Original subtitles

THE CONSUL OF SODOM

Is it true you're a poet?

Well... l'd prefer to be thought of as a poem.

Jaime,

So what now?

Now everything

Excuse me.

Come in.

Go and sleep in your bedroom.

Don't make a noise, my mother's asleep.

How do you like it?

-Good morning. -Good morning.

Are you all right?

Thank you,

Bye, Johnny.

Let's lower.,.

-the percentage. -Absolutely not, My father

would never allow it.

Good for you, Don't keep herwaiting any longer,

I'm going to miss all this.

Not as much as you think.

Why's that?

What's going on, Victor?

Those are the least compromising,

Those are the least compromising,

Where did these come from?

l don't know. I paid an intermediary.

-You're giving in to blackmail over me? -Sorry, Jaime.

But your father asked me to look out for you,

My father?

He knows about this?

Look, Jaime.., Your private life is none of my business but,..

So keep out of it.

Then l heard that l'd be going,

that wherever l went

I'd have a bed and a book to read.

But others would not be leaving, They would stay on for years

without being able to wait furiously for 7 o'clock to come and so escape,

to leap to the other side of life.

And that - the ab)ect misery, a life of constant harassment

by their needs - will be their lives,

their whole existence.

Ladies, the communist is back.

You haven't been there,

Many farmers have had to sell their children as if they were slaves.

Jaime, please! That's so unpleasant,

When Dad comes, tell him to give the plantations to the peasants.

Don't talk politics at table!

This isn't politics, mother. It'sjustice.

Keep that for your poems.

Jaime, did you write anything new

-in the Philippines? -Two verses

in three months.

Mr, Jaime, there are _o men from the political brigade

asking for you.

Showthem through to the study,

''In the heat,

after the thickness,

the river returns to the land,''

My grandfather,

the Speaker of the House,

during the Republic,

Good evening.

I'm Inspector Creix,

This is Sub-inspector Garrido. Wejustwanted

to talk to you for a moment.

What about?

You write.,.

poetry, don't you?

-Yes, l try. -Do you associate

with other poets and writers?

With some.

Do you knowthese?

l know them all. Some better than others.

You know they're all communists?

Some have been arrested

and itwon't be long before the others are too.

Are you warning.,.

or threatening me?

Leo.

''It seems we can declare ourselves to be men.

It seems we can say no.

To say no once in the street

for all the other times we could not say it.''

Did you write that?

-Yes. -Leaflets like these

were handed out at the students' strike,

Did you knowthat?

l )ust got back from the Philippines.

An acquaintance of yours

told us about you at the police station,

What did he say?

That you're a queer.

And a vey clever one.

Don't come to Barcelona at the moment.

It's quieter in Cadaques.

-Jaime. -Manuel.

-How are you? -Hello.

Stay in hiding for the time being.

There have been arrests.

But we're rid of the official candidates,

They'll process them.,. it's a setback..,

then send them home. All sons ofwinners.

Manuel, l also regret the beatings

-I've never had. -Can't you see, Jaime?

An enemy in the home changes everything,

I know.

And l want to be part ofthat. But really so.

Your gin and tonic.

Thank you,

-Mr, Mars,'s here. -Tell him to come in.

Well, well, the worker-writer.

Congratulations on your novel, It's excellent,

Thank you, l hope

I can stop being the worker now and just be the writer.

The regime's tottering, Juan.

Some have been saying that for 20 years,

Juan's a born sceptic.

That's why his novel's so decadent.

I only describe what l see, more or less,

-Mr. Baldwin on the phone. -Shit, I'd forgotten.

Jimmy's here, He wants to see some nightlife and I thought you,..

I haven't seen Luis yet.

Yvonne and l are celebrating ourwedding anniversary tonight,

All right,

Want to come along, Juan?

I work from 7 AM to 3 PM then l go home to write.

I don't have time.

Time.,. the child that moves the pieces,

Heraclitus,

The galley proof.

Show him the Sagrada Familia then go home,

The Sagrada Familia?

I know more edifying places.

Jaime!

I expected you tomorrow.

I just can't live without you.

What are you doing here?

I had a meeting...

and came back for a nap.

You're doing pretty well.

-l'II get dressed. -Wait, wait, wait.,.

Let's put an end to this terrible abstinence.

I know you and your abstinence!

Do you prefer billy boys or half-castes?

I prefer Spanish guys who forget they're doing it for money,

I don't mind paying.

But I like...

to be appreciated,

I see the Philippines

have changed your habits.

Look at me!

Look at me!

-What's the matter? -Nothing.

Nothing's the matter.

Let's go out for dinner and talk,

We'II talk about..,

whatever you want.

But first...

I have to see a foreigner.

I want you to come along.

Not again.

Go on.

We'II show him a few sights and that'll be it,

All right,

Hey, kids, l spy a black man.

A black man!

Come on, stop showing off,

Let's go somewhere normal.

This is normal,

Luis, could you get some more wine, please?

You get it. I'm tired of your nonsense.

You could at least translate.

You wouldn't understand an_ay.

Juanito,

half a litre of mint. I'm going to blow myAntonio.

Isaiah,

Chapter 4, verse 6.

Morning, Mr. Jaime.

Your father asks if he can come in.

Ofcourse he can.

I want to talk to you,

Afriend of mine from Harlem.

Take that Caligula outfit o_.

I'll wait outside.

I spoke to Inspector Creix on the phone.

That leaflet affair's sorted out,

''Leave the rich alone,'' Franco said.

That depends.

They had people like you shot

after the war,

Jaime,..

a scandal would ruin your career with the firm and the reputation

ofthe whole family.

No-one's interested in the private life of a poet.

Your father's worried about it,

And so is your mother.

I know you're ashamed of me.

I'm not ashamed ofyou.

You're a Gil de Biedma.

But I do wish things were different.

-Where's Jimmy? -He left.

Isn't the slut leaving too?

Watch it!

Here.

Get dressed quickly,..

-and go. -No, don't,

Sit down.

Bloody-minded queers!

What about me? How much are you going to give me?

Nothing, now that l've got you ajob.

When l found you, all you had was a suit.

A brown suit.

And you've always been

an insumerable little rich kid,

Nothing like fucking a gypsy girl to discover

-one's social conscience, -At least she's not fooling anyone.

Right..,

You seem vey fond ofthe whores' guild.

Jaime,..

we need to talk.

Leave the keys in the vase and go.

Careful, that Lalique's worth a fortune.

-We're through. -Wait..,

Wait, Luis, Wait.

I'm sorry, l'm sorry.

At least take the keys,

''One goes out, kisses a girl or buys a book,

walks happily down the street and they strike him down.

How could he dare?

The Architrave.''

-Nobody'll understand this. -lt's clear enough.

The words ofthe tribe.

It's you who don't understand.

The book's a )ourney from the end of adolescence

-to adulthood. -With social issues too,

That's obvious.

As based on my experience and social class, though sometimes

I mistrust both.

I think,..

dressing up as a poet and singing is a desire to place oneself

in Mardi Gras situations.

''I was born, if you'll excuse me,

-in the age of the pergola and tennis.'' -l'm trying to write a poem

about Spain while avoiding the phantasmagoric.

A sestina.

A mediaeval sestina?

They'll call you frivolous,

Ironic perhaps,

but not frivolous,

Spain's more like a mediaeval clich,

than a modern literay theme going beyond anyone's experience,

Hence the sestina.

So that what the poem is can be greater

than what the poet says.

Franco's backing the Opus Dei technocrats

and withdrawing the Falangists,

They want to freeze wages and cut social spending. Right, Federico?

Manuel's very cold towards me. l don't understand.

He doesn't dare tell you, Jaime, but,..

you haven't been admitted

into the party.

Why?

Things to do with comrade Lenin.

What's he got to do with it?

They say homosexuals could be

a threat to the safety ofthe party.

-Queers might rat to the police. -l see.

I'm sorry, Jaime.

-Orthodox economic remedies. -We need to turn

labour strikes into political ones.

And the government's plan would fail,

-What if it doesn't? -We'd have European prosperity

on a Spanish scale.

Prosperity on a small and pretty miserable scale.

Ofall the stories in history,

the saddest of all is that of Spain

because ofthe unhappy ending,

It's as ifa man, tired ofstruggling with his inner demons,

decided to place his poverty in the government's hands,

Your post, sir.

Thank you, Conchita.

l'd like to think of this bad government as a vulgar,

man-made affair and not a metaphysical issue,

and that Spain must and can rise out of its poverty.

There's still time to change the course of its history

before the demons drag it away.

-Morning, Mr. Jaime, -Morning. This is forwashing.

Sory I'm late, Dad.

Have you signed a manifesto for some miners?

Yes.

This is from the army. It's for you.

You have to report to the Bruch barracks urgently.

You're no longer a second lieutenant.

You've been demoted.

To me, that's an honour.

Finish your breakfast,

We have to go.

What'II they do to you?

Strip me of my stripes

at a public ceremony on the parade ground.

-Like Dreyfus. -Jaime, please!

It's nojoking matter.

A minister called your father and at work

they're asking him questions.

May Spain expel those demons,

and poverty amect the government,..

Sign here.

...and may men by the masters of their history.

You may go,

Is that it?

Isn't it enough?

I particularly remember the end of the war.

My father stood at the window crying

as General Yag�e's troops marched down the street.

I was shit-scared.

For me, they were the happiest days

of my life,

But this was virtually on the front line.

No, it was in Segovia.

Aplace we loved visiting, full of lieutenants with arms in slings,

For the kids it was a way of coming

close to the war.

It's been a long time, Mr. Jaime.

You get younger every day, Austreberto.

-Thank you kindly, -How do you do it?

This way.

You'll find this pe_ect forwriting,

Let's see today's yield.

Here.

Shit, writing novels is like sitting for a really hard exam.

Yes, but poetry doesn't put food on the table.

That's why l'm a Sunday poet with a Monday conscience.

l spend the rest ofthe week in an office

pushing pens,

-l'm a practical man. -I try to be too.

By writing seriously,

What's ''seriously'' for you?

Making a living from what l write.

So you think a writerwrites so that society

-will buy books? -That's right,

Why publish yourwork?

To influence others, l suppose,

It's a rather Dickensian story. The doctor told her

she couldn't have children. They came out, hailed a taxi,

-and my father was inside. -lncredible.

You look gorgeous tonight.

-Yvonne! -Thank you.

Excuse me.

Thank you,

Who's that?

Marcelino. He says

he's a Manhattan broker but l don't believe him,

I think the guy's a gigolo.

Jaime, who's she?

The marchioness. She has a suite at the Wellington.

She throws the wildest parties in Madrid,

No, the one next to her.

Ah, Joaquina, her companion.

The only normal person here.

Carlos is getting horny.

Careful or he'll stand behind the muse

and dedicate another and another and another of his love poems to you,

That's all you learned at Oxford?

Jaime's unbearable tonight.

We've all had a bit to drink.

British hypocrisy imported by an berian consumed by petty passions!

Carlos!

Let him be,

What's wrong, Red Riding Hood?

Nothing. It's this wine,

It really makes me cy.

Would you like something else?

Awolfto eat me.

There's nothing more sexy

than a woman with eye shadow smeared with tears,

I'll cy all you want,

The.,.

character of Teresa...

Marvellous.

But the boyfriend from outside Catalonia... l'm not convinced.

lt's my version ofthe 19th-centuy novel. A man who wants to be someone

but can only succeed bywinning over a rich girl,

And your girl..,

what does she expect of him?

To have a great time in another world.

The king of the party.

He who dances with eveyone.

He who can handle everyone.

A knight in shining armour.

Even though the armour's a brown suit.

Because deep down, he's)ust a street urchin.

Here.

A portrait of your Pijoaparte.

''Pink shirt, )eans,

a provocative attitude and a smile

that's just too winning.

From Murcia.

Smell: ofwild cat.

The bastard does smell like that.

Like a wild cat.

Thank you, Jaime.

Come in, my boy.

-Howwas your holiday? -Comforting.

So you're bringing out another book.

I'm trying to.

Through a publisher in Mexico.

In Mexico?

The censors won't let me print it here,

I've been thinking

of changing flats,

What about lives?

That may not be so easy.

You know, son...

I need a change too,

-I'm retiring early. -But the tobacco company's your life,

I know.

lt's a ship that's harder and harder to steer.

Some young blood is called for.

Things are changing too fast

and l'm tired.

-But... -Jaime.

Two books of poems in seven years

don't make for a literary career.

Your future lies with the firm.

We all have a great deal offaith in you,

What's the point, l'd like to know,

of changing flats?

Of leaving behind a basement darker than my reputation,..?

And that's saying something.

Putting up lace curtains and engaging a maid,

Giving up the bohemian way of life

so that then you'll come along,

you great bore,

my embarrassing guest, you fool dressed in my suits,

you drone,

you useless idiot,

with washed hands,

to eat from my plate and make the house dirty,

Among the shadows of my past

is a starwithout redemption

that never led my steps

along the path of my dreams.

My eyes never looked up

but down on the ground,

where l lived...

I go with you

to the late-night bars. The pimps, the flower-sellers,

the dead streets of the small hours.

The yellow-lit lifts when you get home drunk

and look at yourself in the mirror, your face a ruin,

with still violent eyes that you don't want to close,

And if I rebuke you, you laugh,

you remind me ofthe past and tell me

that l'm getting old.

l might remind you that you're no longer funny, that your casual style

and self-assurance are gruesome,

being over thirty years of age.

And that that charming, _^ldreamy-eyed boyish smile,

which eveyone's bound to fall for, isjust a pitiable vestige,

a pathetic sham,

As you look at me Iwith those true orphan's eyes

you weep and promise not to do it.,.

Dreams of clay,

it's all a lie,

those lips pretend

to be full of passion,..

If you weren't such a slut

and if I didn't know, as I have for some time,

that you are strong when I am weak,

and weak when l am furious...

My recollection of your home-comings fills me with confusion, panic,

sorrow and dissatisfaction

and the despair, impatience and resentment of sumering again.

Yet again the unforgivable humiliation

of over-intimacy.

Like a man going to hell I'll take you to bed to sleep with you,

Dying with each step of impotence,

bumping into furniture in the dark

we'll cross the floor in a clumsy embrace,

staggering from drink and stifled sobs.

Flower...

o_.,.

evil.

Today the noble sen/itude of loving human beings,

and the most ignoble of all, which is loving oneself.

So, Jaime,..

first the disco, then the magazine.

''Boccaccio'' will show the world what Barcelona is. It's all here,..

architects, writers, photographers, actresses, models.,.

-Who make no contribution to life, -Let's have done

with complexes. In a year's time, this will be like London.

That's a fool's dream. In London there's no Franco.

Franco's an old bastard. We have a sole obligation and ifyou're to be

editor-in-chief, you have to be

the biggest dreamer ofall.

We should show people that culture is sexy,

-especially those in Madrid. -Hold on a minute,

They may not see culture as a way of life

but they have marchionesses and knowing

who the marchioness has slept with

can be decisive. So show some respect for the Castilian plateau.

Colita!

-Come and have a drink with me, -I can't.

-l'm working. -Come on.

All right, as it's you,..

Aren't l handsome enough for an article?

-More than enough. As always. -Liar.

I have to wait around to get a good shot.

Come on, let's have a drink,

I can't.

But a friend of mine wants to meet you.

She's a fascinating woman,

Her name's Bel.

-Are you hurt? -l did it for you.

''To know about love, to learn love,

one needs to have been alone.''

''And with 400 different bodies on 400 dimerent nights

to have made love,''

That's my favourite.

I wrote it to prove

that one can be unfaithful yet head over heels in love.

You can't go to bed with anyone you're not in love with, can you?

Yes, but l fall head over heels in love evey night.

What happens when you wake up?

I look at myself in the mirror

and the spelI

is broken.

I feel sorry for things that have broken.

You fix them but they still bear the scars.

I hate wrinkles.

l wish l had a portrait aging for me in an attic.

That's strange,..

I can't find your life line.

Then...

let's not waste any more time.

Good morning.

What's wrong?

Your father fainted,

-What's wrong? -Just high blood pressure.

Nothing too serious,

He's tired.

Jaime, perhaps this isn't

the right time, but he'd be very happy

-ifyou took over from him, -No,

No.

_^l,..

could never take my father's place.

I'm no good,

But you're a brilliant negotiator,

-And you know the business. -l don't care.

You know it too and you have all the skills.

-You should volunteer. -I'm not in the family.

-Is he in the family? -Miguel? The telegraphist's son?

Times are changing.

I got married when l was 18.

With an idiot, )ust to leave home,

They're gorgeous.

They're gorgeous.

That's Marx's great-granddaughter.

She's scared the police will find out and jail her.

Isn't that amazing?

A Iprt-...-porter model and Marx's great-granddaughter.

How does your design look on me,

Divine. Have you met Jaime?

No.

But I've heard all about you,

Scary!

Have a good time.

You're full of surprises,

You design jewellery, have mo kids,

know how to fall down...

What else can you do?

Wait...

I have my period.

So what?

I'm a vampire.

I'm a vampire.

-Hello, princess, -Hi, Dad.

-Hi. -What are you doing here?

I said I'd pick them up,

Don't talk nonsense, okay?

It's my turn today!

It's my turn today!

-No way, -Please!

-What's wrong? -Please calm down.

-Exactly. Come on, baby. -Stop!

Absinthe brings life an hour of solemnity

and light to dark precipices, said Baudelaire.

ln France they call it ''la f,e verte'', the green fairy.

In many countries it's forbidden.

I love the forbidden.

Police!

You knowwhat's coming next. Run!

You knowwhat's coming next. Run!

Toledo, Ohio.

That way his girlfriend won't find out,

The biggestwhores in the world.

-This is too crowded. -Yes,

-This is too crowded. -Yes,

We don't need any of them.

I'd like to take care ofyou.

So what are you waiting for?

So ifthere are no more questions.,.

the board meeting's over.

Good afternoon.

Jaime,

Congratulations on your report,

Thank you,

Bye, Jaime.

Whoever sits here will be lucky having you by his side.

l think what's needed is someone young, dynamic,..

with fresh ideas.

In short, a poet.

Are you sure, son?

Yes.

The board will have to approve it but you have all my support,

The board will have to approve it but you have all my support,

-Sir? -Yes?

There's a young lady asking for you.

Ayoung lady?

She says she's your girlfriend.

Not here. They could be watching me,

I'll have to go to court to keep the custody of my children.

I'll have to go to court to keep the custody of my children.

I wonder what kind ofevidence that idiotwill come up with,

I don't know but he's really resentful.

Don'tworry, I know some vey good lavyers.

She's pretty.

And strange.

Susan!

How's our novelist?

Hiding behind that newspaper.

And l think it'll all be fine.

How's it going?

Well, in the end, a blonde in a convertible,

What about Pijoaparte?

What about Pijoaparte?

-As if he didn't exist. -Advertising has rules.

They don't want poor people. They only want pretty girls from Pedralves,

But this one isn't from Pedralves,

-She's from Copenhagen. -Good,

With a Viking girl on the cover, the book will be a hit,

Didn't l tell you so?

Didn't l tell you so?

Bring Jaime a glass.

You said Pijoaparte was missing,

There he is, straight out of your book.

Don't even look at him,

Why? Will he hit me?

Why? Will he hit me?

Gypsies are vey particular, especially about that.

Agypsy! Agypsy to boot!

Give me another, Lorenzo,

Excuse me, are you Jaime Gil de Biedma, the poet?

I'm a company secretary general, like Stalin,

Apart from that, I've written mo books of poems.

Who are you?

I work for a magazine, l )ust wanted to chat.

Don't waste your time.

Talk to Garcia Marquez, he's ''in'' this season,

All l need is a snippet ofgossip.

I'm in charge of a section called ''Overheard at Boccaccio''.

-What's your name? -Enrique.

-What's your name? -Enrique.

Well, Enrique, I'm going to let you into a secret.

Knowwhat all these people are doing here?

Inventing lives for themselves. It's the only way

they can put up with this interminable dictatorship.

They all do the best they can. Over there, Ricardo Bofill the architect

They all do the best they can. Over there, Ricardo Bofill the architect

and communist. Torn bemeen making a film with his Italian girlfriend

and buying an Alfa Romeo,

There's another specimen. With a highly-styled character,

Carlos Barral, poet, editor and ship's captain,

Dresses like a Cuban guerrilla and the police think he's mad

Dresses like a Cuban guerrilla and the police think he's mad

-so they don't arrest him, -My character's a work ofart.

-But it's not a life. It's literature, -Shall we talk of

-the Id,calage of life and literature? -ln favour of life

-or literature? -ln my case, in favour

-of literature, -Always.

He can give you some better gossip than me.

He can give you some better gossip than me.

Gossip?All right,

but literary gossip. What do you want to know?

I call Mr. Jaime Gil de Biedma

yAlba.

Counsel for the plaintim may begin.

Counsel for the plaintim may begin.

Thank you, my lord. Mr. Gil de Biedma,

did you write a poem entitled ''AVery Young Separated Woman''?

Yes, l did.

My lord, may I read a few lines from that poem?

''Today, dressed as a corsair,

''Today, dressed as a corsair,

you were seen with six lovers on each arm, Isabel, child Isabel,

sitting stimly on a stool, radiant,

your hair tousled by a wind that is yours alone,

presiding over the merriment.

Take care, child Isabel,

for we are in Spain, for they are one

and the same those idiot lovers of yours and your beast of a husband.''

and the same those idiot lovers of yours and your beast of a husband.''

Mr, Gil de Biedma,

am l to understand that the child Isabel in this poem,

is the woman accused ofadultery in this case?

Definitely not.

The Isabel in the poem is fictitious?

Not fictitious but invented.., which is different.

Not fictitious but invented.., which is different.

I have here a transcription of an interview

in which you declare yourself a ''poet of experience'', That is..,

that you never invent but onlywrite about what you see

or experience. Therefore, my lord,

the verses I'vejust read

the verses I'vejust read

describe the defendant's

adulterous way of life, which completely disqualifies her

as a wife and mother.

My lord, may I add something?

Yes, please go ahead.

If the child Isabel in the poem

were the defendant, then the ''beast'' of her husband would be

were the defendant, then the ''beast'' of her husband would be

this gentleman, which would lead us to believe

that the plaintiff

has an uncivilised

and possibly violent nature.

And no decent mother should have to tolerate a savage.

And the children come first.

And the children come first.

-You're a son of a bitch! -Order!

We're doing poety

-at school. -Really? How?

We read it.

We read it.

Ofcourse. How silly of me. Do you like it?

-Yes. -Tell him why you like it.

l like it because it's like songs butwithout music.

Come on out, or you'll go all wrinkly.

Come on out, or you'll go all wrinkly.

-Come on, -l don't want to,

Let me.

Out we come.

So it's like that, is it? Just you wait.

The prope_y's 15 years old but as you can see,

in perFect condition, Five bedrooms, _o bathrooms, kitchen,

in perFect condition, Five bedrooms, _o bathrooms, kitchen,

living room and many nearby amenities,

including mo parks and _o schools, Have you got any children?

Yes, mo.

What's the matter, Conchita?

Your father's waiting for you.

Are you all right, Dad?

The board's waiting for us,

All with an envelope like this one.

If you don't want to,

you don't have to come in.

The secretary will read out the agenda,

''One: review of our Manila office's fixed costs,

''One: review of our Manila office's fixed costs,

Two:

the sale ofthe plantation in Equatorial Guinea.

Three: renewal ofthe credit with the Chase Manhattan Bank,

Four: proposal of candidates

for the post of Director General,''

I'm so sorry, Jaime.

I never thought they'd go that far,

Any idea who sent those photos?

No, l don't know.

I couldn't stop them this time.

Did the blackmail fund dry up?

I don't understand.

Look, Victor...

I knew you were ambitious,

but l never imagined you were

so resentful or a traitor,

The harm you've done my father,..

I'll never forgive you for that.

Sory, Jaime,

but l think you're a bit overyrought.

Are you're too calm.

-You're making a mistake... -Listen, you fool.

Even though you take the chair as the next Director General,

you'II never be one of us.

Do you knowwhat you've done?

Handed it to Meler on a plate,

We'II see.

We'II see.

Get out!

All on your own?

Without a soul in the world,

What's your name?

Jaime,

Jaime Gil de Biedma.

Bel!

You forgot we were having lunch together,

Yes, l did. l'm sory.

-Bye. -Bye.

Do you think it'd work?

I've already been married once. l'm no good for it. Would you want me to wait

-at home for you, buy your ties? -We could grow old together,

I don'twant to grow old. Neither do you.

Having a place

ofour own and being the boss.., that life would kill you.

And you and me? Shall we go on as always?

Sleeping together from time to time?

Isn't that good enough for you?

''To know about love, to learn love.,.''

Look, Bel, I've already heard that tune,

I don'twant to be alone,

Is that all you can do?

-Pay and go? -l'll throw myselfat your feet

and beg you to stay with me.

But I am with you.

Hadn't you realised?

That's why l don'twant to spoil it.

Please stay.

Only seldom do you the dead attain freedom.

But the night when you return, it is yours.

All yours.

Jaime,

Promise me you won't do it again.

The hurt your smile reminds me of.

There is so much hardness of mine in your eyes.

You calm me, for at one time l was close to you.

The part ofyour death that I give myself,

the part ofyour death that l took from my harvest.

How could l pay you for it?

Not even the part of the life we lived together.

How to know that you have forgiven with me alone at the scene ofthe crime?

How to be able to sleep while you tremble

in the saddest corner of my room?

I'll bring you that whisky.

Don't let Jaime drink too much, The doctor's forbidden him to drink.

Don't worry.

A rather untimely title. Sign it for me, come on.

The calls l've had!

Everybody thinks you're dead.

And l am.

What? But you've recovered now,

-And drinking with friends. -Well..,

All this fuss to end up back here,

Do you want those new poets to get

-all the glory? -Why not?

AII the new poets write about is Venice, rotten gondolas

-and Scipio's tomb. -Good for them,

No-one could be in love with reality.

ln the end, death is the mother of reality.

Just sign that book.

Start writing again. It's notjust me who wants to read your poems.

We're going to the cinema

-on Friday. -The cinema,..

Don't worry.

It's the one with Dietrich and the Murcian guy,

''Morocco''?

Then count me in,

-How are you, Josefa? -Morning, Mr. Jaime,

No, not that one. Have this one.

Thank you,

Mr. Jaime, we're all very worried.

-Do you knowwhat's going to happen? -Don't you worry, Josefa.

Everything will be fine.

Come in.

How's the monsoon?

Jaime!

Can't you smell it? You can feel it in the air,

You know it's coming but it doesn't. It's like a constant threat.,.

Like eveything in this country. Whisky?

-No, thanks, -Too early in the day?

No, too late. At this time..,

I prefer opium.

l'm glad you've still got a sense of humour. You're going to need it.

We're closing the Luzon factoy and the Mindanao premises.

They're all out of date, the whole process is wrong

from production to distribution.

A senseless waste of resources.

Well, this is a colonial concern, Waste is part of the legend,

It isn't a colonial concern any more.

Or a family one either,

The world's changed

but we're still in time to adapt.

Sure..,

Are these in time to adapt?

Arjona, Barata, Charlie de la Cruz.., l know nearly all of them.

That's why l called you,

I want you to look after it,

I'm no good at that.

And Anglada?

He's no longerwith us, l'm afraid,

I think he's a photographer now,

Jaime.,. do it any way you want.

How's it going, Jaime?

I'm just finishing.

lfyou get a move on, I'll take you to lunch at a place

where the food is delicious.

-Really? -Yes.

-Where? -ln Intramuros,

It's fantastic.

Excuse me a minute,..

It is not mine this age.

And ifthat sound of birds outside in the garden were mine,

their profusion in small leaves

moving me like intimations,

it would no longer say the same.

I awake like someone hearing obscene breathing.

Day is dawning.

Another day dawns in which l shall not be invited to happy moments

or to repentance which, although not ancient,..

Ah, Seigneur, donnez-moi Ia force et le courage...

invites me to repent with some vestige of sincerity,

For l have nothing left to fear but my mistakes.

I remember life, but where is it?

For me, writing a poem

is like having a secret.

It's like making love and delaying orgasm as long as possible,

It's like making love and delaying orgasm as long as possible,

I find it hard now,

My poetry is the result ofthe invention ofan identity.

Once identity is assumed, nothing stimulates the imagination less

than being what you are.

Furthermore.,.

one's maturity is a silly time in life

when the only intimacy is headaches,

and paradoxically life starts becoming alarmingly short

because you spend the whole day worrying about your fear of death.

Excuse me a moment.

-Jaime, please.,. -Yes?

-Will you sign this? -Of course, What's your name?

Ben)amin.

The look on those new poets' faces! Itwas as if they'd seen God,

They're young and very impressionable,

Do you know my assistant?

Less than I'd like to,

Have you read Sagarra's column?

No.

''The presentation of Tusquet Editors last night

was attended by the whole ''Gauche Divine''.

-What do you think ofthe name? -Agood label, with a future.

That's what ''Tele-Express'' says.

So l'II do a photo session with you as one of its most outstanding members,

If it's on the left I'm not connected and as for ''divine'', even less so.

-l'II take my)acket o_, shall l? -Yes.

l'll do the session but on one condition.

You really don't mind me doing this?

Colita knows me inside out.

Shit, you look so much like my father.

That's a good start.

I'm not calling you old, you know,

I only knew him when he was young.

What's the matter? Do you feel old?

Old and a failure.

For fuck's sake!

You've got money, people listen to you,

-love you, -Then vanish and leave me on my own.

No profile shots. They show my double chin.

Your trouble is no-one's ever looked after you properly,

You gypsies are so clever.

-Who said l was a gypsy? -Look,..

you and l shouldn't waste any more time.

Or the next time we meet, I'll be too old.

Go on, please, turn sideways.

Was it your first time?

Yeah.

Don't lie to me so soon.

The first time l've felt something,

Pleasure? Love?

Yeah.

-Yeah what? -Yeah,

Tell me about yourself,

What else do you want to know?

Shit!

If l'm late they'II kill me!

Did you do military service?

In Galicia, as a second lieutenant.

So stand to attention

and present arms.

-For the taxi, -All that?

-You want me to buy one? -Take it.

-Shall l see you again? -You'd better,

I'm leaving my equipment here.

Hey..,

could you lend me?'

some cash to buy a motorbike?

We're incapable of seeing a landscape except literarily,

There's no such thing as unspoilt nature,

Will you leave nature alone?

Nature is all that literature is not.

-lt might be reality. -The same thing,

Nature evokes

the idea ofwhat is the same as itself but reality,..

-changes, -The use of the word probably comes

from the Counter-Reformation,

No, l think it's 19th-centuy,

Only after Kant and Nemon, when the religious worldview disappeared,

was the concept of reality accepted.

Is it true you're a photographer?

Yes, but l left all that behind. l didn't like

-the people. -Why?

Too many queers.

Knowwhat the sailors are saying

-in the taverns? -No.

That you've been made consul.

Yes, Honorary Consul ofthe Philippines in Barcelona.

-What the devil does that mean? -l don't know.

Till now l'd only felt like the Consul of Sodom.

Where's Sodom?

Sodom is eve_here, dear.

-Are you a consul too? -No.

Toni's a prince.

How romantic.

-And l want to be a princess, -You already are.

The most beautiful princess

ofthe Mare Nostrum.

Wanna dance, Your Highness?

What do you want now, youth,

you impudent delight of life?

What brings you to the beach?

We old ones were content

until you came along to wound us

by reviving the most fea_ul of impossible dreams.

You come to rummage through our imaginations.

You'd better like this place because it's our house now.

Not here!

What? Don't l eat

like your friends?

I don't know how they eat.

I'll look next time.

I embarrass you, don't l?

Very much.

I blush all the time.

Jaime,

Show me how to do it.

Do what?

Tell me how to dress,

what cologne to use.

It's important to me.

All right,

If you insist.

_^lranzo cuts my hair.

There are more modern styles now.

A razor cutwould be best for you.

I have my suits made by Santa Eulalia

but l give them the cloth. I bring it from Hong Kong.

Shoes? That depends.

Shoes at Sebaga's go up in half-sizes, as in America

but who can resist the feel of Lotus leather?

Cologne,.. neither too sweet-smelling

norwith too much alcohol.

I wear Eau Sauvage but...

something like Dandy Parera would be better for you.

Rioja is a classic.

They haven't discovered Valladolid wines yet.

Remember this, Toni, the future lies in Duero wines.

Don't stick your nose in it!

Hey, you're supposed to be with me, aren't you?

So what are you looking at?

He must be stupid.

It's on green for him.

Come on, mate!

Cross!

Dad!

Where are you going?

What are you doing here? Dad, it's me, Jaime.

l have to get to work. I like to be the first to get in,

Mum said you're going to Segovia tomorrow.

It'II do you both a world of good.

Come on.

Come here, Adonis.

Here.

If you don't like it, too fucking bad, because I can't swop it.

Come here.

You mean ''exchange it''.

Okay, but open it.

You really shouldn't have.

It's beautiful.

Time is all l ask ofyou.

Do you love me?

Calm down, Luis,

please. Mum's had enough.

Don't upset her any more,

Mr, Jaime!

My dear friend.

Where were you?

He asked

for you till the vey end.

He's here.

Go and see him, my son,

What are you doing?

You thank me, father by accompanying me with this trust

that your death has created bemeen the mo of us.

You can give me nothing.

I can give you nothing,

That is why you understand me.''

''What do you want now, youth,

you impudent delight of life?''

Dead dogs

don't bite.

Atoast to our host.

-Jaime Gil de Biedma. -Cheers!

Francisco Franco Bahamonde.

Dead!

_^l won't drink

to Franco's death. After all, we let him die in his sleep.

It'II be hard for women to buy him.

Shut up! You've always got Virginia Woolf up your cunt.

-Don't be vulgar. -Let's drop the subject, shall we?

All this talking might bring him back to life.

You lot didn't have it so bad.

The trouble is, you want it all.

Money,

a clear conscience..,

Why don't you admit you're all right-wing?

I don't have any trouble about it.

I'm right-wing.

I want a good car, a good house.

I want to be rich, I'm right-wing,

I want to be rich, I'm right-wing,

You lout.

The lad did his military sen/ice in the ,lite corps and that

left its mark on him.

The oven's useless, I've told him it needs changing

-but he won't listen. -It smells good,

You're a great cook. Are you all right?

Everyone's thirsty.

The most charming lady ofthe party.

Go on.

Is he angry?

-My little soldier boy! -Can't you see l'm doing the food?

One day the food, then the ironing,

-then the washing.,. -Fuck o_!

Don't give me advice. Give me addresses,

Where's the ice?

Tell me, Juan.

What would have happened ifTeresa

had married Pijoaparte?

He'd have beaten her to death,

Don't provoke him, Jaime.

I think that democracy will see

the birth of a modern, new nation,.. but at the wrong moment.

And that nothing

we do will make us any younger.

But Jaime,

eveyone's expecting you to make a comeback as a poet.

I'd already said all l had to say.

And that's all, folks,

Three short books of poems

that fit into a single volume.

But.,.

Drop it.

With each unwritten book his fame increases.

-l suggestwe found a new religion. -By God, no!

-l'm still traumatised by Catholicism, -Don'twory.

In my religion the faithful

will meet at nighffall to drink

and forget about each day's shame.

All will be love and poetry.

I'll translate: eveybody will fuck more. l'll drink to that.

-Cheers, -Cheers,

-What a snomall! -And we hadn't realised.

-Take care, Jaime. -You too.

The end ofan age.

Bye, Jaime.

What about them?

Why aren't they leaving?

They've got chains,

Toni!

We have a bad poem.

As we're not doing it for cash, no-one will )usti_ us.

You think I'm an un)ustified poet.

No, no, no,

You're a tutti-frutti poet,

''Beneath the zenithal lemons,

my )oy saved by strawberries.

Eating plum,..''

What does your family do?

Don't you like poetry?

I'm not as clever as your boyFriend,

He's not my boyFriend,

So who is he?

Aspecial friend.

You're one too, aren't you?

No.

I'm his slave.

His slave?

But he doesn't mistreat you,

Slaves shouldn't be mistreated.,.

)ust treated like slaves, that's all.

Really?

How are slaves treated?

Like this?

Or this...?

You all planned this!

What are you doing?

-What.,.? -Keep away from him!

What are you doing, you animal?

Hit me again and we're through,

Let's get out of here!

What's the matter?

-Get out! -All right, all right.

All right!

Oh dear,..

)ust when l'd found a line with no fruit,

You think this is funny?

This is appalling.

What the hell have you done?

Who are you to throw people out of my home?

-Our home! -Ah, really?

The Count and Countess of UItramont?

Don't treat me like a faggot!

No?

How shall l treat you? Like a,..

-gypsy? -Say that again.

Well, well, the little gypsy bastard's pissed o_.

The one who was going to look after me,

Get out!

Out of my house!

What are you laughing at?

Pi)oaparte.

Take the car keys.

Go,

The fact that life was to be taken seriouslywe understand only later,

Like all young people,

I was going to change the world.

I wanted to make my mark

and withdraw to applause.

Growing old, dying..,

it was all a question ofthe size ofthe theatre.

But time has passed

and l see the unpleasant truth.

Growing old, dying..,

is the play's only plot,

You can'twait here. Sit in the stalls

-orwait for me in the caf,. -All right.

Why have you left your retinue

and your snow-white horses

to stroll through such a dark place in the company of a barbarian?

Hold on.

Hold on a minute, Pep.

l don't know what's wrong with you, Pep,

You're a good actor, all right?

Right. From now on, when you come out here,

do me a fucking favour and leave your personal problems

in the dressing room.

I want to get out, Jaime.,. I don't knowwhat l want.

Didn't you want to get experience in LosAngeles or New York?

-And didn't you talk me out of it? -No. Pep.

It's a question ofwhat you want. What you want,

What are you doing?

I can't always be thinking of people.

If l want to kiss you, I will.

Just remember that till my mother dies

I'm not a queer.

Bah! Come on,

CONSULS OF SODOM

It could be that newvirus,

-AIDS. -The one that a_ects homosexuals?

Yes, Kaposi's sarcoma is one of the illnesses deriving from the virus.

We could ask for more tests

but there's no point here,

Go to Paris or NewYork.

Paris then. Don't they call it the disease of love?

I'll go to the H''tel des Invalides if possible.

Will l lose my mental faculties?

lt's possible.

Have you any relatives?

Or close friends?

Yes.

No interruptions,

What's the matter?

I've got Kaposi's cancer,

l don't want you going through this, Pep.

I ought to die on my own.

I'm not leaving you on your own.

I'll take care of you,

Who'll look after you when you're sick?

That's in the future. Maybe there'll be a cure by then.

Have you ever taken time out to look at swans

with their disproportionately long necks?

They look almost monstrous..,

but end just in time,

That's how Bel was.

So beautiful,

Bursting with energy...

and with a tragic aura and a clownish side to her

that was always there.

I wonder how many l've given it to.

Don't think about that,

The past doesn't matter now,

Life is sometimes so short

and complete that a minute, when I let it and you let it,

runs faster and lasts a long time,

Life is sometimes richer

and during the week invites us both to go together into its palace

or on Sundays tojerk and jolt.

It's then that life can be counted in units ofyour love

so small that they are forgotten amid the happiness,

amid the confusion,

Life sometimes is so little

and so intense, ifthat's your pleasure...

Even the pain you cause me

brings another meaning to being of this world.

Life, then, is us

to the most evil extreme,

For loving each other is a punishment

and living together an abyss.

I thought so.

Love poems.

Don't worry, you'll grow out of it.

Don't listen to me.

Deep down, l envy you,

There's only one way to experience poetry

and that's when you're young.

Write about love

or trams..,

But write.

-Jaime. -Yes?

They're waiting for us.

-Thank you. -Not at all.

Pep,..

Yes?

After supper..,

l want to get lost in the darkness ofthe night.

Alone.

So what now?

Nothing.

JAIME GIL DE BIEDMA DIED AT HIS HOME IN BARCELONA

JAIME GIL DE BIEDMA DIED AT HIS HOME IN BARCELONA

ON 8TH JANUARY, 1990, AT THEAGE OF 60,