Go, get lost!
Come on, give me something.
Go away, you don't deserve anything.
My baby hasn't eaten at all today.
The trucks will be here soon
and you'll have a lot of customers.
Get out of here, wretch!
Go away.
Get in.
Excuse him, Caliph.
Excuse his impudence.
His name is Seyf-o-Allah, as I said.
If you give your consent,
he has courage.
Consent?
Thank you.
You've stopped
the detox program again!
I've had a lot of problems.
Yes, I read the newspapers.
But this is useless.
You keep disappearing.
You won't quit like this.
I'm exhausted, doctor.
Your heart's at risk.
This time I'll go through with it.
I'll be honest, you don't stand
much of a chance.
They're all corpses of prostitutes
from the refugee camp.
The murderer leaves the bodies
where they will be easily found.
I tried to convince them
to not give you the case.
I told them that you're
as stubborn as a mule,
that you don't know
where the limits are.
And besides,
you've got your own shit
to deal with and you're due to retire.
But it didn't work.
They said you're the only one who
can get to the bottom of it quickly.
It's your hometown.
You know everybody there.
City of love...
City of all good...
City of memories...
For my good work.
Thank you, God bless you.
- What's going on?
- There's been a murder.
Take her away!
Get rid of these people.
Come on, move along.
- Is it yours?
- No. No.
What the devil are you doing here?
Get out!
Thank you very much.
Come on, boy,
a tea for the gentleman.
Since the serial killer appeared,
the women here have reformed
and now they're all puppeteers.
How's business?
I can't complain.
Do you want me
to find you some customers?
- I'll take one third. Okay?
- It's a deal.
You're a new face.
- I'm looking for a place to stay.
- And you're probably alone.
With a little work you'll think
you're staying at the Palace Hotel.
If you take on a taleb, he'll cost
nothing and work like a mule.
A taleb?
The young men that the Master
attracts, they're called taleb.
Every day they have
to perform good deeds.
"Sometimes the spirit
gets lost in the wind.
In those moments,
it's contaminated by sin.
Of all the guilts, the evil that
lives inside you is the dirtiest.
Because one part of you is human and
the other part is still the devil.
No one can divide
their life into two.
One part for God
and the other for himself;
one part for the spirit
and the other for the body."
Come on,
the new brothers have arrived.
Each one of you
will be assigned a new brother.
Hurry up.
Come on, quickly.
Take your clothes off.
They're photos!
It's forbidden!
Go back to your rooms
and get ready for the ceremony.
Everyone out of the yard!
No possessions allowed here.
We give you all you need.
You, go away!
For my good work, sister.
What are you doing
with our television?
It's forbidden!
"Life is a temple:
it is religion, ritual and rules.
You have to bring all that you
Possess on the path of religion."
Excellent. Now you too know all
of human knowledge.
Here, our Master has written all
that is necessary for humans to know.
God willing, this knowledge
will protect me from sin?
I've been praying forty years longer
than you have...
but...
I am still
as close as this to sin.
Master!
Satan.
Forgiveness!
8th victim...
10th victim...
11th victim...
A puppet...
at every crime scene.
- How many have been killed, sergeant?
- A lot.
Was our neighbor the last one?
No. Another one's been killed
in the next street.
- And a good job too!
- What are you talking about?
The puppets will lead me
to the killer.
The puppets...
You can stop the execution...
Give him another chance...
Oh, God!
City of friendship...
City of companionship...
City of compassion...
City of sadness...
City of childhood...
City of intimacy...
Habib!
It's been a long time...
Very long...
- I thought I'd never see you again.
- And I thought you had remarried.
After you left
people understood everything.
They say that in that case
of the movie theater fires,
you implicated some powerful people,
and that's why you got fired.
I apologized and I got my job back.
What has been happening here?
I forgot to invite you in.
Come in.
You see, it's always the same.
They're still threatening us.
This time they said that
if we continue,
they'll burn down the theater.
Is old Nanny still alive?
Since they burned her puppets,
she stays in her little corner.
She dreams of staging her
Marionette play into the main square,
to make "the children" laugh again
after such a long time.
That's what she calls
the people in town.
She says she won't die
until she sees that day.
Nanny, look who's here!
Habib, do you remember?
I always told you: what kind of
Husband was he?
He doesn't know
how to move a marionette
and he's not even a good lover.
Hi, Nanny.
The puppet plays are more valuable
than those marionettes.
Nanny has collected the very best
of the last eighty years.
With things as they are,
these are safer with you. Take them.
Do you hear from our daughter?
She still blames me.
No.
I hope to see you again.
Forgiveness.
It is God who forgives.
If you forgive me, God will also.
I will pray for you.
God willing, you'll be forgiven.
Sleep is the first door
that Satan enters through.
The disciple who surrenders to sleep
is no longer a disciple.
Master, forgive me.
I give you my life as a bond.
Pleasure has seven levels.
Ignore the first level, and you will
be brought down to the next,
and each level is deeper
than the previous one.
Brothers, this thing is called grenade.
It's an excellent weapon.
One of these can kill
at least ten people.
To use it, you press this lever,
put your finger in this ring
and pull it hard.
Then, with your outstretched arm,
throw the grenade
with all your might.
Now, brothers,
a volunteer to give it a try.
Come on.
Watch closely.
You have an outstretched arm.
Where are you going?
Bodily pleasure is the lowest level.
It's the story of the man who is
digging in the earth to find roots:
if he keeps digging
he will find treasure.
Master!
Forgive me!
Once you have opened the door
to Satan, he will never leave.
Then I have no choice!
God willing, I'll be forgiven!
God!
Sir, I didn't know anything.
These wretches didn't tell me anything.
If it pleases God,
He will pardon his sins!
If it pleases God.
Clean the courtyard.
Clean the courtyard!
Puppets for sale.
You want the stuff?
The money first.
Hurry up.
My community service, sister?
No, brother.
- You've got a quick hand!
- I'm not a thief.
We've found your puppets
at all the crime scenes.
Those puppets aren't mine, sergeant.
And you didn't steal
the playscripts, either.
Those I took,
but the puppets aren't mine.
Leila heard that someone
at the bazaar had old playscripts,
she asked me to get them
if it wasn't dangerous.
- Who is Leila?
- We share the house.
She gave those poor girls the dolls.
You don't believe me?
Ask her yourself.
Let me go!
This woman is being charged!
Let me explain!
Shut up. Take him!
Let me go, let me explain.
Grab that woman!
Where? Go and get the car.
Here!
This one had a record too.
Another streetwalker.
We fool ourselves thinking
we can stop them all,
but their business is too good.
The murderer has religious motives.
- You shouldn't say that.
- Shouldn't I?
Because then
the case becomes political.
In this city, they find a woman's
body in the garbage dumps every day.
But this time,
because of the newspapers,
the whole world is hearing about it.
Hey you,
this bastard doesn't want to pay me.
Can you teach him a lesson?
He's a little shrimp, if you go
near him he'll shit in his pants.
I didn't want to go with him,
but he insisted.
If you help me, I'll pay you.
Sir, for the love of God!
This is all I have, sir!
Take her away!
One!
Count!
Two!
How many?
Two.
Three!
What's going on?
I was looking for you.
Wait!
Freeze!
I found Leila's house.
The murderer was there.
The murderer?
But we've already arrested him.
He gave himself up this morning.
I made it clear there was no need
for headquarters to interfere.
We can solve the case ourselves.
This is our turf. We know
its problems better than anyone.
- How many have been captured?
- Several.
Every day there is
a group of volunteers.
Each one comes here
to give himself in.
We had orders not
to make this predicament public.
Therefore, we had to choose somebody.
Him, Mr. Rajabi!
I am your inferior.
- You!
- If God accepts!
I've organized a press conference.
But since you're officially
in charge of this investigation,
they want you to announce
that we've caught the killer.
This guy is not the killer.
Wait a minute!
You're not going to throw
all our work out the window!
Powerful people approve
of these murders.
They believe it's the only way
to clean up the city.
Let's say we do apprehend
the real killer,
one of the pretenders
will just continue his work.
We have to find out
who is behind these crimes.
For us, the atmosphere in the city
is more important
than the murder of a few prostitutes.
Here he comes!
How did you catch the murderer?
Who's the killer?
Can you give us more details?
The murderer still hasn't
been caught.
The one thing I can say is that
since powerful groups
cover the crimes
we can't stop the killings.
That's all.
You want to buy or smoke?
Smoke. The strongest you have.
- Are you a customer?
- Aren't you ashamed before God?
Say your prayers!
So you're the bastard who's attacking
the women of this neighborhood!
Well, do you want to kill me,
Captain Valliant?
Kill me...
If you get your merits by killing
unfortunate women, strike me!
I want to die and meet
the one who wrote my fate.
Who will have the courage to point
a finger at me in the next world?
What judge will be better than me,
who sold my body to
save the lives of my children!
Kill me!
Are you afraid of an old woman?
Come on, where are you going?
Come back!
I want nothing more than
to be freed of my suffering!
Come back here!
You coward!
Sometimes the body is the dressing
that reveals the spirit's beauty.
But I make them suffer.
The healer has rough hands,
but he gives relief to the patient.
The medicine is bitter,
but gives the cure.
Their eyes are full of terror
when they die.
Terror...
The terror of death is like that of
the shepherd when he meets the king.
The shepherd is afraid when
the king's hand touches his shoulder.
But in his heart he is glad.
Life and death are united,
like the river at the sea.
The murderer is looking for someone:
the woman who's connected
to all the victims.
She's the only one who can help us.
You lit the fuse,
now you can wait for the explosion.
Wait, I never saw you before.
You're not from around here,
let me look at you.
How old are you?
Are you a refugee?
Were you evacuated?
Take this, it's not much,
but you won't find more around here.
If you need money,
get some another way.
Take them.
Do what you like,
but watch out for that butcher,
unless you're hoping to die.
Come with me!
Get lost right now,
or I'll arrest you!
Why are you getting upset, friend?
I didn't mean anything!
- Just my luck!
- Get lost!
Did you think better of it? Take it.
You can pay me back
when you have some.
Everybody knows me here.
- I want to talk to you.
- Bastard!
Wait, I need your help
to catch the murderer.
Go away, brother,
don't hang around here,
or I'll have them teach you a lesson.
If people know you're a policeman,
they'll lynch you.
Go away.
Come on, kids!
What is all that stuff
in the newspapers?
You approve of the murders.
We approve of the cleansing
of the city.
But not through murder.
Habib, my friend,
how could you think that?
If you help us,
you help your city.
Catch the murderer!
- Will you help me?
- Certainly we will help you.
- Even if it means telling me names?
- Even names.
We will teach him a lesson.
I'll tell the boys to get busy on it.
But, Agha...
I'm glad to have seen you again.
They've relieved you of your duty.
You're going to have to appear
before a military court.
I have to give official apology
to the Agha.
You really took a beating, brother.
I didn't expect you to come round
so quickly.
If I hadn't brought you back here,
like a dead weight,
who knows how long you'd
have been lying there losing blood.
- How many days have I been here?
- Not too many.
Don't worry, you're safe here.
Those bastards beat you up
pretty badly.
You're wearing
my poor husband's clothes.
He was from India, he was a gem.
He loved films,
he sang and danced all day long.
I've never met another man like him.
He always said we should go to India,
but my heart belongs to this land.
Are you a refugee?
No, what makes you think that?
When the talebans arrived,
they thought they were
the masters of the people's faith.
My father was one of the first
to get killed.
They said that the puppets were
idols and they burned all of them.
Nothing matters anymore.
Yes, I say the same thing.
They've relieved me of duty.
I can't do anything.
I'm nobody now.
Yes, you're an addict
like all the rest.
When you're high
you've got big fucking pipe dreams.
- The old woman is alive.
- Bring her to the car.
They're still threatening us.
This time they said
that if we continue,
they'll burn down the theater.
City of bitterness...
What should I write
as the cause of death?
Write "drug related".
Add this as evidence.
City of death...
City of injustice...
Hello, brother.
Have you chosen your catch?
Don't be offended, I am a friend.
I have a better spot for you.
Come on, I'll show you.
Here you can make yourself at home,
you'll have everything.
While you stay,
you will protect one of the sisters.
That's a merit.
The one you pick
will be your slave forever.
What, can't you see we have a guest?
Go bring some tea.
Don't think that the sisters here
are professionals.
No, they are as pure as flowers.
Now you wait here,
I'll open the door.
The one you pick will be your wife.
I have to tell you that some of them
are more expensive than others.
Why are you getting upset?
I'm going now,
you stay here by yourself
and look as much as you like.
Alright?
Are you upset about the price?
That's not a problem,
Whichever one you choose,
she's on the house.
Are you happy with that?
What are you doing, brother,
do you want to kill your sisters?
Muslims, help!
Give them shelter
and some new clothes.
Hello, Morshed.
Tell the Master
Morshed would like to see him.
The Master orders you
to go to his house.
The Master invites you to enter.
It's not easy to tell you this.
The Caliph has ordered
that you leave the school.
You have stepped over the limits.
I had authorization from the Caliph.
The authorization was
for the prostitutes,
but you executed a man.
I was following our doctrines,
those women are like prostitutes for us.
Because of this they've figured out
that our group was mixed up
in the punishment of those sinners.
We're guests here and only have
Permission to teach the doctrines.
We receive our permission only
from the Caliph. No one else.
And now the decision of the Caliph
is to interrupt your Jihad.
There's a risk
that they'll close the school.
This would mean your death
and exile for all of us.
My death is the key to paradise.
You said that
the soldier of God has no fear,
then how can the Caliph have fear?
Silence!
You are a part of my heart,
but if you try to break my faith,
I'll kill you with my own hands.
Go. Go and repent.
Go and punish yourself.
Here are the playscripts
that you wanted.
You're soaked.
Who is the murderer?
Tell me.
Morshed.
He was in love with me.
Don't look at me like that!
Morshed would have given me
all the gold in the world.
With one word from me,
he would have offered me the moon.
Does he control
the prostitution market?
I was the first one to get out
from under his control.
If I survive,
Morshed will have lost his power.
Up until now I've managed
to escape him,
or maybe he didn't want to kill me,
and the others were punished
on my account.
You have to help me find the proof.
Come.
You can't leave in that state.
You have to revive yourself.
Come inside.
Do you have a woman?
My wife is no longer with us.
You're a mess, it's easy to see that
there's no woman to take care of you.
Here, put these on.
What are you looking at?
I had a husband, very rich!
He would get angry very quickly.
But he was a good man.
I've never met another man like him.
He had five wives.
He kept saying, let's go to Arabia,
you'll be my favorite.
But no, I told him,
I am stuck to this land.
Come on, they're clean, put them on!
They've destroyed Muslim houses.
They've killed men and boys.
They've molested the women
and girls of the Muslim villages.
Why? Just because we're Muslims.
They kidnapped my sister.
I've been searching for my sister
for many years.
That's my little brother
in the photo.
We were separated many years ago.
Eat something, you'll feel better.
I'll go and prepare the pipe.
I'm not used to so much hospitality.
A man is like the beads on a rosary
and a woman is the thread
that holds them together.
- We have to go now.
- Can't we wait a while longer?
- Why do you want to stay?
- Because my heart...
Calm down, you fool.
I let you run wild for a second
and you go crazy.
Take this.
When they attack you, you won't
have to stand there like a potato.
What kind of a policeman are you!
You have repented.
- I have thought.
- Thought?
I am eaten alive by doubt.
No, brother,
doubt is the enemy of faith.
If the Caliph is afraid...
No, it's not fear, it's politics!
Politics?
A soldier of God doesn't care
about politics!
No, brother, I'm not listening.
Doubt is a worm that,
once it has entered the soul,
can only be destroyed by fire.
Only death can answer our questions.
I have interceded for you
with the Caliph.
The Caliph forgives your sins.
Prepare yourself, you're going to
where you'll get your answers.
Sins? What I did was sinful?
Wait, Master! You must help me!
God chose you: you'll be a martyr
and will go to paradise.
But I'm eaten alive by doubts!
I don't hear you.
I don't want to hear you!
They control the whole market,
they're smugglers.
They have foreign ties.
I've been out of the country once.
Outside?
Morshed brought me back.
You said before that
you wouldn't want to live outside.
- Did I say that?
- Yes, probably just another lie.
There's not a lie in me,
I'm an open book.
How did you end up
doing what you do?
I was left all alone
with my little brother to feed.
Why do you want to know
all about me?
- Because I'm interested.
- I'm interested... Of course!
The usual story.
No, I don't mean it like that.
Because you have something I lost.
So why don't you marry me?
What?
Take me with you.
I'll go anywhere with you. God knows
I would be a good wife for you.
You said
you'd never leave this place.
So?
If you're serious,
you have to ask me to marry you.
- Do I have to ask you now?
- Yes, it's not difficult.
Close your eyes and say it.
You should never postpone
a beautiful thing.
I don't know what,
but something's going on.
- What do you want?
- I must see Morshed.
Can you understand English letters?
You must learn this book.
- Habib!
- Stay here, I'll take a closer look.
Habib, there's something
you should know about me.
About you?
OK, we'll talk about it later.
Calm down!
It's a sin.
If Caliph orders, it's not a sin!
Listen carefully, brother!
You've caused so much trouble
I'll be happy to kill you!
You will stay in the school
until your passport is ready.
Nobody must see your new face.
What's going on?
Someone is spying on us.
If anybody asks you,
say you're one of the new ones.
What do you want from me?
You'll find out later.
Master!
Oh, it's you!
Hello.
I asked for someone
who knows other languages,
but right now I'm busy.
We'll see each other tonight.
Why is the door closed?
The Master wants to see
the new brother.
He told me to bring him to him.
God willing,
you know how to keep secrets.
Yes, I try to.
I know that this is forbidden,
but doubt is an even worse sin.
For years I've been sending
my best disciples as a gift,
but now that it concerns
my most devout student,
I am taken by doubts.
I'm sending him to die
on the path of God,
but it's not easy
to recognize the path of God.
May God forgive me!
I want to understand some things.
Translate their words for me.
Is it OK?
"The soul is the battlefield
between good and evil.
Faith and desire are in continual
struggle with each other
Let your faith grow,
and let it guide your soul
so that it can do wonderful
works and enter paradise.
He who works in goodness
will discover how deep is the soul.
Do not prefer desire over faith."
God has placed a light in the soul
that life renders dull.
Here we purify it.
"Immerse yourselves
in the depths of your souls
and meditate on your sins.
Break the seal the devil has pressed
into the whiteness of your soul,
purify yourselves, repent and walk
along the path that leads you to God.
The darkness of the well
will reawaken your sight.
Only he who is not completely lost
will re-emerge empowered
from that well."
Now you too are a disciple.
- Do you know who I am?
- I know.
Who are you?
I don't know who I am.
But you must teach me
the marionettes.
are the only memory
I have of my family.
Will you teach me?
I am indebted to you.
The shah had a beautiful
and intelligent sister,
sweet and happy as an angel
The sister was madly in love
with her brother:
the shah was the only star
that shined in her heart.
One day the entire court
left for the royal hunt,
And do you know what the sister
saw during the trip?
A slave boy,
as beautiful as a flower,
The sister fell in love
with him at first sight.
And she was lost in love.
No, not that story, this part
of the story should not be!
Why?
Because the sister falls in love?
Because it's a sin!
But love is not a sin,
it's a beautiful thing.
"It shakes you right down
to your deepest roots
and fills your entire existence.
Love is the harvest time,
and it strips you down
like the field just harvested.
It will sift you and separate you
from your very skin.
It will grind you down
to the finest flour, white and pure,
and you will be sacred bread
at the glorious banquet of God.
The knowledge of love makes you
a little kindling
in the hearth of creation."
These words come from the very book
you memorized.
Have you been in love?
I don't know...
I think so.
I feel something...
that could be love.
A woman?
Yes, a woman.
Sister... sister!
His sister?
The murders have created
a whole range of problems for us.
Before they arrest us,
mobilize your students
so that they'll be
too scared to touch us.
Who's there?
Stop!
What did I say?
What?
While I was asleep, what did I say?
Something about your family,
your sister...
I'm never sleeping again!
Are you worried about your family?
I don't have a family anymore,
they were all killed except for...
Except for who?
What do you want here, anyway?
The murderer is someone
from this school.
Who?
That's what I want to find out,
and you must help me.
Me?
You're the only person I can trust.
Someone here is abusing
the people's faith.
Watch, this hand reveals many things.
Seyf-o-Allah had a pure heart
from the very first days.
- Seyf-o-Allah?
- He was my best disciple.
We spent unforgettable moments
together.
I would like to relive
those moments before he leaves.
You are making him leave
Despite your doubts?
Seyf-o-Allah has
the smell of paradise about him.
His attraction to you must not
rob us of the privilege
of that heavenly scent.
If you give Seyf-o-Allah back to me,
I will let you remain.
You aren't who you say,
are you?
Leila...
What is that stupid thing where
they all go and look at themselves?
What's it called? Cinema!
They're all rotten!
They shouldn't exist on earth!
Today we'll give them
a taste of death!
A taste of death!
Shut up!
Today, anyone who reads
corrupt books,
those who drink alcohol,
or sing songs,
they're all rotten to the core!
Those women that show
their faces to the men!
Today is the day of the great jihad!
A taste of death!
I was waiting for you.
Today our agreement is up.
You were to give back
Seyf-o-Allah.
I came to you
for a more important reason.
Stop your disciples, this revolt
could end with their deaths!
They are going
to bring God to the people.
With the sword?
What else could bring
a prostitute back to the true path?
Love.
The forbidden chapter!
Now I understand how my best
disciple, the masterwork of my life,
has been seduced.
With these words
you have bewitched my creature.
The master wants you
to go back to the school.
I have just spoken
to His Excellency, the Caliph.
They have given me
the honor of leaving my duties,
it has been decided
that Seyf-o-Allah and I
will be transferred
to a monastery in the mountains.
We will spend the rest of our lives
in meditation.
Before leaving,
I want to get to know you better,
for this reason,
I have invited one of our brothers
to participate in our meeting.
You're a witness that if the
accord had been respected,
it would not have been in my
interest to reveal anybody's secrets.
This is the detective.
Please come in!
Who brought him here?
Seyf!
The day we took this,
Seyf-o-Allah was there.
I've spoken with the Caliph
about Seyf...
I don't care.
I'll go and get that damned man!
Let's go.
Seyf-o-Allah!
Here you are safe, there's no danger.
Leila.
It's not a serious wound.
You'll get better with some rest.
The wound has to be bandaged.
I'll go get what's needed.
Don't move.
Freeze!
Have you seen Leila? Do you know
if anything happened to her?
- Who?
- Leila, the one with the puppets.
Ah, yes, she ran away
She went home.
Are you her brother?
What?
Are you her brother?
The one they said
just turned up lately?
Her brother?
Leila!
That's my little brother
in the photo.
We were separated many years ago.