1 00:02:19,619 --> 00:02:24,022 Very early in my life it was too late. 2 00:02:24,057 --> 00:02:27,151 At 18, it was already too late. 3 00:02:27,194 --> 00:02:29,424 At 18, l aged. 4 00:02:29,463 --> 00:02:31,954 This aging was brutal. 5 00:02:31,998 --> 00:02:35,434 This aging, l saw it spread over my features... 6 00:02:35,469 --> 00:02:37,664 one by one. 7 00:02:37,704 --> 00:02:40,138 lnstead of being frightened by it... 8 00:02:40,173 --> 00:02:42,607 l saw this aging of my face... 9 00:02:42,642 --> 00:02:44,701 with the same sort of interest... 10 00:02:44,744 --> 00:02:47,269 l might have taken, for example... 11 00:02:47,314 --> 00:02:49,544 in the reading of a book. 12 00:02:49,583 --> 00:02:52,211 That new face, l kept it. 13 00:02:52,252 --> 00:02:54,345 lt's kept the same contours... 14 00:02:54,387 --> 00:02:56,947 but its matter is destroyed. 15 00:02:56,990 --> 00:02:59,982 l have a destroyed face. 16 00:03:01,528 --> 00:03:03,496 Let me tell you again. 17 00:03:03,530 --> 00:03:05,430 l'm 15 1/2. 18 00:03:05,465 --> 00:03:08,696 lt's the crossing of a ferry on the Mekong. 19 00:04:07,460 --> 00:04:09,155 Look at me. 20 00:04:09,195 --> 00:04:11,163 l'm 15 1/2. 21 00:04:33,920 --> 00:04:36,411 lt's the crossing of the river. 22 00:04:36,456 --> 00:04:39,186 When l go back to Saigon... 23 00:04:39,225 --> 00:04:41,489 it's as though l'm on a journey... 24 00:04:41,528 --> 00:04:43,996 especially when l take the bus. 25 00:04:44,030 --> 00:04:47,488 That day, it's the end of the school holidays. 26 00:04:47,534 --> 00:04:50,128 l don't remember which one. 27 00:04:50,170 --> 00:04:53,003 l went to spend it in Sa-Dec with my two brothers... 28 00:04:53,039 --> 00:04:55,633 in my mother's tight house... 29 00:04:55,675 --> 00:04:58,007 behind the bush school... 30 00:04:58,044 --> 00:05:01,241 in the horror of the Sa-Dec house. 31 00:05:38,284 --> 00:05:39,808 The big pieces are mine. 32 00:05:46,626 --> 00:05:49,686 Why yours? 33 00:05:49,729 --> 00:05:52,220 Because that's the way it is. 34 00:05:52,265 --> 00:05:53,562 l wish you'd die. 35 00:07:09,109 --> 00:07:10,542 Paul? 36 00:07:14,948 --> 00:07:16,245 Paulo? 37 00:07:22,622 --> 00:07:24,613 Paul, come to bed. 38 00:07:26,760 --> 00:07:29,354 You mustn't be afraid anymore. 39 00:07:29,395 --> 00:07:31,886 Not of Pierre, not of anything. 40 00:07:33,066 --> 00:07:34,931 Never again, you know. 41 00:07:36,002 --> 00:07:37,560 Never again. 42 00:07:57,290 --> 00:07:59,815 He came back? 43 00:07:59,859 --> 00:08:01,690 l see him on the balcony... 44 00:08:01,728 --> 00:08:04,196 sleeping in the night outside... 45 00:08:04,230 --> 00:08:05,697 doesn't want to go to his room. 46 00:08:05,732 --> 00:08:07,290 He's too scared of Pierre. 47 00:08:09,769 --> 00:08:12,670 Me, it's when he's outside that l'm afraid. 48 00:08:14,574 --> 00:08:16,269 l'm afraid he'll leave like that. 49 00:08:16,309 --> 00:08:17,776 He'll get lost. 50 00:08:17,811 --> 00:08:20,177 lt can happen with that kind of child. 51 00:08:20,213 --> 00:08:22,477 That's not true. 52 00:08:22,515 --> 00:08:24,039 You're not afraid for Paul. 53 00:08:24,083 --> 00:08:26,381 You're only afraid for Pierre. 54 00:08:26,419 --> 00:08:27,909 Why is it that you love him so much... 55 00:08:27,954 --> 00:08:31,151 and not us...never? 56 00:08:32,892 --> 00:08:35,417 l love all three of my children the same. 57 00:08:35,461 --> 00:08:37,861 That's not true. lt's not true! 58 00:08:37,897 --> 00:08:40,730 Answer! Why is it that you love him so much... 59 00:08:40,767 --> 00:08:42,132 and not us? 60 00:08:46,773 --> 00:08:48,172 l don't know why. 61 00:08:57,283 --> 00:08:58,477 Yesterday... 62 00:08:59,786 --> 00:09:02,084 l wrote to Saigon... 63 00:09:02,121 --> 00:09:04,487 to ask for Pierre's repatriation. 64 00:09:04,524 --> 00:09:05,684 What? 65 00:09:05,725 --> 00:09:07,693 l'm sending him back to France. 66 00:09:07,727 --> 00:09:09,456 You're happy? 67 00:09:09,495 --> 00:09:12,521 He stole at the opium den again. 68 00:09:14,400 --> 00:09:16,561 l can't pay any longer. 69 00:09:17,904 --> 00:09:18,893 lt's over. 70 00:09:22,041 --> 00:09:23,872 lt's not possible anymore. 71 00:09:32,619 --> 00:09:35,349 Mom, hurry up, or l'll miss the bus. 72 00:10:49,095 --> 00:10:50,585 Bye, Paulo. 73 00:11:09,048 --> 00:11:11,243 Take care. 74 00:11:11,284 --> 00:11:12,945 Yes, Mom. 75 00:11:12,986 --> 00:11:14,715 When are you coming back? 76 00:11:14,754 --> 00:11:17,222 For Mardi Gras. l already told you. 77 00:11:17,256 --> 00:11:19,087 Oh. l forgot. 78 00:11:35,408 --> 00:11:37,205 So that day... 79 00:11:37,243 --> 00:11:39,473 l'm going back to Saigon. 80 00:11:39,512 --> 00:11:44,279 l'm wearing my cabaret shoes and my man's hat. 81 00:11:44,317 --> 00:11:47,775 No woman, no young girl wears a man's fedora... 82 00:11:47,820 --> 00:11:50,789 in that colony in those days. 83 00:11:50,823 --> 00:11:53,121 No native woman, either. 84 00:11:53,159 --> 00:11:55,957 That hat, l never leave it. 85 00:11:55,995 --> 00:11:58,964 l have that, this hat. 86 00:11:58,998 --> 00:12:01,899 That all by itself makes me whole. 87 00:12:01,934 --> 00:12:04,027 l'm never without it. 88 00:13:11,437 --> 00:13:12,927 So it's the crossing... 89 00:13:12,972 --> 00:13:15,236 of one of the branches of the Mekong... 90 00:13:15,274 --> 00:13:18,971 on the ferry that's between Vinh Long and Sa-Dec... 91 00:13:19,011 --> 00:13:22,412 in the great plains of mud and rice... 92 00:13:22,448 --> 00:13:24,507 of southern lndochina... 93 00:13:24,550 --> 00:13:26,541 the plain of the birds. 94 00:15:08,321 --> 00:15:11,449 Excuse me, mademoiselle. Do you smoke? 95 00:15:14,327 --> 00:15:15,658 No, thank you. 96 00:15:37,350 --> 00:15:38,874 l'm sorry. 97 00:15:38,918 --> 00:15:40,579 lt's so surprising... 98 00:15:40,620 --> 00:15:44,215 a young white girl on a native bus. 99 00:15:57,536 --> 00:16:00,937 l like your hat. lt's original... 100 00:16:00,973 --> 00:16:03,965 a man's hat on a young girl. 101 00:16:08,481 --> 00:16:09,948 And you're pretty. 102 00:16:09,982 --> 00:16:12,473 You can do anything you like. 103 00:16:17,990 --> 00:16:19,355 You're who? 104 00:16:23,262 --> 00:16:26,629 -l live in Vinh Long. -Where in Vinh Long? 105 00:16:26,666 --> 00:16:31,035 On the river just outside. The big house with the terraces. 106 00:16:31,070 --> 00:16:33,163 The blue stone one? 107 00:16:33,205 --> 00:16:34,604 Yes. 108 00:16:34,640 --> 00:16:36,733 lt's a Chinese house. 109 00:16:36,776 --> 00:16:39,142 l am Chinese. 110 00:16:40,279 --> 00:16:42,247 Chinese. 111 00:16:42,281 --> 00:16:45,148 He's from that financial minority... 112 00:16:45,184 --> 00:16:47,914 that owns all the popular housing of the colony. 113 00:16:47,953 --> 00:16:49,682 He's back from Paris... 114 00:16:49,722 --> 00:16:52,748 where he undertook some business studies. 115 00:16:52,792 --> 00:16:54,020 He's the one... 116 00:16:54,060 --> 00:16:57,086 who was crossing the Mekong that day... 117 00:16:57,129 --> 00:16:58,892 towards Saigon. 118 00:16:59,999 --> 00:17:03,935 lf you want, l can drive you to Saigon. 119 00:17:41,040 --> 00:17:42,905 Do you know her? 120 00:17:42,942 --> 00:17:44,933 She's the administrator's wife... 121 00:17:44,977 --> 00:17:47,275 Mrs. Stretter, Anne-Marie. 122 00:17:49,949 --> 00:17:51,416 Do you want one? 123 00:17:51,450 --> 00:17:53,281 Yes, thank you. 124 00:18:05,664 --> 00:18:08,030 ls it true, that story about the young man... 125 00:18:08,067 --> 00:18:10,900 who killed himself for her? 126 00:18:10,936 --> 00:18:11,925 Don't know. 127 00:18:19,745 --> 00:18:21,269 Yes, it's true. 128 00:18:22,448 --> 00:18:25,417 On the marketplace at Louang Prabang... 129 00:18:25,451 --> 00:18:27,214 the day she left. 130 00:18:27,253 --> 00:18:28,948 He was her lover. 131 00:19:09,428 --> 00:19:11,419 The smoke doesn't bother you? 132 00:19:11,464 --> 00:19:12,931 l mean, in here? 133 00:19:12,965 --> 00:19:14,455 No, not at all. 134 00:19:32,284 --> 00:19:34,411 You're at Saigon High School? 135 00:19:34,453 --> 00:19:36,546 Yes, but l sleep elsewhere... 136 00:19:36,589 --> 00:19:39,956 at the Lyautey Boardinghouse. 137 00:19:39,992 --> 00:19:41,357 Do you like studying? 138 00:19:41,393 --> 00:19:43,486 Yes. l find it interesting. 139 00:19:47,766 --> 00:19:49,199 What grade are you in? 140 00:19:49,235 --> 00:19:51,203 11th. 141 00:19:51,237 --> 00:19:53,262 And you're... 142 00:19:53,305 --> 00:19:55,330 uh...17. 143 00:19:55,374 --> 00:19:56,534 And you? 144 00:19:57,843 --> 00:19:59,606 32... 145 00:19:59,645 --> 00:20:01,510 and jobless. 146 00:20:01,547 --> 00:20:03,606 And Chinese, what's more. 147 00:20:06,452 --> 00:20:09,785 What's more...yes. 148 00:20:12,358 --> 00:20:15,350 You look so beautiful when you say that. 149 00:20:34,380 --> 00:20:37,110 Since my mother's death, my father has lived on his cot. 150 00:20:37,149 --> 00:20:38,912 He never leaves his opium pipe... 151 00:20:38,951 --> 00:20:41,749 and he nearly doesn't eat anymore. 152 00:20:41,787 --> 00:20:44,449 l never guessed the depth of their fondness. 153 00:20:44,490 --> 00:20:46,287 There it's been 10 years... 154 00:20:46,325 --> 00:20:48,953 that's he's taken care of his business like that... 155 00:20:48,994 --> 00:20:50,962 from his bed. 156 00:20:50,996 --> 00:20:53,965 He stares at the river, you see. 157 00:20:53,999 --> 00:20:54,988 l see. 158 00:20:58,003 --> 00:21:00,665 Yes, l miss Paris-- 159 00:21:00,706 --> 00:21:01,900 the parties, 160 00:21:01,941 --> 00:21:04,409 the evenings in Montparnasse... 161 00:21:04,443 --> 00:21:05,842 the coupole. 162 00:21:07,279 --> 00:21:09,247 Do you know the coupole? 163 00:21:09,281 --> 00:21:10,908 l went to France once. 164 00:21:10,950 --> 00:21:13,748 lt was in the north, near the Belgian border. 165 00:21:13,786 --> 00:21:16,448 l only know here-- the Mekong, Saigon. 166 00:21:16,488 --> 00:21:17,580 You like Saigon? 167 00:21:17,623 --> 00:21:20,023 Yes, l like Saigon. 168 00:21:20,059 --> 00:21:23,426 l like Saigon, too. Cholon above all. 169 00:21:23,462 --> 00:21:26,022 Cholon, it's like China. 170 00:24:33,786 --> 00:24:36,448 That's it. lt's here. 171 00:25:20,065 --> 00:25:21,327 Good-bye. 172 00:26:10,749 --> 00:26:13,718 You got here earlier than usual. 173 00:26:13,752 --> 00:26:17,313 l met someone on the ferry. He drove me here. 174 00:26:17,356 --> 00:26:19,187 A Chinaman. 175 00:26:24,763 --> 00:26:26,628 Helene is the only other white girl... 176 00:26:26,665 --> 00:26:29,225 in the boardinghouse. 177 00:26:29,268 --> 00:26:31,133 Helene, she is immodest. 178 00:26:31,169 --> 00:26:33,637 She doesn't realize. 179 00:26:33,672 --> 00:26:36,732 She walks naked in the dormitory. 180 00:26:36,775 --> 00:26:39,642 She doesn't know that she's very beautiful. 181 00:26:39,678 --> 00:26:40,804 She's innocent... 182 00:26:40,846 --> 00:26:43,337 lingering on in youth. 183 00:26:45,984 --> 00:26:49,613 Hey, l forgot to tell you something. 184 00:26:49,655 --> 00:26:50,713 There's a girl... 185 00:26:50,756 --> 00:26:52,621 the assistant mistresses found her... 186 00:26:52,658 --> 00:26:54,558 she was a prostitute every evening... 187 00:26:54,593 --> 00:26:56,117 behind the wall. 188 00:26:56,161 --> 00:26:57,628 Nobody noticed anything. 189 00:26:57,663 --> 00:26:59,631 -Who? -Alice. 190 00:26:59,665 --> 00:27:01,929 Alice? Who's she going with like that? 191 00:27:01,967 --> 00:27:04,595 Anybody, people walking by. 192 00:27:06,905 --> 00:27:09,169 lt's always appealed to me. 193 00:27:09,207 --> 00:27:10,401 What? 194 00:27:11,476 --> 00:27:13,910 To go with men you don't know. 195 00:27:13,946 --> 00:27:16,915 You don't even see them. Nothing. 196 00:27:16,949 --> 00:27:18,883 You'll never know their face. 197 00:27:20,452 --> 00:27:22,420 Do you think we're all like that? 198 00:27:22,454 --> 00:27:25,912 Yes. The assistant mistresses, too. 199 00:27:25,958 --> 00:27:28,722 Every woman. 200 00:27:28,760 --> 00:27:30,352 Actually, l'd rather be a prostitute... 201 00:27:30,395 --> 00:27:32,329 than take care of lepers. 202 00:27:34,132 --> 00:27:36,794 What are you talking about again? 203 00:27:36,835 --> 00:27:38,302 That's what everybody says here. 204 00:27:38,337 --> 00:27:39,702 They say they want us to study... 205 00:27:39,738 --> 00:27:41,000 but it's not true. 206 00:27:41,039 --> 00:27:42,165 They take us into boarding... 207 00:27:42,207 --> 00:27:44,198 so they can send us to the lazarets... 208 00:27:44,242 --> 00:27:45,470 with the lepers, the plague-stricken... 209 00:27:45,510 --> 00:27:47,444 the cholera-ridden. 210 00:27:47,479 --> 00:27:49,470 l'd rather be a prostitute. 211 00:27:57,289 --> 00:28:00,258 They'd be lucky, those men. 212 00:31:52,524 --> 00:31:54,617 l'm the matador. You are the bull. 213 00:31:54,659 --> 00:31:57,492 Eyes on one level. Shoulders straight. 214 00:31:57,529 --> 00:31:59,861 1... 215 00:31:59,898 --> 00:32:01,160 2... 216 00:32:01,199 --> 00:32:02,860 3...4... 217 00:32:02,901 --> 00:32:04,664 5...6. 218 00:32:13,278 --> 00:32:14,939 Look over my left shoulder... 219 00:32:14,980 --> 00:32:18,472 back out, arms locked, bottom in. 220 00:32:18,516 --> 00:32:20,575 And 1 and 2 and 3 and 4... 221 00:32:20,619 --> 00:32:22,450 and 5 and 6 and 7 and 8. 222 00:32:22,487 --> 00:32:24,421 And 1 and 2 and 3 and 4. 223 00:32:24,456 --> 00:32:26,947 5, 6, 7, 8. 224 00:32:26,992 --> 00:32:30,450 lt happened very quickly that day, a holiday... 225 00:32:30,495 --> 00:32:31,826 a Thursday. 226 00:32:33,531 --> 00:32:35,499 He came that Thursday afternoon... 227 00:32:35,533 --> 00:32:37,000 to the boardinghouse. 228 00:32:37,035 --> 00:32:39,868 He came to wait for her with the big black car. 229 00:34:00,652 --> 00:34:02,677 lt's early in the afternoon... 230 00:34:02,721 --> 00:34:04,882 the time of the siesta. 231 00:34:04,923 --> 00:34:06,891 lt's in Cholon... 232 00:34:06,925 --> 00:34:09,393 in the alleyways of Cholon... 233 00:34:09,427 --> 00:34:12,055 in the smell of soup, roast meat... 234 00:34:12,097 --> 00:34:15,396 jasmine, dust, charcoal fire... 235 00:34:15,433 --> 00:34:18,925 in the smell of the Chinese town. 236 00:34:29,948 --> 00:34:31,040 Please. 237 00:34:53,471 --> 00:34:56,440 l...l didn't choose the furniture. 238 00:34:56,474 --> 00:34:59,466 lt's--it's my father, bought me this. 239 00:35:01,913 --> 00:35:04,882 Young, rich Chinese have mistresses... 240 00:35:04,916 --> 00:35:07,908 and they call this the bachelor's room. 241 00:35:10,054 --> 00:35:11,783 Do you have many mistresses? 242 00:35:14,426 --> 00:35:18,886 Do you like the idea of me having mistresses? 243 00:35:18,930 --> 00:35:20,693 Yes, l do. 244 00:35:27,906 --> 00:35:29,737 So you followed me here... 245 00:35:29,774 --> 00:35:31,901 as you would have followed anyone. 246 00:35:31,943 --> 00:35:34,070 l wouldn't know. 247 00:35:34,112 --> 00:35:37,104 l've never followed anyone into a room yet. 248 00:35:42,954 --> 00:35:46,685 l'm...l'm afraid... 249 00:35:49,461 --> 00:35:51,793 l'm afraid of loving you. 250 00:35:54,999 --> 00:35:57,627 Listen, we'll leave. We'll come back some other time. 251 00:35:57,669 --> 00:36:00,263 Well, l'd rather you didn't love me. 252 00:36:04,075 --> 00:36:07,238 l want you to do as you usually do with other women. 253 00:36:10,782 --> 00:36:12,511 ls that what you want? 254 00:36:21,626 --> 00:36:22,820 Yes. 255 00:36:50,788 --> 00:36:52,949 l know you'll never love me. 256 00:36:56,327 --> 00:36:57,316 l... 257 00:36:58,463 --> 00:37:00,590 l don't know. 258 00:37:00,632 --> 00:37:03,567 l don't want you to talk. 259 00:37:03,601 --> 00:37:05,398 Just do as usual. 260 00:37:46,444 --> 00:37:49,641 He tore the dress off. 261 00:37:49,681 --> 00:37:53,310 He tore the little white underpants off... 262 00:37:53,351 --> 00:37:55,842 and he carried her like that... 263 00:37:55,887 --> 00:37:58,788 naked, to the bed. 264 00:38:36,894 --> 00:38:39,419 Once on the bed... 265 00:38:39,464 --> 00:38:41,625 fear overcomes him. 266 00:38:41,666 --> 00:38:42,963 l can't. 267 00:38:43,001 --> 00:38:44,662 He says it's not true... 268 00:38:44,702 --> 00:38:46,431 that she's too little... 269 00:38:46,471 --> 00:38:49,133 that he can't do such a thing. 270 00:38:49,173 --> 00:38:50,800 So... 271 00:39:09,027 --> 00:39:12,519 So she's the one who does it. 272 00:39:12,563 --> 00:39:14,861 Her eyes closed... 273 00:39:14,899 --> 00:39:18,357 she undresses him... 274 00:39:18,403 --> 00:39:20,564 button by button... 275 00:39:20,605 --> 00:39:22,095 sleeve by sleeve. 276 00:39:24,075 --> 00:39:25,235 The skin. 277 00:39:30,581 --> 00:39:32,344 The skin. 278 00:39:44,095 --> 00:39:47,929 The skin is of a sumptuous softness. 279 00:39:48,933 --> 00:39:51,401 The body is hairless... 280 00:39:51,436 --> 00:39:53,904 without any virility at all... 281 00:39:53,938 --> 00:39:57,635 other than that of the sex. 282 00:39:57,675 --> 00:39:59,836 She doesn't look him in the face. 283 00:40:00,945 --> 00:40:03,072 She touches him. 284 00:40:03,114 --> 00:40:06,914 She touches the softness of the sex... 285 00:40:06,951 --> 00:40:08,919 of the skin. 286 00:40:08,953 --> 00:40:12,650 She caresses the golden hue... 287 00:40:12,690 --> 00:40:14,590 the unknown novelty. 288 00:42:04,902 --> 00:42:07,393 l still see the place of distress... 289 00:42:07,438 --> 00:42:09,303 shipwrecked... 290 00:42:09,340 --> 00:42:10,807 the distempered walls... 291 00:42:10,842 --> 00:42:14,539 the slatted shutters giving up to the furnace. 292 00:42:14,579 --> 00:42:15,739 The soiling of the blood. 293 00:42:35,233 --> 00:42:37,167 l remember well. 294 00:42:37,201 --> 00:42:39,431 The room is dark. 295 00:42:39,470 --> 00:42:40,801 lt's surrounded by... 296 00:42:40,838 --> 00:42:44,137 the never-ending clamor of the town... 297 00:42:44,175 --> 00:42:45,904 carried away by the town... 298 00:42:45,943 --> 00:42:48,275 by the flow of the town. 299 00:42:48,312 --> 00:42:51,076 My body was in that public noise... 300 00:42:51,115 --> 00:42:53,675 this passing by from the outside... 301 00:42:53,718 --> 00:42:55,777 exposed. 302 00:42:56,787 --> 00:43:01,656 The sea, l thought... 303 00:43:01,692 --> 00:43:03,887 the immensity. 304 00:43:15,940 --> 00:43:18,500 What are you thinking about? 305 00:43:22,346 --> 00:43:23,506 They're dead. 306 00:43:36,193 --> 00:43:38,093 Did it hurt you? 307 00:43:39,764 --> 00:43:41,026 No. 308 00:43:47,872 --> 00:43:48,964 Are you sad? 309 00:43:51,976 --> 00:43:53,773 Yes, l guess. 310 00:43:53,811 --> 00:43:55,676 A little. 311 00:43:55,713 --> 00:43:57,237 l don't know. 312 00:44:02,053 --> 00:44:05,853 lt's because we've made love during the daytime... 313 00:44:05,890 --> 00:44:08,017 in the dead of the heat. 314 00:44:09,026 --> 00:44:10,823 No. 315 00:44:10,861 --> 00:44:12,328 lt's me. 316 00:44:13,698 --> 00:44:15,928 l'm always a little sad. 317 00:44:18,202 --> 00:44:19,692 l'm like my mother. 318 00:44:21,472 --> 00:44:22,905 When l told her l'd be a writer... 319 00:44:22,940 --> 00:44:24,931 she shrugged. 320 00:44:24,976 --> 00:44:26,944 She said it's not work... 321 00:44:26,978 --> 00:44:28,843 it's a childish idea. 322 00:44:28,879 --> 00:44:32,337 She wants me to do maths, my mother does... 323 00:44:32,383 --> 00:44:33,782 to earn money. 324 00:44:35,353 --> 00:44:37,344 What do you want to write? 325 00:44:37,388 --> 00:44:38,514 Books. 326 00:44:38,556 --> 00:44:39,853 Novels... 327 00:44:39,890 --> 00:44:41,858 about my elder brother... 328 00:44:41,892 --> 00:44:43,359 to kill him... 329 00:44:43,394 --> 00:44:45,362 to see him in pain... 330 00:44:45,396 --> 00:44:47,125 to make him die. 331 00:44:48,399 --> 00:44:51,857 About my younger brother to save him. 332 00:44:51,902 --> 00:44:53,893 And about that-- 333 00:44:53,938 --> 00:44:57,237 about my mother's sadness. 334 00:44:57,274 --> 00:44:59,401 About the lack of money, about shame. 335 00:45:00,845 --> 00:45:02,710 l know the bad luck with your mother... 336 00:45:02,747 --> 00:45:04,681 and the tragedies she's lived. 337 00:45:04,715 --> 00:45:07,309 How do you know? 338 00:45:07,351 --> 00:45:09,444 Through the servants. 339 00:45:09,487 --> 00:45:10,749 Through my driver. 340 00:45:11,856 --> 00:45:14,347 You know everything through the servants. 341 00:45:17,728 --> 00:45:20,322 l know about your elder brother, too. 342 00:45:20,364 --> 00:45:24,824 l met him in the opium dens along the riverside. 343 00:45:24,869 --> 00:45:26,666 He smokes too much. 344 00:45:27,872 --> 00:45:30,397 Much too much. 345 00:45:30,441 --> 00:45:32,375 The whites don't know how to smoke. 346 00:45:33,577 --> 00:45:35,010 He's an animal. 347 00:45:35,046 --> 00:45:36,877 He scares me. 348 00:45:38,382 --> 00:45:41,351 He steals from my mother to go smoke. 349 00:45:41,385 --> 00:45:43,751 He steals from the servants. 350 00:45:43,788 --> 00:45:45,983 My mother never says anything. 351 00:45:46,023 --> 00:45:47,217 He's her favorite. 352 00:45:49,860 --> 00:45:52,829 Since my father died, there's no money in the house. 353 00:45:54,665 --> 00:45:56,565 My mother lost everything here. 354 00:45:58,402 --> 00:46:00,267 She made all the wrong choices. 355 00:46:02,473 --> 00:46:04,236 So how do you manage? 356 00:46:06,343 --> 00:46:09,210 We do the best we can. 357 00:46:09,246 --> 00:46:10,804 We're shameless. 358 00:46:12,349 --> 00:46:14,840 We do the best we can. 359 00:46:25,196 --> 00:46:29,155 Did you come here because l've got money? 360 00:46:29,200 --> 00:46:30,690 l don't know. 361 00:46:33,871 --> 00:46:36,362 l came because l liked you. 362 00:46:38,776 --> 00:46:41,506 Would you like me if l were poor? 363 00:46:43,414 --> 00:46:45,848 l like you the way you are... 364 00:46:45,883 --> 00:46:47,373 with your money. 365 00:47:23,254 --> 00:47:24,721 l want to... 366 00:47:24,755 --> 00:47:26,916 take you away. 367 00:47:26,957 --> 00:47:28,083 l'd like to take you away... 368 00:47:28,125 --> 00:47:30,218 leave with you. 369 00:47:30,261 --> 00:47:32,092 l can't leave without my mother yet. 370 00:47:32,129 --> 00:47:34,723 l'm too little. 371 00:47:34,765 --> 00:47:37,097 l can't leave my mother nor my little brother. 372 00:47:37,134 --> 00:47:38,362 Not yet. 373 00:47:52,783 --> 00:47:55,775 l had asked him to do it again and again. 374 00:47:55,819 --> 00:47:58,583 To do it to me. 375 00:47:58,622 --> 00:48:00,852 He had done it. 376 00:48:00,891 --> 00:48:06,022 He had done it in the unctuousness of blood. 377 00:48:06,063 --> 00:48:09,294 l think he's used to it. 378 00:48:09,333 --> 00:48:11,301 This is what he does in life-- 379 00:48:11,335 --> 00:48:13,929 Love. Nothing else. 380 00:48:13,971 --> 00:48:15,563 l'm very lucky. 381 00:48:15,606 --> 00:48:20,771 Obviously, it's as if it were a profession he'd have. 382 00:48:20,811 --> 00:48:23,211 He's on me... 383 00:48:23,247 --> 00:48:26,216 he engulfs himself again. 384 00:48:26,250 --> 00:48:29,742 We stay like that, nailed... 385 00:48:29,787 --> 00:48:33,052 moaning in the clamor of the town. 386 00:48:48,806 --> 00:48:51,297 You see... 387 00:48:51,342 --> 00:48:54,573 you'll remember this afternoon all your life... 388 00:48:55,779 --> 00:48:58,577 even if you've forgotten my face... 389 00:48:58,616 --> 00:49:00,106 my name. 390 00:49:04,221 --> 00:49:06,712 Do you think l'll remember the room? 391 00:49:08,659 --> 00:49:10,718 Take a good look at it. 392 00:49:19,236 --> 00:49:20,794 lt's like anywhere. 393 00:49:22,606 --> 00:49:24,403 That's it. 394 00:49:24,441 --> 00:49:26,909 lt's like always. 395 00:50:01,645 --> 00:50:03,772 l wonder how l found the strength... 396 00:50:03,814 --> 00:50:08,080 to go against the forbidden with this calm... 397 00:50:08,118 --> 00:50:10,086 this determination... 398 00:50:10,120 --> 00:50:13,021 how l succeeded in going all the way... 399 00:50:13,057 --> 00:50:15,252 to the end of the idea. 400 00:50:15,292 --> 00:50:18,284 How could l have taken so much pleasure... 401 00:50:18,329 --> 00:50:21,662 for me alone with this unknown man? 402 00:51:09,947 --> 00:51:11,380 My mother... 403 00:51:11,415 --> 00:51:14,384 she'll kill me if she finds out the truth. 404 00:51:14,418 --> 00:51:16,386 My brother, he'd kill you. 405 00:51:16,420 --> 00:51:18,388 lmagine... 406 00:51:18,422 --> 00:51:20,185 with a Chinaman. 407 00:51:25,295 --> 00:51:27,024 Since l've been little... 408 00:51:27,064 --> 00:51:30,033 she tells me that here in the colonies... 409 00:51:30,067 --> 00:51:32,535 a girl that isn't a virgin anymore... 410 00:51:32,569 --> 00:51:34,537 can no longer find a husband. 411 00:51:34,571 --> 00:51:36,436 Do you think that's true? 412 00:51:36,473 --> 00:51:39,636 Yes. Your mother's right. 413 00:51:39,676 --> 00:51:41,837 lt's no longer possible after that-- 414 00:51:41,879 --> 00:51:44,905 that dishonor. 415 00:51:44,948 --> 00:51:46,415 For instance... 416 00:51:46,450 --> 00:51:48,918 if l wanted to marry you... 417 00:51:48,952 --> 00:51:51,785 well, it would not be allowed. 418 00:51:51,822 --> 00:51:54,791 We can't tolerate the idea of that. 419 00:51:54,825 --> 00:51:55,951 l'm Chinese. 420 00:51:55,993 --> 00:51:57,358 l'm sorry. 421 00:51:57,394 --> 00:52:00,295 Now that you've done that with me... 422 00:52:00,330 --> 00:52:02,890 marriage between us would be impossible. 423 00:52:04,601 --> 00:52:07,365 Well, then, it's for the best, then. 424 00:52:07,404 --> 00:52:10,396 Chinese--l don't like Chinese very much. 425 00:52:50,781 --> 00:52:51,941 Hey. 426 00:52:53,884 --> 00:52:55,044 Hey. 427 00:52:56,420 --> 00:52:57,819 Can l come into your bed? 428 00:52:57,855 --> 00:53:00,289 No, not now. 429 00:53:02,192 --> 00:53:04,752 l'll tell you about it tomorrow. 430 00:53:17,674 --> 00:53:19,904 What's wrong? What's the matter? 431 00:53:46,303 --> 00:53:48,635 What's she doing in that new car there? 432 00:53:59,616 --> 00:54:00,708 Hello. 433 00:54:33,917 --> 00:54:35,908 Wait. Wait. 434 00:57:47,611 --> 00:57:50,637 Don't be bashful. lt's a wonderful report. 435 00:57:59,022 --> 00:58:02,958 She's the sole heiress, and l'm the sole heir. 436 00:58:02,993 --> 00:58:04,961 The date has been set for years. 437 00:58:04,995 --> 00:58:07,156 That's another reason l came back from France. 438 00:58:12,736 --> 00:58:15,227 -You love her? -No. 439 00:58:16,239 --> 00:58:18,639 l don't know her. 440 00:58:18,675 --> 00:58:19,801 For us... 441 00:58:19,843 --> 00:58:22,573 marriages are arranged by the families. 442 00:58:22,612 --> 00:58:26,207 We know that a future together is unthinkable... 443 00:58:26,249 --> 00:58:28,080 so we speak of the future... 444 00:58:28,118 --> 00:58:29,915 in a casual manner... 445 00:58:29,953 --> 00:58:33,218 without any involvement, detached. 446 00:58:33,256 --> 00:58:35,053 And the two families got together... 447 00:58:35,091 --> 00:58:36,581 to hide their wealth away. 448 00:58:37,928 --> 00:58:41,125 lt's so much the customs of ancient... 449 00:58:41,164 --> 00:58:42,631 or modern China. 450 00:58:44,267 --> 00:58:47,759 We don't think we could do anything any other way. 451 00:58:51,041 --> 00:58:52,508 He's never had a job. 452 00:58:52,542 --> 00:58:55,010 He says that if he was poor... 453 00:58:55,045 --> 00:58:56,740 it would be terrible. 454 00:58:56,780 --> 00:58:58,805 He'd be much too lazy to work. 455 00:58:58,849 --> 00:59:01,841 lt's opium that takes away the strength. 456 00:59:01,885 --> 00:59:03,011 No. 457 00:59:03,053 --> 00:59:06,022 lt's wealth that takes his strength away. 458 00:59:06,056 --> 00:59:07,683 He does nothing. 459 00:59:07,724 --> 00:59:08,850 Nothing. 460 00:59:08,892 --> 00:59:10,416 Only love. 461 00:59:12,229 --> 00:59:13,696 But it's funny... 462 00:59:13,730 --> 00:59:16,392 because that's the way l desire him. 463 00:59:27,244 --> 00:59:28,871 Do you still love me? 464 01:00:16,559 --> 01:00:18,288 We are lovers. 465 01:00:18,328 --> 01:00:21,957 Every day we go back to the bachelor's room. 466 01:00:21,998 --> 01:00:23,829 We can't stop loving. 467 01:00:25,135 --> 01:00:26,466 This takes place... 468 01:00:26,503 --> 01:00:30,462 in the sleazy district of Cholon every evening. 469 01:00:30,507 --> 01:00:32,065 Every evening... 470 01:00:32,108 --> 01:00:35,077 the little one comes to receive the pleasure... 471 01:00:35,111 --> 01:00:38,911 that makes one scream from this dark man... 472 01:00:38,949 --> 01:00:41,008 this man from Cholon... 473 01:00:41,051 --> 01:00:42,780 from China. 474 01:03:39,562 --> 01:03:40,722 Hi, Mom. 475 01:03:51,441 --> 01:03:52,601 Hi, Paul. 476 01:04:17,967 --> 01:04:22,427 Now and then l go back to the house in Sa-Dec... 477 01:04:22,472 --> 01:04:25,464 to the horror of the house in Sa-Dec. 478 01:04:26,476 --> 01:04:27,943 lt's an unbearable place. 479 01:04:27,977 --> 01:04:30,002 lt's close to death... 480 01:04:30,046 --> 01:04:31,570 a place of violence... 481 01:04:31,614 --> 01:04:34,947 of pain, of despair, of dishonor. 482 01:04:36,519 --> 01:04:38,487 l forbid you to slam doors! 483 01:04:38,521 --> 01:04:40,045 Do you hear me? 484 01:04:42,225 --> 01:04:44,022 Who drove you back from Saigon? 485 01:04:44,060 --> 01:04:46,460 l told you. A friend. He lives in Vinh Long. 486 01:04:46,496 --> 01:04:48,123 He offered to drop me off on his way through. 487 01:04:48,164 --> 01:04:49,631 He's a friend! That's all. 488 01:04:49,666 --> 01:04:51,133 Who in Vinh Long? 489 01:04:51,167 --> 01:04:53,226 You wouldn't know him. 490 01:04:53,269 --> 01:04:55,396 He just got back from Paris. 491 01:04:55,438 --> 01:04:57,406 A friend. A rich friend. 492 01:04:57,440 --> 01:05:00,568 Not everybody's lucky enough to be poor. 493 01:05:00,610 --> 01:05:02,908 And this... 494 01:05:02,946 --> 01:05:04,345 what's this? 495 01:05:04,380 --> 01:05:06,678 A piece of blue paper. 496 01:05:06,716 --> 01:05:08,809 lt's a telegram from the boardinghouse. 497 01:05:08,851 --> 01:05:11,012 Where did you sleep Tuesday and Wednesday? 498 01:05:11,054 --> 01:05:12,578 Where did l sleep Tuesday and Wednesday? 499 01:05:12,622 --> 01:05:13,884 Not at the boardinghouse. 500 01:05:13,923 --> 01:05:15,982 The fans were out of order. 501 01:05:16,025 --> 01:05:17,993 l slept with my friend from Vinh Long. 502 01:05:18,027 --> 01:05:19,995 ls that what you want me to say? 503 01:05:20,029 --> 01:05:21,929 Hit her, Mom. 504 01:05:21,965 --> 01:05:23,489 Don't let her get away with it. 505 01:05:23,533 --> 01:05:25,194 But it's in this family's dryness... 506 01:05:25,235 --> 01:05:27,703 in its incredible harshness... 507 01:05:27,737 --> 01:05:31,195 that l am the most deeply assured of myself... 508 01:05:31,241 --> 01:05:34,642 in the deepest of my essential certainties. 509 01:05:34,677 --> 01:05:37,168 Our common history of ruin and shame... 510 01:05:37,213 --> 01:05:40,376 of love and hate, is in my flesh. 511 01:05:41,851 --> 01:05:44,445 Your daughter looks like a whore. 512 01:05:44,487 --> 01:05:46,421 Hey, dummy, stop that shooting! 513 01:05:46,456 --> 01:05:48,924 l am still in this family. 514 01:05:48,958 --> 01:05:50,926 This is, barring all other places... 515 01:05:50,960 --> 01:05:52,359 where l live. 516 01:05:52,395 --> 01:05:53,862 That was your dress, Mom. 517 01:05:53,896 --> 01:05:55,454 The shoes, you bought them for me. 518 01:05:55,498 --> 01:05:57,466 l've been wearing them for months. 519 01:05:57,500 --> 01:06:00,992 They were on sale, remember? Final reductions. 520 01:06:01,037 --> 01:06:03,267 You do it on purpose. 521 01:06:03,306 --> 01:06:05,706 See what a state l'm in because of you? 522 01:06:05,742 --> 01:06:08,006 lt's as though it makes you happy. 523 01:06:12,248 --> 01:06:13,977 lf you don't trust me anymore... 524 01:06:14,017 --> 01:06:16,451 just take me out of the boardinghouse. 525 01:06:18,454 --> 01:06:21,480 Besides, l'm not the one who asked to be all alone... 526 01:06:21,524 --> 01:06:24,186 all year long in Saigon. 527 01:06:24,227 --> 01:06:26,991 The mother can be very, very happy sometimes... 528 01:06:27,030 --> 01:06:28,497 the time to forget. 529 01:06:28,531 --> 01:06:30,499 That of washing the house... 530 01:06:30,533 --> 01:06:33,502 may suffice for my mother's happiness. 531 01:06:33,536 --> 01:06:36,437 She plays the piano, she cleans, she laughs... 532 01:06:36,472 --> 01:06:38,565 and everyone thinks... 533 01:06:38,608 --> 01:06:41,771 that one can be happy in this gutted house... 534 01:06:41,811 --> 01:06:43,779 that suddenly becomes a swamp... 535 01:06:43,813 --> 01:06:45,542 a field alongside a river... 536 01:06:45,581 --> 01:06:48,448 a ford, a beach. 537 01:08:18,741 --> 01:08:20,902 My respects, madame. 538 01:08:20,943 --> 01:08:22,604 My mother... 539 01:08:23,946 --> 01:08:25,607 my brother Pierre... 540 01:08:26,949 --> 01:08:29,213 and my brother Paul. 541 01:08:36,292 --> 01:08:38,385 On Saturday night they are busy. 542 01:08:40,563 --> 01:08:42,724 Will you be having a cocktail, sir? 543 01:08:42,765 --> 01:08:45,791 Yes. Three Martel-Perriers and a bottle of rice wine. 544 01:08:59,582 --> 01:09:02,050 We left China when Sun Yat-sen decreed the republic... 545 01:09:02,084 --> 01:09:05,076 and my father just sold all his lands... 546 01:09:05,121 --> 01:09:06,588 to the Japanese... 547 01:09:06,622 --> 01:09:08,590 who had already taken over Manchuria-- 548 01:09:08,624 --> 01:09:11,354 all the houses, jewels, and everything... 549 01:09:11,394 --> 01:09:14,886 to go down towards the south. 550 01:09:16,165 --> 01:09:17,632 And my mother... 551 01:09:17,667 --> 01:09:19,635 she'd just lie in the road... 552 01:09:19,669 --> 01:09:22,467 and she can't go on anymore. 553 01:09:22,505 --> 01:09:25,633 The mother and the brothers mustn't know a thing. 554 01:09:25,675 --> 01:09:27,643 lt is set by principle... 555 01:09:27,677 --> 01:09:29,144 that he's at my feet... 556 01:09:29,178 --> 01:09:31,646 that l'm with him for the money... 557 01:09:31,681 --> 01:09:33,649 that l can't love him. 558 01:09:33,683 --> 01:09:36,413 This because he's Chinese, because he's not white. 559 01:09:36,452 --> 01:09:39,910 My brothers devour and don't speak a word to him. 560 01:09:39,956 --> 01:09:43,289 l don't speak a word to him, either. 561 01:09:43,326 --> 01:09:46,784 ln my family's presence, he ceases to be my lover. 562 01:09:46,829 --> 01:09:48,296 He doesn't cease to exist... 563 01:09:48,331 --> 01:09:50,299 but he's nothing to me anymore. 564 01:09:50,333 --> 01:09:52,801 He becomes a burned-out place... 565 01:09:52,835 --> 01:09:54,302 an unacceptable scandal... 566 01:09:54,337 --> 01:09:58,967 a reason to be ashamed of, that has to be hidden. 567 01:10:11,320 --> 01:10:14,448 So, what are we waiting for? 568 01:10:14,490 --> 01:10:17,254 l'd like to have a drink at La Cascade. 569 01:10:17,293 --> 01:10:18,954 Your bill, sir. 570 01:10:18,995 --> 01:10:20,519 We'd like to go to La Cascade... 571 01:10:20,563 --> 01:10:22,053 to drink and dance. 572 01:11:19,989 --> 01:11:21,456 What makes you laugh... 573 01:11:21,490 --> 01:11:23,958 that l'm dancing with your sister? 574 01:11:23,993 --> 01:11:24,960 l'm sorry. 575 01:11:24,994 --> 01:11:26,461 You're so badly paired. 576 01:11:26,495 --> 01:11:27,962 Don't pay attention, sir. 577 01:11:27,997 --> 01:11:29,965 He's drunk, that's all. 578 01:11:29,999 --> 01:11:30,966 What? 579 01:11:31,000 --> 01:11:33,059 Can't l laugh or what? 580 01:11:35,438 --> 01:11:38,236 Do you want to fight? 581 01:11:38,274 --> 01:11:40,071 Take care, little buddy. 582 01:11:40,109 --> 01:11:43,203 lt'd take two of you to do the job. 583 01:11:43,245 --> 01:11:44,769 Oh, no. 584 01:11:44,814 --> 01:11:47,408 A lot more than that. 585 01:11:47,450 --> 01:11:50,419 Four of me, you mean. 586 01:11:50,453 --> 01:11:53,945 You have no idea how weak l am. 587 01:12:42,438 --> 01:12:44,770 We should leave. 588 01:12:44,807 --> 01:12:46,832 Forgive him, sir. 589 01:12:46,876 --> 01:12:48,776 Forgive us. 590 01:12:48,811 --> 01:12:52,178 l've not brought my children up well. 591 01:12:52,214 --> 01:12:54,910 l'm paying for it. 592 01:12:57,687 --> 01:13:00,918 l'm the one who's punished the most. 593 01:15:41,417 --> 01:15:44,409 How much is what we did worth? 594 01:15:50,793 --> 01:15:53,387 ln a brothel, how much does it cost... 595 01:15:53,429 --> 01:15:56,421 to do what you just did to me? 596 01:15:58,434 --> 01:16:01,460 How much do you need? 597 01:16:01,503 --> 01:16:04,131 My mother needs 500 piasters. 598 01:16:41,644 --> 01:16:44,374 l've got your money. 599 01:16:44,413 --> 01:16:45,641 Here. 600 01:16:47,483 --> 01:16:49,678 Where's her office? 601 01:16:49,718 --> 01:16:51,208 lt's over there. 602 01:16:54,189 --> 01:16:56,885 You see, we have to let her... 603 01:16:56,926 --> 01:16:58,894 go free in the evening... 604 01:16:58,928 --> 01:17:01,328 not tell her what time to be in. 605 01:17:01,363 --> 01:17:02,887 We mustn't force her... 606 01:17:02,932 --> 01:17:05,400 to go on trips with the boarders, either. 607 01:17:05,434 --> 01:17:08,892 She's always been a free child. Otherwise, she'd run away. 608 01:17:09,939 --> 01:17:13,397 Even l can't do a thing about that. 609 01:17:13,442 --> 01:17:16,411 She's always worked very well in school... 610 01:17:16,445 --> 01:17:18,072 even being so free. 611 01:17:18,113 --> 01:17:21,844 The headmistress accepted because l'm white... 612 01:17:21,884 --> 01:17:24,409 and that for the boardinghouse's reputation... 613 01:17:24,453 --> 01:17:27,479 amongst all the half-castes there must be a few whites. 614 01:17:27,523 --> 01:17:29,991 She let me live in the boardinghouse... 615 01:17:30,025 --> 01:17:31,583 as if it were a hotel. 616 01:17:32,962 --> 01:17:34,930 Other than my French teacher... 617 01:17:34,964 --> 01:17:37,364 nobody speaks to me at school. 618 01:17:37,399 --> 01:17:40,425 lt's because of you. 619 01:17:40,469 --> 01:17:41,902 That's your imagination. 620 01:17:41,937 --> 01:17:43,370 No. 621 01:17:43,405 --> 01:17:45,873 There have been some complaints from families. 622 01:17:45,908 --> 01:17:47,876 They say l'm a slut... 623 01:17:47,910 --> 01:17:50,378 and goes to the shady part of town... 624 01:17:50,412 --> 01:17:52,846 to have her body fondled by a Chinaman. 625 01:17:52,881 --> 01:17:54,007 lt's nothing. 626 01:17:57,886 --> 01:17:59,877 That's true. lt's nothing. 627 01:18:16,338 --> 01:18:18,397 Ooh! lt touched her. lt's nasty. 628 01:18:19,408 --> 01:18:22,707 Ooh! She sleeps with a Chinaman. 629 01:18:50,406 --> 01:18:54,365 One day you're going to go back to France. 630 01:18:54,410 --> 01:18:56,105 l can't take that. 631 01:19:03,852 --> 01:19:06,685 When are you going back to France? 632 01:19:06,722 --> 01:19:09,020 At the end of the school year... 633 01:19:09,058 --> 01:19:10,457 but it's not sure. 634 01:19:10,492 --> 01:19:13,188 My mother has a lot of difficulty in leaving here. 635 01:19:30,312 --> 01:19:32,746 The stone belonged to my mother. 636 01:19:32,781 --> 01:19:35,011 Take it. 637 01:22:41,303 --> 01:22:43,794 And l said to him that it's too new... 638 01:22:43,839 --> 01:22:45,830 it's too strong... 639 01:22:45,874 --> 01:22:49,401 and l said to him that... 640 01:22:49,444 --> 01:22:53,904 it is horrid to take you away from my body. 641 01:22:53,949 --> 01:22:57,407 l--l said to him that he--my father-- 642 01:22:57,452 --> 01:23:01,411 he--he should know what it is... 643 01:23:01,456 --> 01:23:05,688 a love like this-- so strong... 644 01:23:05,727 --> 01:23:08,924 that it never happens again in a lifetime-- 645 01:23:08,964 --> 01:23:10,124 never. 646 01:23:19,975 --> 01:23:22,944 He wants this marriage with... 647 01:23:22,978 --> 01:23:25,469 this young girl l've never seen. 648 01:23:29,651 --> 01:23:33,451 He shows no mercy for me. 649 01:23:33,488 --> 01:23:35,854 He shows none for anyone. 650 01:23:37,926 --> 01:23:39,393 And you? 651 01:23:39,428 --> 01:23:41,521 Do you want this marriage? 652 01:23:44,900 --> 01:23:46,993 The question is not of wanting... 653 01:23:47,035 --> 01:23:49,060 or not wanting. 654 01:24:01,183 --> 01:24:04,152 l'm nothing without my father's wealth. 655 01:24:06,955 --> 01:24:09,219 He told me... 656 01:24:11,460 --> 01:24:14,020 ''l'd rather see you dead... 657 01:24:14,062 --> 01:24:17,156 than know you were with that white girl.'' 658 01:24:17,199 --> 01:24:18,928 But he's right. 659 01:24:18,967 --> 01:24:21,435 He's right because anyhow l'll leave... 660 01:24:21,470 --> 01:24:24,064 and l have no love for you. 661 01:24:42,657 --> 01:24:43,988 You see. 662 01:24:44,025 --> 01:24:45,253 lt's here. 663 01:24:46,695 --> 01:24:49,391 My mother, when l was little... 664 01:24:49,431 --> 01:24:51,558 wanted to erect a dam... 665 01:24:51,600 --> 01:24:54,398 to protect her good-growing land. 666 01:24:54,436 --> 01:24:57,064 She wanted to become rich for us. 667 01:24:59,775 --> 01:25:00,969 She put all the savings... 668 01:25:01,009 --> 01:25:03,307 left after my father's death into it. 669 01:25:06,448 --> 01:25:08,916 People lied to her. 670 01:25:08,950 --> 01:25:11,919 The land registrar agents sold her flood lands... 671 01:25:11,953 --> 01:25:14,421 just to earn their premiums. 672 01:25:14,456 --> 01:25:16,924 Saltwater covered everything. 673 01:25:16,958 --> 01:25:20,086 She lost everything here--everything. 674 01:25:20,128 --> 01:25:21,925 lt took her years... 675 01:25:21,963 --> 01:25:23,430 to believe that it was possible... 676 01:25:23,465 --> 01:25:25,933 for people to steal all her savings... 677 01:25:25,967 --> 01:25:28,197 and then never acknowledge her again... 678 01:25:28,236 --> 01:25:29,430 to throw her out. 679 01:25:29,471 --> 01:25:32,440 She would scream. She had fits. 680 01:25:32,474 --> 01:25:34,169 People started to say that she was crazy... 681 01:25:34,209 --> 01:25:35,699 to not believe what she said... 682 01:25:35,744 --> 01:25:37,871 about her money anymore... 683 01:25:37,913 --> 01:25:40,404 to say that she was lying. 684 01:25:41,817 --> 01:25:45,378 We never saw another white person for years. 685 01:25:45,420 --> 01:25:48,878 The whites were ashamed of us. 686 01:25:48,924 --> 01:25:51,392 She had to give everything up. 687 01:25:51,426 --> 01:25:52,893 The upper rice paddy-- 688 01:25:52,928 --> 01:25:54,896 she gave it to the servants... 689 01:25:54,930 --> 01:25:58,058 along with the bungalow and all the furniture. 690 01:26:03,939 --> 01:26:05,406 We used to sit here... 691 01:26:05,440 --> 01:26:07,908 with my mother and my little brother... 692 01:26:07,943 --> 01:26:10,912 and we'd watch the sky of Siam... 693 01:26:10,946 --> 01:26:13,278 over there behind the mountains. 694 01:26:24,960 --> 01:26:27,121 You feel cold? 695 01:26:27,162 --> 01:26:28,629 A little. 696 01:27:00,228 --> 01:27:02,389 That evening l know it. 697 01:27:02,430 --> 01:27:05,399 l know only that... 698 01:27:05,433 --> 01:27:09,893 later l will write my mother's life-- 699 01:27:09,938 --> 01:27:14,898 how she was killed by the land registrar agents... 700 01:27:14,943 --> 01:27:17,434 robbed by the government officials. 701 01:27:19,314 --> 01:27:21,407 To write-- 702 01:27:21,449 --> 01:27:24,418 that's what l see beyond the moment... 703 01:27:24,452 --> 01:27:25,919 in that great desert... 704 01:27:25,954 --> 01:27:28,422 under the features of which... 705 01:27:28,456 --> 01:27:31,550 l see the extent of my life. 706 01:27:50,812 --> 01:27:52,871 ls she beautiful? 707 01:27:52,914 --> 01:27:54,040 She's rich. 708 01:27:58,153 --> 01:28:01,418 The family chose her also because of that. 709 01:28:03,425 --> 01:28:06,519 She's covered with gold... 710 01:28:06,561 --> 01:28:08,392 jade... 711 01:28:08,430 --> 01:28:10,455 and diamonds. 712 01:28:15,937 --> 01:28:19,498 Did you ever sleep with a white girl before me? 713 01:28:25,013 --> 01:28:27,243 ln Paris, of course. 714 01:28:29,451 --> 01:28:32,420 Here, no. 715 01:28:32,454 --> 01:28:33,819 Why? 716 01:28:36,458 --> 01:28:38,585 Here... 717 01:28:38,627 --> 01:28:41,357 other than French prostitutes... 718 01:28:41,396 --> 01:28:44,365 it's impossible to have white women. 719 01:28:46,401 --> 01:28:48,562 Totally impossible. 720 01:29:20,935 --> 01:29:24,200 l want you to say it to me once. 721 01:29:27,175 --> 01:29:31,612 You came here so that l'd give you money. 722 01:29:33,448 --> 01:29:36,940 l came here so that you'd give me money. 723 01:29:42,590 --> 01:29:44,455 Repeat after me. 724 01:29:46,961 --> 01:29:49,930 l was thinking about money... 725 01:29:49,964 --> 01:29:52,762 and only about money... 726 01:29:52,801 --> 01:29:56,430 from the moment l saw you on the ferry. 727 01:29:56,471 --> 01:29:58,439 l was thinking about money... 728 01:29:58,473 --> 01:29:59,940 and only about money... 729 01:29:59,974 --> 01:30:03,466 since the moment l saw you on the ferry. 730 01:30:07,482 --> 01:30:09,382 You're a whore. 731 01:30:10,652 --> 01:30:12,552 You're a whore. 732 01:30:16,925 --> 01:30:19,826 l don't find that disgusting. 733 01:30:19,861 --> 01:30:22,056 On the contrary... 734 01:30:44,953 --> 01:30:46,420 You know... 735 01:30:49,457 --> 01:30:51,152 before you... 736 01:30:52,727 --> 01:30:55,355 l knew nothing about suffering. 737 01:30:59,968 --> 01:31:01,765 l would love to... 738 01:31:03,972 --> 01:31:07,430 l would love to take you... 739 01:31:07,475 --> 01:31:09,943 but l'm without strength. 740 01:31:15,450 --> 01:31:18,180 l'm without any strength at all. 741 01:31:23,391 --> 01:31:24,881 l'm dead. 742 01:31:28,496 --> 01:31:30,987 l have no desire for you. 743 01:31:41,142 --> 01:31:44,373 My body no longer wants the one who doesn't love. 744 01:32:57,518 --> 01:33:00,043 Do you know what that's worth? 745 01:33:00,088 --> 01:33:01,988 You want to have us believe... 746 01:33:02,023 --> 01:33:04,514 he just gave it to you for your pretty face? 747 01:33:07,896 --> 01:33:09,727 Why did he give you such a diamond? 748 01:33:09,764 --> 01:33:12,494 Why? Because he's rich. 749 01:33:12,533 --> 01:33:14,831 Your daughter's whoring. 750 01:33:18,773 --> 01:33:20,240 Take it! Sell it! 751 01:33:20,275 --> 01:33:22,266 See if l care about that ring! 752 01:33:22,310 --> 01:33:24,244 You slept with him. l'm sure of it. 753 01:33:24,279 --> 01:33:25,507 Just take a look at her. 754 01:33:25,546 --> 01:33:27,070 She's a disgrace. 755 01:33:27,115 --> 01:33:28,082 What? 756 01:33:28,116 --> 01:33:29,583 You've got to do something, Mum. 757 01:33:29,617 --> 01:33:33,018 What are you saying? Me with a Chinaman? 758 01:33:33,054 --> 01:33:35,022 Nothing happened-- nothing-- 759 01:33:35,056 --> 01:33:36,751 not even a kiss. 760 01:33:43,398 --> 01:33:46,162 lt smells of Chinese. 761 01:33:49,003 --> 01:33:50,994 You slept with him. 762 01:33:53,141 --> 01:33:54,506 Say it. 763 01:33:57,211 --> 01:33:58,644 Say it. 764 01:33:58,680 --> 01:34:00,477 Say it! 765 01:34:00,515 --> 01:34:02,745 You're going to say it, you bitch! 766 01:34:02,784 --> 01:34:04,308 You filthy bitch! 767 01:34:04,352 --> 01:34:07,446 You slept with a Chink. Did you like it? Huh? 768 01:34:07,488 --> 01:34:09,479 Pierre, stop! 769 01:34:09,524 --> 01:34:13,153 Stop it, l say! Stop it! You're going to kill her! 770 01:34:13,194 --> 01:34:15,924 Stop it! Stop it, for god's sake! 771 01:34:15,964 --> 01:34:17,431 You're killing her, Pierre! 772 01:34:17,465 --> 01:34:18,727 Stop it! 773 01:36:39,907 --> 01:36:43,365 l thought my child wouldn't come anymore. 774 01:36:43,411 --> 01:36:45,436 l took a rickshaw. 775 01:36:49,484 --> 01:36:51,145 Did you smoke a lot? 776 01:36:52,920 --> 01:36:54,410 That's all l do. 777 01:36:56,657 --> 01:36:58,648 l have no desire left. 778 01:36:59,927 --> 01:37:01,918 l have no love left. 779 01:37:03,898 --> 01:37:05,559 lt's wonderful. 780 01:37:05,600 --> 01:37:09,900 lt's as though we'd never met... 781 01:37:09,937 --> 01:37:13,703 or as though you left months ago. 782 01:37:29,957 --> 01:37:32,016 When are you getting married? 783 01:37:36,631 --> 01:37:38,792 Next Friday... 784 01:37:38,833 --> 01:37:41,631 and leaving... 785 01:37:41,669 --> 01:37:45,662 on the Alexandre Dumas the 12th. 786 01:37:48,342 --> 01:37:50,537 Look at me. 787 01:37:50,578 --> 01:37:56,039 l'm going to die of love for you. 788 01:38:01,122 --> 01:38:02,589 After your marriage... 789 01:38:02,623 --> 01:38:04,591 we'll meet here one time-- 790 01:38:04,625 --> 01:38:05,592 just once. 791 01:38:05,626 --> 01:38:07,890 You remember? 792 01:38:07,929 --> 01:38:09,658 You promised me. 793 01:40:28,502 --> 01:40:31,869 You're also selling the rosewood table? 794 01:40:31,906 --> 01:40:33,601 Yes. 795 01:40:33,641 --> 01:40:36,109 l'm leaving everything. 796 01:40:36,143 --> 01:40:38,634 lt's all finished here. 797 01:40:44,352 --> 01:40:48,186 The only thing l'll miss are the metal beds. 798 01:40:48,222 --> 01:40:51,316 ln France, the beds are too soft. 799 01:40:56,464 --> 01:40:59,365 What's that hat? 800 01:40:59,400 --> 01:41:02,927 Mom, l've been wearing it for months. 801 01:41:04,472 --> 01:41:07,635 -Did l buy that for you? -Who else? 802 01:41:07,675 --> 01:41:10,109 Some days we can make you buy anything we want. 803 01:41:10,144 --> 01:41:12,578 l forgot. 804 01:41:16,484 --> 01:41:18,452 You know... 805 01:41:18,486 --> 01:41:20,420 l wasn't like you. 806 01:41:23,224 --> 01:41:27,092 l didn't study as easily as you do... 807 01:41:27,128 --> 01:41:29,289 and l... 808 01:41:34,001 --> 01:41:36,231 l was very serious... 809 01:41:38,539 --> 01:41:41,736 for so long--too long. 810 01:41:45,446 --> 01:41:47,346 That's how l lost the feeling... 811 01:41:47,381 --> 01:41:49,406 of my own pleasure. 812 01:41:54,155 --> 01:41:56,919 He did a really good thing, truly. 813 01:41:56,957 --> 01:41:58,925 Who did a good thing? 814 01:41:58,959 --> 01:42:00,517 Your friend-- 815 01:42:00,561 --> 01:42:02,722 your Chinese friend. 816 01:42:02,763 --> 01:42:04,492 He paid off your brother's debts... 817 01:42:04,532 --> 01:42:06,966 at the opium den. 818 01:42:07,001 --> 01:42:08,935 He also paid for the trip. 819 01:42:08,969 --> 01:42:10,698 He was wonderful-- 820 01:42:10,738 --> 01:42:12,865 very discreet, too. 821 01:42:12,907 --> 01:42:15,432 l had underestimated him. 822 01:42:15,476 --> 01:42:18,001 l'm sorry about that. 823 01:42:22,483 --> 01:42:25,475 Do you only see him for the money? 824 01:42:28,489 --> 01:42:29,979 Yes. 825 01:46:35,903 --> 01:46:39,361 lt was when the boat uttered its first farewell... 826 01:46:39,406 --> 01:46:42,375 and the gangway had been hauled up... 827 01:46:42,409 --> 01:46:45,378 and the tugs had started to tow it... 828 01:46:45,412 --> 01:46:48,381 to draw it away from the land... 829 01:46:48,415 --> 01:46:49,905 that she had wept. 830 01:46:51,418 --> 01:46:54,387 She'd done it without showing her tears... 831 01:46:54,421 --> 01:46:57,879 without showing her mother or her little brother... 832 01:46:57,925 --> 01:46:59,893 that she was sad... 833 01:46:59,927 --> 01:47:01,394 without showing anything... 834 01:47:01,428 --> 01:47:04,829 as was the custom between them. 835 01:47:53,847 --> 01:47:56,873 He was there. 836 01:47:56,917 --> 01:47:59,852 That was him in the back-- 837 01:47:59,887 --> 01:48:02,879 that scarcely visible shape... 838 01:48:02,923 --> 01:48:07,587 that made no movement, crushed. 839 01:48:14,101 --> 01:48:16,092 She was leaning on the railing... 840 01:48:16,136 --> 01:48:19,105 like the first time on the ferry. 841 01:48:19,139 --> 01:48:21,403 She knew he was watching her. 842 01:48:21,441 --> 01:48:23,841 She was watching him, too. 843 01:48:45,899 --> 01:48:48,959 She couldn't see him anymore, but she still looked... 844 01:48:49,002 --> 01:48:51,971 towards the shape of the black car. 845 01:49:02,015 --> 01:49:04,984 ln the end, she didn't see it anymore. 846 01:49:05,018 --> 01:49:07,384 The harbor had faded away... 847 01:49:07,421 --> 01:49:09,389 and then the land. 848 01:49:27,541 --> 01:49:28,769 One night... 849 01:49:28,809 --> 01:49:31,778 during the crossing of the lndian Ocean... 850 01:49:31,812 --> 01:49:34,406 in the main room on the big deck... 851 01:49:34,448 --> 01:49:36,916 there had been a sudden burst... 852 01:49:36,950 --> 01:49:38,941 of a waltz by Chopin. 853 01:49:43,457 --> 01:49:45,425 There wasn't a breath of wind... 854 01:49:45,459 --> 01:49:47,051 and that night... 855 01:49:47,094 --> 01:49:50,928 the music had spread all over the black liner... 856 01:49:50,964 --> 01:49:52,932 like an injunction from heaven... 857 01:49:52,966 --> 01:49:54,433 related to something unknown... 858 01:49:54,468 --> 01:49:56,436 like an order from God... 859 01:49:56,470 --> 01:49:58,961 whose meaning was inscrutable. 860 01:50:21,161 --> 01:50:22,628 She had wept... 861 01:50:22,663 --> 01:50:26,463 because she had thought of that man from Cholon-- 862 01:50:26,500 --> 01:50:27,933 her lover-- 863 01:50:27,968 --> 01:50:29,936 and suddenly she wasn't sure... 864 01:50:29,970 --> 01:50:31,460 of not having loved him... 865 01:50:31,505 --> 01:50:33,473 with a love she hadn't seen... 866 01:50:33,507 --> 01:50:36,101 because it had lost itself in the story... 867 01:50:36,143 --> 01:50:38,111 like water in the sand... 868 01:50:38,145 --> 01:50:41,114 and that she was rediscovering it now... 869 01:50:41,148 --> 01:50:45,585 in this moment of music flung across the sea. 870 01:51:09,142 --> 01:51:11,042 Years after the war... 871 01:51:11,078 --> 01:51:13,342 after the marriages, the children... 872 01:51:13,380 --> 01:51:15,439 the divorces, the books... 873 01:51:15,482 --> 01:51:18,451 he had come to Paris with his wife. 874 01:51:18,485 --> 01:51:20,146 He had phoned her. 875 01:51:22,489 --> 01:51:23,956 He was intimidated. 876 01:51:23,991 --> 01:51:25,982 His voice trembled... 877 01:51:26,026 --> 01:51:27,493 and with the trembling... 878 01:51:27,527 --> 01:51:31,054 it had found the accent of China again. 879 01:51:31,098 --> 01:51:33,464 He knew she'd begun writing books. 880 01:51:33,500 --> 01:51:36,901 He had also heard about the younger brother's death. 881 01:51:36,937 --> 01:51:39,405 He had been sad for her... 882 01:51:39,439 --> 01:51:43,398 and then he hadn't known what to tell her... 883 01:51:43,443 --> 01:51:45,911 and then he'd told her-- 884 01:51:45,946 --> 01:51:48,744 he had told her that it was as before... 885 01:51:48,782 --> 01:51:51,410 that he still loved her... 886 01:51:51,451 --> 01:51:53,919 that he would never stop loving her... 887 01:51:53,954 --> 01:51:56,946 that he would love her until his death.