Original subtitles

AUTUMN - 1994

The rural school employs a strict teaching method.

Eight different grades of pupils, divided into two rooms.

On the right, Miss R teaches the younger children.

On the other side, Mr S is in charge of the older children.

Today, Mr S breaks the rigorous school schedule.

Instead of telling his students to open their books,

he says they won't be reading today.

The class falls silent, as if the pupils were afraid.

He is going to talk about something very important

You won't be reading today.

I'm going to tell you about something very important,

so I want you all to listen.

Interrupting the silence,

he clears his throat and continues in a solemn voice.

Today, I'm going to tell you

about Martin Luther King.

Hi, kids. How are you?

Fine.

I'm Maria. I've just finished cleaning the house...

Elisa Kiseljak turns eleven this winter.

But that's four months away, four months is a long time.

So she's not thinking about it. Not yet

At her cousins First Communion she wore a new white and blue dress

and she tried not to dirty it.

Her little sister had exactly the same dress, identical.

Elisa doesn't like that they dress the same.

Her sister asks their father

if she can sleep over at her cousins house.

The father agrees.

Elisa Kiseljak leaves with her father and her older brother.

It's dark when they get outside. Very dark.

Elisa stares at the squares on the pavement.

One, two, three, four, five.

Every five she has to jump or she'll go to hell.

Come on, Elisa.

The following morning, like every Saturday,

they get up late, without any hurry,

and Elisa, her dad and her big brother

have breakfast in their usual caf�.

Afterwards, they walk to their dad's friend's house.

They ring to tell the friend and his kids to come down.

The friend's wife answers with a metallic voice.

- Hello. - Hi, it's us.

Come on up.

Okay. Let's go.

Let's take the stairs, it's the first floor.

Hello! Hello, sweetie.

Hello.

Wow, you've grown.

What do you feed him?

Vitamins and minerals.

Keep your eye on this one, he climbs everywhere.

Don't worry.

A kiss.

Bye, sweetie.

I've got it.

See you later. Ready?

He gives his right hand to his daughter and the left to his son.

Elisa's father tries to do the same, with the same ease,

but it doesn't really work.

Elisa Kiseljak and her brother find it funny,

their father doesn't know how to do things like that

When Elisa sees her brother coming out of the museum,

she quickly gets off the big wheel,

She thanks the man who is whistling, with a friendly smile.

- Hello, sweetie. - Hello.

Were you cold up there?

- Why can't we go on the roller-coaster? - There was hardly any queue.

Another day.

They all had lunch at the usual restaurant.

Their father's friend's wife too.

Elisa's father asks them up to his place.

Will you come to mine for another coffee?

His friend's wife and their children can't go.

They have to visit grandmother.

Their father's friend decides to go.

I think I will.

Elisa is upset with her father.

He didn't insist enough that they all come up.

She wanted to play with the friend's daughter.

The four of them walk back slowly,

feeling dozy after their lunch.

In the lounge there are two worn leather sofas,

a silver television,

a lamp hanging immobile from the ceiling,

a portrait of a lady with a violet hat and orange scarf,

a lacquer coffee table and a rug.

The father serves his friend some coffee.

Remember the restaurant I told you about?

- We could go there next time. - The seafood place.

- The seafood is excellent. - Yes, good idea.

Dad, I'm going out on the terrace.

- What are you going to do there? - Nothing, I'm bored.

Can I?

Yes.

Close the door though, please.

And you, Elisa? Are you bored?

The father had a bit too much to drink at lunch

and will soon fall asleep,

and a few minutes later Elisa will be raped.

Then she'll lose her memory

and the conversation between the friend and her dad won't matter.

The father's friend is a jeweller.

He lives in an expensive part of town.

They're people with money.

You can see it in her father's friend.

In the aftershave he uses, in his clothes,

in the type of haircut he has, in his hands,

in the food he orders,

and even in the way he sighs.

When he sees Elisa crying, he whispers in her ear.

If you stop crying, I'll give you a silver bracelet.

- How are you? - Fine.

The brother comes back inside.

He doesn't notice what's happened.

Nobody could have noticed.

The brother comes in and the father wakes up.

He makes room for him on the sofa.

And as he has to move, he stands up completely

and invites his friend to the bar.

The friend accepts, stands up, and the two of them leave.

I'll be back soon.

Then, later on, when it's dark,

seeing that her father has not returned,

they go down to the bar to ask him for money

to go eat at the usual restaurant

The next day, Elisa feels a slight pain in her stomach,

as if something had made her sick,

She's gone with her father and brother

to collect her little sister from their cousins house.

Then, a s always, they go back to the station,

where the father will say goodbye,

until the next time fifteen days later.

- Bye, bye. - Bye, Dad!

Yes, press the button.

- See you, son. - Thanks. Bye.

Bye.

Bon voyage. Bon voyage.

When the train starts,

they open the biscuits their dad gave them,

like every Sunday when they go back to mum's house,

and they eat them, and no one looks at them,

as if it were not so uncommon

for three kids to travel alone.

- Hello, Mum. - Hello, Mum.

- Hello, sweetie. - Hello.

Let's go, quickly, I'm badly parked.

- Your hands are cold. - Yes, I've been waiting long.

- So, was it good? - Yes.

- You fell asleep, I suppose? - Yes.

- So you had a good time? - Yes, very good.

When their mother asks them if they had a good time,

how the Communion went, and what they did with their dad,

the brother explains that they went to the amusement park

and the robot museum.

The little sister says she went to her cousins house

and that they stayed up late.

But Elisa is silent, she doesn't say anything.

And when her mother asks...

What about you, Elisa?

Elisa?

I saw Dad's friend.

He said he'd give me a silver bracelet.

How come you're awake?

Are you okay?

What?

Are you okay?

Yes, Mum.

Sure?

Sure.

Then get dressed.

Elisa stays in bed a while, although she doesn't sleep any more.

All week, whenever her mother goes in to wake her for school,

Elisa is already awake and her mother asks her if she's okay.

Come on.

- Did you pick up the sandwiches? - Yes.

- Good. Have a nice day. - Thanks, mum.

- Do you have basketball today? - I don't know yet.

Well, you let me know.

- Bye, Elisa, have a good day. - Bye.

You too, Mum.

A proportion of the water which falls on the ground as rain

evaporates.

Some of it filters into the ground

and some of it runs over the earth's surface

forming water courses which we call rivers.

Rivers are currents of fresh water

which flow

into the sea, into another river or into a lake.

If there's something wrong, you can talk to me.

Dad's friend said he would give me a silver bracelet.

Mum!

It's the second time she's said that in a week.

Her mother thinks it strange that Elisa thinks about it so much.

But then the little sister calls her from the lounge,

and she goes inside and forgets what she was thinking.

But on Monday she remembers,

and goes to see Mr S, Elisa's teacher,

to tell him that she's acting a little strangely.

He says that he will keep an eye on her,

and they will speak again soon.

No idea whatsoever?

But you did study?

Hello?

Ah, yes.

Mr S tells her that Elisa has failed her science exam.

And have you told her?

He says that her daughter didn't react to having failed

and that she seems a bit withered.

Withered?

That was the word he used.

It seems an unusual word to use,

as if the teacher were translating as he spoke.

But that was what he said.

Does she seem strange to you?

She's almost eleven. She probably just had an argument with her mates.

- Did she mention anything? - No, we hardly talk.

I don't think she's well.

Let me do my homework, and stop worrying.

- Are you sure there's nothing wrong? - Sure.

- You don't want to tell me? - I'm okay, Mum.

I've got loads of books to read for school,

that's why I'm always awake in the mornings.

Okay, Elisa...

I'll finish this. You go and study.

Since last weekend when she came to see you.

Do you know what it could be?

No, I don't know him.

Yes, she hasn't stopped telling me,

he's supposed to give her a silver bracelet.

Are you seeing him again?

Then ask him.

The following weekend, the father makes a decision.

He takes Elisa by the hand and they go to his friends jewellery shop.

But the girl starts to cry, and says she doesn't want to go in.

She asks her father to go alone and bring her the bracelet

But the father says she has to choose her favourite

and thank his friend personally.

- Let me go. - Elisa, listen.

Please. Don't make me go in, Dad.

- I'm scared. - It's all right.

Thank you.

Hello.

The father had to force her to go to their usual restaurant.

She really didn't want to.

When they finish lunch,

the four of them will go to the station in the father's car.

They'll buy a tin of biscuits,

the father will clown around on the platform,

and the kids will laugh until the train starts. Just like always.

Then they'll sit down

and eat the biscuits, and no one will look at them,

as if it were not so uncommon for three kids to travel alone.

Yes, I asked her again but she just started crying.

No, I'd prefer to wait.

I don't want to upset her.

Yes, let's wait a few days and see what happens.

Yes, I'll give you a call if there's any news.

Okay.

Yes, yes.

Bye.

I didn't mention it because...

you're a family friend, and it didn't seem right.

And where did you meet?

And when was it?

A few months ago.

I didn't think I'd ever meet anyone else.

And what about the kids?

They'll stay with their mum.

A few months later, at one of their regular meetings,

the friend tells Elisa's father that he's leaving his wife

and moving abroad with a younger woman.

I haven't decided where, somewhere far away.

I never would have thought it.

The father will never again go to the friend's house.

And, after a while, he won't even talk about him,

or his wife or his children, ever again.

It will be as if he has forgotten them all,

as if that family never existed.

The father will move to a smaller apartment,

he'll make new friends, many of whom won't have children,

and they'll never return to the amusement park.

Elisa decides she never wants to wear that dress again,

because it's a dress for little girls.

She finds it corny,

and she's sure none of her classmates would wear it either.

Elisa wants to be like her friends now.

"The terrible emotions of the last four weeks

began to have an effect on her.

She was a bag of nerves,

and the slightest noise would make her jump.

She stayed locked in her room for five days,

and in the end she decided she would stop worrying about

the blood stain on the floor of the library.

The Otis family didn't want her.

"They clearly didn't deserve her either."

Over the next few days,

things returned to how they were before,

the mother began thinking about other things and so did Elisa.

And on their free afternoons, Elisa and her friend

went to the stables to learn how to ride horses.

Elisa liked village life

because she enjoyed little things and she had a good time.

Elisa failed all her exams

and it feels strange to go back to school.

Her brother and sister are pleased,

because she had always got the highest marks,

and thought she was the cleverest

But she doesn't talk about it. She just failed all her exams.

We should explain to her.

Yes, I'll bring her in.

Elisa.

Sit down.

You know that you've failed?

But I've spoken with your mother,

and I've decided to keep your marks so that you pass the year.

I want you to go to university,

but you'll have to work hard,

I don't want you to let me down.

"I've decided to keep your marks so that you pass the year.

I want you to go to university."

Elisa didn't understand at the time why Mr S said that.

Many years would go by before she could understood why.

What's the main course?

Macaroni.

Elisa got an eight out of ten. She's going to study in Barcelona.

It's lucky you didn't study, isn't it, Elisa?

Mum, did you collect the car today?

I forgot. Can you go?

Yes, I'll go tomorrow morning.

- Where will you live? - Under a bridge.

At your father's flat.

I've spoken to him, it's no problem.

Pass me the bread, please.

Thanks.

Elisa tells her mother that she'd rather live in a hall of residence

than in her father's old flat

Lots of my friends do.

The mother doesn't understand and asks her why.

Elisa says she's afraid of the swing on the terrace.

I don't like that swing.

Which swing?

The one on the terrace.

It scares me.

Elisa, sweetie.

Anyway, the flat is empty.

Your father sold the furniture and threw everything else out.

You'll have the whole place to yourself.

You'll be much better off there.

- You've packed everything. - Well...

Listen, you be good, and take care in the city.

Have fun!

- Help yourself to my clothes. - Okay.

We'll come and see you, you can count on it.

- Bye. - Bye.

The day Elisa leaves the village to go to study in the city

she sees her school teacher

and she suddenly understands why he's there.

It took many years for her to see everything he had done for her.

As soon as you arrive, okay?

Bye.

Elisa Kiseljak is all grown up

and she shares many things with her university friends.

She also talks about her favourite books

and the ones she plans to buy with her savings.

She goes to old bookshops and buys second-hand books.

And gradually fills up a bookshelf

which she'll have to leave behind when she goes to study abroad.

She'll go far away and stay there for a long time.

Life is different now.

Elisa reads alone in her father's old flat.

Reading in silence gives her a strange feeling in her stomach,

like a sleeping threat that lasts a long time.

But she has to get used to it

- Okay. How much is it? - 19 Euros, 30.

- Here. Keep the change. - Thanks a lot.

Thanks.

Elisa finally goes abroad to study,

and once there, many months later,

Elisa will call her mother, terrified, and will say to her:

"Mum, help me, I've just remembered something horrible."

14 YEARS, 4 MONTHS AND A FEW DAYS AFTER THE FATHER'S FRIEND

TOLD ELISA KISELJAK THAT HE WOULD GIVE HER A SILVER BRACELET

It's difficult to do it like this.

Thanks.

Use some paper, it'll spread better.

Stop!

It's a messy business this baking.

Shall we put chocolate on top, or just leave it like this?

Leave it like that.

- You want some more? - No.

Elisa, are you okay?

Are you in there?

I'll be right out, Elisa.

What?

I'll be right out.

You didn't ruin my life, you just made me hurt my feet!

Elisa, what are you doing?

Open up, or I'll knock the door down!

What are you saying, Elisa?

How could you knock it down? You're only small.

Elisa, turn the water off! It's hurting me!

Elisa, come out, or I'll call the police!

Elisa!

Will you stop banging on the door?

I'm trying to take a shower.

Do you understand?

They won't lock me up.

I just remembered something which happened 14 years ago

and I'm really scared.

Scared of what?

Of how it will affect me.

It will pass.

Everything does.

What happened fourteen years ago?

You should get dressed.

Promise me you'll get me out of here.

Promise me.

I promise.

Get dressed.

Here.

My name is Elisa, okay? And no one has ever raped me!

Mum?

Yes.

No, fine.

Mum...

Mum, I need your help.

I just remembered something awful.

I don't know, perhaps I'm obsessed.

But when I close my eyes I see him there staring at me.

"They won't believe you, no one will believe you."

And I open them to scare him...

And he's still here. It's horrible.

Elisa...

listen.

He will go away, you'll see.

He will go away.

What was it that made me remember?

I still don't understand it all.

Before speaking with my dad I want to reconstruct it all.

I don't want to only half understand.

I want to know when I'll stop feeling so a red

and if, at some point, I'll stop seeing the face

of his friend in front of me.

Day and night, whether I'm awake or asleep.

Always.

I'm scared I won't be strong enough.

I'm scared because it is something very few people can help me with.

Perhaps I'll never speak about it again.

If I don't speak about it a gain I might forget again.

I'm going to call Dad.

Do you ever think about someone like Martin Luther King?

Never.

He was a great man, wasn't he?

Yes.

A brave man.

Yes...

A brave man.

Dad.

Did you remember?

No, Elisa.

And believe me, I'm sorry.