Original subtitles

My sweet

This is the blessed spot where we first met 17 years ago

Nothing has changed, except for the leopard

The one we saw then...

...has been freed by merciful nature

I always talk of merciful nature, gentle fate, God's compassion...

We judge others...

...reproach them for this and that...

...but what of ourselves?

I haven't done enough for you

We're not badly off, Roman

Thanks to your dowry...

...and the help of your blessed mother

And the assistance of your aunt

I may have furnished the flat...

...but that's about all

No, my dear, I must do more for you

Zina is sixteen, Mila is fourteen

Come now, children... cages are for animals

I think I could increase my income

I'll take on a representative. I'm thinking of Mr. Strauss

He's a decent, honest man

We'll invite him to a reception with some of our friends

We're a decent, perfect family...

...and I'm worried that I don't do enough for you

THE CREMATOR

From the novel by Ladislav Fuks

Director Juraj Herz

You're not to serve alcohol, only tea

Of course, if someone's willing to pay...

...you can serve them weak coffee

I haven't had any cake

And smokers will have to do without

When you die there is no smoking or drinking for all eternity

Please sit with this charming lady

I still haven't had any cake

Mr. Strauss, you call on many confectioners, that's sweet work

But apart from offering your firm's products to these nice people...

...how about offering something else?

Something concerning these nice people personally

As well as your confectionery...

...offer them a pamphlet and application form

JOIN US! SAVE UP FOR CREMATION

Five crowns commission for every applicant

Excuse me, Mr. Strauss, here is an old friend of mine...

...the engineer Reinke and his wife

We fought together in the Austrian army

I haven't seen you for years. You must call on us soon

The ladies haven't met, we must introduce them later

Where are you taking me?

We were going to a concert, weren't we?

There's music here

I meant the Philharmonic. There's only four players here

Maybe the others will come later

I'm sure you're fond of music, Mr. Strauss

Sensitive people love music - Schubert, Liszt...

How unfortunate are those who die unaware of such beauty

Are you perhaps related to Johann or Richard Strauss?

The composer of "Rosenkavalier"

Unfortunately not, Mr. Kopfrkingl, but I'm fond of Strauss' music

About these applications, Mr. Strauss...

...some people suffer, you know - so do animals

I have here a wonderful book about Tibet

This is Potala, the palace of the Dalai Lama

Lhasa... it is wonderful, like the Bible

God did well when He said to man...

"...Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return"

Such a crematorium, dear friends...

...is good and pleasing to God

It helps the Lord to speed man's transformation to dust

Some may object on a point of detail...

...because Christ was buried, not burned

Dear friends, that was another matter

I always answer that objection with the truth that Christ was embalmed...

...and wrapped in linen

No one will embalm you, wrap you in linen...

...and bury you in a cave

You see, my dear friends...

...we live in a good, humanitarian state, which provides crematoria...

...not idly, for people to visit like museums...

...but to give people a chance...

...to turn quietly into dust after the tribulations of life

As this beautiful book on Tibet says...

"We must do away with the evil of suffering...

"...or alleviate it, at least

"The sooner man returns to dust...

"...the sooner he is set free, transformed...

"...reincarnated"

Animals, too. In the ground it takes 20 years

In the crematorium, 75 minutes

Now, dear friends...

...enjoy yourselves

Lose yourselves in this lovely music, dance, have fun...

...let no one feel left out of things

What a charming man

How he has suffered. He lost his job as a porter, a liver condition...

...or was it his kidneys?

Something to do with urine, anyway

He lost his wife. His son died of scarlet fever

I could increase his commission, under some pretext of success

He's a Jew - a good businessman

Do you think so, dear? Strauss isn't a Jewish name

Names mean nothing. You call me Lakm�, instead of Maria

And I must call you Roman, instead of Karl

Because I'm a romantic and I love beauty

That's the one

And that noble face, there

I'm framing this for the Japanese Embassy

Emelian Chamorro, President of Nicaragua

It's Louis Marin, Comptroller General

Poincar�'s Minister of Pensions

But it says here...

- Never mind that, Mr... - Holy

Never mind, Mr. Holy, stick a bit of paper over what it says

Here's another thing

The law on cremation of 7th December, 1921

Could you frame it, with a nice border?

I wanted something gayer

New pictures for you, my angel

I bought them out of my first increase in income

Our house will be even more beautiful

Is Zina practicing? Such a gifted child

- Where's Mili? - He's with Jan...

...Dr. Bettelheim's nephew

Good, he's not roaming about

Jan's a good boy - doesn't wander farther than the bridge

- Who is it? - The President of Nicaragua

We'll put him...

I think, dear, we could hang him over there

- Where shall we hang this? - The bathroom

You know, my angel...

...I think the bathroom is our most attractive room

Perhaps flowers would look nicer here

Or a hunting scene... the chase...

Little pet

Don't let the poor thing suffer

What about milk?

Give it to the pet, then. It's yesterday's milk, anyway

Statistics show that Prague's married men live longer

We're lucky, Walter. We must thank the ladies

But for them, we'd die sooner

Yes, Walter, when I remember us soldiers in the World War...

...how we fought and died

When I think what the horses suffered... it's unbelievable

The world should have peace and justice...

...and happiness

Right, but such things have to be fought for

Look at Austria, part of the Reich now. Hitler's a political genius

He freed the nation from poverty...

...unemployment and misery

Haven't you seen our party's pamphlets?

That's Louis Marin, former Minister of Pensions

I bought it from Mr. Holy. Mr. Holy is a widower

Right, but our nation suffered a great injustice after the war...

...and anyone with German blood should fight to put things right

JOIN US IN THE S.P.D.

Have some almonds

Perhaps you have your own opinion on past injustices

Such tragedies...

Mr. Strauss was pensioned off...

...then his wife and child died of tuberculosis

Our children go to Czech schools...

...we speak Czech at home, like now

I have only Czech books. Even my book on Tibet is in Czech

Our blood is Czech

You'll find at least a drop of German blood in your veins

Perhaps... a drop, perhaps...

A sensitive man is aware of that drop, even

I'm meeting G�rmann tonight. He's going to Berlin to see the Minister

The Republic is an obstacle in our path, but that's a long story

I wanted to tell you about the girl born with two heads...

...four arms and four legs, poor thing

A life twice blessed

- Where have you been? - Looking at the car, with Jan

You missed an interesting conversation, Mili

Mr. Reinke is an engineer - he had to study hard

Now he's meeting a Mr. G�rmann, and your German is weak

I know we all speak Czech, but you should know some German

Germany's a great nation, after all

Mr. Strauss

You see how the poor man is getting on, Lakm�?

Welcome, Mr. Dvorak. Don't be frightened - I'll initiate you gently

This is our porter, Mr. Vrana

His health is failing - it's his liver

You know, for 15 years I've been entering this temple of death...

...yet I still have the same solemn feeling every time

It's a bit like my marriage

I have been married to Lakm� for 17 years...

...and it is still as wonderful as when we met at the leopard's cage

Come, Mr. Dvorak, don't be afraid

You have chosen a beautiful, noble profession...

...and a responsible one

Mr. Fenek, a morphine addict

Have you heard? The conference at Munich is forcing a settlement on us

Everything will be all right...

...though I do have a drop of German blood - no one can help his origins

Haven't you overalls, Mr. Dvorak? Never mind, we'll find you something

Won't you come round with us, Mrs. Liskova?

You've never seen how we work

My job is to clean the chapel, Mr. Kopfrkingl

Let's go, then, Mr. Dvorak

May I smoke?

Of course, do smoke if you feel like it

I don't smoke or drink

We can hear the ceremony above, such beautiful music. You like music?

Sensitive people love music

I love it very much

That's only Mrs. Leshetinska practicing

The catafalque descends here

Above us is the world of survivors, so to speak

For us, work is only beginning

These furnaces always remind me...

...of the ovens in which our daily bread is baked

This is our timetable

The timetable of death no one can escape...

...unless buried in the ground

Now we burn with gas, not coke

The body is turned to dust in 75 minutes

In fine weather, Mr. Dvorak...

...you can go for a breath of fresh air in the cemetery

You can see inside through these little windows

There's nothing to see now

No doubt you will have a chance during some nice cremation

The ashes are placed in these metal urns...

...but the soul is no longer there, it is up in the ether...

...free of suffering, liberated, clean...

...it moves into another body

Here you can see a few coffins for this afternoon

The one to be burned first is already up in the chapel...

...for leave-taking

But not every coffin goes up there

These are not to be opened, they are already nailed down

Leave it, Mr. Dvorak.

It may come in useful

This is Miss Strunna. Her skin is wonderfully pink

There she is. I looked at her yesterday

She looks so alive, you expect her to get up...

...and walk

You may wonder if she's really dead

That would be a wicked thought

This woman has been declared dead...

...and it is our duty to incinerate her after the ceremony

If Miss Strunna were alive...

...cremation would be terrible, because her life was before her

It would only be good if her life was full of suffering

Suffering is a great evil, and we must do all we can to alleviate it

But don't worry, Mr. Dvorak - Miss Strunna is really dead

Such mistakes are rare nowadays

How beautiful

Look, my angels

Pity they are not artificial, to bloom in the snow

Poor Mr. Dvorak is so nervous, he smokes all the time

Come, Mili, don't wander off

What lovely acrobatics

I've something better for you

- What's that? - Don't be scared

This is the murderer Laget

He committed a murder every day and night

Really live, like at the theatre

It's a waxworks, you idiot

And now, God-fearing people, let us visit the baths

With real water and steam?

It's a waxworks, isn't it?

These are the baths at Franzensbad

People come here to bathe and make themselves beautiful

This woman washes...

...and smiles at the young man

She sits there and the young scoundrel kills her

Old-fashioned baths. Our bathroom is nicer

She looks like our dairywoman

This isn't a dairy

This man hanged himself because he had the plague...

...a contagious disease...

...he died rather than contaminate others

His body hangs there, as dead as a doornail

- He looks alive - He's hanged

This poor boy was murdered by the notorious Moore...

...with this iron bar

Moore looked innocent, with blue eyes and pink cheeks

He killed six people and ended on the scaffold

I knew it!

What do you know? I can't even take you to a waxworks!

The wax dwarf points the way out. His name is Vitek

He's alive!

For gentlemen with strong nerves we have a special exhibition

Here we have all the contagious diseases. Syphilis, gonorrhoea...

What a scourge. One can die of that, too

But modern science can protect us

Our good neighbor, Dr. Bettelheim...

Do you still consider these tests to be necessary?

You know I touch no woman but my own angel

I'm afraid you'll think I'm a hypochondriac...

...but I'm afraid of infection from my work

But you don't handle such corpses, so infection is impossible

I'm very glad that Mili is friends with your nephew

Mili likes to roam about, and that's dangerous nowadays

I hear there's martial law in the frontier regions

This will end in suffering

Violence never pays, it's an unreliable principle of power

After all, we live in Europe, in the 20th century, in a civilized world

Aggressors are always beaten in the end

Well, Mr. Kopfrkingl, if you think it necessary, come again

These are banana flies...

...used for heredity tests

And this is Drosphilia funebris...

...the funeral fly

Would you like this collection?

I'll sell it cheap for a bit of morphine

Very decorative. I appreciate such things

I have a butterfly pinned in my bathroom

Where would I get morphine? I don't even smoke

You know that engineer...

Mr. Reinke is not in Prague. There's mobilization

All right, let me have it when he returns. I've got a little left

I've come early today, so as to see you

You've better things to see

How long have you lived like this?

This isn't the life for you

What's the sense in doing such work?

Times are dangerous, there's mobilization

You should have someone to cling to, someone to protect you

Let's talk it over this evening

I've alarmed Mrs. Liskova

You shouldn't joke in a crematorium, Mr. Kopfrkingl

Yes, but I only wanted to talk, to invite her to our house...

...to cheer her up a little, poor thing

A present for Zina

Your young lady has a client, Mr. Kopfrkingl

Perhaps you might like another. Everyone says you're so respectable

You would have to wait a little for Miss Dagmar

What a pity you only visit us on the first Thursday of the month

Couldn't you call more often?

My income is larger now...

...I have a representative...

...and it's good for the health

Here's Miss Dagmar

You see, it wasn't so long

I've waited a month for you, Mr. Kopfrkingl

I'll just tidy up

I don't want this to get crushed. It's for Zina

We have a new employee, a Mr. Dvorak

He works with the coffins

At first he smoked incessantly - now he's less nervous

Thank God he doesn't smoke so much now

Mr. Strauss is quite successful with the application forms

People in the confectionery trade are very pleasant

I want to take on another representative

Someone in toys or cosmetics would be suitable

I must look after my family, Miss Dagmar

We have a beautiful and blessed home

I must look after you even better

I'll employ another representative. Mr. Dvorak smokes less now

But I told you that, didn't I?

Lakm�, you look so sad lately. Is something wrong?

Are you worried?

Zina's birthday is soon

I've bought her a new costume

What about that boy Kaja? Will he care for his family as well as I do?

This one has died. Everything dies here

Mrs. Liskova is leaving

She's unhappy here

Leaving us? How sudden. I'm so sorry

I can't invite you...

...and we'll be so busy...

...with the German army on our frontier

Even Mr. Vrana can't make the torches work

Why get so excited?

Why should they occupy us? Violence doesn't pay

We live in a civilized world, in Europe, in the 20th century

When is Miss Carska's turn?

She's seventh

The first funeral of the afternoon - it won't wait

Poor Miss Carska

She was about to be married

I must go and see if she is quite in order

I don't want to disturb, but have you got that morphine?

I told you - Mr. Reinke is not in Prague

Be patient. How can you think of morphine...

...when foreign troops are on our frontier?

Conferences are being held, there might be war...

...and Miss Carska was about to be married

How terrible to lose our dear ones in their prime

O, frost has withered their cheeks...

... and the black angel of death has done his deed

An educated speaker

Dvorak's "Largo," Mr. Dvorak

In 75 minutes, Miss Carska will be dust to fill an urn

But not her soul

The soul will be liberated - reincarnated, as they say in Tibet

She will fly into the ether

You know, premature death can be a great blessing...

...if it frees one from suffering

I think I'd like to go, too

Sometimes I think I'd rather work in the boiler room

Come, Mr. Dvorak, what's the matter?

I thought you were less nervous lately

I told my dear one you smoked less

The boiler room would be demeaning for you

Help yourselves children, Kaja, young ladies...

Great things are happening now the Germans have occupied Sudetenland

Beautiful music

Let's see what they say in the papers

BUY VODAK'S FABULOUS FIREWORKS!

Mili, never put an explosive in your mouth

You could be maimed for life

Will you take a picture, Kaja?

A photograph is like a conserve of a given moment

They take photos at our crematorium, but not with funny faces

They're bought as souvenirs by those left behind

Has anyone ever woken up in a coffin?

No, Kaja, not even Miss Carska...

...although she was under 30 and about to be married

I read someone came back to life

Then the person wasn't really dead

No one can come back to life after 75 minutes in a furnace

In some humane states, they incinerate animals, too

You, too, will be incinerated, bewitching one

In your present incarnation... but one day you won't recognize yourself

Cremation is quite humane...

...and frees people from fear of death

Dear children, there is no reason to fear cremation

Zina, play something for our distinguished guests

Mahler's "Songs for Dead Children..."

...or something livelier, like Saint-Sa�ns' "Danse macabre"

Next Wednesday, Mili and I will go to a boxing match

My angel nearly forgot to tell me I was invited

I've never been to a boxing match. I think it's a brutal sport

I'm looking forward to it

It's good for you to see a manly sport

- I've always thought it brutal - Tough, perhaps...

...but we need tough men. Boxing is man against man

Well, really, it's too bad!

We're always late

Excuse me, these are our seats

That pale woman...

She reminds me...

...of someone I've seen before

- He'll break his leg - Shut up!

My angel almost forgot to give me the tickets and your invitation

- Will there be bloodshed? - Maybe, but there shouldn't be

Clean your glasses, Mili

They'll bash their teeth in

- Dancing? - No, boxing

They'll hit him

He's the referee

They hit each other, not him

The one in red is a butcher's apprentice

A butcher! There'll be bloodshed!

This is a boxing match, not a slaughterhouse!

You said they wouldn't hit him

It was a mistake. Shut up and sit down!

There's blood. You said we were going to a boxing match

I can't take her anywhere. She's crazy, I'll have her put away

Was the apprentice dead, dad?

Nothing is certain in this life, except death

BOXING! JOIN US AT THE YOUTH SPORTS CLUB!

This Christmas is truly blessed

Angel, you look so radiant

What if I hang you up...

...amongst all these lovely things?

Don't let them suffer. Anezka will kill them in a moment

Why must she do it? Couldn't you kill them?

Of course, but I don't like to do it

Anezka is used to it, she's a good old soul

Come children, it's not a thing to watch

Roxana will stay here...

...she likes the guts

One carp must be dead, if she killed it with one blow

Its soul is in the ether

The second has gone

Their souls are free

You may want to play with their souls...

...but they are not really the souls of carp, just bladders

Their true souls could be reincarnated...

...as cats, perhaps

Perhaps our dear pet was once eaten as a carp

Perhaps we will eat her again... as something

But Reinke said he'd call before dinner

Are you eating carp for Christmas?

Yes, my angel is frying them now, on our little furnace

Her blessed mother prepared them in jelly, foreign style

We cook them the Czech way

That's all very well, but what about our blood?

We fight for noble ideals and you fry carp the Czech way

I thought you opposed violence, supported justice and happiness

This republic is a fortress of the enemy

It's a humanitarian state...

...with good laws, like the one on cremation

We'll install a higher moral code, a new order. It was predestined

You are strong and brave

You have a pure, Germanic soul

Karl, this will be a test of your strength and courage

On 6th March the Jewish community has some celebration...

...a concert or something - get yourself invited

You know that old Jew, Bettelheim...

...he'll take you along

Keep your ears open, listen to what they say

In a way it's to help those unhappy Jews

How will it help them?

They're a misguided, unhappy people. They understand nothing

They fight against our F�hrer

They're a misguided nation. You can help them

Find out what they're saying, what they're thinking

We'll join you in a moment, dear

I've brought a party application form for you

Become a member. There's still time

I must go now - to the Casino in Rose Street

We don't usually take our wives there, of course

Today is an exception

Lots of blondes there, usually - see for yourself

Only party members can go to the Casino

Our comrades, fellow Germans

Mother tongue

I swear I am not of Jewish race or religion

Only blondes? No brunettes? I'll have to get used to it

Now it's really Christmas. We have candles at home, too

At the crematorium we have them all the time

I wonder what the Bettelheims are doing?

They celebrate Christmas, even though they're Jews

He earns a lot of money, thanks to other people's misfortune

The temple of death is idle on Christmas Day

No cremations, like a Saturday, though I think they should work today

We should liberate as many souls as possible

Christmas should be generous to the dead as well as the living

At least the carp have profited from it

I will have a symbolic glass only. I'm a teetotaller

The Germans don't drink, either

A humane nation, with a law on cremation

They have a great future before them

I hope... we, too, belong to this great chosen nation...

...which will install a higher moral code

Blood is blood, and cannot be gainsaid

Do you think it's still necessary, Mr. Kopfrkingl?

Can you tell me how my blood is, doctor?

There's sure to be nothing, as always. Negative

I didn't mean that, I meant what is my blood?

Is my blood Czech or is my blood German?

It's impossible to tell

At least can you tell whether it's Slavonic or Germanic?

There's no difference in blood, it's like human ashes

You yourself say that all human ashes are the same...

...be they French or Spanish, doctor or clerk...

Is it true, doctor...

...that the Jewish community will soon have some celebration...

...with lovely songs?

You're thinking of the Chevra Kadisha Seudah

It is a dinner, held in the Funeral Hall

I fear it will not be so nice this year. Would you like to come?

In the Funeral Hall?

What a beautiful tremolo

They said the F�hrer was a scoundrel?

Such beautiful singing... so mournful...

- Liquidate party members, they said? - Yes... there was a crowd talking...

That cantor, those high notes...

They said they'd destroy Germany? Seize power?

Yes, take power in their own hands... and that soft, mournful song...

So they practically said they would destroy the Reich?

Yes, yes...

It was all like some solemn funeral

You were right, the Casino is heavenly

No one is suffering

Soon we'll end all suffering...

...in Warsaw, Paris, London, New York...

We've already liberated Bohemia and Moravia

Not even horses will suffer, everything will be mechanized

Did you see any horses in the occupation of Prague?

The German army is mechanized, like your crematorium

The F�hrer will create a paradise

We must drink to the victory, mustn't we?

I don't drink... or smoke

Today is an exception

I'll never forget the 15th March, 1939

Just a symbolic glass, perhaps

But we have enemies, Karl

In your crematorium, too

We must rely on you, our only party member there

What's the situation there?

Some of them don't understand anything

Like Zajic...

...Fenek... Beran...

...Podzimkova... Pelikan...

...or the porter, Vrana

There's something wrong with his liver...

...but he's an enemy of the Reich

As for Liskova...

...she no longer works there, but we can find her address

And the director...

...the director of my temple of death...

...also hasn't the right attitude

He once said he'd like to incinerate all the Germans

I don't know whether he should remain as director

We'll think about it

And what about your unfortunate Jews?

You even employ two

I don't know... Mr. Strauss...

He's a decent, honest man...

...he likes music, works well - only for the money, perhaps

He told me he doesn't agree with the Germans

Doctor Bettelheim...

...he's a good man, but he doesn't understand, either

I fear his nephew, Jan, is under his influence...

...just a boy

I don't like him. He takes Mili roaming.

And Anezka...

...their servant, a good soul, isn't Jewish

She killed our carp, I couldn't. But she's under Bettelheim's influence

I think the Jews are a misguided nation, beyond re-education

All that incredible music

Look, in Sparta they killed weak children

Some might think it cruel, but it was a merciful thing...

...for the children

They would only have been miserable -

the nation benefited

Your Maria's mother used to prepare carp in jelly

A foreign style, as you said. Don't you know it's the Jewish style?

Your Lakm�'s mother was Jewish

When I reminded your black-haired Lakm� of your German blood...

...she said Czech was spoken in your house

Your Lakm� didn't tell you of my invitation to the boxing match

She's not pleased you've joined the party

I'd like to know her reaction when your kids go to a German school

She has a bad influence on Mili - he's weak, effeminate

That's how they work, secretly, with families, children

How long have you been married, Mr. Kopfrkingl?

Our blessed marriage has lasted for 19 years

We first met at the zoo, in front of the leopard's cage

We must make sacrifices, Mr. Kopfrkingl

In the circumstances, I'm afraid you couldn't occupy higher posts

There is no difference in blood. Dr. Bettelheim says so

There's a tremendous difference. Pure blood comes first

There's no place for inferior blood in the new order

Isn't your Dr. Bettelheim a Jew?

Your Lakm� should understand that she's unfit to live with you

It's incompatible with the honor of an honorable, healthy man

She will have many problems, Karl

I couldn't come earlier, sir

I had to attend several unanticipated meetings

It's not like you, Mr. Kopfrkingl, but everything seems to be changing

Certainly, some personal changes are only to be expected

You hardly ever smoke nowadays, Mr. Dvorak

Now Mr. Pelikan can take the beauty to the chapel

You can take her away, Mr. Pelikan. She is ready

What about that morphine?

I'm an honorable, healthy man. In your own interest, I won't provide it

If you don't stop pestering me, I'll call the police

Morphine addiction is a vice, incompatible with the honor of man

Not another word, or I'll have you put in an asylum

Haven't you noticed that our Torches of Remembrance have gone out?

Well, they've arrested Beran, Zajic and the director

What can we do?

Poor Fenek is crazy for morphine. He's an effeminate, broken man

What about Prachar's drinking, and his unfortunate son, Vojta?

Who else have we left?

It's that boxer, the butcher's apprentice

Do you know him?

I've been to that youth club twice

It said on the pamphlet, "Join us!"

That's a very good idea

You must be tough. You have German blood in your veins, haven't you?

You'll go to a German school

That boxer will make a better friend than Jan Bettelheim

Tell me about this boxer. What does he say?

He says he must train hard, so he can bash the Germans' teeth in

That's what he says, dad

But that's all wrong, Mili

Now you and Zina must go to visit auntie

But when you come back, I'll explain everything to you

Now we're alone for once...

...why don't you dress up?

Let's have a special dinner

Put on your little black dress - you hardly ever wear it

Then we'll bathe in our lovely bathroom, like at a Roman feast

I'm going to be promoted to the post of director

Isn't it perhaps our blessed wedding anniversary?

Or at least the anniversary of our meeting at the leopard's cage?

Well, let's pretend it is

Aren't you hungry?

One should make the most of every day in life...

...as though it were the last

The whole world is open to us

The sky is open to us...

...our sky which has been unclouded for 19 years

But I've noticed that the bathroom ventilator is broken

I've fixed it with a rope, until it's mended properly tomorrow

You can reach the rope by standing on a chair

Can you hear that lovely singing?

How unfortunate are those who die unaware of music's beauty

You at least loved music

Come, dearest, let us run the bath

Won't you be too hot?

Open the ventilator, dear

What if I hanged you, dear?

May I speak to director Kopfrkingl?

Excuse me, I was reading

Will you have a drink? Brandy? Czech slivovic?

Thank you, but I don't drink or smoke

The Dalai Lama has died

For years our blessed homeland, Tibet, has sought the great man...

...in whom Buddha, our savior, has been reincarnated

Now, at last, we have found him

The throne in Lhasa awaits you

I shall return to fetch you, then we shall leave for the Himalayas...

...our heavenly, blessed homeland

It is my painful duty...

...in my new capacity as director of this temple of death...

...to officiate at my own beloved wife's funeral

Our 19 years of happy marriage have been ended...

...by her tragic death

But it is true that death can sometimes be a blessing

A great blessing...

...when it spares us suffering

It can spare us the anxieties, the terrors...

...which might await us...

...in later life

You will return to the place from whence you came

Your soul will be free...

...to fly into the ether

The Teutons, my dear friends...

...incinerated their dead...

...purified with flame

I take leave of you, my angel...

...as director of this crematorium and as your loving husband

But we must make sacrifices

There is nothing certain in this life, except death...

...and the fact that a new order will be installed in Europe

The F�hrer's New Europe, and death

Those are the only two certainties we can have

The flames will not hurt you, my beloved

We've pensioned off Vrana, the porter

He was too old

And Mrs. Podzimkova, the cleaner, too

It's for the best - she once told me she was afraid of the incinerators

I'll keep the others for the time being. But Mili worries me

He's even more of a weakling, and he goes wandering off

Hedvika, give me the pink soap

His mother was half-Jewish... it must show

Mili is a half-caste

According to Reich civil law, Mili is a quarter Jewish

He won't be accepted for higher education or by a youth organization

He lazes about

Mili dreams of being a soldier, now there's a threat of war

He may run away to join up, as a romantic gesture

Children are a worry

It's Saturday today - the temple of death is not working

At least you'll be able to look around

It's where your father began work 20 years ago

Where are you going?

Just out

We're going for a walk, it's such a nice day

We are living in great times...

...we must bear all our worries and fears bravely

Your blessed mother... I wonder how she was reincarnated

Will you have ice cream or a cake?

Both, I think

Buy one only - you'll have no appetite for dinner

Let's go through the cemetery, it's much nicer

I used to walk here in the lunch hour, before I became director

This is a cemetery, not a fun fair! Don't you know what a cemetery is?

She's crazy. She thinks it's all fun

Take no notice

Was your cake nice? Good

One shouldn't profane a sacred place

That's not for you, Mili

What a pretty memorial

The Greek Torches of Remembrance - they had them in Sparta

They've been burning ever since the new employers came

But they're not burning

This is where people are turned to dust

You're not frightened are you, Mili?

Mr. Dvorak

This is the preparation room

This coffin is nailed down because the corpse won't be exhibited

On Monday it will go first to the chapel, then straight to the furnace

It contains the body of a pure-blooded German

A man of pure race, not an effeminate, weak soul

Clean your glasses, you'll ruin your eyesight

Mr. Dvorak wanted to throw this away...

...but I said it might come in useful

There is no difference in ashes

What if... I put you in with him, Mili?

The time has come. The throne awaits you

Tibet, our blessed homeland, awaits its ruler

The wall that restricted your vision has fallen

The sky is clear...

...the stars are above us... you will save the world

You are Buddha

The sky is clear, the stars are above us

Lhasa

I used to read about it in my book on Tibet

Let all creatures be freed from suffering

But I have yet to save one more good soul

One more soul must be saved...

...from the suffering which would await her...

...in our new paradise on earth

Wait till next Saturday evening, my son

That's it, Mr. Kopfrkingl

We must test some, you know...

...this is top secret

You have 20 years experience

The gas furnaces of the future. You could be technical supervisor

But absolute secrecy is necessary

Of course, I quite understand

Equipment to incinerate the greatest number at once

To free as many souls as possible from the fetters of existence

To fly into the universe, dissolve into the ether

I think it's a tremendous opportunity...

...because ordinary crematoria take 75 minutes...

...with one body per furnace

You see, in such enormous, communal furnaces...

...taking one hundred, five hundred, a thousand...

...it could all be done in ten minutes

Big installations, functioning continuously...

...bodies could be fed in one end...

...and ashes would come out the other end, mixed up, of course...

...but no matter, there's no difference in ashes

And liberated souls would fly out of the top

All humanity could be liberated, the entire world

Poor Mr. Prachar... Vojtik...

...what happiness for Bettelheims, for all at the Jewish celebration...

...so many, if I could give them hope of freedom from suffering...

...I�d tell them they'd be reincarnated

Mr. Kopfrkingl... you must be over-tired

You know, it doesn't really matter if someone isn't quite dead

In such big, continuous incinerators no one could come to life again

But absolute secrecy is vital, don't forget

Yes, absolute secrecy is vital

I have been called on to manage a great enterprise

I'll no longer be the director of a small crematorium

Soon I'll be in charge of a huge organization...

...although the details haven't been decided yet

- Where are you going? - Ah, Kaja

I'm taking our dear one to see something

Shall I call next week?

By all means, next week. Have you got your camera now?

Pity. It's such a nice day, a photo would be a nice souvenir

No one will suffer any more - I'm preparing a huge installation

Let's go through the cemetery, it's nicer

I used to walk here every lunch hour. Perhaps this is the last time

My wife ran away a week ago

You met us here, remember? Have you seen her. A boy was with you

I've been waiting here

She may return. She's mad

You can see where your father began, where he works

It's disgraceful, don't look, dear

That's not for you. Look at that pretty memorial

This is where people are turned to dust

But it's all too slow - I'll introduce something more efficient

This is the preparation room

This coffin is nailed down because it will go straight to the furnace

No, this would be improper

She was a piano tutor, that will be more suitable

You see this?

I told Mr. Dvorak it might come in useful

We must go

The restricting wall has fallen

The stars are before us, eternal light

Now you will save the world

The nation, all humanity, is waiting for you

I am glad you've come. I shall leave with you

I shall sit on the throne

But I have a daughter still - she is a quarter Jewish

I have not yet saved her

Don't worry, we'll take care of her

There is a lot of work waiting for you, Mr. Kopfrkingl

For the nation, for humanity

No one will suffer. I shall save them all

I shall save them all

The whole world

THE END