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Boys from Brazil, The (1978)
Hey, kid!
Hey, Ismael! Catch! Such a pleasure to see you, Herr Lieberman. The pleasure is all mine, Herr Strasser, I assure you. I hate to bother such a famous Nazi-hunter like yourself... ...with such trifles as the rent, but it is the third of the month! Quite so. You will have a cheque in, er... several days. By all means take your time, Herr Lieberman. Feel free to ignore your responsibilities while my property is being ruined! We have floods all over the building because of you! You overload the floor,... ...putting a strain on the pipes upstairs! And then they break! The pipes upstairs break, and I'm to blame? Everything is connected. The whole building will soon collapse... ...because of you. Ezra! - You have a call from Paraguay! - Paraguay? This is an apartment house, not an office! You have no right to bring these heavy cabinets in here. All right, all right! So next time rent to a feather merchant! Hello? Mr Lieberman? - Out! You understand? - Speak a little louder! I can't hear you! Barry Kohler? No, I don't think I know you. I sent you a package with photos. You didn't? You sound like an American. What are you doing in Paraguay? I've been monitoring the activities of a group of Nazis. And I've identified several of them as war criminals. From your books and articles. and you call it junk! Yes! Junk, junk, junk! Herr Strasser, we are wasting valuable time. Huge chunks of plaster are coming down from your ceiling. Look how I step on the ground. Soon I will be through into your apartment. Right into the lap of your beloved wife, God forbid! Come. - Don't push me! - Leave my brother and me alone! Get out! Come,... ...Herr Strasser. Esther, the man's an idiot. No, I'm an idiot, for letting him make me angry. Go on, take your phone call. The young man who has just discovered there are Nazis in South America. So, Mr Kohler, forgive the interruption. Now, er... I work alone, like you, Mr Lieberman. Which is why I'm calling you. I'm onto something. Mr Kohler, it may be a blinding revelation to you that there are Nazis in Paraguay,... ...but I assure you, it is no news to me. And if you stay there much longer, there will still be Nazis in Paraguay,... ...but there will be one less Jewish boy in the world. Something's going on! They seemed to be gathered for some kind of operation. A bunch of them have been moving in and out of Ralph Gunther's estate. I want to know what to do next. Get on a plane and go home. Better still, go to the American Embassy. Run to the American Embassy, and tell them to put you on a plane. Thank you for your advice. What did he want? I don't know... Advice... Instruction... A boy like that, lucky to survive one day in Paraguay. He's been there... some weeks. I told him to go home and he hung up. What did he want? Applause? One, two, three,... ...four. One, two, three, four. One, two,... One, two...! Goddamn! It works! Come on, damn you! Tune in! Gentlemen, he's coming. So, Gunther... this is the moment. Gentlemen, gentlemen,... ...be at your ease, I beg of you. - Gunther, would you do the honours? - Certainly, Dr Mengele. Mengele! Captain Gerhardt Mundt. I have heard nothing but the highest praise for you, Captain Mundt. Thank you, Herr Doktor. - Major Ludwig Trausteiner. - Thank you for coming, Major. - Er... Captain... - It's all right, Gunther. Captain Farnbach and I are old comrades. Are we not, Captain? It's extremely flattering to be remembered, sir. Oh, I am not so senile or so ungrateful that I cannot remember a loyal officer... ...from the early days of the struggle. And now for the youth. This is Friedrich Hessen, son of Wilhelm Hessen. Welcome, young man. Wolfgang Kleist. - I am pleased you are with us. - Thank you, Herr Doktor. - And Otto Schwimmer. - A great pleasure, Herr Schwimmer. And now to business. Sit down, gentlemen, please. The task before you is the most important operation that... ...the Comrades Organisation has ever undertaken. It is the vital link in a programme... ...to which I and your leaders have devoted many years of enormous effort. Your success on this project... ...carries with it the hope and destiny of the Aryan race. And that is not an exaggeration, but the literal truth. It is a holy mission, gentlemen. You should consider yourselves highly honoured... ...to have been chosen to perform it. Now for the details. In the next two and a half years, Sixteen of these men are in West Germany. Fourteen in Sweden. Thirteen in England. Twelve in the United States. Ten in Norway, nine in Austria. Eight in Holland and six each in Denmark and Canada. A total of 94... assassinations. All of these men... ...will be 65 years old when their dates come around. Obviously,... ...a few of them will already have died of natural causes. Yes, Farnbach? Who are these men? Jews? Not one. They are all family men. Civil servants, school principals, men of minor authority. Are we permitted to hire accomplices? I would not advise it. Bear it in mind that these are 65-year-old men. Their eyesight is failing, they have slow reflexes, diminished strength. I've been through Sweden quite a bit... ...but I've never heard of this place... Rasbo? It is a village,... ...about 15 km from Uppsala. That is Bertil Hedin, the postmaster there, ja? And by killing this old mailman I will be fulfilling the destiny of the Aryan race? You wish to be relieved of this assignment, Captain Mundt? No, sir. Then do not question your orders. Simply obey them. Yes, Herr Doktor. I apologise. Further questions? The men's families are not to be involved. And in the case of, say, younger wives... ...who might be open to romantic overtures... ...as accomplices,... ...I repeat, the families are not to be involved. You will live in a manner befitting salesmen for large German firms. And you will have enough money for any equipment you might need. It is vital that you check in with headquarters on the first, er... Find it! Find it! Sir! All right, Lieberman! Listen to this! ...by killing this old mailman I will be fulfilling the destiny of the Aryan race? Operator, any word on my call yet? Hello? Kohler? I thought I told you to leave! Well, I didn't, Mr Lieberman. But I think you're gonna be glad I didn't. Doktor Josef Mengele was here tonight. You call me at 3 o'clock in the morning... ...to tell me Doktor Josef Mengele is in Paraguay? I know that, Mr Kohler! So does my sister, so does my landlord, and my tailor! And now you know it, too! My congratulations! He came to a meeting at Gunther's house tonight, and the others were there, too. Mengele's sending them out to kill 94 What are you talking about? Two and a half years? I can hear you, Mr Kohler. I just can't follow what you're saying. Goddamn it, you don't have to believe me! I've got it all on tape! All over. Europe, Canada, the United States. Mostly civil servants. Okay. I'm running it down now. It'll only take a second. Take your time. Old men don't go back to sleep once they have been awakened. Welcome, young man. The stuff on now, it's just a lot of introducing and glad-handing around. Mengele's acting like chairman of the board. Will you stop asking questions and just listen, Mr Lieberman? Sit down, gentlemen, please. Okay, here it comes. The task before you is the most... ...Organisation has ever undertaken. Kohler? Are you there, Kohler? Kohler! Your success on this proj... Kohler? Clean the room. Dispose of the body. I do not want a trace of this vermin to remain. Everything is all right. You will take care of the police. - Who was the boy calling? - It does not matter. - Perhaps you should wait. - We wait for nothing. The Fourth Reich is coming, Gunther. Our men will leave tomorrow as planned. Kill him. Is there no way of checking this further? All right, thank you. The Vienna telephone exchange says there was a call from Paraguay. The Paraguayans say that no such call took place. I have finally found a couple of things from that boy. Mundt! Captain in a Death-Head Regiment. Farnbach, a Gestapo agent. Trausteiner! Assistant Commandant at Dachau! Cheap bureaucrats and murderers! And these,... ...who knows? Ezra! You know you shouldn't. Esther, after all I've been through, one puff won't hurt me. These... Oh! Colonel Eduard Seibert. He's Adjutant to Rausch, the head of the Comrades Organisation. He was in command of the extermination unit on the Eastern Front. He's a real aristocrat. What's he doing in such undistinguished company? - Then it wasn't a hoax after all? - No! Esther,... ...on the telephone, after that boy was cut off,... ...I felt something. Something in the silence. Something alive... ...and... ...hateful. Maybe I'm getting senile, hm? You haven't got the time. ...ordinary men... Beynon! Oh, Christ! Mr Beynon, so nice to see you again. - How are you getting along? - Can't complain. Who'd listen? May I take up a moment of your time? I'm so sorry, I'm late for lunch. Always such a prodigious appetite! What? Eight times last week I called you, and each time you were at lunch. Maybe you have a tapeworm? Now, Sidney, please... Just a few moments of your time. Oh, very well. Come on. You carry this whole damn concentration-camp thing... ...pinned to your coattails. Why do you keep knocking yourself out? Nothing ever pays off. Frieda Maloney is in jail. Frieda Maloney! She was only a guard in a camp. Who strangled young girls with their own hair. Bayoneted infants. Maybe she was a despicable criminal, but she just isn't news 30 years later. Sidney, there is a plot by the Comrades Organisation, which is the illegal army... Yes, I know what it is. It plots to kill 94 men in the next two and a half years. Jews, I suppose? I want your European, Canadian and American bureaux... ...to send you clippings of all ...accidentally. You pass them to me and I'll do the rest. And whose plot is this? Josef Mengele. He's the red herring in this little barrel? What a title for the chief doctor of Auschwitz, who killed 2 million people! Experimented on children, Jewish and non-Jewish,... ...using twins, mostly. Injecting blue dyes into their eyes to make them acceptable Aryans. Ezra! Amputating limbs and organs from thousands,... ...operating without anaesthetics, but with the strength of Wagner... ...providing an obbligato to the screams of the mutants... ...he was creating! - Don't lecture me! Sidney... you owe me something. Even if only to humour an old man... ...who once brought you a page-one international story. You owe me this much, Sidney. Now I'm collecting. Have you any idea how many men in their mid-60s die every day? I try not to think about it. Save it for your wife, Herr Dring. What I've got is too good for her. I can see that, Herr Dring! Go on, go on. Pig! Good boy. Good boy. Seibert! News? Good news. Our salesmen are all checked in. The first quotas have been filled. Four on the exact dates. - Two a day early, and one a day late. - Splendid! Splendid! Come... We'll have a nice lunch. Colonel, I will need a full report on all this for my records. I've already taken care of that. Four out of seven on the exact dates. They are good men. Well chosen. General Rausch called me from the Costa Brava. Why didn't you tell us about Lieberman? I did not think it was necessary. The General is concerned. But Ezra Lieberman... no one takes him seriously. Even the rich Jews who used to send him money... ...have found better ways to ease their consciences. The man's bank has failed. His followers have fallen away. He's entirely without credibility. I just decided it was not important. If you'll forgive me, Herr Doktor, it was not your decision to make. You could have compromised our agents. And if I had told you about Lieberman,... ...you would have compromised my project. How bad would it be if we postponed for three or four months? That would reduce the outcome by 20 per cent. There are 18 men in the first four months. It would change the results completely. Assuming there is an outcome. There will be exactly the results I have promised. General Rausch wanted to recall these six men. Impossible! Until we find out how much Lieberman knows. Impossible! This project has a timetable that must be observed. - It cannot be changed. - Herr Doktor... Colonel, do you fully understand what it is that I have done? I... ...the outlaw. The so-called war criminal. Right here in this godforsaken place, I have created a scientific miracle. I have turned the whole world into a laboratory. Our laboratory. Don't talk to me about six men. I would send out six more if they were caught. And six more, and six more, until the task was done. I agree, Herr Doktor. I agree. Let's hope that we can resolve this Lieberman business... ...and that you get to put 94 check marks... ...on that beautiful chart of yours. Come. Walk me to the plane. You see how... passionate I am on this subject? Uh-huh. One day this place will be a shrine visited by millions of schoolchildren. That is a nice thought. Nice thought. - Gladbeck, 3.30, Ezra. - We'll get there. We'll get there. When do I ever miss a train? Now, you know what to do while I'm away? Go through all those clippings, separate them by countries, then cities. Isolate all violent crime. Ezra, there are more than 100 clippings, and Beynon says there are more to come. Well, we have to start somewhere. Yes, but we can't afford to hunt for all those men. That's why I'm going to these cities first - the closest and the cheapest. It's a start. Yes, but... Remember to separate the ones in New England from the rest. I can cover them on the lecture tour. Still without any help. Without help, without money, without time. What else is new? I'm more in love with you It's not the feeling it will give you for the things gone by It's when you look at all the things... The landlord! - Where are you going? - To turn that damn tape off. Leave it! I like music. Well, he doesn't. He's always prowling around the landing, listening at my door! - Just waiting to catch me. - Catch you? Doing what? Just what we're doing now, love. Mr Harrington doesn't like any mucking around. He has a wife and kid, you know! Old coot! Bet he wouldn't say no if I invited him in here. Then maybe we'll invite him in... ...later. Is this Frau Dring's residence? My name is Lieberman. Thank you. I think she's off the phone by now. You her grandson? Her son. Herr Lieberman! Frau Dring, thank you so much for seeing me. Oh! Won't you sit down? Thank you. You are the man who was on television several months ago. The Nazi-hunter. Frieda Maloney. Yes. - Do you kill Nazis when you catch them? - No, that's against the law. It's much better to put them on trial so people can learn. Learn what? Who they were. What they did. So why even catch them? Just put it all in history books. Clever boy you have, Frau Dring! Yes. But, er... definitely lazy. For example, right now he should be in his room practising. I can't be in my room and answer the door at the same time,... ...can I? - Oh, I was only teasing, darling! Now, please, go and practise, hm? Now... we can talk. First of all, may I express my sympathy? Things must be very difficult for you... ...right now. Thank you. Is he your only child? Yes. Did your husband leave all his money to Erich and you? And to a sister of his. Why do you ask that? I was looking for a reason behind his death. Emil's death was an accident. Was he a Nazi? I did not meet him until 1955, so I have no way of knowing. Did he ever... ...mention the name of a Doktor Josef Mengele? Who? There was a considerable age difference between you, wasn't there? Oh! That wasn't the only difference! I was 20, straight off the farm,... ...and he was Mr High and Mighty of the Transport Commission. Erm... 43, I think he was. Did he... have any hobbies? No. Yes. Yes, he did have one special hobby, Herr Lieberman. He humiliated and beat my son at every given opportunity. Would you like me to tell you who really killed him? God! To set free a stupid little farm girl, after 22 years of unhappiness! Do Nazis answer prayers, Herr Lieberman? No. That is God's business. And I have thanked him every night since... ...he pushed Emil under that car. He could have done it sooner. But I thank him, anyway. We're home again This time, for sure We are home again So close the door And this time What we've got, let's be thankful for It's cold out there Who the hell are you? Come in, Mr Harrington. She wants to talk to you. - I'll talk to her. - That would be nice. John! John! Simon, stop playing with those puppets and go and wash your hands. Hello? I'm on my way, Mother! If you'd hold on, I'll just get her. Nancy! Nancy! Telephone, Nancy! Nancy! Nancy! Nancy! Nancy! Nancy, you can't spend your life in bed. Nancy! Good! Good! Incredibly precise! Everything right on schedule. You did not have to make the trip, Seibert. You could have used the radio. Not that I do not welcome a little intelligent company down here. Gunther remembered the digital clock you admired so much in his home. Why, thank you, my friend. Very nice of you. Such a rational device. - Remarkable. - There is a problem. Lieberman. He was in Gladbeck, in Dring's house. Could he possibly have found out about Dring? - You don't know? - How could I? - The boy, Kohler? - Impossible. Then how did Lieberman get to Dring? Sheer coincidence. That's not a very scientific explanation, is it, Doktor? Are you interrogating me, Colonel Seibert? General Rausch put me in charge of security. How can I function if I don't have all the facts? But you do! A nosy, incompetent old Jew has bumbled onto one victim. What more do you have to know? Any idiot could see the next logical step. - Kill him! - We don't want to create a martyr! Ridiculous! Besides, he could have contacted police agencies or intelligence services. They would not pay any attention to him! If he died suddenly, they would. Well,... ...then what are you going to do? Lieberman will have to be watched more carefully. If he gets too close, a decision will be made. We will balance the danger of killing Lieberman... ...against the scientific validity of your project. Are you, my esteemed Chief of Security, telling me... ...that a project 20 years and millions of dollars in the making will be dropped... ...because of this insignificant, impudent old Jew? Do not antagonise me, Doktor Mengele. I have been one of your few supporters since this Lieberman business began. And should I drop to my knees in gratitude? Listen to me, Seibert. I will not permit you to lay your failure or your fear at my door. I am a scientist. I have done my job. You are an executioner. Do yours! Ezra! Ah! A reception committee! How nice! - So, how did it go? - Oh, a very rewarding trip. The Krassner death at Freiburn was a genuine accident... ...witnessed by many people. At Gladbeck, I met a young housewife... ...who was not exactly heartbroken by the death of her old husband. And at Prozheim they slammed the door in my face. That's the way it will be with most of these people. - I know. Come, let's get a coffee. - Yes, please. Excuse me. Mr Lieberman? My name is David Bennett. I think you know a friend of mine - Barry Kohler? Oh, are you the boy who's been calling? What news of Mr Kohler? None. - I know he was working with you. - That is not correct. - He was in contact with you. - How do you know? From letters we received. - "We"? - The Young Jewish Defenders. Oh, they're a bunch of fanatics. Kohler told me he worked alone. Yes. And he did, thanks to you. After he read your books, he decided to change his methods. I did not send your friend to Paraguay. He sent me these. To prove that he wasn't off on some wild-goose chase. He couldn't identify these three, so I traced them. This is Kleist. Hessen. And Schwimmer. Members of a neo-Nazi organisation in Paraguay. This has nothing to do with me. - Is Kohler's life nothing to do with you? - You have no right to talk that way! - Is Barry Kohler still alive? - How do I know? Mr Lieberman, Barry is dead! You know that, and I know that! And that's why I'm here - to pick up where he left off. - That means with you. - I work alone. I'm not asking you for a job! I simply want some information. I can't help you. I won't leave you until you talk to me. I will plant myself on your doorstep and I'll be waiting every morning. You're stuck with me until you give me information. Ezra, I got another envelope of clippings from Beynon. A big one. All right, young man. We'll talk. Good morning. I'm looking for the village of Storlien. You're going the wrong way. Turn around and take the south road for about 16 km. Then bear right. You can't miss it. Thanks. - What are you doing in these parts? - What? You are not Swedish. I come from Dortmund originally, but... ...I live in Stockholm now. I have spent some time in Germany myself. Come now! Mundt! - What's happened to your memory! - My God! Major Hartung! I knew it was you! Can't believe it! What in the world are you doing up here! It's no great story. My sister was married to a Swede. After I escaped from the internment camp, I hid out with them. I am Lars Lfquist now, inspector of the power company. What about you? I come up here on a job, for the Comrades Organisation. In Sweden? My God, what's going on? Can you tell me or would it violate orders? To hell with orders! I'm sick of orders! I'm here in Storlien to kill a schoolteacher by Saturday. But don't ask me why. I cannot make head or tail of it. Who is this teacher? Lundberg? Olafsson? Lundberg. But I don't know what he looks like. He's probably a harmless old man! It doesn't make any sense! It makes sense to your superiors. Or they wouldn't have given you the assignment. An order is an order. Good God, man! You are an officer of the SS! Have you forgotten? "My honour is loyalty. " Those words were supposed to be engraved on your soul. I know Lundberg. I will point him out to you. It isn't Lundberg. And it doesn't have to be Saturday. No one would have wanted to kill Jack. The man was beloved. If you had seen the wreaths his students sent! I have only one or two more questions to ask. Did your husband belong to any international group? Uh... He was in the American Legion. Rotary... I guess that's international. The Legion sent a Colour Guard to the funeral. The coffin was draped in the American flag. What are you doing out of bed? I just came to get a glass of grapefruit juice. He's got the flu. I thought he could stay home a few days because of it. This is Jack Curry Jr. Just Jack Curry... now. Jack, you bite your tongue. This is Mr Lieberman. A famous man from Vienna,... ...in Austria. - What's he famous for? This is fantastic! You know you have a double? A boy who lives in Gladbeck in Germany, exactly like you! Exactly like me? I never saw anything like it! Two twin brothers could not be more the same. Jack, you go up to bed and I'll bring you your juice. - I want to find out... - When you start paying the doctor bills,... ...you can get sick all you want. Just say goodbye... ...and go. Jesus H Christ! Goodbye! You watch your mouth, young man! It is amazing! I thought he was this young boy from Germany come to visit you! Even the voice... the look in the eyes... Look, I don't like to be rude, but, as you can see, I got a lot of things to do here. Look, I'm sure that nobody shot Big Jack on purpose. It was a horrible accident. If you'll excuse me? - Hello. Is this the Harrington residence? - Yes, this is the Harrington residence. - Can I talk to your mother, please? - Well, you could, but you can't. This will only take a moment. - My mother isn't receiving today. - Well, perhaps if you told her... Don't you understand English, you arse? We are not at home! Wilcox had two married daughters. No... No sons. The Harringtons... Did they have any children? What did the boy look like? Sort of pale. He had straight dark hair. Very dark. Blue eyes. Yeah, I'm listening. Why do you wanna know about the kids all of a sudden? Listen, Mr Bennett,... ...if you want to ask the questions, you pay for the phone call. No,... ...nothing. No, I haven't found a link. No! I'm... in the dark. I'll call you tomorrow, I promise. Coming. I have to speak to you, Mr Lieberman. Well, come in. I was just coming to see you. - Sit down. - No, I can't stay long. Jack Jr doesn't know where I've gone. Mr Lieberman,... ...my son is the only thing I've got. You can't take him away from me. I have no intention... When you spoke about that other boy, I got worried. The lady who gave Jack Jr to us made us swear never to tell anyone. Your son's adopted? It's just that... she was a German lady. She was very nice, really. I was amazed when I read in the papers about all the things you said she did. Frieda Maloney! Oh, God! I knew I should never have come here! Will you give me your word that you do not have a recording device in your bag? Thank you. Do you have the depositions? I have brought one. It was agreed you would provide an advance look... ...at all the testimony against my client. With particular regard to scars, deformity or disability suffered by witnesses. This deposition is brought in good faith. Two others will come if the interview should prove satisfactory. You realise how unjust all this is? Mrs Maloney has been married to an American citizen for 27 years. She has two children. One grandchild. I suppose this can be... corroborated? By the mother of the child and three other surviving witnesses. We will keep the interview brief. We will discuss only my client's activities in America between 1964 and '67. You will ask nothing about the charges against her... ...or about any event that occurred during or directly after the war. One question of that nature and I will immediately terminate the interview. So... I am to speak to you about my work with the adoption agency. Correct. I don't mind. What I did may have been slightly illegal, but... ...I brought happiness to so many people, huh? Now tell me, if you will, how you came to work for this agency. In the spring of 1963... ...I was contacted by someone I knew in the Comrades Organisation. Who? Frau Maloney will not answer that. They'd helped me after the war... ...and wanted me to return the favour by getting a job in an adoption agency. Did they say why? If you let me finish, you'll find out. The Rush-Gaddis agency hired me. The Comrades Organisation was interested in rejects. Couples who were denied children because the husband was too old. I looked for applications from families with Nordic Christian backgrounds,... ...in which the husband was born between 1910 and 1914, and the wife... ...between 1933 and 1937. The husband had to work in something like the civil service. And both spouses had to be in perfect health. - Did they explain why they wanted this? - That information is not relevant. I was expected to obey my orders, not to question them. This I did, as I always had. About a year after that... ...I was ordered to contact applicants and offer them a healthy white baby boy,... ...with New York State adoption papers. They were to pay me $500. After their medical certificates had been cleared, they would receive the babies. We would meet at a motel near Kennedy Airport. That used to be Idlewild. The babies were delivered to me,... ...usually by stewardesses with Varig Airlines. Varig? Did the babies all come from Brazil? Is that important to you? What did they look like? They were all beautiful little boys... ...with black hair, piercing blue eyes... If you're looking for a long-lost Jewish grandson, he was not among them. How many couples did you give the babies to? About 20. - Only Americans? - Some were Canadian. - No Europeans? - No. Can you remember a Curry family? - A Curry, yes. - Who else? Wheelock. Henry Wheelock. They gave me my dog, Schatzie. Beautiful Doberman. He was only 10 weeks old when I got him. Where is Wheelock from? New Providence, Pennsylvania. And how long after the Currys did the Wheelocks get their baby? It was 14 years ago! I don't remember. And what has Josef Mengele to do with all this? We won't answer that. It was all a trick, wasn't it! I know nothing of Mengele! But you'll link me with him, won't you? You want your pound of flesh! Nobody cares! And you persist and persist! Now why don't you get off my back? One more minor question. - I'll say nothing to you! - As you wish. This interview has not gone to my satisfaction. I will therefore withhold the other two depositions we talked about. You lying Jewish schmuck! You are not a guard now, madam! You are a prisoner! I may leave here empty-handed,... ...but you... ...are not going anywhere. I think Frau Maloney could answer one more question. When is your dog's birthday? You are an insane old man after all, aren't you? Schatzie's birthday? It was December 11th. Why Mengele? David's off to New York for his sister's wedding, but he'll be back in a week. Mengele... ...gives babies... He kills Dring, Harrington, Curry... They got their babies four weeks apart,... ...and the fathers were killed four weeks apart. Wheelock... Maloney's dog was born December 11th, ten weeks... I've already worked it out. February 20th. That's only four days from now! Wheelock... New Providence, Pennsylvania. How can I call Wheelock and tell him he's going to be killed... ...by the people who gave him his baby? By Josef Mengele, who's already killed the fathers of at least two other boys... ...who happen to be twins! Who would believe such a preposterous story? Herr Doktor, how kind of you to come! Pleasure to be here. Can this be little Elsa? Yes! You remember! Last time I saw you,... ...you were that high. You had whooping cough. No, no. I'm going to dance with your beautiful daughter. Good evening. How are you? May I present to you my wife Gertrud? - My love, Doktor Mengele. - It is such an honour meeting you! We're here on a little second honeymoon. You're supposed to be in Kristianstad getting ready to kill Oscarsson. Traitor! No! He betrayed me! He betrayed you! He betrayed the Aryan race! Get a doctor! I am a doctor, idiot! Don't you come near him! Shut up, you ugly bitch! - I thought you knew. - Hold still, hold still. Doktor Mengele? Could I call you away from surgery for one moment? If you'll excuse me? Why was I not told that that man was called back? All the men have been recalled. Recalled? They should all be back here by the end of the week. But why? What has happened? Lieberman visited Frieda Maloney... ...in prison. Lieberman again? Will I be plagued to my dying day by that infernal Jew? Maloney told him about the adoptions. Well, that's not catastrophic, Seibert. She only knows about America. The work can continue in Europe. The Organisation does not share your optimism, Herr Doktor. But all Lieberman has are a few paltry shreds of information. That means that, according to your figures,... ...we can be sure of one or two successes. And if my calculations are wrong? And there's only one chance in 20 or 30? No, Seibert. The men must go back. They can't. The operation has been terminated. Terminated? By whose authority? General Rausch, and the Colonel's. I told you... I told you from the beginning, kill him. Kill him! It would have been so easy! It has gone beyond Lieberman. We don't know who else is involved. You have betrayed me! You are all a bunch of selfish old men who have lost your courage! You only want to bask in the sun in your old age! And if your Aryan grandchildren have to live in a world which is run by Jews... ...and Blacks and Orientals and slobs, you could not care less! Your operation has been cancelled. No! Your operation has been cancelled. Mine continues. Heil Hitler. This Mengele was sort of a primitive geneticist in his own way, wasn't he? I understand that he experimented on human beings. Twins. Then he was nothing more than a sadist, really. A sadist with an MD and a PhD. Well, some people would say that's a perfect definition of a scientist. What exactly do you mean when you say the boys you saw were more than twins? Not only did they look alike but they were also very alike in personality. That is unusual. Twins who are separated at birth develop totally different personalities. But these twins, or perhaps I should say triplets,... ...because I believe my associate saw another,... ...were like the same people,... ...but brought up with different languages. It's impossible, of course. Excuse me, Doctor, but what is impossible? What is impossible, Doctor? Mononuclear reproduction. Oh... Doctor... Cloning. What if I were to tell you that I could take a scraping of skin from your finger... ...and create another Ezra Lieberman? I would tell you not to waste your time on my finger. Anyway, that is cloning. It was first done with plants. A cutting taken from a plant and transplanted... ...grew to be the exact duplicate of the donor plant. Now we are doing the same thing with laboratory animals. You mean you can produce an animal from itself? We take the unfertilised egg of an ovulating female... ...and destroy all of its genes and chromosomes. We then implant the nucleus of the donor cell,... ...which could be taken from a blood sample, or even a skin scraping. That cell, with its genetic material intact,... ...eventually becomes an embryo and is born as a living creature. Without parents? Well, it has no father because the egg was never fertilised. No mother, because its genetic code comes from another being. Can you follow that? And this creature is an exact duplicate of itself? Oh, Doctor, how can that be? Come along. Our experiments began with the simplest of animals: shrimps and frogs. Animals in which the female's eggs are fertilised externally. Then we moved on to mammals. We tried several laboratory animals and found the rabbit most convenient. I had to develop instruments which could accomplish the operation... ...and a whole micro-injection system. I'll show you how it's done. Here we are removing the eggs of a white rabbit... ...from the Fallopian tubes. Now you see the egg under a microscope. I have brought the point of an ordinary sewing needle into view... ...to give an idea of the size. - They are that small? Most mammal eggs are about that size. - Including human eggs? - Yes. The next step is to destroy the egg nucleus... ...with ultraviolet light... ...so that none of its genetic makeup remains. Now you see an egg from a white rabbit... ...ready to be injected with the blood cell from a black rabbit donor. With the injection pipette... ...one of the blood cells is sucked up and then injected into the egg. After a few hours, the eggs in culture divide... ...and are ready to be put back into the female. There they grow into embryos... ...which, in a month's time, the normal gestation period,... ...will become baby rabbits. In this instance... ...a black litter from a white mother. Their black colour proves that they have been cloned... ...from the blood cell of a black rabbit. But isn't it difficult to get the egg back into the female? Transferring the eggs isn't a problem. We do it all the time with laboratory animals. The really tricky part is the microsurgery. Getting the donor cell into the egg. You're lucky if one in ten survives. And this can be done with humans? If the technique were precise enough. - It's monstrous, Doctor! - Why? Wouldn't you want to live in a world full of Mozarts and Picassos? Of course, it's only a dream. Not only would you have to reproduce the genetic code of the donor,... ...but the environmental background as well. Is Mengele trying to reproduce himself? No. He has brown eyes and he comes from a very wealthy family. Let's examine the family background... ...of the donor. The father is 65 years old. A civil servant. The mother is 42, you say? She dotes on the child. Spoils... The boy is... ...pale. Dark hair. Blue eyes. Spoilt. Right? Now, Mengele would certainly know every social and environmental detail... ...would have to be reproduced. If the parents were divorced when the boy was ten,... ...this would have to be arranged. Doctor Bruckner,... ...the one who is cloned,... ...the donor. - He has to be alive, doesn't he? - Not necessarily. Individual cells taken from a donor can be preserved indefinitely. With a sample of Mozart's blood, and the women, someone with the skill... ...could breed a few hundred baby Mozarts. My God,... ...if it's really been done,... ...what I'd give to see one of those boys! Herr Lieberman? Herr Lieberman... Not Mozart, Doctor. Not Picasso. Not a genius who would enrich the world... ...but a lonely little boy, with a domineering father,... ...a customs officer,... ...who was 52 when he was born. And... ...an affectionate, doting mother... ...who was 29. The father died at 65... ...when the boy was nearly 14. Adolf Hitler. Colonel Seibert! You Lieberman? Ja. Come on in. Okay, boys. Beautiful dogs! Tear the throat out of anyone who even looks cross-eyed at me. I guess you can see why I didn't exactly wet my pants when you said... ...someone was out to get me. Take off your coat. Very impressive. Yeah. My son took those pictures. Very good! Very good. A little artsy-fartsy, if you ask me. Is your son at home? No. He's in school. And, er... Mrs Wheelock? - Is she at home? - She's still at work. So, you're the guy who got that Nazi Eichmann? I located him. It was the Israelis who did the actual kidnapping. How much you get for that? Nothing. I did it for the satisfaction. I hate all Nazis. I don't know about Nazis. It's the niggers we gotta worry about. Why are these Nazis after me? Well... I find it... very hard to talk. Don't worry about them. They won't bother you. Unless you bother me. I was attacked by a dog when I was a child. A German shepherd. And I still feel uncomfortable with a dog in the room. Jesus! You're like my neighbour Wally. He won't walk up the driveway unless the dogs are locked up. Okay... Come on, boys. In you go. There's no other way that they can come in? No. Thank you. I feel much better. - Hey! - Put your hands up. What the hell are you up to, anyway? Is there a basement in this house? Yeah. Take me to it. Do you have any pictures of your son? There's an album on the table. What do you want them for? Please do not worry. I am very anxious to see him and talk to him. I am the doctor who delivered him. Open the door. Go down the stairs, Mr Wheelock. Now listen. I don't give doodley-shit about Jews or Nazis. Good! Tell me, please, which way to Quarryville? Down here to the end of the exit. Take a left straight into Quarryville. Thank you. Quiet, damn you! Bobby! Dear, dear boy. Mr Wheelock? Mr Wheelock? Mr Wheelock! Mr... You! Herr Lieberman! Get up. Jew! Up! Up! Yes... I am going to kill you. But I want you to die with the knowledge that all your efforts have gone for nothing! I have the money and I have the will! And no one can stop me! Did you kill Wheelock? No... he's in the kitchen, mixing us some cocktails! You know what I saw on the television in my motel room... ...at one o'clock this morning? Films of Hitler. They're showing films about the war. The movement! People are fascinated! The time is ripe! Adolf Hitler... is alive! This album is full of pictures of him. Bobby Wheelock and 93 other boys are exact genetic duplicates of him. Bred entirely from his cells. He allowed me to take half a litre of his blood and a cutting of skin from his ribs. We were in a biblical frame of mind... ...on 23rd May, 1943,... ...at the Berghof. He had denied himself children because he knew that no son could flourish... ...in the shadow of so God-like a father! But then he heard what was theoretically possible,... ...that I could create one day not his son, not even a carbon copy,... ...but another original! He was thrilled by the idea! The right Hitler for the right future! A Hitler tailor-made... ...for the 1980s,... ...'90s,... ...2000! Kill! Kill! Get away! Off! No more gun? Holy shit! Bobby! Bobby... My dear, dear boy! You cannot imagine how happy I am, how joyous I am,... ...to see you standing there so fine and strong... ...and healthy! Call these dogs off, Bobby. Call the dogs off, please. I am an old friend of the family. In fact, I am the doctor who delivered you. And I stopped by, having just returned from abroad,... ...and he let me in. And then he pulled out... ...a gun! Fortunately, I was able to overpower him. Now call them off, Bobby. Call them off. Please. Cut! Cut - how clever! I said "off" and I said "away",... ...and I said "no gun, no more gun"... Then you had the gun. - No! He had... - They attack anyone with a gun! - They were locked up... - The dogs are never locked up. Bobby... My dear, dear... Action! Cut! Cut! They won't listen to you. I... Bobby, that man is your enemy. Do not listen to him, I beg of you! Call... the police. Yeah. By all means, do so, Bobby. But first there are some things about yourself you must know. What do you mean? If I prove to you that I know you better than anyone in the world,... ...better even than your own mother, will you listen to me? You are a clever boy,... ...are you not? You do not do well in school. That is because you are too clever. Too busy thinking your own thoughts. But you are much smarter than your teachers, uh? My teachers are nowhere. You are going to be the world's greatest photographer, are you not? Have you ever felt superior to those around you? Like a prince among peasants? I feel different from everyone sometimes. You are infinitely different. Infinitely superior. You were born of the noblest blood in the world. You have it within you to fulfil ambitions a thousand times greater... ...than those of which you presently dream! And you shall fulfil them, Bobby! You shall! You are the living duplicate of the greatest man in history. Adolf Hitler. Oh, man, you're weird! Bobby, I'm telling you the truth! Find... your... father. What? He killed... ...your... father. Bobby! Listen to me! It was this vicious Jew,... ...your sworn enemy! He killed your father, and he came here to kill you! Bobby! Let me protect you! All your power will burst forth when the time comes,... ...when you grow older! And you see the world engulfed by human garbage! When you feel this urge rising within you... ...to save your own Aryan folk from extinction! Then you will rejoice in your heritage... ...and bless me for creating you! Bobby! You must understand your parents are of no importance! They were chosen for you! Now that they have served their purpose, they must disappear from your life! Bobby! Bobby! You freaked-out maniac! Print! Bobby... Holy shit! Cut! Cut! Cut! Phew, man... Get outta here. Out. You'll die if I don't call an ambulance for you. I could just go out right now. My mom won't be home until late. You'll be dead by then. If I call the police, will you tell them what I did? Okay. Shake. Come on, shake! Okay. You got a deal. I'd like an ambulance and a police car... ...at the Wheelock residence on Old Buck Road, please. Hey, man, this is an emergency! A heavy-duty emergency. David! What a surprise! Which assassin was it, Mr Lieberman? I thought you went to a wedding! No more deception now. No more blind alleys. It was Mengele. He's dead. It's over. The Dring boy isn't dead yet. Neither is Simon Harrington or Jack Curry or Bobby Wheelock. It took a little time,... ...a little backtracking, a visit to Dr Bruckner. But now we know... everything. And what are you going to do about it? Kill the boys. Brilliant man, that Mengele. I suppose he had all 94 of those names and addresses memorised. Now you are trying to fool me. - You have been searching the room. - He must have had a list. He did. I have it. - Give it to me. - Why? We have the right and we have the duty. To do what? Kill children? Give me that list. You will have to take it from me. And, when you do, you can add my name to the list. I don't mean you any harm. You will have to kill me, David. The first of those boys that you touch,... ...I will turn you and your entire organisation over to the police. I will do that. You would protect Hitler? Not... slaughter the innocent,... ...and neither will you. A fanatic you may be, but a murderer of young children you are not. There is a nurse here, an angel of mercy called Miss Hanrahan,... ...who actually gives me cigarettes. You know what she said? She said, "Mr Lieberman, if you can escape Buchenwald,... ...and you can escape those bullets,... ...then a few cigarettes will not hurt you." Isn't that a nice thing to say? Man! |
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