,
and security of their guests.
To their advantage.
Funny, how easy that is!
What's easy?
My father sent me to the French school.
For kids of leading figures.
Since I wasn't the son of a leading figure, they refused me.
After I sat in front of the door for 3 months, they took me in.
I could sit in the back of the classroom.
A closed school door may have determined my life.
My first obstacle.
Damn, all that to go to school?
When you're poor, knowledge is a weapon.
Even the oppressor’s knowledge.
That's why the movement built a cadre
little by little, over 30 years, from pupils of the French school.
Talk takes precedence over fighting.
You have to beat the oppressors
with their own words.
But you rich will never really understand.
The Palestinian crisis of 1947 to 1949...
is to the Arabian world...
The report is in, Sadiel.
I think the strike'll be successful.
Kassar's days are numbered, don't you think so?
It's not as easy as that.
Sadiel, do you have time now for the letter to the unions?
I'll be right back.
Your proposal's interesting.
But I want guarantees.
I want to know who else participates,
and I want a say over the final cut.
If I couldn't guarantee that, I wouldn't have come.
I don't trust French TV.
I'd rather see another producer.
Euro TV is a private station. - A French station?
They can manipulate the program anyway.
No...
it should be an American station.
I know Howard. American TV-correspondent in Europe.
He's a leftist.
Yes, I know him. I met him years ago in Cairo.
If I can get those guarantees,
on paper, as a contract,
I'm in, I'll participate.
So?
He'll only do it on those conditions.
We have no choice.
But it's bad that he doubts our objectivity.
Especially someone like Sadiel.
What would he be without French culture!
Sir, nobody doubts your objectivity.
Because everybody knows that's in the hands of your government!
In the US you can show and say whatever you want.
The Black Panthers can have their say on TV.
Afterwards the police is allowed to beat them up.
OK. Let's do it that way.
Ah, here, before I forget:
your first check.
1,500
We have to talk again about that Vignes Street story.
I know how you can get rid of the police.
We'll talk about it one of these days.
If Sadiel gets those guarantees,
and why wouldn't he,
we can go and shoot it in Geneva.
No. - What do you mean, no?
No, he has to come to Paris.
A team can go to Geneva easily.
Just think of any technical excuse.
Sadiel has to come to Paris.
There are 2 reasons why...
that interview has to be made here.
That broadcast, plus Sadiel's return to his home country.
Will he be going back? He didn't tell me.
You don't publicize something like that.
An agreement with the opposition is in the making.
He'll get amnesty and will be in the government.
He didn't mention that in Geneva.
In Geneva all secret services are on the lookout for him.
The CIA most of all.
'Cause of his clout with Palestinian extremists...
Sadiel is their black sheep now.
But in Paris we can organize discreetly...
a conversation with a representative,
with Garcin's program as cover-up.
It's not Garcin's program.
Let's be a bit modest, François.
If Garcin wouldn't know what it's about he'd have said no.
So Garcin is also...
What exactly is Garcin?
With intelligence? A cop, or a spy?
He's a man who works for his country.
Just like you and I.
Just like many others.
That's all I can say about it.
I've told you too much already.
Confession of an opium eater, by Thomas de Quincey.
After thinking a long time about the advantages and disadvantages,
I've decided to confess before I die.
Because for several reasons,
all has to come out in the open.
You're crazy, François.
Because of the champagne?
Multimedia. What does that mean? It's not even Latin.
They'll think we're Americans. And you know what it means.
Sit down.
Admit that you're jealous. - Jealous, me?
Be honest, Edith.
If Mao Tse Tung or Fidel Castro would organize that program,
you'd react the same way.
You love me because you have power over me.
I'll see you at home.
You're mistaken, I won't be home.
What's going on?
I've had enough of living with you.
Ever since I'm with you, I don't get anything done.
I'm going to live alone and write.
I'm fed up of being a jerk.
That only happens because you are a jerk!
You wrote something good once, and you're still living on that.
You're done for in politics and in literature.
Fuck off!
For how long do you need my villa?
Captain Lardy.
Kassar will arrive the same evening.
The meeting will last for a few hours, perhaps longer.
How will he get to me? How do we get hold of him?
That has to happen officially.
It's been arranged. Two detectives are in charge of that.
I've been working with them for years.
It's routine for them. You will act as my assistant.
OK, it'll be an honor for me.
Gentlemen, everything has been taken care of.
Now all we need is a date, then I'll inform Kassar.
Dariel?
Sadiel will choose the date of his arrival,
depending on the date of the program.
Is the owner of that villa Acconetti?
Yes, Antoine Acconetti.
He's a gangster, with brothels in North Africa.
During the war he worked for the Gestapo.
As an ex-member of the resistance you're not very choosy.
I don't know where you got the right to lecture me.
I'm out of it.
O yes, you're in.
In the first place, you have no choice.
Furthermore, it's a perfectly legal thing to do.
We're completely covered.
Acconetti's a crook, but indirectly...
he's cooperating with Sadiel's return.
Paris is well worth a mass, right?
Garcin's secretary has tickets to Geneva for you.
You depart tomorrow morning.
I'm preparing my official return.
Are you really going home?
The government is a shambles, the need the opposition.
You don't solve corruption with prefab plots.
They sent negotiators.
Did you meet them?
We're still negotiating about that.
Which guarantees are you asking?
Amnesty for all exiles and political prisoners.
A new government,
with consent of the people.
That's why that TV-program interests me.
I can explain my intentions there.
You need to go to Paris for preparations.
Yes, I absolutely want to talk to Howard and Garcin.
Next week I'm on a trip.
When I'm back, I'll call you.
Anyway it'll be around Dec. 31.
I'll wait for your call.
If all works out,
will you work with me again?
Come have lunch with us, me and Michel Vignaud,
my Parisian lawyer.
He's a special guy, an orthodox communist,
but not small minded at all.
If the party'd had reacted differently
on the colonial matter,
first in Indochina, then at your place, then in Algeria,
history would've been different.
In 1943, after the Americans landed in North Africa,
the French Communist party sent us a guy.
We were young, nationalist and leftist,
and were eager to join.
But we had to give up the idea of independence.
After the war, a united France
would see better socialism.
For us the spell was broken.
And we didn't become communists.
But since then,
a lot of water went under the bridge.
Problems are different now.
What's the principal problem?
The army. Above all the higher echelons,
educated during the French colonial wars.
Don't tell that in Garcin's program.
It's not his program, it's ours.
Darien has all guarantees on paper.
Including Howard's participation.
Now that program looks acceptable to me.
I hold the government responsible,
when I negotiate with them.
Aren't you going to compromise yourself?
You know very well we need to compromise.
But we demand a precise political program.
And the chance to inform and mobilize the people.
Nice for Kassar.
If I come back, Kassar'll have to go.
Do you think he'll accept that?
He has part of the army behind him.
And the Americans.
And our secret service.
I know it'll be a showdown.
But it's always a showdown.
Aren't you entering the lion's den?
For me the lion's den is exile.
For a militant there's nothing more terrible.
Nice here, right? Everything clean and on time.
Nobody's dying of hunger.
But I'm not home and it's killing me.
I'll know when I'm home.
By the sun, the taste of the water, the street noises.
I'd make a deal with the devil
to find that back again.
Not bad for a lawyer.
One with a fascist streak at that.
And I'm a rung higher on the social ladder.
First you invited me for coffee,
and now for lunch.
Next time it'll be a whole weekend, right?
A whole weekend needs to be deserved.
Sadiel called me.
He'll arrive on Saturday.
He wants to have lunch with Howard, Garcin and me.
That'll be Dec. 31.
Hello Vignaud? No, I can't lunch with you.
Exactly, the TV-program.
First I'll meet Ajam.
At 8 o'clock? Yes, I'll see you at 8.
Good morning!
My assistant, Mr. Le Gall. Mr. Fleury, police officer.
Will you go alone, Fleury? - No, I'll take Melun.
Ah, very well. I won't be there,
but Mr. Le Gall will be.
He'll bring you to the house.
Where will you leave the car?
Just behind Dragon street.
You're not allowed to park there.
But I'll take an official car.
The idea that we'd get a fine!
At 12 o'clock, it's a dark blue Peugeot station wagon.
Alright.
We're covered, aren't we, Mr. Garcin?
Comfortably.
Coffee, please.
Hi Sadiel. My wife.
Thank you.
He's there. - Alone?
With a couple.
I'd rather have him alone.
A cute blonde. Harmless, just like him.
Have them followed all the same.
See you.
You really won't work together on this TV-program?
I have the police on my heels all the time.
If I'm in with you,
I'd sign my own extradition order.
I have to stay in France 'till I've finished my studies.
Kassar'll never forgive you for leading the student resistance.
He'll never forgive me for being your friend.
Is it true what they say?
What are they saying?
That you're going home.
Yes, it's true.
Soon?
It's not settled yet. I'm waiting for an interview.
Here in Paris?
I don't know yet.
It could be.
Are you returning just for strategic reasons?
Or because of the color of the sky,
the cool of the shadows, the voices of women?
For the scent of orange trees,
and the faces of workers learning to read,
in the evening, after work.
For the weddings and the funerals.
For all of that I'm going back to our country.
Come have lunch with me,
and tell me what you thing about that TV-program.
And about the people I'll work with.
Do you know François Darien?
I saw him when he worked for you.
Later, I met him here a few times.
Looks like you're holding back.
Holding back? No.
Rather, put off guard. Something in him isn't clear.
In Darien?
No, I know him. He's crazy,
but he's loyal.
Loyal to me, in any case.
1st floor.
Mr. Darien's table. - That's this one here.
Hey, where's Garcin?
Late. Must've learned that at French TV.
And Sadiel?
He's always on time, he's a maniac.
We're early. Shall we walk a bit?
We're not late.
Police. Will you follow me?
Not you, please leave us alone.
Move on, will you?
Can I see your passport, Sir?
When did you arrive?
This morning, at Orly.
What's the purpose of your visit?
A TV-program.
Are you sure you don't have political purposes?
I'm asking because it's my task to make you meet
an important man from your country.
First I have to apologize
to the people I'm having lunch with.
Well, we're late already. Please?
Are you really French police?
Show him your badge.
OK.
Yes, the program.
Sadiel, the Black Panthers and the Fedayin.
Garcin's risking his job.
He doesn't know what he's getting in to.
Yes, he know that very well.
Sadiel not yet here? - No.
Did you order already?
The steering's still leaning towards the right.
Has the car been checked for that? - It's always the same.
I'm pissed. I'm all for peace with Vietnam and the Black Panthers.
He must have been delayed.
If he's here before New Year, call me at the office.
Are you armed? You're crazy!
Don't talk to me like that!
To an arch-traitor.
Masculinity's between your legs, not in your armpit.
You are here for your own safety.
Will you follow me?
One bummer: the witness.
Those policemen didn't take him out.
We have to know who he is. - We know.
We followed his wife. His name is Ajam.
He's preparing a history thesis.
Sadiel was his teacher once.
What'll we do now? - You and me won't do anything.
Lardy can handle it.
With Acconetti's help if need be.
That's what's called a 'prudent division of tasks'.
And Darien?
I'll scare him, so he'll keep hush.
Did you know he was armed?
Armed?
We needed him, but it worries me a bit.
He's very unstable.
He's a coward.
A weakling, sure.
But capable of anything when he gets angry.
And he was very close to Sadiel.
A complex relationship.
Don't worry, we'll keep an eye on him.
Everything OK, gentlemen? - Yes, thank you madam.
Some more bread, please.
Will you celebrate New Year's Eve? - Yes, at home.
Not for long, I'm on duty tomorrow.
Daytime? - No, night shift.
Say, don't you find this strange?
What you're talking about?
I don't know...
we bring a guy to his appointment with his government,
and where do we go to? To a crook.
'Cause Acconetti is, don't you agree?
Never ask yourself questions like that.
I did after liberation,
when we found the Gestapo files.
It almost broke my career.
Now I've only one principle left: stay covered.
And are we covered?
Isn't Garcin sufficient? We've worked with him for years.
Nothing ever went wrong.
And Lestienne introduced me...
in the very room of the boss.
But still, Acconetti...
Some more bread, please!
What are you doing here?
Looking what's up, isn't that allowed?
How did you get the address?
In the phone book.
Anton Acconetti, captain of industry.
Then I took a taxi.
Did people saw you come in?
The taxi driver,
and the waitress at the cafe where I asked directions.
Like Tom Thumb, I leave a trail of little stones.
Where are you going?
Look what's happening up there.
Nobody needs you there.
Pallois!
Keep an eye on him.
Thank you for all you've done, Mr. Darien.
Where is he?
Upstairs. It was hard to quiet him down.
A tranquilizer.
Very effective in the cardiac region.
Did you try to undermine our government...
by means of underground resistance?
Who lead and finance those resistance cells?
What help do you get from the Eastern block,
and from Arab countries?
Are there officers who support you,
and would commit a coup d’état on your orders?
Cnel. Kassar is a specialist in plotting.
Are you in contact with police officers?
The police will be the first to be purged,
if we get the power.
What game are you playing?
Where did you learn knife tricks?
In Indochina, from our French friends.
We don't have friends in common.
Leave us alone.
You too.
You expected to meet someone else.
Why don't you want to talk with me, Sadiel?
I remember well we were friends once.
Look.
You looked over my shoulder for a better view.
As if you were leaning on me.
Do you really want to come home for a government position?
No, only for a new start in politics.
And would you work with me?
I've never said that.
I know you never said that.
If I accepted to work with you,
I'd lose the people's trust.
The people! Ever since I know you, that's all you talk about.
I also love the people,
but the times are not here yet for some of those reforms.
You're saying the exact same thing as our former colonizers.
That's why I could never be in government with you.
You made the wrong choice.
Better you'd never looked for power.
Power is fickle.
Sometimes you get all you want.
Other times it slips right through your fingers.
You betrayed the power we conquered together,
and chose exile.
And to plot against me.
Does it get to you that you're nowhere now?
I have you in my power.
Lardy broke my safe in Geneva and didn't find a thing.
No important document or address.
Nothing of what you wanted to find.
All is in my memory and nobody can break that.
Are you sure about that?
Everybody talks, why not you?
Everybody confesses, if you take the time.
If I want to start a trial,
I look for a culprit and a crime first.
Then I make him confess.
Would you risk to put me on trial?
No Sadiel, I wouldn't.
I will, I'll accuse you in public.
I'll call the peasants and show them your palace,
and the cells of your prisons.
After that I'll put you on trial,
by the people.
The people? They kiss your ass when you win,
and spit on you when you lose.
You can plot whatever you want.
At the height of your power you'll also be murdered.
By a plotter who's more adroit than you.
And you're right: that day the people will understand,
and they'll spit on your corpse.
You've wanted it yourself.
Do you have a cellar.
Yes, but I don't want it here.
We can interrogate him better there.
Connect me to Mr. Lempereur.
Tell him Darien is asking for him.
Hello Lempereur?
No, let me finish. They're out to get Sadiel.
If he doesn't survive,
I'll make this thing public.
Yes, I'll be in touch.
He's not on the train.
Perhaps he robbed a car.
Colonel, remember what we agreed.
Nothing on French territory.
Right, we have to delay any action...
until Darien is out of the game.
Yes, I'm working on that. Understood.
I'll call you.
We have to find Darien and stop him from talking.
Any which way.
I thought you didn't want to look like a jerk any more.
Leave me alone.
You have to hide me, Edith. Even if only tonight.
I'm an obstacle in your life. Get out of here.
They tried to shoot me.
Who?
They want to kill me.
Are you reading me the latest crime series?
It is about a crime!
Sadiel was abducted.
I can't find anything.
"At Tony's", what does that mean?
No idea. He only said...
"At Tony's, in Ballancourt-sur-Essonne. "
I thought you'd know.
Where is Darien?
Why didn't he come himself?
He's in danger and needs to stay in hiding.
How does he know in which villa Sadiel is held captive?
I don't know. He told me it was a matter of hours.
And that you'd know what to do.
One thing is certain:
Sadiel called me this morning from Orly.
He'd meet Ajam before that lunch.
That's him.
A brand new car!
It's not my fault!
You appeared out of the blue!
And you even blame me!
That's enough! Watch out.
I saw it, I want to be a witness.
What's with him? You saw that I didn't do anything!
Call the police!
Wait.
He's wounded.
It's not me!
I didn't even touch him!
Did you see what happened?
Those two had an argument.
A man appeared who stabbed him and left.
Couldn't you have stopped him?
Ajam has just been stabbed to death.
Do you believe now Darien's telling the truth?
We're going to the police.
No, better inform the public.
Mobilize the public on New Year's eve, right?
You're my only witness.
Come with me, or I'll file a complaint against you.
The hospital for you, chief.
I'll take it in my office.
I'll connect you with chief Rouannet.
The hospital.
Yes? I understand.
No, thank you.
Ajam is in a coma. - It was murder.
Sure. A New Year's Eve quarrel?
It was premeditated murder...
because he was a nuisance to...
Come on, you're telling me an improbable story...
about abduction and murder. Do you have any proof?
Darien's statement.
So why isn't he showing up?
He's been pursued.
He's safe here.
Unless he's hiding something from us.
Listen, it's a matter of hours.
Let's find that Tony in Ballancourt.
It's about a man's life.
A third world politician's!
I'm on a night shift.
Tomorrow this is not my business any more.
You won't act?
That means you refuse to help someone in danger.
You don't need to tell me what to do.
What do you really want?
Come with you to Ballancourt-sur-Essonne...
to search for this Tony?
With the lady perhaps?
No, to each his own job.
Lespinasse!
Take the statement of the lady, in detail.
I'll keep you informed.
This way, madam.
Hello Lacombe? Rouannet here.
Do you have pen and paper?
Ask at Orly if Sadiel arrived today.
Yes, Sadiel. No, from Geneva.
And there's more. Anthony Acconetti. Yes, Long Tony.
Doesn't he have a villa in Ballancourt-sur-Essonne?
Check it and come here.
Yes, I'm waiting for it.
Hi, I need your help. I want to track somebody.
Darien.
Villa My Resting Place in Ballancourt, it was correct.
We're going there, and take Dunoyer.
And ask an order for house search.
Police.
Sorry to bother you at this hour, but...
the say somebody's be held captive here.
Are you crazy? I'm sitting quietly in my home.
Please open the gate?
Do you have an warrant?
Of course. Come on, it's cold.
Can I see it?
Do you want to look upstairs?
What's in there?
The kitchen.
And there?
The cellar.
What asshole pulled this trick on me?
None of your business.
Where is Mr. Acconetti?
In Paris, dining with friends.
Just bottles.
He'll be mad when he hears this.
That makes us even. I'm mad too.
They're here. Let's do exactly as I said.
You go out. They'll certainly follow you.
Only that way they can find me.
I wait a while and go the other way.
Shouldn't I call Rouannet? He seems OK.
No, if I call Rouannet I have no more choices.
It has to hit like a bomb.
For that I need a few more hours of freedom.
Only you know where my office is.
Don't betray me.
Come on.
At 3 pm, metro St. Michel.
Isn't it too busy there?
Do as I say. I'm used to it.
You're not allowed in here, Sir!
Excuse me.
Darien!
After thinking hard about the advantages and disadvantages,
I've decided on this confession.
For several reasons everything has to come out in the open.
On January 1st I, François Darien,
make my confession.
I knew about Sadiel's abduction.
I know who did it and who went along.
Involuntarily, I was instrumental to it.
But that's a long story.
No trace at Orly of Sadiel's arrival.
But we were right about Kassar.
He arrived yesterday afternoon.
Type that in triplicate.
And Ajam?
Witnesses say it was an accident.
A collision, a commotion, a quarrel.
Nobody could describe the man.
And Mrs. Ajam?
Denies everything Vignaud says.
Her man didn't meet Sadiel.
And Darien?
Still no trace.
Are we perhaps in somebody's way?
I was received rather coolly with my questions.
Is that anything new?
We're always received coolly.
Remember that, or find another job.
At 7 pm I saw Sadiel handcuffed at Acconetti's villa...
surrounded by guards.
I was in a corner, he didn't see me.
His guards led him to a cellar door.
What happened then, I don't know,
because I fled.
Listen, there's no trace of Sadiel's arrival at Orly.
He called me.
Who proves that he was at Orly?
And Ajam?
He died before he could make a statement.
And his wife doesn't know a thing.
She's afraid and won't help us.
But who will?
Can you reach any of Sadiel's employees?
My calls to Geneva aren't answered.
So we only have a statement of fantasy.
I saw Darien being pursued.
What are you telling me now?
Last evening you told me that Darien had called you.
He came to the hospital and said he was being pursued.
I put him up for the night.
This morning there was a car with armed men.
But he managed to escape.
He has to put himself under my protection!
He thinks you can't protect him.
And that the case will be covered up.
That has never happened to any case of mine.
What is Darien doing?
He's recording the story...
of Sadiel's abduction,
in case something happens to him.
But he wouldn't tell me where he'd be.
I knew you'd be here.
François!
I'm so happy to see you.
About time you would appear.
Gangsterism isn't what it used to be.
Youngsters aren't able to pursue.
You'd better take matters in hand.
What do you have to offer, François?
A tape I recorded this morning,
that's in a safe place.
Includes all names and details.
I only enhanced my own role a bit, that's normal.
How much are you asking?
50,000 or 100,000 francs?
I want it all: Sadiel's life.
Tell Kassar and Acconetti to stop.
Or else my story will go public.
I'll try. Where can I reach you?
Come on! I'll call you at 8 at the club.
No need for mistrust, François.
I give you my word of honor.
Stay seated, chief.
Tell me, Rouannet,
I'd like all information about the Darien case.
I'm on it personally.
He's a scoundrel.
He worked for us since 1961...
but now he's trying to cheat us.
Did he work for you? - As a snooper.
A servile man, a born traitor.
The kind of guy we need,
but fills you with disgust.
Sadiel is in Cairo, I just heard.
Darien now tries to blackmail some of our friends.
He's taking advantage of appearances very cunningly.
It seems he's been shot at.
Who told you that amazing story?
His girl friend, Edith.
The pretty Edith!
A luxury leftist.
Prof. Lemoine picked her up in the US,
she was still studying.
Zitrone interviewed her on TV.
But ever since May '68 she's very busy.
Social medicine in the shantytowns.
Enters factories too.
She's a mystic.
I like people with principles.
Darien made a tape about Sadiel's abduction.
A tape? I'd like to hear it.
Listen chief, I solemnly promise you,
I'll give it to you when I find it.
I hope to get that tape before anyone else.
I already told you I'm on this case.
Don't get in my way!
I started this inquiry, Sir, and I'll finish it.
Were you followed? - I think not.
I did as you told me.
Tonight Sadiel's free, or the bomb will go off.
It'll give quite a burst.
François, what's your role in this case?
What is the truth, exactly?
Vignaud told me that you... - What did Vignaud say?
Rouannet too. The insinuate that...
I cooperated with the abduction? They're right.
It's not true, François.
Yes, it's true.
In 1960 I worked for the FLN and got arrested.
To make a long story short:
at last I accepted...
to work for the police.
Or rather, for the secret service.
I thought they'd forgotten about me,
but a few weeks ago...
they forced me to visit Sadiel again.
You can't have done such a thing, François.
It's not about me, it's about the truth.
But which truth?
Aren't you still working for the police?
If you don't believe me, nobody will.
Listen, if I haven't called before 11 pm,
you go to Multimedia.
The tape is in the recorder.
You must believe me, Edith. I need you.
I love you, François!
Howard, Darien here. I'm calling about Sadiel.
Yes, he's been abducted. Are you interested?
Alright. If I haven't called at 8:30 pm,
you come at 9 to 5, St. Senoque Street.
Listen, I have an idea.
What if I took Peter Schenk, the German.
With him we get Der Spiegel and German TV in on it.
You want to make a lot of noise, right?
Sure, I won't pass on the news.
OK. My office is called Multimedia. See you tonight.
Till tonight, Darien.
I've traced Darien, Sir.
Right, Multi Media, tonight at 9.
Very good, thank you.
Well, case solved.
Do you know where he is?
Where he'll be at 9 pm.
He just called Howard.
Then tell us where he'll be.
You already took too many risks.
Let me arrange things.
Too many mistakes already.
He needs to be taken out by professionals.
Sorry to interrupt you, our friend has been found.
It'll be at 9 pm.
Splendid, thank you.
There are rumors that Sadiel disappeared...
after interrogation by French police.
But it transpires that none of our services...
was on that case.
An investigation is in process.
With no results, evidently.
I hope you won't surprise us either.
On my word as French officer.
Is it correct that you'll leave this very evening?
Right, if there's a seat on the plane.
You'll find it. Let me know if not,
my people will find you one.
Thanks. Excuse me.
Good evening.
Our French friends are pretty nervous.
Yes, they insist I leave Paris tonight.
What are they afraid of?
Don't know, an unexpected witness perhaps.
Or the miraculous return of Sadiel.
Admit it, a lot of mistakes have been made.
The interrogation in Geneva didn't yield anything.
Perhaps we'd better have stuck to our plan.
Once at home, he'd have talked in the end.
You underestimate this kind of men, Sir. They're indestructible.
Sadiel was indestructible,
and got the heroic death he deserved.
Perhaps you're right,
but dead that kind of men is less of a nuisance...
than alive.
In the third world Sadiel was...
one of the last dangerous leaders.
The others are in power,
and you can bribe them or topple them.
Or negotiate with them.
It was high time to get rid of Sadiel.
And in case there'll be a scandal,
the French will take all the blame.
A nice bonus, isn't it, Sir?
On the 1st of January, I, François Darien,
confess, in good state of mind.
I knew about Sadiel's abduction.
I know the perpetrators and their accomplices.
Unwillingly, I've cooperated.
But that's a long story.
Let's start at the beginning.
Are you alone?
I couldn't find Schenk.
Police! Open up!
On the 1st of January, I, François Darien,
confess, in good state of mind.
You called me too late!
You didn't want to work with me.
Do you know Darien?
Death occurred at 9:55 pm.
He shot himself in the head when we knocked.
He had the weapon since the Algerian war.
In his office fingerprints of himself and his girl friend.
The perfect suicide.
I found it, it's yours.
I keep my promises.
After thinking long about the advantages and disadvantages,
I decided on this confession.
But I know that!
For several reasons, all has to come out into the open.
That's why I broke the rules of well mannered reserve,
'cause an Englishman has no greater disgust...
than of a human being who forces his moral scars on you.
They doctored it. That tape is useless.
Yes, it's the wrong tape.
The cops killed him!
You're all the same.
Sorry ma'am, I could've said nothing had been found.
But I wanted to warn you...
that the case'll be covered up.
That won't happen!
It's too late, he died for nothing.
We'll mobilize all the press. That'll be easy.
Yes, the press, a good idea.
Alert the press.
And keep me informed.
Ladies and gentlemen, silence please?
Mr. Lestienne will answer your questions.
Mr. Garcin?
Can I put an indiscrete question?
Questions aren't indiscrete, perhaps the answer will be.
We have to inform public opinion,
and tell the truth, whatever it may be.
Lately, public opinion has been rattled by rumors...
about the suicide of François Darien.
The truth should stay ahead of low-level political maneuvers.
Lamentable rumors are heard.
An inferior person is found dead.
It transpires he committed suicide.
The man and his work weren't morally worthy of our attention.
The incident didn't even reach the front pages.
But some thought up a crime novel.
A police officer was sanctioned,
because he gave incorrect information to outside parties.
A foreign reporter was asked...
to deploy his talents in his own country.
The truth is very simple. There won't be any Sadiel scandal.