Transcripts - Forever Dreaming

"Seek the truth
not in the mundane detaiIs of daily life,"

"but in the essence of life itself."

B. Tosia

"Members of the jury..."

"... for three days..."
"... you have listened carefully to..."

"... gravity of the crime..."

"... the defendant receive"
"the maximum..."

"... prosecution's request that"
"the defendant..."

"You are aware of the..."

"Members of the jury..."

"... stand the gravity..."

"... to the testimony..."

"lf you agree with the prosecution..."

"... you must return a"
"verdict of "guilty"..."

"... or not..."

"For 1000 years..."

"... the Russian people gave"
"so much so that..."

"... on these broad expanses"
"different nations were..."

"... united underthe banner"
"of this federation..."

"... find reasonable doubt..."

"... criminal code..."

"... must return a verdict..."

"... now deliberate in private..."

"... not limited by time..."

"You are aware of the"
"prosecution's request..."

"... that the defendant receive"
"the maximum penalty allowed..."

"... deliberate and decide..."
"... if the defendant is guilty or not"

"... that the defendant receive"
"the maximum..."

"... penalty allowed by law..."

"... that your decision must be unanimous..."

"... unanimous"

"l do not have words to describe"
"my state of mind..."

"... in these moments..."

"... maximum penalty allowed..."

"... detaiIs of the case..."

"lf you find reasonable doubt..."

"... the defendant receive"
"the maximum penalty..."

"... you must return"
"a verdict of "not guilty"..."

"l remind you that"
"your decision must be..."

"... you must return a verdict of "guilty"

"... maximum penalty..."

"... where you must decide..."

"... case-related materials..."

"... I repeat: the jury may request..."

"lf you find reasonable doubt..."

PEACE, LABOR, HAPPINESS!.

GLORY TO
THE PEOPLE'S RADIANT FUTURE

Mama!

Speak Russian!

Speak Russian, Mama!

Court is adjourned until
the jury reaches a verdict.

All rise please.

Hello?

Hungry, dad?

So far everything's fine. Yes.

Those photographs
l showed thejudge, can I take them?

l don't know.

- Do I have to stay here?
- Yes.

- But I told them everything.
- That's how itworks.

- OK, gentlemen...
- That's crazy.

Please follow me.
Hurry, please, it's almost recess.

- What recess?
- You'll see.

Please keep up. Follow me.

This way, please. Let's go.

As you see, the work's notfinished.

the jury room's not ready, either.
This way...

Remodeling makes it hard to work.
No matter, your case is simple.

You'll be done in 20 minutes.

Now we're in the adjoining school building,
they lend us space.

A school by a courthouse
causes problems.

lmagine the spring, the windows open...

...a ball flies in and hits a witness
on the head

An elderly woman, out cold.

During the school vacation
itwas fine...

...we used the classrooms...
Oops, we're too late.

Children! Children!

Oh, Lord. Children.

Children!
Children, please.

Now we turn left.
This way, everyone this way.

Some working conditions!
But it'sjust temporary.

They'll finish and it'll be
pretty as a picture.

One silly formality.

You'll have to give me your phones,
I'm afraid.

I'll keep my SlM, it's important.

Hello, Vasia.

My phone'll be off for 90 minutes.

Tell the boss it's my civic duty.

I'll be right here.

lf you need me for any reason...

...there's a communication system.
Here it is.

This is my little "know-how".

That means "invention".

l took itfrom my son's
model train set.

lt reallyworks.

Watch, everyone.
Push the button.

That's awful.

You keep this.

And if you need me,
forthe slightest reason, call me...

and I'll bring
whateveryou require or desire.

Here's where you'll be meeting.
All the amenities. Go ahead.

Go ahead.

Hands...

- They put us in a gym?
- the jury room's not ready.

Anyone know how long it takes
to get to Kursk station?

ln weather like this.

At least an hour and a half.
Maybe a little longer.

You're kidding.

Come on, take a shot.

- With this thing?
- Come on.

- Go Spartak.
- Here it comes!

- What was that?
- You told me to.

That's a medicine ball.

That's an antique.

- You mean the lamp?
- Yeah.

We had exactly the same kind
in my school.

- Kids use these?
- Sure.

Do you know where the bathroom is?

They're locking us in?

They have to, those are the rules.

Seen that?

Why is it in there?

- Maybe so the kids don't hurt it.
- Orvice versa.

Or vice versa, so they
don't hurt themselves on it.

lt could fall.

A courthouse isn't...

the best thing to have
next to a school.

ltwon'tfall.

Even the piano's behind bars
and on the rack.

The bathroom.

Smart, no?

Why don't you have some?
Help yourself, it's for all of us.

- What is it, cheese?
- And tea with lemon.

Thanks. Thanks anyway.

l have a business lunch
at Cafe Pushkin.

Don'twant to spoil my appetite.

And this won't take very long, right?

l doubt it. It's not that kind of case.

l agree.

We have

a different kind of case.

That's an antique. How quaint.

l had it stashed away.

l forgot and didn't
exchange it in time.

l was so angry...

Comrades... I mean...

...gentlemen. Let's start.

Yes, comrades, I mean, gentlemen,
why don'twe start?

l don't have much time.

You in a hurry?

And how: My train's in an hour.
I'm going on tour.

This'll take an hour, max.
The bathroom...

This one's forthe kids.
VlPs go overthere.

Can anyone tell me...

...what rhymes with "Julie"?

- Julie - cruelly.
- Cruelly? That's no good.

- It's a beautiful girl named Julie.
- Julie?

Here you go...

Duly.
Newly. Unruly.

O'Dooley. Fazooli. Babooli.
Coolly...

Woolly.

Truly.

- Patchouli.
- Patchouli?

Patchouli. Truly.

Mamooli. Pap...

Oh, God...

- Is today the 12th?
- Yeah.

- Where's the TV? Over here?
- Right there.

They're interviewing my mother.

Is she a politician? An actress?

- lt doesn'twork?
- No.

What is this? That's it.

lt doesn'twork.

Our family has a TV company.
LTV. Have you heard of it?

My mother's the president.

I'm the managing director.
l help Mom.

So you're an assistant producer.

Must be a weak stomach...

- Have you ever seen anything like this?
- Sorry.

Ever seen one like this?

And she's still just a school girl.
They must be well fed.

l only saw ones this big
once in my life.

- On a schoolgirl?
- What? Heavens, no.

My mother-in-law's were about this size.

We buried her three months ago.

Oh, jeez!

"Schoolmates!"

"Boys and girls!"

- Lookwhat I found.
- Oh, wow.

"We sing the same songs"

"We read the same books"

- Let me see. God.
- Advanced classes!

Forgive me.

I'm sorry.

l lost my brother because
ofthatjunk.

He was 36!

Oh, mama!
How much misfortune...

l have seen from thisjunk.

I'm sorry.

Gentlemen of the jury...
Let's get this show on the road.

Who's leading this parade?

- Yes, let's start.
- Let's go.

Actually, we do have to...

...choose a chairman for our meeting,
l mean for ourjury.

You seem to have some experience.
You should be Our foreman...

The phone only connects
to the boiler room.

lf nobody objects...

I'd be glad to.

So, no need to vote on it, then?

As you know, our decision
must be, and will be, final.

And not subject to appeal.

And so... Attention, please.
And so...

...ourvote has got to be unanimous.

We know all that.
Let's just do it fast.

Make a unanimous decision...
and leave. I'm going on tour.

We can each make comments one by one.
Then we'll vote.

- No, let's vote.
- It's obvious.

- Let's vote now.
- No comments.

- Then nobody objects if...
- No, no.

So, we can...

...vote by the usual show of hands,
or by paper ballot.

- No, by hands.
- Right.

- Let's vote.
- So we'll vote by a show of hands?

- Yes, yes.
- Of course.

All in favor, please raise your hands.

One question.
"ln favor" ofwhat?

- What?
- "ln favor" of guilty, or not guilty?

Guilty, of course.

l thought itwas "in favor" ofvoting.

We're voting on whether he is guilty.

l didn't understand, that's all.

- He didn't know
- Put down your hands. Sorry.

That vote didn't count.
Myfault. Sorry.

So... Put your hands down.

So we're voting...

...on whetherthe defendant is guilty.

A raised hand means guilty.

- Yes, yes.
- Guilty.

l justwant to get it right.
Then raise your hand.

Don't you go to meetings?

What? All the time.

Workers of the world...

- Let's vote, come on.
- Yeah.

Why are we voting on "guilty" first?

What's the difference?

No, we can do this howeverwe like.

Does it botheryou?

No, I thought it might be a rule.

No, there's no rule about that.
Eitherway.

- Let's do it this way.
- Forwhether he's guilty.

OK. So we're voting on
whetherthe defendant is guilty.

- Yes.
- Hands up, please.

- Unanimous. We're out of here.
- No, wait.

Please. There are rules. Wait

Please take your seats.
Put your hands down.

Now, who thinks the defendant -
we have to follow rules...

...is not guilty, please raise your hand.

That's eleven...

- Here
- Eleven for guilty, one for not guilty.

Whoa!

What did wejust vote on?

Did you hearthat? Hello!

All that racket distracted the man.

We voted on whetherthat stinking
Chechen dog is guilty...

...of the m*rder of his adoptive father,
a Russian army officer.

Didn't understand?

The comrade didn't understand.
Start again.

- So let's vote again.
- No, no, l...

There's no need. I get it now.
I'm against.

Against convicting him.

What do you mean "against"?

You voted "for".

And I voted "against".

Why?

Well, itwas eleven "for"...

...and one "against".

Butwhy?

Whywhat?

Why did you vote thatway?

Well, if I'd voted "for"
itwould have been twelve "for" and...

...none "against".
And we'd all have gone home.

But that'd be good.
So why'd you vote "against"?

Vote "for" and let's go home.

l... ltwas too fast, somehow.

ltwas too fast, you see.

Fast? We listened to thatjudge talk
for 3 days. You call thatfast?

No, well, yes, but...

lt scared me.
Wejust put up our hands and...

...thatwas it. ltwas too fast.

Fast is good. ltwas obvious,
there was proof.

We all heard the witnesses.
We sawthe evidence.

Well, yes.

Butwe're talking about a human being.

And wejust put up our hands...

...and thatwas it.

What exactly do you want?

l want...

...well, to talk, at least.

To talk.

So talk.

"Beyond reasonable doubt. "

Sorry. That's a term
used in Americanjury trials.

"Beyond reasonable doubt".

It'sjust that, I studied at Harvard...

...l studied management.
And we had a course in law.

Talking would make sense
if there were reasonable doubt.

Did you hearthat? Reasonable doubt.
We don't have any doubts

None. He k*lled him! It's a fact!

The brutal m*rder of an ex-officer
by his adopted son for a ridiculous sum.

- Yeah.
- Why talk?

That guywent to Harvard,
and he doesn't have any doubts.

- Neither do we. Do you?
- Do you?

Forgive me, please, and understand.

l know he went to Harvard.

Sayyou go to the market
and buy a watermelon.

- I do?
- No, no, I do.

l go to the market and buy a melon.

The salesman assures me
it's ripe and red, but...

...until I take it home...

...and cut it open,
it's very hard to knowfor sure if it is.

But this isn't a watermelon.

Awatermelon you canjust throw away.

This is a human being
facing a life sentence.

lfwe all vote yes,
they'll put him in prison forever.

And he'll never get out.

Do you understand? Ne-ver!

Just think about thatword.

He'll never get out.

And he shouldn't.

He's a k*ller. What should he get?

A paid vacation to Thailand?

He should be grateful
they banned the death penalty.

Prison will put some sense into him.

All right.

Fine.

l don'twant to keep you.

Let's vote again
and if I'm still the only one, I'll...

...vote with everyone else.

And let the boy's fate be what itwill.

At least I'll know I tried
to do something for him.

That's an interesting move.

Essentially, you'll do
what everyone else does,

but you'll still be able to believe that
your hands are clean. Right?

Yes.

lt looks thatway.

But I request a secret ballot.

Why?

Honestly? To stall fortime.

We have to get paper, pens.
That takes time.

Also, people often vote...

...just so they don't
strayfrom the group.

So I request thatwe vote
by secret ballot.

Secret or not, it's obvious
what the resultwill be.

So, we have a proposal for
a secret ballot

- Does everyone agree?
- Yeah.

- With these?
- Yes, take a ballot and a pencil or pen.

lf we're ready to vote,
let's see if we're all here.

Wait...

Someone's missing.

That gentleman went to the bathroom.
l saw him.

- I saw him, honest.
- Whywait? Let's vote.

- He's an elderly man.
- Let's start.

He has to get there and pee,
maybe a bad prostate...

Then put all his equipment back in...

The ballot box. Let's vote.

l see you've done this before.

Yeah. Retirement's boring.

I sit at my dacha and paint water colors.
Sometimes I serve onjuries.

- You're an artist?
- No, not really.

l just paintwatercolors as a hobby.

Has everyone turned in their ballot?

- Did you vote already?
- No, we were waiting for you.

"With birth and urination,
there's no procrastination".

Don't worry, I'll be fast.

What a great one-liner!

- Thankyou.
- Sorry.

Well...

Let's count...
... shall we?

"Guilty".

"Not guilty".

"Guilty".

So, that's ten...

...for "guilty," and one against.

Two.

Two. For "not guilty".

What? Two?

Wait. That can't be.

Let me check those ballots.

There's no need.

No need to check anything.

l voted to find the young man
not guilty.

What?


that the kid is guilty.

Atfirst it seemed clear.

- And now it doesn't?
- No, I can't say it's not clear.

But this man...

...proposed that I take responsibility
for his decision, as well.

And you know, I began to think.

Aboutwhat?

Excuse me, but I don't understand.
This is some sort of Jewish logic.

Absolutely correct.

I'm a Jew. 100 per cent Jewish.

And like everyone,
l have tons offaults.

But I do have one virtue.
And it's an innately Jewish one.

Thoughtfulness. I treasure it.

l became thoughtful and went off
to think...

And you know,
l began to have doubts.

Why?

The lawyer.

- The lawyerwhat?
- He was bored.

Why be excited?
That Chechen monster k*lled his father.

l had the impression
he wasn't even defending him.

And he was right!
There's no reason to defend him.

Exactly. There was no reason.

The boy is destitute,
the lawyer's eyes were empty:

The face of a drunk,
he couldn'tfunction.

Is it because he's not Jewish?

Drunk? Maybe, but honest.

Didn't let a k*ller offthe hook.
But you had a hunch.

You should pray after a hunch.



- But you did.
- ln the can.

Exactly, a sudden hunch in the can.

l think better in there.

Everyone does.
Why are you so worried?

There are 10 of you and only 2 of us.
We should be worried.

But I am worried.

l am worried, see.
How can I not be?

Because I see howyou and your
Jewish tricks...

...are muddying an obvious case.

You didn't like the lawyer,
so youjust changed your mind.

That's a typical Jewish move.

That's enough.

l didn't change my mind.
And I'm half Jewish.

No such thing as a half-Jew.

Is that a good thing...

...or a bad thing?

Nowyou, myfriend...

...stay out of this



Look how much Umar likes your present.

Umar, come eat.
Uncle Volodya is here.

OK, then.

Listen, so you found...

...a good, kind, naive person,
and dragged him overto your side.

- "Braids"
- What?

- What rhymes with it?
- Just a minute. "Braids". "Grenades"!

No, I'm absolutely sure
thatwe'll all reach the same conclusion.

You'll waste time,
tell us another parable...

...about choosing watermelons
or about howto buyfresh fish.

l don't see why.

You'll make us go over everything
we heard in courtforthree days.

All the evidence
ofthat scumbag's guilt...

...that you'll never disprove,
because you can't. And then?

Then that man'll go
to the can again.

To think. He'll change his decision
to the correct one.

Believe me
that's exactlywhat'll happen.

What I don't get is,
why stall fortime?

To go overthe witness statements again?
You're not blind and deaf.

You sawthat monster sitting in court.

You want to talk?
So let's talk.

Let's talk about howyou think
you can defend a pig...

...who can't possibly bejustified.

How can youjustif y a monster
who att*cks his adoptive father?

And notjust att*cked...

...but cut his father's throat like a sheep.

He k*lled the man who took care of him...
... who raised him.

He butchered a man
who had done nothing to him.

Not only that,
but the man who adopted him.

Who saved him.
And it doesn't matterwhy.

For his pension or because
he yelled at him. I don't care about that.

l can't get my head around it.
l couldn't think of a single word to say...

...in defense ofthat bastard.

l don't think any of us could.

l don't thinkyou could.

So then what's the point of
this sideshow?

Sorry.

- I had a wife.
- Wives? I've had three wives.

Wait. I had a wife. I loved her.

- He couldn't keep her... Like the rhyme.
- Justwait. I really loved her.

We had a tiny room
with hardly anyfurniture.

We even ate dinner on the floor,
because we had no table.

l was ajunior researcher
in a physics institute.

l was developing one of my ideas.

So mywife had to work threejobs...

...so we could make ends meet.

Long story short, I invented a new
tunnel diode. It's...

It's hard to explain.

Atwork they congratulated me...

...gave me a 50-ruble bonus
and proposed I work on a new project

So I went home...

...with the result ofthree years" work:
Fifty rubles.

Mywife gave me a look...

...like you'd give...

Then a large foreign company...

...offered to buy my patent
for a lot of money.

But I said no, I wanted it
to be used here.

l offered it to various places.

They said "It's great".
But nobody needed it. Nobody.

l began to drink.
l began to drink terribly.

l lost myjob, mywife left me.

l only cared about drinking.
Morning, noon, and night.

l was dead drunkfrom morning to night.
ltwas awful.

One day I sensed I would die soon.

And the thought even made me happy,
lt didn't scare me at all.

All I wanted was for it to be soon.

l began to lookfor death, I really did,
l looked for it.

l would fightwith police, bother people
l got beaten up and cut.

l slept on the street,
in and out of hospitals.

l was beaten to a pulp.

But I'd pull through and
crawl back out.

At home I'd lick mywounds
like a stray dog and then...

...crawl out again.

My onlyfearwas...

...jumping under a train
or out of a window.

Don't know why, itjust scared me.

One day I was on a train,
dreadfully drunk.

l was filthy, I stank.

The train was full
l was bothering everyone:

Yelling, cursing.

But I looked at myself and I was glad.
My vileness made me glad!

My onlywish was
that someone would take me...

...and toss me offthe train
so I'd bash my brains on the rails.

But they alljust sat silently.

They looked away, but they sat silently.

Exceptfor one woman
with herfive-year-old daughter.

l heard the little girl say:

"Mama, that man's crazy.
I'm scared".

But the woman said:
"No, he's not crazy.

He'sjust very, very sad".

l sold my invention
to a foreign company.

Today it's used in almost half
of all cell phones.

l work there.
But that's not important.

The woman is now mywife
and the girl is my daughter.

We also have a son.

He's 4 years old.

Are you done?

No, there's more.

Maybe that kid should...

...die in prison.

Maybe that's his fate. Who knows?

Me, I should have died in the gutter.
But I didn't.

Because one person, just one...

...looked at me a little more closely...

...than everyone else

Do you like it?

Yeah.

Look how pretty it is.

Thanks.

Umar!

Go home!

Go home and do your homework.
Volodya.

Sorry, myfather's calling me.
Homework.

Don'tworry. You'll get your chance
to fight the Russians.

Hey, friend,
school won't teach him to fight.

What'd you say, friend?
You mind your own business.

We'll deal with this at home
by ourselves.

Volodya, go home. Umar.

Come here, little wolf.

Let's go.

He who has hidden his head under his wife's
petticoatwill neverfind his head again.



By the way, I asked them to bring
the knife from the m*rder.

Why?

ln court they kept stressing that
itwas an unusual knife, special.

And that...

Thankyou.

And that only that kid had one.

You remember?

ln court they kept saying that itwas...

...a unique knife.

Special.

Here.

Let me see.

Yeah. This is a specialized knife.

Used by some units
of the special forces.

Similarto the American model
CQC-7 "hand to hand combat".

Made by Ernst Emerson.

It's monogrammed.

The kid could've brought this knife
from Chechnya.

They're black market there.

You can't buy a knife like this
in Moscow.

This knife has devastating
stabbing power.

Oh my!

PAPA
MAMA

It's that...

A major in the special forces.

His unitwas fighting in the area
where the defendant lived.

Later he adopted him.

Did you lose something?

- Hey, what if...
- No.

Those soldiers were the ones
who k*lled the boy's parents?

That's motive. Motive for m*rder.
Oh God. Revenge.

Yes, but he had known the boy
since he was 5...

...and was a familyfriend.

What about the knife.
Do we know whose it is?

There are initiaIs on it.

No, the initiaIs don't match
anyone in the case.

It's a rare knife. ltwas kept at home.

The kid carried itwith him all the time.

His friends saw him with it.
They said all this in court.

They kept saying itwas
an exceptionally rare knife.

Special.

Just listen to what you're suggesting.

What is it?

- Can'tfind it.
- The kid's in the park.

Justwalking, walking...

And suddenly some guy
comes up to him and says:

"Hey kid, do you happen to know
where they sell good knives?"

And he says: "Why, yes! I have
a good knife right here. A very good one.

Rare. Unique. Yes".

And he selIs it to him. Yes.

The boy sold him this knife. The man
bought it and went and k*lled his dad!

It's totally lun-icrous!

- What?
- "Lud-icrous".

Wait, wait!

What about the money?

Theyfound 7 thousand in his pocket!

The same exact amount as...

...the pension the father received that day.
He didn't sell any knife!

He k*lled him and robbed him.

There's no sense in listening
to the defendant's lies...

- You can't get another knife like that, guys.
- I found it!

Thank God. The key is tiny,
l thought I lost it.

But itwas hiding
in my pocket. There...

l also thought that the knife
was unique, special.

And that only he had one.

Look.

Here.

One and the same.

With a receipt.

They said it's unique, special
and that only he had one.

At the "Extreme" market
you can get one easily.

So what's that prove?

That the Chechen
didn't k*ll his father?

No, it proves nothing.
Can we smoke here?

Why not? We're locked in.

- Ashtray.
- May l?

- Thanks. I had a different goal.
- So you found the knife.

- Bought it.
- OK, bought. What's the difference?

These days you can even buy
a m*ssile launcher.

But can you tell me howthat proves...

...that the man who bought the knife
also k*lled the father?

May l? lt doesn't prove that at all.
You interrupted me before.

Thankyou.

I'm saying that the uniqueness
of the knife was...

...the prosecution's main argument.

But it turns out you can buy one easily.

So what? What does that mean?

lt means the investigation wasn't very
thorough so otherfacts are possible.

The lawyer. The lawyer. He had nothing to say.
He was an empty man!

He couldn't defend him.

What...? What if...

...the one who bought it is the k*ller?

Oh, Jesus!

Buddy, why do you have
cottage cheese for brains?

Someone bought it and k*lled him.

Do you even understand
what you're saying?

Five minutes ago you drew us
a balance sheet.

"He k*lled and robbed him".
Who else had a reason...

...to k*ll a majorfor his pension?

lf I were you I'd listen to the comrade
from the TransportAuthority.

You know, your reasoning is somehow...

Jewish.

What, I should reason
like the late YasserArafat?

All right. No, well...
Wait a minute. Wait.

OK. So the working guy
said something stupid.

- Why are you supporting him?
- You know, what he said wasn't stupid.

See, that's a typical Jewish trick.

lf a non-Jew says something stupid,
it's OK, but...

...if it's a Jew, it's not stupid.

All right.

The knife, a coincidence. It's the same,
l admit. But the man who bought the knife

used it to k*ll the father.

Is that also a coincidence?


That's impossible.

lt never happens. Never.

You know, for some time now
I've believed that...

...anything is possible in life.
Absolutely anything. Even the impossible.

My dad...

...was in the ghetto during the w*r.

- A Holocaust story?
- No, it's about my dad.

The headquarters of the
Lithuanian SS was right nearby.

And there was an SS officerthere
who had a beautiful Lithuanian wife.

Now, my dad was a scrawny man.

You see what I look like?
He was three times worse.

And did you inherit your dad's looks?

No, my mom's. Mom was no beauty,
either, but not like dad.

lt made it that much easier
for myfatherto fall in love.

Myfatherfell in love with that
beautiful Lithuanian woman.

And she fell in love with myfather,
like a puppy.

lmagine whatwould've happened
if the Russians had lost.

The SS officerfled to Germany.

And she stayed with my dad.

Oh, God, wow!

Theywere both arrested
and sent to the camps in Siberia.

Theywere released in 1953,
found each other, and got married.

They moved to a little farm
nearVilnius...

...and began to crank out children.
Eleven of them.

By this time, of course, my dad had been
a pig and dumped my mom.

But I understand him.

For one thing...

...l saw her photograph.

l saw her photograph.

And for another...

...my motherwas no angel, either.

Motherwas no angel.

An amazing story.

lf someone told me a story like that,
l wouldn't believe it.

But it happened to my dad.

Anything can happen.

Anything.

Stop, stop. I have doubts.
We all tend our gardens in our own way.

And we hold the shovel in our own.

Well... lf you only knew.
l have an uncle.

He lives nearVoronezh, he's a plumber.

Hands of gold!

He's generous and kind.
The whole cityjust loves him.

He likes to drink,
but he's not mean.

He doesn't drink too often.

ln the center oftown

there's a square.

They built this place there where
you can play machines for money.

"Brother," it's called. "Brother".

Uncle Kolya had never been a gambler.
But one payday, he got drunk.

And went there.

And, well, he lost.

He lost every cent.

He thinks: "How can I go home now

to Liuba, to mywife, and say:

"Liuba, I lost everything, all the money".
How?"

It'd be easierto hang himself.

But some kind people told him:

"There's a place nearby
where you can borrow money".

So he goes there and they say:
"OK, we'll give you a loan,

butwith high interest,
and not less than 50 thousand.

So if you want 50 thousand, you got it,
but if not, you can go to hell".

What could he do?

He takes the 50 thousand...

...and goes back to that
"Brother" place, damn it.

And he...

He loses it all.

The whole 50 thousand.
Now what could he do?

Now whatwas he going to do?

Middle of the day.

He goes to work, telIs the boss:

"Give me 50 thousand".
"What, are you nuts?"

"Nuts, eh? Just you wait."
He goes home. Gets a shotgun, shells.

And goes back. By this time
the boss had run off some place.

He goes to the accounting office.
There are onlywomen there.

He takes three of them hostage.

He becomes a t*rror1st.

He makes them put
a bucket outside with a note,

his demands -
all 57 thousand rubles,

a luxury apartment,
ajob as chief engineer,

and a plane to anywhere on earth
he chooses.

Now, why did he askfor ajob,

when he planned to fly off in a plane?

That's not important.
It's not important.

The women say: "Uncle Kolya,
what are you doing? Look..."

But hejust goes "oooo!"
He can't speak.

The women open the safe
and take out 800 rubles.

One goes to buy vodka,
a half case, ice cream.

And the police are there, sn*pers.

"He's a t*rror1st! Get him! Fire!"

But the police chief says:
"Stop! Absolutely not! Don't sh**t!

I'll go myself!"
What a man!

And he goes in unarmed. What a man!

Uncle Kolya points the g*n at him:
"I'll k*ll you".

And the chief says: "No you won't".

"Why not?"
"Because I'm the chief", says the chief.

Uncle Kolya drops the shotgun.

They sit around the case ofvodka.

They have a drink.

And cry.

And there was no trial, no investigation.

l beg your pardon, butwhy exactly
did you tell us all that?

Why? He could have been sent to prison,

or shot. A t*rror1st!

But the police chief, what a man.
What a man! Nothing.

Uncle Kolya worked and paid off his debt.
l helped a bit.

The police chief moved up.
He became a businessman.

And "Brother" was burned down.

But by someone else,
not Uncle Kolya.

That's wonderful.

Butwhat does all that have to do
with this case?

lf... if...

I'm for kindness.

Your brains sure curdled fast, brother.

No, no.
l don't have cottage cheese up here!

A good man should be helped.

And a bad man should be...

l vote that the young Chechen
is not guilty.

Write it down. Thankyou.

Well!

That's amazing!

What kind ofjustice is that?

Uncle Kolya the plumber
runs around drunk.

Uncle Lyosha the police chief
drinks vodka with him.

Uncle Vasya the city prosecutor
turns a blind eye.

And the criminal remains at large!

And meanwhile the entire
civilized world

has lived for centuries
according to the law.

A Russian man will
never live by the law.

- Why not?
- The law bores him.

The law is dead.

There's nothing personal about it.

And a Russian man without that
personal touch is an empty shell.

He won't steal or guard.

But that's awful!

Who said itwas good?

Look at that horrible pipe.

It's obscene.

Total filth in the center of Moscow.

ln a school,
where they teach children.

The builders forgot to run
a proper heating pipe,

and then the school was built.

They should cut offtheir limbs
and put them in prison.

By law.

But there are personal ties.
Human ones. Russian ones.

The school let them temporarily
hang that thing. Temporarily.

And it has a corrosive effect
on the minds of the children.

Maybe that's why they leave
their bras in the bathroom.

And nobody gets steamed up.

What's the law got to do with it?

Human relations.

Here! You'll love this.

lnventory number 72-17-99.

Young Eagle Pioneer Camp.



l wasn't even born then.

Do you see how it is?



And we still can'twake up
from the coma.



That's it. I missed my train.
The troupe leftwithout me.

But I'm here. And I'm voting.

The young Chechen is not guilty.

Write it down. Period.

Shit...

What are you...? Aw, hell!
What did... See what you did?

- This is a circus?
- Actually, I'lljoin them! Write that, too!

Let's alljoin them!

- Wonderful...
- I also think the kid's not guilty!

And, incidentally,
l have reasonable doubts.

Can you explain why

if he k*lled and robbed
his adoptive father...

...he returned with the money
to the scene of the crime?

Yes, good point.

Atypical murdererwouldn't do that.

Listen, just listen.

OK, you're a respectable man,
a college dean.

How can you say that?
What does "typical m*rder*r" mean?

Atypical one wouldn't go back,
but this one did,

because he's a stupid,
uneducated savage

whojustjumped out of the tree.

You expect him to write novels?

You know perfectlywell,
those animaIs have tiny little bird brains.

My dear sir...

...excuse me, butjustwho
are you calling a savage?

I'm also from the Caucasus,
for example.

So the poet Rustaveli was a savage?

The artist Pirosmani?
Directors like Paradzhanov?

- Who's a savage?
- I don't mean them.

I'm talking about the monster
who k*lled his father.

I'm talking about myself.

I'm also from the Caucasus.
l studied in Moscow.

But I get called "monkey".
I'm no monkey, I'm a surgeon.

A physician. I have my own clinic.
Understand?

l don't doubt it, OK, so you're not
toiling away at county hospital.

Then why do people come here
from the Caucasus to buy a diploma?

What? To buywhat?

- I bought one?
- I don't mean you.

I'm asking you, wait!
l bought my diploma, yes?

l never paid anyone
to getwhere I am!

How dare you?
What gives you the right, huh?

l tried 4 times before I got into
Moscow Medical School!

And for all 4 years I worked
as an orderly at city hospital! Yes!

l worked as a paramedic and in the ER.
l graduated in honor! "With honors" I mean.

Yes,
so I don't speak Russian thatwell.

So what?
Yes, I said "lun-icrous" by mistake.

So what? I apologized.
I'm still a good doctor!

l don't doubt that you're a good doctor.
But I don't understand why

a good doctor like you
would vote guilty

if everyone in the Caucasus
is so cultured...

That's why I voted guilty.

It's an unheard of affront
in the Caucasus

to raise a hand against an elder.

Especially if he tookyou
into his home, his family.

Brothers, brothers...

Gentlemen... Comrades...

Come on, let's be civilized.
For God's sake.

I'm over here writing, plus one,
not guilty, guilty...

...let's be civilized, let's do it again.

Let's all vote calmly.
We'll write everything down so it's clear.

- So let's vote, OK?
- Can we vote by show of hands?

Now. Who votes

to find the accused not guilty?

Not guilty. Please pay attention.
Not guilty.

One,

two, three, four,

five.

Who votes to find the defendant guilty?

One, two, three, four, five,

six...

Seven.

Seven "for"...

Five for "not guilty",
seven for "guilty".

The boundary is here, right?
So it's a mirror image.

Let's reproduce it.

So your amateurtheatre is going to
recreate the crime scene exactly?

Exactly? No, how could we?
One apartmentwas on top of the other.

We'll try to mirror-image them,
according to this floor plan.

Listen, the old man downstairs heard
the boy shout "I'll k*ll you".

And a falling body
and he sawthe boy run away, right?

Have any of you been
to the scene of the m*rder?

Of course not.

You know, I have...
l went afterthe first day of the trial...

because I was curious to see

a building where only two apartments
were occupied.

ln one, a m*rder, in the other,
a witness to the m*rder.

And nobody else.

What's that got to do
with this case?

Next to the building
there's a construction site.

They're building luxury apartments.
There's lots of machinery.

- Theywork around the clock.
- Around the clock. So what?

lmagine the noise
of a building site outside yourwindow.

Your point?

The old man claims he heard
the boy shout "I'll k*ll you"

and then he heard something fall,
and he says he recognized the boy's voice.

Yeah, so? What? What?

With all due respect to the witness,
l don't believe him.

Wait. One second.
So you're telling us

that the old man knowingly lied in court,
under oath?

An old-school communist

slandered an innocent Chechen boy
for no reason?

lf anyone lied, under oath and otherwise,
itwas the communists.

They lied from top to bottom,
every one of them.

For privileges, for power,
and just out of habit.

Let's not talk about that, please.

Some people were different.

Myfatherwas a regional party secretary
in the Urals.

Privileges? What privileges?

Sometimes we didn't see him foryears.
His heartwas shot at 50.

After he retired,
he burned outwithin 3 months.

They spit him out like old gum.
Privileges, you say?

How do you think it looks?

- Pretty close.
- Pretty close.

Now, we've created two identical
apartments in mirror image.

As I said, one's on top of the other,
so they're identical.

ln his testimony the old man said

that at the time of the crime
he was lying...

...on the living room sofa...
No, I can't see anything.

I'll ask the bailiff.

What's that?

The train. I'll call you back.

Oh Lord!

- You rang?
- Can you turn on the light?

We need to read. It's an experiment.

It's nighttime.

All right, I'll turn it on.

You'll have light.

Yeltsin's fault.

Thankyou.

Thankyou, Boris.

The old man was lying right here
on the sofa.

The crime happened here.

He said his living room is
underthe room where the murderwas.

Did anyone notice howthe old man
walked to the stand?

Yes, I rememberverywell!
He walked slowly, his knees didn't bend.

Because he has arthritis.

The floor plan shows
all the room dimensions.

And we've reproduced them almost exactly,

to see he had to get up from the sofa,

walk 35 meters, open the door,

and still manage to see someone.

- Anyone know average walking speed?
- A meter and a half per second.

- A meter and a half.
- lf you're healthy.

So, 10 seconds is 15 meters.

So 35 meters is about 25 seconds.

And we'll see which one of us
gets to the doorfirst.

But you have to walk like him.

Pardon me, gentlemen.
l could time you.

- Yes.
- Thankyou very much.

Thankyou, as well.

You're the old man on the sofa.
I'm the criminal.

lt should take you 2 seconds
to get up and find your slippers.

Startwhen I say so.

- Action!
- I'll k*ll you!

- What's going on?
- Stop, stop.

- Excuse me, you're disturbing us.
- We're working here, see.

No problem. Thankyou.
We're doing an experiment. Sorry.

It's OK. Start again.

Reset the clock to zero.

Zero.

- Ready?
- Yes.

Attention...

- Action!
- I'll k*ll you!

- Get up.
- OK. There's a noise.

The knife. There are prints.

Come on, old man, up!

You hear a noise.
Something's up.

No, wait.
You have to wipe offthe prints.

Wipe offthe fingerprints completely.

Come on, old man, come on.
Let's go, let's go.

l wipe offthe fingerprints.

You have to take the money.
You need to find it.

Old man, come on, come on, let's go!

Let's go!

But the boywould know
where the money is.

OK, I lookforthe money.
I'm looking for it.

l think that's enough time
to find the money.

Don'tforget, put on your coat.

Come on, old man, something's up,
come on.

- Someone's shouting.
- Parasites...

l put on myjacket. I button it. I walk.

l walk. I'm in the other room now.

l open the door, I run.

l open another door.
I'm in the hall.

l open the door. I'm on the stairs.

Seven stairs,
three steps on the landing.




The old man's apartment


I'm outside!

But he only got as far as the door.

Add another 5 seconds for him
to unlock the door.





So what?

Maybe itwas like that.

And maybe itwasn't.

The police believed the old man.

And I believe the police.
The old man sawthe kid running away.

Or someone else running away.

Who?

Someone who wasn't in a hurry.

Someone who needed to be seen.

Push up.

You know, I think...

...that an old man with
rheumatoid arthritis type 3 FNS 2

could neverwalk
thatfar in ten seconds.

l say that as a doctor.

l want to vote.

l vote that the boy is not guilty.

Six - six.

And...

Me too.

Seven -five.

- What is it?
- I'm cold.

Cold? We're all cold, pal.

They gave you double bars.
But you're still cold.

Deal with it, pal.

"A birch, a rowan tree"

"Awillow on the river bank"

So, actor...

Your squad went to earn
some lootwithout you?

We call it "cleaning up".

"- Where could you find..."
- You performed here.

- Forfree, though.
- That's called a "command performance".

Did you switch sides as ajoke?

That's called "buffoonery".
Catch!

You... Hey. Sorry, l...

l didn't mean to.
l thought you'd catch it.

Listen...

Listen.

Listen, you.

Why are you always
talking to me like that?

l said sorry. OK...

Why do you do it?
Do we know each other?

Did we playfootball...

...or drink vodka or chase girls?

- What? Huh?
- And why do you always cackle?

- Who cackles?
- You cackle. Why?

- Who cackles?
- You. All the time. Always cackling.

Whywould I cackle?
We've been here 5 hours.

You found yourself a clown, eh?

What am l, a clown to you?
A cheap clown?

I'm sick of your laughter!

You've all turned blue from cackling,
like you were strangled.

You always want to laugh.

You think it's funny.
You laugh everywhere at everything!

Before you even sit in your seat
you're readywith your cackle.

You laugh at absolutely everything!

Life. Death. Tsunami.

Earthquakes! And you cackle!

Halfthe country's freezing...

A cop murders someone...
Five million homeless orphans...

Why are you laughing?
Why the "ha ha ha"?

Because being serious terrifies you.

Not long ago...

...l was performing and I started
to talk to the audience seriously.

About my life,
about life in Russia.

Everyone laughed.

They thought itwas ajoke.

l bet if I were to spit

from the stage onto the first row,

they'd still laugh,
they'd think itwas ajoke.

Found yourself a clown?

I'm no clown.

I've only really earned one smile.

One single smile.

When I was playing that old man.

As a kid, I stayed alone a lot
with my sick grandma.

l was five or six, yeah, six.

She collapsed.
l could tell she was dying.

l called an ambulance,
but it tookforever.

l gave her medicine.

l was terrified.

She was my grandmother, after all.

l decided to cheer her up.

l started imitating
her neighbor, Sima,

and anotherfriend of hers.
Theywere both veryfunny.

Grandma was in a lot of pain
but I saw her smile.

Even when theywere carrying her body
out, I saw a smile on herface.

All that...

...laughter...

...and a smile.

And that Chechen kid...

The old man...

l could feel in my bones...

...their horrible fear...

...and loneliness.

Same as when I was with my grandmother
while she was dying.

Thatwas the only smile

l ever really earned.

Good thing there are mats.

l could've broken my back.

What a Russian story.

Yeah.

Everything here is very Russian somehow.
It's not Harvard.

Yes. It's not Harvard.

Really got to you, huh?

Hey, let's do one more experiment.

You did an experiment.
l justwant to check one thing.

Now, just imagine...

You have an imagination, right?

Me?

It's not bad. It's...
It's part of my profession.

Naturally! Yeah!
Now, imagine...

...you're coming home.

Late at night.

- Are you married?
- I am.

Hold this, please.

- Do you have kids?
- Yes. A little girl.

- What kind of car?
- An Audi-80.

So, imagine that you're coming home
late one night.

You live in a good area,
nice building, right?

With a concierge, security cameras,
and everything,

secure parking lot,
a gate, a guard.

l have a keychain alarm.

Kolya the guard...

His name is Kolya.

Uncle Petya the custodian.

- Uncle Valera.
- Uncle Valera.

- Hi, Uncle Valera.
- You knowthem, and they knowyou.

You're not afraid.
Not at all.

It's your home.

Yourverywell-guarded home.

And so, you parkyourwheels
in the usual place

and suddenlyyou notice
something's wrong.

- What's wrong?
- The light's on in yourwindow.

They're usually asleep by now,
but the light's on.

So? Maybe theywaited up.

Of course.
They decided to wait up for you.

But there's a noise
so you askValera.

"Everything OK?"

He says: "Yes, it's fine".

You go in.
Auntie Polya, the concierge, smiles.

Everything's fine.

Just listen.

You go to the elevator.
You live on the fifth floor, right?

Right. How did you know?
l really do live on the fifth floor.

Of course you do.

It's the best one.
Not too high, not too low.

And it has a good view.

Butwhy aren't they asleep?

Why? You'll see the surprise
they've made for you.

Here it is, fifth floor. "Fifth floor".

It's a woman's voice:
"Fifth floor".

Oh, those little scamps,
they're not asleep.

They're waiting for dad.

They have a surprise for him.

- I open the door.
- You open the door.

Wipe yOur feet.

Did you wipe them?

- And it's quiet.
- What's quiet?

The apartment, very quiet.
It's never been so quiet.

And the lights.

Lights are on everywhere.
Things are scattered.

A child's slipper. Just one.

A large bath towel.

On the floor.
You know what's going on.

You call them.
Please, an answer.

"Please let them answer".
But they're silent.

The emergency phone
is on the right.

- On the left.
- Sorry, left.

The cord's torn out, the receiver's
on the floor. You turn around slowly...

- And... There it is!
- What?

There!
Blood underthe door.

lt opens.
On the chandelier hangs...

A panda.

A big stuffed panda.

Your daughter's favorite.
And it's not blood.

It's a broken wine bottle.

All is not lost.
You run to the bedroom.

And here they are!
Your daughter. She looks alive.

No blood. She was strangled!

You open the bedroom, and there,
r*ped and hacked to pieces...

...is yourwife.
It's the end.

You want to yell, to run,
but you can't.

You stand like pillar of salt.

Overtheir bodies.

- He's nuts. Nuts.
- Wait. That's not all.

You hear someone behind you.

Who could it be?

It's that same Chechen
that you want to save from prison.

With the same knife.

He slowly, methodically
pins you belly down to the floor,

pulIs backyour head,

takes that cold, sharp blade
and cuts yourthroatfrom earto ear.

You, Harvard, will crawl
in your own blood.

With your last breath...

You don't understand why he did it!

He did it because we're

just trophies to them!

We're not humans, we're trophies!

l change my vote. The k*ller is guilty.

Good for you!

And good for your mom, too.
What a guy she raised.

Smart. Lively.

lmaginative. And truthful.

There you go.

Six - six.

Very interesting.

Why are you looking at me?

l don't know...

He's impressionable.

He's sick.
Should we call the bailiff?

- Doctor...
- What can I do?

It's not...

...food poisoning...

It's nervous regurgitation.

Give him some water.

- Are you OK?
- I'm fine. Thanks very much...

Yes. Yes...

"The City Wolves".

Season seven finale.

That's right. I watched it.

Every Monday through Thursday at 9:35 pm
You watch our channel.

I'm glad.

Thankyou.

Don't sh**t!

Everyone back! Back!

Stay back, I said!

Don't sh**t! Staywhere you are!
l said don't sh**t!

Quiet!

Quiet.

Followthe car!

Anywounded?

- No, nobody.
- Good.

Umar.

Hey, Umar.

Is that you?

It's me, uncle Volodya.

Calm down. Don't be afraid.

Get up.

I'm uncle Volodya.

Get up.

Calm down, calm down.

Umar.

Calm down.

Thank God I found you.

Everything's OK now.
You'll come live with me in Moscow.

Don't be afraid, it's me.

Lord...

You see, we have new lights,
but old wiring.

It's freezing.
And juries rarely sit this long.

The wiring can't take it.
I'll give you a lantern.

Don'tworry,
we'll think of something.

Fine.

- Here it is.
- What happened?

l think I understand:
The old man's address!

When he gave his statement
he gave one address,

the building where
the m*rder happened.

But in court he gave
a different address, his daughter's.

Yes, he said... Ow!

Sorry.

He said that
the day afterthe m*rder

he went to his daughter's
on the other side of Moscow.

And stayed.
So he lives there now?

That's right.

He said he went there
for her birthday.

But the m*rder

and his change of address
were in November?

Yes.

But the daughter's birthday

is in March.

- Some light, please.
- Sure, here you go.

And what does all this mean?

Light.

I'll explain.
l asked our bailiff

to bring me some information about
the construction next to the building.

It's a huge project,
a luxury apartment building.

One square meter

costs at least 4000 dollars.

All the apartments are sold.

But the building where the m*rder happened
stands rightwhere

they plan to build a wing
of the luxury building.

The construction schedule is firm.

And?

Now imagine you have to
build a building

where people have paid millions
for apartments.

But two old jerks
who aren'tworth a penny

won't let you start construction.

It's a public building.
It's central.

The late officer stayed

because it had been military housing
but he had no right to stay there.

But the military didn't have any other
apartmentfor him.

And the stubborn old partyworker,

wouldn't leave

because he demanded an equally good
apartment, and also central.

ln cases like that thejob is done
on a personal level.

They send lawyers, building agents.

They call themselves
anything they like,

but really they'rejust crooks.

And these thugs go after
the military man

who fought against them in the w*r.

And afterthe old communist

who has no idea
what kind of people they are.

And so they cook up a
lucrative scheme.

They start surveillance.

Study the relationships.

See howthey all interact.

And waitfortheir moment.

As a result:

One person is k*lled,

another, who did not k*ll anyone,

is sent to prison,

the third runs offto his daughter's
on the other side of Moscow.

And within a few days is living there...

...permanently.

ltwas...

...a very lucrative scheme.

So...

...you're saying itwas a
premeditated m*rder?

Looks thatway.

But that's horrible!

Well...

...when millions of dollars
are at stake...

...the difference between persuasion...

...and execution...

...disappears.

How do you know all this?

l say, how do you know all this?

People talk.

Pass the candle, please.

Over here.

So, youjust told us
all ofthat, and...

...and what now?

I'm convinced that the boy

did not k*ll his father.

l vote.

Not guilty.

Back to seven -five.

I'll admit that yourwild theory,
so to speak, is possible.

But you're forgetting the otherwitness,
in the next building.

Herwindows are across from
the room where the m*rder happened.

And she testified that she saw
with her own eyes howthe father...

"The father hit the boy in the face,
and then...

...the Chechen grabbed a knife
and stuck it...

...into the chest of the officer, Volodya".

She had no reason to give
false testimony.

Nobodywanted to tear down her building.

Don't trust her! Thatwoman
not only claimed she sawthe m*rder.

She demonstrated
how he stabbed from above.

Yes?
Yes, she did.

Before I went to med school
l worked as an orderly.

l saw lots of knife wounds.

How could a kid who's
a head shorterthan his father.

How could he s*ab him
from above?

What is this, a Bollywood movie?

It's nonsense.

It'sjust ridiculous. Listen...

...what're you babbling about?

l don't get it. A "Bollywood movie"?
That's nonsense!

I've never been an orderly.
Do you want me to showyou...

...how a person can s*ab someone
a head tallerfrom above?

Want me to showyou?

Do you?

Go ahead, if you can...

- You want me to?
- Go ahead.

All right.

Look.

Come here.

How did he do it? I'll showyou.

Come here. There.

Where...?

Come here.

How'd he do it? Watch.

Come here. Watch. Watch.

There. Like that.

Stop.

Am I shorterthan you?

Shorter by a head? Well? Am l?

Shorter, right?
I'm a head shorterthan you.

Bollywood, you say?

How could he do it?

I'll showyou.

I'll showyou how he could do it.

His father hit him.

lnsulted him and hit him.
He took the knife.

I'll k*ll you!

Whatwas that?

Is it blood?

The bird...

...pooped.

Let me have the knife.

You know?

The boy grew up in a land where
they know something about knives.

Anyone who's ever used
a knife knows

you have to strike from below.

It's always unpredictable.
Always dangerous,

and always hard to defend against.
Like this.

What are you...?

Then, to be sure the knife

reaches the heart,
as the medical expert said...

...you must strike with power,
penetrate the chest cavity.

Hey, stop...

You're a surgeon.

Yes, a surgeon. Can't you tell?

A knife...

...like any otherweapon,
especially in the Caucasus,

is a form of culture.

Sorry...

...l learned itwhen I was a kid,
in the Caucasus.

Sorry.

Very interesting.

l change my decision.

Oh Lord, I'm blind.

l can't talk now.
l can't talk now, you hear?

They're still deliberating.

Can you imagine?

All night. lmagine that...

Got some real g0-getters.
Is it myfault?

Since ourwiring is totally shot
this is the best I can do,

it's left overfrom a school dance.

- A karaoke party...
- I'll take the lantern.

lf you did yourjob,
you'd be home.

You'd be at a disco or a
karaoke bar like normal people.

l propose we vote.

The gentleman builder is right,
it's a very logical plan.

l think the kid is not guilty.

Please raise your hand if you
think the accused is guilty.

One. Two.

Three.

Please raise your hand if
you think he is not guilty.

One, two, three,

four, five six, seven, eight.

And you?

Sorry.

Are you...?
What?

- How do you vote?
- Meaning?

You said you change your mind.
What are you changing it to?

One second.

Pardon me, but do you recall
how I voted the last time?

Ah, when you...?
You voted guilty.

Thankyou very much.

Yes, I definitely change my mind.

And vote that the accused
is not guilty.

You won't change again?
l can write...?

What do you mean?
It's myfinal decision.

Based on principle.

Thanks to principles like that

we'll wake up one day

surrounded by green berets
restoring order,

and foreign speech.

l don't understand why
you're insulting me.

You changed your mind
just like I did.

No, pal, not like you did.

Hejust described a very clear plan,
and how itworks.

It's one criminal scheme.

It's notjust one.
The scheme is everywhere.

What scheme?

When the big fish don't
give a thought to the little people,

who have to get by
howeverthey can.

By their own rules.

It's like that everywhere.

ln construction, in hospitals,

and in cemeteries.

What do cemeteries
have to do with it?

Have you ever buried anyone?

Me?

Yes, I have.

Two years ago.
ln London. Matilda.

Who was she?

A Rottweiler.

That's not a name.
It's a breed of dog.

l don't know howthey bury dogs
in London,

but I do know how we see people off
on theirfinaljourney.

I've been a cemetery directorfor 8 years.
Now, imagine this.

You're burying a loved one.
Afuneral service, the usual.

You go to the graveyard.

- Like this.
- What are you...? What grave?

- That's mom.
- Sorry.

My mom's there.

- Well, it's...
- My mom.

The final farewell, relatives.

And some old lady standing nearby.

She looks into the grave
and says "Oh God, that poor man".

They say "What is it?"
They look, the grave's flooded.

How can that be?

What can they do? You can't
put your loved one in a swamp.

And the old grannywhispers advice.

They go to the head gravedigger,
who's there.

They say: "Sir, there's water in there.
Please do something".

He gives them some line
about ground water

and he shoveIs the liquid
out of the grave.

But it runs back in. They're in shock.

The old lady tugs at someone's sleeve
and shows them another grave nearby,

that's completely dry.

And pristine.

Now here's the interesting part.

The relatives ask the digger,

"Listen is there anyway
we can change places?"

"Are you crazy?"

They're burying someone there
in 15 minutes.

No way. All the paperwork's done"

They get on their knees, in tears;,
"Sir, please help us. We'll pay.

Just tell us how much".

The rest is easy.
He looks at their clothes.

for you, 2000 bucks.

For someone else, 500. lfthey're poor
he won't even look at them.

They swap stones.
The dead guy gets a dry grave

The family leaves.
The old lady gets 500 rubles

They pull out the plastic sheetfrom
underthe grave

and in 15 minutes it's dry.

And the diggers are ready
to rig up anotherwet grave.

That's it.

I'm glad we cremated
my mother in law.

Very interesting.

Why are you looking at me?

Is it differentwhere you work?

Everyone's in on it. Everyone.

ln their own way.

Right, friend?

Rolex?

Yeah.

Expensive.

Well, yeah.

On your cemetery pay?

Yes...

...on my cemetery pay. I won't lie

But I also used that cemetery pay

to restore the chapel.

And I feed the bums who
hang around the cemetery.

They have to eat somewhere.

And I built a school in the town
where I was born, 830 km from Moscow.

lt has a gym... come visit,
you'll see.

And we don't have monstrosities,
like that pipe.

My pipes are underground,
where they should be.

There's a computer lab with
LCD screens.

Local teachers, all with
good salaries.

We have a bus to bring kids
from farther away.

And take them home, of course.

So they don't have time
to sniff glue.

And if you ask
the people in the village:

"Where'd the money to build this
school come from?"

They couldn't care less where
the money came from,

as long as the school stays
up and running.

So I use moneyfrom the dead
to help the living.

Since nobody else is going to.

ln short, the Chechen is not guilty.

Still, can you explain to me,

an almost sane person,
why that simple woman,

who is not part of any scheme,

testified in court
that the Chechen

k*lled the Russian officer
Volodya with a knife?

l know why.

You can yell at me.
You can laugh. But I know.

- ltwasjealousy.
- What?

Jealousy,

She didn't hearthe boy,
she lives across the street.

She didn't see anything either
because itwas night time.

At best, she saw some shadows,
though I doubt it.

She didn't see anything.

She was convinced that itwas the boy
and no one else,

because she wanted
and was prepared to see

the worst in him.

Why?

Jealousy.

Terrible,

senseless, femalejealousy.

Look at these photos.

She showed them in court.

To prove that she knewthe victim.

Here's a photo of them at a party.

Her, the deceased, and his wife.

Now here's one...

...of her, him, and someone's arm.

It's his wife's arm.

Why did she need to go
and crop the photo

so it only shows her
and the deceased?

Cutting out the wife.

This is a photo of her dream.

What happens next is very simple:

A single woman,

childless, who dreams offinally
having her own family.

She likes the man from across the street,
but he's married.

She writes him in Chechnya,
telIs him his wife's cheating.

- Can I see?
- Sure, here.

And that she's sorry,
but she couldn't keep quiet.

True or not,
she did write him the letter.

ltwasjealousy.

She engineered his divorce.

Thatwas it!

No more obstacles.
Just her and him, like the photo.

All she had to do was
waitfor his return.

The return of her beloved.

And he arrives, but not alone.

He's with a nasty, filthy
savage monkey

who can hardly speak Russian.

Remember, she said she asked him
what his plans were?

And hejust replied

that he planned to live with the kid
and take care of him.

Thatwas it. All her hopes, ruined.

But she kept it up.

Remember, she said she invited him over.

With the boy. For her birthday.

She made dinner, bought sweets,
and a book.

Later she discovered
that some moneywas missing

from next to where
that poor boywas sitting.

And she tried to convince him
to return it.

Eventually she admitted in court
that she had put it somewhere else

and forgot.

But, at the time, she mentions
the money

in front of a combat vet
who'd been wounded.

She must have known
what could happen.

And did happen, of course.

The man hears that the kid
he considers his son is a thief.

And he loses control of himself.

He smacks the boy, but she's silent.

And when his nose bleeds

she leaps to his defense
and says the boy's innocent.

Or rather, he's guilty,
but shouldn't be hit.

Because children are weaker,
you shouldn't hurt them.

God!

She didn't lie.

She wanted to believe

the murdererwas the boy

and no one else.

Jealousy.

Senseless, cruel,

blind, instinctive

femalejealousy.

That's it.

Right there.

She found the money later,
she said so herself.

l live with my son.

He's twenty now, but back then, in"91
he was six.

ln 1990 mywife left me.

She ran offwith a guyfrom the States.
The hell with her...

The kid was upset, of course,
but I explained that momjustwent

on a long trip, and that
he'd see her again.

My mom looked after him.

l had started driving a cab,
working like a dog.

Didn't really think about myfamily.

Women are no problem for a cabbie.

One day...

...l started talking to this woman.
Not a beauty

We went out a couple oftimes,
and she came to live with us.

l didn't need much from her:

Meals, laundry, take the kid to school.
She seemed to like himjustfine.

Kolya. Little Nikolai.

Forthe life of me, I can't remember
how it started.

She began to tell me things
about my boy...

...that he was lazy,
that he misbehaved.

l call him over and ask:
"Is it true?"

He looks at me, smiling,
and says: "Yes, dad." And hides his eyes.

l punished him.

One day I'd had enough,
l don't rememberwhat she told me

but I just snapped.

l busted into his room

dragged him out of bed,
punched him.

She's quiet.
Then her nose starts bleeding.

She screams.

"m*rder*r! m*rder*r! What are you doing?!
You're k*lling the child!"

And it started.

I'd beat him...

She'd see the blood and scream.

ltwas brutal.

And my boy, itwas as if
he was expecting it.

He stopped crying.
He'd just blink and smile,

blink over and over, but not cry.
He didn't cry.

l punch him.
His face is bloody.

And he keeps blinking and smiling.

Blinking and smiling.

One night I woke up.

l heard water running.

l go to the bathroom,
he's washing his sheet

He had pissed his bed.

That kid...

He sat in the corner
hugging the sheet.

Looking at me and smiling.
Smiling.

Blinking and smiling.

ltwas like he was always guilty.

That look, and that smile.
He'd look at me...

And I was right in a way,

But in my soul, deep down...

ltwas like someone made me
my own son's executioner.

Then she had a baby, also a boy.

He was aboutfour.
He acted up in front of me.

l gave him a little smack.

And bam!
God help me...

l barely got away. She threw an iron,
itjust missed me.

l could slug my own son,

but I just barely touched hers,
and she nearly k*lled me.

She and the kid went to
her relatives in Tambov.

l was working nights.

l had already left the building
when I turned around.

ltwas like someone grabbed me
by the collar.

l saw a light in the window.
l ran to the apartment.

l look all over, can'tfind him.
It's 3am.

l hear a rustling in the closet.

l open the closet.

And he's sitting there.
Smiling and looking at me.

And blinking.
Blinking, over and over.

l say: "Son, what are you doing?"
l pull him out of the closet.

l hold him. He holds me tight.

He looks at me, smiling and blinking,
and he's got something behind his back.

l say: "Son, what's that?"

And I take his hand.
Like that. His hand.

And he's holding a noose.

A noose he made from my belt.

l don't know...

...what he saw on myface.

But he grabbed me, hugged me,
pressed himselftight.

And whispered:
"Papa, don't, papa".

"Papa, don't, don't".
Over and over.

"Don't, papa, don't".
And he's smiling.

Smiling and saying: "Papa, don't".

Well...

...l vote...

...the kid is not guilty.

Write it down.

Yes, you know,

thatwas very persuasive.

l agree, the boy is not guilty.

- Let's vote.
- OK, fine.

Who thinks he is not guilty,
raise your hand.

- Thank God.
- Finally, thankyou.

It's unanimous, he's not guilty.

Wait. Let's write it down.

Wait, please. Wait.

Justwait.

l haven't voted yet.

- Well, I hope you'lljoin us.
- No.

l think

he's guilty.

Eleven for "not guilty"
and one for "guilty".

- Listen!
- I'll explain, I'll explain.

- These artists...
- Why?

- Come on...
- I don't get it.

We only hurt the ones we love...

l knewfrom the first minute

that he was innocent.

Professional experience.

l agree with all the explanations
we've come up with here.

The old man was obviously scared.

And the woman...
You forgot that she's nearsighted.

She wears glasses. And she claimed
she was sleeping that night.

She had to put on her glasses
and go to the window.

It's not realistic.

And the boy, well, he's from the Caucasus.
They're very different people.

l worked there a fewtimes,
l knowthem.

He wouldn'tyell "I'll k*ll you!",
he'd just k*ll you.

And he wouldn't make up
a stupid story.

The rest is obvious.
ltwas clearly a set up.

Arranged by people

who really need the kid
to go to prison. Right?

We sawthat. We proved that
he's innocent.

Right?

But as soon as

we reach that verdict,
they'll let him go.

Of course theywill. And?

- That's great.
- And thank God.

Yes, thank God he's not a m*rder*r.

Then what? Why did you
vote to find him guilty?

l don't understand at all.

l have ceased to understand anything.
We finally... You...

l just don't understand anymore.

After all we've gone through.
Me, for instance

And when... I'm sorry.
When we all...

And you... What is this?

We've accomplished a great thing,
an arduous task.

We've established the truth.

l can say one thing for sure.

He'll live longer in prison,
than he will on the street.

Very interesting.

lf he gets out now, he won't go to
a bar or home, orto relatives.

He has nothing, nobody, understand?

He'll lookforthe K*llers.

Also, ifwe acquit him now,

itwill automatically trigger
an investigation into the unsolved m*rder.

The men who k*lled his father

will be on guard,
and they'll lookforthe kid.

He'll lookforthem.

And they'll lookfor him,
but he doesn't know where they are.

But they know where he is.

So our decision, instead of sending
the kid to prison

will be his death warrant.

And they'll k*ll him crudely, horribly.

Like a dog, with a sharpened screwdriver...

And nobodywill lookfor him.
You knowthat.

They'll find him 8 or 10 months later
in a sewer or a garbage dump.

And that's it.

There are people in the courtroom

following every step of the trial.

l can smell it.
Professional instinct.

Understand?

- An artist's instinct
- What?

An artist's.

Yes, an artist's.

What if he hangs himself in prison?

How do we know what'll
happen to him in there?

How will he act?
How can we know?

Well, then, that's his fate...

...if he hangs himself.

But I'll tell you one thing for sure.

He'll live longer
in prison than he will on the street.

OK, then what do you suggest?

Are you proposing we let
an innocent man sit in prison

while the criminaIs go free?

- Exactly.
- I didn't propose that.

Hide him away in prison:
He has nowhere else to go, anyway.

His home was torn down.
He has nowhere to live.

We'll hire lawyers.
We can get some money together.

We'll go to the prosecutor.
We'll find professionals.

And tell them whatwe know.
They'll nail the K*llers to the wall.

Then, when they're locked up,
the kid can be let out.

And then he'll be free and safe.
From them, anyway.

You'll excuse me, but, these lawyers,

these professional people,
that prosecutor...

Who's going to handle all ofthat?
I'm curious.

Who? What do you mean, who?

Who?

We will. Who else?

Us?

Who else has any use

for a poor Chechen boywho
doesn't speak Russian

and was accused of k*lling his father?

Who's going to handle it?
Who needs him more than we do? Who?

I'm a cab driver. Not an investigator.
l gotta work.

l understand, of course, but...

...l don't know.

l don't know, I used to have contacts
in the prosecutor's office.

But thatwas 100 years ago,
when dad was alive.

And I'm supposed to go
to Japan for six months.

It's a complicated project.
It's notjust me, understand.

l have 850 employees to think about.

What do you think?
That I'm going to work there,

while there's an innocent man
in prison who can't do anything?

The 21st, 22nd...

...and the 20, yes.

l for example have four operations
scheduled nextweek.

On the 21st, the 23rd,
and two on the 24th.

Should I cancel them all?
How can l?

OK, gentlemen.

Let's say, purely hypothetically,

that, say I could do it, but how?

It's a very seriousjob. I'd need...

I'd need a ton oftime.
I'm producing a new reality show.

I'm working day and night.

The show's called "Planet Good."
It's...

OK, it's clearthatwe'd
all do it, butwhen?

A 3-month tour.
I'm already late, I'll have to catch up.

Listen, my dear, kind friends.

We've done a great thing.
We've liberated an innocent person.

One who's a strangerto us,
by the way.

We've fulfilled our duty asjurors.

The rest is up to other official organs.

Don't start an amateur investigation.

There are, after all, laws!

What is it? Have you all lost it?
Brave young pioneers.

You want to stick around till morning?
Come to your senses!

l have to be at the airport
in an hour and forty minutes.

My girlfriend's flying in from Dubai,
Julie.

She's 21 . It's been 2 months.
Are you trying to ruin my life?

Are you out of your minds?

l started to work out
like an old fool.

She has tits like melons.

l haven't seen herfor 2 months.
I'm in love, forthe first time.

Sixfeet one.

Chocolate brown nipples. Like this.

Lips like Angelina Jolie. Green eyes...

Don't get me started on her ass,
I've gone on long enough.

They laugh at me at the cemetery.
l write poetry atwork.

"Julie, darling, dear.
Free me from myfear.

You're all that I desire.
Wind, and rain...

...and fire."

And I have to bang her every half hour.
Why do I work out?



l can't sleep. Listen,
I've had wet dreams 3 nights in a row.

Like I was 15.
When did you last have one?

Television... Understand?

I'm sick of this meeting.
Let's do something.

- Calm down.
- Don't touch me.

- Let's make a decision.
- Drink.

Drink it yourself.
Don't touch me!

Let's do something.

What's so funny, eh?

See that pipe?

- What's that...
- No, do you see it?

- How manyyears?
- 40.

- How many more to come?
- 40.

Another40.

And? What? What?

Everything's like that. Everything.

We come. We see. Wejudge.

We drink. We talk in circles.
That's all we do...

And everything's like that.

ln otherwords,

l have a suggestion.
Let's be honest adults.

lf even now,
after all my arguments,

you still vote to find
the kid not guilty

I'lljoin you. Sound good?

Wait a second. Wait. Wait.

And you'll definitely vote not guilty

ifwe all do?

l gave myword.

Well, you know, the word of an artist...

Fine.

Don't like the word of an artist,
l give you myword as an officer.

Ex-officer, right?

No such thing as a Russian ex-offi...

Let's vote. Who votes to find...

...the kid not guilty, raise your hand.

- We're voting for not guilty.
- Yes.




...10, 1 1 ...

...12.

"Not Guilty".

It's still a better place.

No, it hasn'tworked outyet.
We'll talk.

Don't leave without me.

Would you recognize them?

Of course. I'll neverforget them.

We'll find them.

We'll find them. I promise.

Whatwas yOur father's name?

Ruslan.

- And your other one?
- Uncle Volodya.

My name's Nikolai.

Call me Uncle Nikolai.

lf you want.

Let's get out of here. Let's go.
You can live with me.

So it's like this.

lf you want to fly away, then fly.

The coast is clear.
lf you want to stay, then stay.

But make the decision

all by yourself.

Nobody will do it for you.

It's been an honor.

"THE LAW Is ALL POWERFUL
AND CONSTANT"

"BUT WHAT CAN BE DONE WHEN MERCY
HAS A GREATER FORCE THAN LAW"

B. TOSlA