El Sur (The South)
Fall 1957
(Dog barks)
Agustin?
Casilda! Casilda!
What's wrong, miss?
My husband is gone!
And Sinbad won't stop barking.
Agustiiiin!
Agustiiin!
(dials phone)
Provincial Hospital?
Is Dr. Arenas there?
This is his wife calling.
Miss! Estrella's bicycle is gone!
No, I just wanted to know if he spent the night there.
Do you know where he could be?
Yes...
If he arrives, please tell him to call home right away.
Yes, it's very urgent.
Yes. His wife.
Thank you very much.
That day at sunrise,
when I found his pendulum under my pillow
I felt I knew
that everything had changed,
that he would never come back home.
Well?
A girl.
Are you sure?
I'm sure.
What will she be called?
Estrella.
They told me that my father divined
that I would be a little girl
Its the first thing about him that comes to mind
an intense image, that in reality
I had only invented.
Want some?
Yes.
I kept growing while we moved around from place to place
My father looked for a full-time job.
He found it in the north,
in a city surrounded by walls
on the banks of a river.
We lived in the outskirts
in a rented house
"The Seagull. "
It was in the no-man's land
between the countryside and the city
next to a road my Dad used to call "The Border".
We'll follow the same treatment, ok? Yes, yes.
Come on, Agustin, when do I get out of here?
I'm sick of this, man
I have to be home.
Very soon, very soon.
But you have to do what Sol Lucia tells you, ok?
And relax. Relax.
(motorcycle approaches)
Will you give me a ride?
Isn't it a bit late?
Noo. C'mon, just one.
Alright...
C'mon, get on.
Faster, faster!
Sure, sure.
Estrella!
Less noise!
Your father's upstairs.
How was I supposed to know?
If you bother him,
he can't do his experiments.
(floorboards creak)
(ball bounces noisily)
Estrella! What..
What did I tell you before?
It dropped.
Hey Mom,
Why doesn't Dad want anyone to come into the attic?
Because all the power he keeps in there
would escape.
I see.
That's why he locks the door?
If he lost that power,
he couldn't do any of what he does.
Where does he get it from?
From nowhere.
It's just something he has.
He's always had it?
Yes,
since he was born.
And I?
Could I have it too?
I don't know...
you're his daughter...
yes, perhaps.
Would you like that?
Very much!
Well,
now its bedtime.
Good night, darling.
Good night, Mom.
The first thing you have to learn
is how to hold the pendulum.
Take it.
Don't press your fingers too much.
Hmmm?
Ahh yes,
that's the way.
Now,
close your eyes a little
without thinking about anything
No, no
Don't grip the chain so tight
Let it stay loose
That's it
Now
you do it.
Don't think about anything
Slowly
Slow
Slow, thats it
thats it
very good.
Your mind completely empty.
Very good.
Dad! Its spinning!
Stop!
Stop there!
Its spinning!
Now he's found it. Now he's going to check the depth.
(coins clink)
Go ahead and count them.
Well, Don Agustin, has it appeared?
Yes, the water's here.
(one, two, three...)
And how far down do we have to dig? (Four...)
Each coin counts as a meter (Five...)
The total equals the depth you have to dig. (six...)
(... seven,eight.)
And how many coins are there?
Eight.
Eight meters. Thats what you have to excavate.
Well, okay, now we know what to do.
That's easy, not too deep.
My father was capable of doing things
that others saw as almost miracles
but to me
being a part of him,
they seemed the most normal things in the world.
My mother was one of the schoolteachers
retaliated against after the civil war.
She taught me to read and write.
Softly going up
and strongly going down.
A little more
more ink, wet your pen.
Oh, another inkstain!
It doesn't matter, go on
Go on
That's it.
She was with me everyday
however I have few definite memories of her
from that time.
I remember her sitting next to a window
in the afternoons
sewing my dresses,
in the greenhouse
taking care of her flowers,
in the patio varnishing old furniture
that she got from God knows where.
And at night
reading those novels she liked so much.
How is it?
Very nice.
My father's origins were, for me,
always a true mystery.
I knew nothing of his past
but it never bothered me
What's that?
Spearmint
It smells so good!
We'll bring some to your mother
to put in the soup.
For me it was enough having him by my side
for nothing else to bother me.
The story that mystery held
opened up for me little by little
through my mother's words.
In the south
it almost never snows.
What a strange place!
Hey Mom,
how come we've never gone there?
Your father left there when he was very young
and he's never wanted to return.
Why did he leave?
He never got along with your grandfather
I've been told they were like cats and dogs
that your father was very rebellious
and your grandfather very bad-tempered.
So, you can just imagine it
what happened.
From the very beginning
these stories were like fantasies
and I filled them with images I gathered from all over.
Not knowing the real distances involved
I located it on the other side of the globe
always with palm trees in the background
somewhere in the south.
Something happened there to my father
I never got clear exactly what
something that made him leave and never return.
One May afternoon
the day before my first communion
two women arrived from the south.
The Seagull! There it is!
Do you see it?
Where?
On top of that house, it seems like it's flying for real!
Milagros, I don't see anything.
Pepe! Hit the brakes! It has to right here.
Are you sure, Milagros? If we're wrong...
I said to stop, you untrustful...
(horn honks)
I think they're here.
Run. Go to open up.
What a racket you're making, woman.
I'm coming!
Mom!
They're here!
Now I hope you behave
And where's your father?
Dad!
DAD!
Come here a moment, Estrella.
What for?
I'm going to comb your hair a little.
But I'm fine!
Please.
Come on.
Does Don Agustin Arenas live here?
Yes, we've been waiting for you.
Pepe, go ahead and unload the trunks.
I don't... I don't like it parted on that side!
That's how you always wear it.
But it looks terrible!
Its prettier with your hair up out of your face, stop fidgeting.
When you see your grandmother, don't forget to give her a kiss.
Okay...
I'm telling you because I know you.
Agustin.
Agustin. Agustin, my boy!
How many years it's been...
and such a shame for all of us.
You've changed so much.
Are you content?
Yes.
You're not just saying that?
How's my mother?
She's in the car
She's so-so she had a bit of colic four days ago.
What a misfortune, we almost had to stay home.
Go on... Go and find her.
Estrellita?
You are Estrella, right?
Yes. And you're Milagros.
That's right!
Hello, son.
How are you?
A little weak, but good.
And Estrella?
She's grown a lot, you won't recognize her.
This beard...
makes you look so old.
Get rid of it.
And your wife?
Good, good. Come on, let's go into the house.
Yes, let's go.
I cant believe how far away this place is, I thought we'd never arrive.
Good afternoon, Miss.
What's your name, dear?
Casilda.
Look, can you do me a favor and grab my cane, it's in there.
"The Seagull. "
Did you give it that name?
No, it was here when we arrived.
Estrella!
Do you remember me?
It's your granddmother...
The last time I saw you
you were just born.
Julia.
How are you?
So-so, dear.
Just so-so.
But I wanted to see my granddaughter
on the day of her first communion
and here I am!
You must be tired and its getting chilly.
Let's go in.
Here is Miss' cane...
Help Pepe with the luggage.
You know who I'm remembering right now?
Who?
Your father.
If only he were here.
Milagros was the woman who took care of my father since he was a boy.
She had a way about her
that seemed incredible to me.
Different from everyone I'd known up to that point.
That night we had to sleep in the same room.
When does it start to get warm here, my girl?
Here its almost never warm.
No? What a strange world we live in.
In some places, people burn up from the heat,
and in others they freeze from the cold.
Well, I'm old enough to know what to do.
And is it very hot in your town?
Very hot.
How do you stand it?
With patience and good shade.
Hey, is it true there are a lot of Moors?
There are still a few, but all disguised.
Now why are you laughing?
I like how you talk.
My dad doesn't speak like that.
Because he's a "gentleman" and a renegade who prefers to forget about his hometown.
Now, don't pay me any attention, Estrellita,
Or I'll starting shooting off my mouth and never stop.
But oh what a shame that he's never been back to the house where he was born
And how many years its been since he left!
I know.
What would you know about it, dear?
Well, that my father never went back because he fought with grandfather.
Your father told you that?
No, my mom told me.
Hey, is it true that Grandpa is a very bad man?
Go on! Thats just talk from the old times.
And you know what?
Even a wild animal gets tamer with age.
Your grandfather has changed.
And with all that happened back then,
and all the people who died...
And all for their ideas.
Its true your Grandfather had it bad,
And as your father always thought the opposite he just couldn't take it.
Your grandfather could've kept it in, but your father didn't keep quiet.
Just the opposite.
So they were at each other all the time.
They lost respect for each other.
Until one day your father left home.
Your grandfather never understood why they argued.
And Its been like that ever since.
They both entered a tunnel with no way out and there they stay, trapped.
But Grandpa was one of the bad guys, right?
Bad guys, good guys,
Look, just so you understand
When the republic, well... before the war
Your grandfather was one of the bad guys
and your father was one of the good guys
but then, when Franco won,
your grandfather became a saint
and your father became a demon.
You see how things are in this world?
Just words, and only words.
But... why was my father a prisoner of war?
Well, because that's what the winners in a war always do.
But you're such a little girl, who told you all this, at your age?
My mother.
My goodness, couldn't she have told you nicer things?
Or waited a little. You've got plenty of time to learn about all that.
thats what I say.
Look, Estrellita, you are just a little girl!
Forget about those things now and think about your first communion tomorrow.
One of the most beautiful days of your life.
Like if you were getting married.
Thats what the priest said too, but I dont understand.
Well me neither, but you get to dress in white just like a bride.
Well when I grow up I'm never getting married.
And why not?
Because all brides have that stupid look on their faces.
Look at the wedding photos in the stores, you'll see.
Alright, enough chitchat!
Wait, don't turn it off!
What do you want?
Milagros, do you think my dad will come to church tomorrow?
Of course he will
Its just - he never goes.
I know, but don't you worry, I'll get him in there if I have to push him myself!
Now go on, go to sleep.
Good night, Estrellita.
Good night, Milagros.
(rooster crows)
Mom, these shoes are too tight!
I told you so in the store and you didn't listen.
That always happens at first, you know later they get more comfortable
Julia, put a little talcum powder.
And now... the veil!
(shots fired)
What was that?
Agustin, out shooting.
Now who would think to do that?
My son's never happy if he's not calling attention to himself!
Theres no excuse for firing shots on a day like today
He does things like that when you least expect it.
But I'm getting used to it.
(more shots)
Will he be back soon?
Mom, will he be back soon?
I don't know, Estrella, I don't know.
Just like a bride!
Milagros!
The things you say!
Am I right, or am I right, Estrellita?
(many shots fired)
(choir singing)
(... corpus dominus de jesus cristo...)
Amen.
(... corpus dominus de jesus cristo...)
Amen.
Now, girls, having received Our Lord
go and greet your parents.
He's here.
Where?
In the back.
If you get tired, you can step outside
but don't go, okay?
Okay.
He did it for me. He did it for me.
(accordian playing)
(cheering)
They left after the party was over.
late in the afternoon.
From that day on, whenever I thought about the south,
those two women came to mind.
I don't remember clearly now
but I think it was around that same time
I discovered that, in my father's imagination
another woman existed.
(Irene Rios)
Who could Irene Rios be?
Did she really exist?
Or was she just an imaginary figure?
Why did Dad write her name so many times?
Mom, do you know Irene Rios?
No.
Who is she?
No one - a new girl
who just arrived in my class.
I lied the first time I spoke of Irene Rios
My mother's ignorance made me suspect that
behind this woman's name my father was hiding something
unknown to me.
Thus without hardly realizing it, I became his secret accomplice.
A few months later
when I least expected it
something extraordinary happened.
I discovered that Irene Rios existed for real.
It was on a winter afternoon,
just as school was getting out.
(knocks on glass)
Do you have a program?
You know its not permitted?
Yes, I know.
Here you are.
Who is Irene Rios?
Who?
Irene Rios - she's in this movie.
Yes, here it is, you're right.
Is she the blonde or the brunette?
Carmencita Alonso is the brunette
so Irene Rios must be the blonde.
Is there much time left until the movie finishes?
Half an hour.
Well, goodbye. Goodbye.
(humming Blue Moon)
(sings Blue Moon refrain)
(You!)
(Yes, me!)
(Are you surprised?)
(I thought that...)
(Go on, continue... I dare you to tell me everything!)
(You're wrong, it's not what you think.)
(You thought I was dead.)
(No, that's not true.)
(I swear it.) (Don't swear or God will hear you.)
(You're such a fool.)
(That's true, I am a fool - that's why I love you.)
(Give me a light.)
(Well, why are you here?)
(I go on in a minute, I can't be wasting time.)
(I just wanted to say goodbye.)
(You're leaving?)
(No, not me... but you are.)
(What are you saying?)
(You're crazy.)
(That's true, I'm crazy -)
BANG! (fires gun)
BANG! (glass shatters)
(I was listening for a moment at the door)
(I heard you singing our song)
(We could have been so happy)
(Happy?)
(Yes, happy!)
(I never knew what that meant.)
(How I loved her!)
(Blue Moon refrain starts)
Dear Laura,
I am sure you will be surprised to receive this letter
after so much time silent.
But I've just seen how your film lover
shot you twice and sent you into the next world.
Yes... I know that what happens in the movies isn't real
but I'm still hopelessly superstitious.
And i want to see if you are still
here on earth
Even if its just slinking around
with that stage name you chose.
By the way, your killer was pretty good.
But the star and the leading man were terrible.
Since I don't know where you are
I'm mailing this letter to Seville.
(knocks on window)
I'll never forget the face my father made
sitting there inside the Cafe Oriental
when he lifted his eyes from the page
and saw me on the other side of the windowpane.
Now I understand it was a natural reaction
as though I'd caught him somehow remiss
but at that time I didn't realize it.
I only knew that it seemed to me he'd been writing a letter.
Julia, Julia! Listen to me!
Shh! You'll wake her up!
Please, just listen to me a moment
How many times do I have to tell you, I don't want to hear about it!
If you want to go talk to her, just do it!
Do whatever you want, just don't tell me about it!
None of it!
That's not it, that's not it.
You're wrong, Julia.
The idea I had had about my father started to change then
like opening my eyes and suddenly discovering
that I knew nothing about him.
Dear Agustin,
Once, eight years ago
I decided to never expect anything from you
I was so lonely then
much more than you could have guessed.
And it wasn't easy.
But I got over it, little by little
In all this time, I haven't heard from you.
It was to be expected
Things between us had gotten pretty bad
And you had other people around that you cared for more than me.
I understood.
I tried to accept it and that helped me.
But now, it's different - I don't understand this letter of yours
that I just received.
Why, Agustin, after so much time? Why write me?
To see if I'm still alive?
Well yes, I am.
But why else? I can't believe it's all
because of that movie magic you speak about.
Magic that, if you must know, I had to give up more than a year ago.
I walked around
but I never found that place.
You remember? The place one never wants to leave?
I ask myself, if that place ever really existed.
So, here I am.
Home again.
The past doesn't move me like it did before
and I really don't want to keep thinking about it.
I try to look ahead
and I'm afraid that, at long last, I've grown up.
I was in four films but never got lucky.
In three of them, as you put it, they sent me off to the other world
in nasty ways: with a clean shot, with silk stockings and even with a straight razor.
By the way, which way would you have chosen?
That was just a joke, I'm sorry.
I wasn't talking about me, rather about the femme fatale
that made you pick up the pen,
poor Irene Rios, may she rest in peace.
She can't answer you. Neither can I, in her place.
I think I've fallen into the trap without realizing it
I do remember the past
and you with your bad jokes
you're to blame.
The things you write.
To sum up, what is it you want from me?
Perhaps you'd better not answer that question.
It's not worth it.
Just forget it.
I would rather you didn't write me, answering you is such an effort.
Time, Agustin, is the most righteous angel of justice I've known.
And though I'm all grown up sometimes -mostly at night - I'm afraid.
Agustiiin!
(dog barks)
Agustiiin!
That was the first time Dad left home in the middle of the night
without a word to anyone.
(train whistle blows)
(knock on door)
Its time! The train is leaving!
(final train whistle blows)
He came back in the morning.
No one heard him come in, he must have used the back door
secretively, so as not to wake us.
(tree swing creaks)
Mom... What?
What's wrong with Dad?
Why are you asking me?
He's acting so strange. Haven't you noticed?
Yes. A little.
Ever since he left the house he's been like that.
He didn't leave. Estrella, the things you say...
Its true -- he left.
Don't talk like that, you hear me?
Anyway, what do you know?
I do know it. And so do you.
Estrella!
From that day forward,
my father never used the pendulum again.
One afternoon, tired of the atmosphere at home,
I wanted to protest in my own way.
I hid under a bed convinced not to come out.
When she discovered me missing
my mother and Casilda began to look everywhere for me.
Estrelllaaa!
From my hiding place I challenged them with my silence.
I could tell from their comings and goings that they were getting more and more worried.
Estrellaaaa!
Little by little, night began to fall.
Estrella?
(door opens)
Estrella!
(door closes)
(cane tapping)
I knew my Dad was home
I waited the whole time for him to call me
but he never did.
He responded to my silence with his own.
And I suddenly understood
that he was on to my game
accepting my challenge
to show me that his pain was much greater than mine.
Estrella!
What?
Why are you crying?
Because I feel like it!
(cane tapping)
I started wishing with all my heart
to grow and grow be suddenly an adult so I could get away from there.
I grew up more or less like everyone does
I got used to being alone
and to not thinking too much about happiness.
Dearest Estrella,
your letter was lovely, I've read it so many times.
Is everything you wrote true?
I wish we would see you here sometime
I won't recognize you!
In the photo I've included
It's your Grandmother and I in Rome
when we went to see the Pope.
Isn't it pretty?
Lots of hugs for everyone,
and a big kiss from me!
Milagros.
(The television will be here soon)
(I will sing for you and you'll see me)
(So dress me up nicely, Mom, dress me up!)
(Dress me up, I'm going to be on the broadcast!)
Hi, what's to eat?
Soup and fried fish.
You always make the same.
What do you expect, the way your mother is?
Has she gotten up?
No.
Did you see what he drew on the wall?
No.
Well, what did he draw?
Again!
Again.
Don't laugh, its not funny.
I know who did it.
So do I.
How are you?
Well you know, the same.
I thought I'd be able to get up but I got dizzy.
(phone rings)
Have you eaten?
No. Not yet.
Don't wait for your father. He'll be late.
Estrella!
What?
The phone!
Will you pick this up for me at the pharmacy?
Don't forget.
I hardly slept last night.
Estrella! Coming!
Casilda will give you some money.
Who is it?
Who do you think?
The same guy. "El Carioco". [a resident of Rio de Janeiro]
I'm not here! You tell him!
Go on.
What do you want?
Nothing, just to talk to you.
This morning I waited an hour for you.
Where did you go?
I went the other way.
Why? Weren't we going to meet?
Yes, I know we said we'd meet, but...
You didn't want to see me, huh?
No.
But why not?!
Look, because I'm sick of you, and all the stuff
you keep writing on the walls.
Who do you think you are?
Me? Whoever you want me to be.
You invite me to the movies, you take me to the gardens,
you give me a kiss...
And so what?
What do you mean, so what?!
Estrella, you've got me all wrong
you don't know me
I'm capable of anything.
Do you know why the girls call me "El Carioco"?
Well if you don't, you will soon!
(hangs up)
(I love you)
Hello.
You're leaving already?
If not, I'll be late.
See you later. See you later.
This is from Milagros, you can read it.
When my classes got out
that time of day when the lights come on and there's still a light glow in the sky
I liked to go walking alone
in no hurry
through the streets of the city.
I never forgot Irene Rios.
I kept looking for her on the movie posters.
But I never found her again.
It was as if the earth had swallowed her up.
I often passed by the photography studio.
In the window, among the photos of wedding couples, communions and soldiers
was my portrait.
Can you give me a light?
Thanks.
Most nights before going to bed I would write in my diary.
Today when I reread the pages from those days
I see just how much I'd come to accept
my father's crisis as an intractable fact of daily life.
Maybe thats why theres nothing in it
that warned of what would happen afterward.
Although my father did something then
he had never done before.
He came to find me one day when my classes got out
and took me to lunch at the Grand Hotel.
That fall day a wedding was being celebrated
In one of the hotel salons.
(Here's to the band!)
(Here's to the wedding!)
(Here's to the bride and groom!)
I saw you this morning.
Where?
You were walking in front of the Oriental with a boy.
Oh, yeah... Miguel.
They call him "El Carioco".
He's a little crazy.
Is he dangerous?
No, he just draws on walls.
Ah! Yes. I think I've seen one of his drawings.
He's so annoying!
Is it true what he wrote?
I don't know.
He says so.
But I think he does it for the attention.
But its nice, isn't it?
Wanting attention?
Telling the whole world what you think.
Well, it depends...
I would like to be able to.
Why don't you?
Because I'm not "El Carioco".
You realize we never talk seriously?
And that's my fault, right?
I guess so.
Mind if I order another drink?
Okay with me.
Why do you have to drink so much?
Are you going to give me a hard time?
No, just asking.
Your coffee.
Your cognac.
Thank you very much.
Why did you bring me to eat here?
I don't know, it just occurred to me suddenly, and I thought you'd like it.
Yes, I do.
But why else?
I wanted to make peace with you.
But we haven't...
I know, I know, this time we haven't fought
but... I noticed last night when you got in late
I don't think I handled myself very well.
Sure you don't want to ask me anything?
No.
Well, I in contrast, would like to ask you so many things...
Okay. Ask away.
No, that's okay.
No, no, ask me.
One thing - maybe its silly - I've always wanted to ask you, and never had the nerve:
Who was Irene Rios?
Irene Rios?
The artist.
You knew her, didn't you?
No. I knew a woman who was a lot like her.
But Irene Rios, no.
What a letdown. So.. Why did you write her name so many times?
I used to do that?
Yes, don't you remember?
No.
I do remember. Once I found a piece of paper
one of your envelopes
on which you'd written her name over and over.
It seemed a bit strange to me
I didn't know who she was
Neither did Mom.
Until one day, I saw her name on a movie poster
"Flor de la Sombra" (Flower In The Shadows)
I saw it.
Was it good?
I left before it finished.
I know. That afternoon I was walking by the cinema
and I saw your motorcycle
so I thought, I bet he's inside
I waited for you outside
hiding
it was so cold out.
When you came out, I saw you
and I followed you down the street
until you went into the Cafe Oriental
I could see you were writing something
a letter
Then I called you through the window
You remember? You took me home on your bike.
That's right. I'll be right back.
Would you like something more?
No, thanks.
How's the wedding?
Same as always.
Keep it. Thank you very much.
I have to go. Now?
It's time.
What class do you have?
French.
Why don't you leave it for another day?
You really want me to skip class?
Yes.
Really?
Yes!
I don't understand you.
And when you were this high
didn't you understand me then?
Dad, you can't compare.
Listen.
You remember that paso doble?
You don't remember.
"En el mundo"
We danced it together
Yes.
The day of my first communion.
I'm going.
Are you staying?
Yes.
Goodbye.
Be careful with "El Carioco".
Thanks.
I left him there sitting by the window
listening to that old paso doble.
Alone and on his own.
Could I have done more for him
than I did at that moment?
I always ask myself that.
Because that was the last time I ever spoke to him.
Before leaving the house
he emptied his pockets.
Among the things he left in a drawer
was a small telephone receipt.
Thats how I discovered that, on the last night of his life
my father had called the south
to a number I didn't recognize.
I took that paper and kept it without telling absolutely anyone.
Estrella.
Why are you sleeping up here?
I was cold.
Why don't you go to your bed?
Its not made.
Go on, I'll make it up for you.
No, leave it. It won't take a second.
A few days later, I fell sick.
Alone, shut up in my room
the hours were interminable.
Always everything on the floor!
What time is it?
Almost twelve.
I'm going to get up.
Don't even think about it!
You know what your mother said!
But I'm better now!
No! You stay there and don't move!
Milagros' voice came from the south to rescue me
Once she found out what had happened
it didn't take much for her to convince my mother
to let me spend some time down there to recuperate.
She had good reasons
I needed a change of climate for my health
And anyway, neither she nor Grandma Rosario had seen me in so long.
The night before leaving I could hardly sleep.
(car horn honks)
Estrella! The taxi is here!
Although I didn't look it
I was very nervous
At last, I was going to see the south.