Original subtitles

What are you doing here?

Nothing. I'm looking for Swing.

Miraldo told me he can find a jazz guitar for me.

How about this guitar? How much does it cost, papa?

It is of no value.

- Listen, how much for your portable CD player? - It depends.

Get away, you fool!

Get out of here!

Take it!

A string is missing.

Wait there, I'll fix that.

Are you taking it?

Yes, I will exchange it with my portable CD player.

This is in your own interest.

- This was Django Reinhardt's guitar. - Who is he?

The King of Guitar!

- Are you taking it? - Yes.

But I keep the batteries!

Don't forget the music! Thanks...

Are you still here?

I just want to learn to play the "guitare manouche".

- Do you have a guitar? - Yes, a very nice one.

- Swing told me that you give lessons. - Aha.

What are you going to give me in return?

- Can you read? - Of course I can!

- And write too? - Yes.

- Where's Moraldo's house? - I don't know.

Beat it!

- Have you got a guitar too? - Yes.

It's out of tune! Look here!

Can't you hear that it's out of tune?

- Where did you find this instrument? - It was the guitar of Django!

- Whose? - Django Reinhardt's!

Django's guitar? They told you a tall story, son!

I'm going to show you something now.

Look!

Look how beautiful it is!

A wonderful sound, isn't it?

A wonderful sound.

Come on, play!

No... That's how. See?

The same accord a bit higher.

Put your finger correctly.

Yes, lower... That's it, yes...

Not with the thumb, with the fingers...

Faster...

The second accord...

Go on, that's good!

Keep on this!

I'm going to make some coffee. Our lesson is over.

- Already over? - Yes, why?

- Only for ten minutes? - Ten minutes is much!

We both don't need to get tired!

I'm going to make some coffee and then we continue.

Come here, Swing!

Go with Max. He's afraid of going alone to the city.

- Well, write down. - What to write?

- To Social Assistance. - What to write?

Don't know. They owe me money.

They've sent me half the money. I'm not pleased.

- How am I supposed to write to them? - Don't know. You know.

- But I don't know how... - But you said you know how to write!

Well... "Mr. Director"...

- What did you write there? - "Mr. Director"...

"I want to know why you haven't sent me yet the dough..."

What are you doing there? This is impossible!

What's all this about? Have you gone crazy?

I don't know what to write!

- Where do you live? - In the other bank of the river.

Ah, that the place with the big houses!

I stay at my grandma's for the summer vacation.

- Why are we going that way? - We take a shortcut. I know what I'm doing.

I don't pass through that place. Water will damage my guitar.

- Why are we going that way? - We take a shortcut.

My guitar is soaking wet! I told you not to go over that way!

- Do you want to buy a guitar? - Yes.

- Have you got the money? - I've got this.

It's a "Jalle".

The king of vases.

It's a "Galle", it's true.

I will change the chord for you.

According to your letter of 17th of present month,

we formally inform you

that after thorough examination of all our accounts and files

...we remitted the rest

...of the owed family benefits for the period given below,

of April and May, a total of 4.144 francs.

Wait a minute! What's all this about? I've received nothing! Nothing!

"Employer"... Can I put a name at random?

Yes, you can.

It's good... Keep on playing.

Oh! Hold on! What's this noise?

Come on, now.

A bit faster.

No, that's not good! Yes, that's it...

A bit faster.

A bit harder...

It's too noisy here. Let's go to the caravan.

Do your fingers hurt?

Stretch your fingers.

This is nothing. Keep on playing.

What have you done there?

Don't play that high! It's not good.

That's the way to play!

Come on, eat. You have to...

Thank you, I'm full.

Come on, eat!

You have to!

You'll make me glad if you eat.

You'll see that you're going to play better after that.

Come on, eat!

Come on, have another one!

You've fallen into the river!

You spit on the floor!

You don't wash yourself any more!

We're not getting well at all, my friend!

Today I went to the camp for my lessons with Miraldo.

We do the lessons inside the caravan.

It's nicer and larger than the other ones

with old pictures of Miraldo from the time he was young

and of Django Reinhardt, the king of jazz guitar.

What is it? I told you not to get into my room!

- What's going on? - Come down!

- Are you coming? - I can't. I'm on punishment.

- Punishment, why? - I can't go out.

I couldn't care less! There's a party at Miraldo's!

I can't go out! My grandma locked me in!

Stop! Are you crazy?

Come down!

Come up here!

Climb up!

You can't leave! I'll tell grandma!

I'll tell grandma!

Mind the pit!

Keep pushing, slaves!

- But this is heavy! - Keep pushing and stop talking!

It's too heavy, Swing!

I forgot doctor's vodka! Wait for me here!

Let's drink a beer!

If only my father could see me...

He has changed. In the old days, he wouldn't care. He was a punk.

- He would be proud of me back then! - What is a "punk"?

It was the youth, the rebels thirty years ago.

You know, something like that...

May I tell you something?

You won't get angry, will you?

Your cousin, Swing...

has tits like a girl.

Is he a chick?

What's this? What have you given to me?

- Mine is flat. - You really can hold it.

- You're used to it. - I've got used to this bulge.

- My hand hangs in the air. - Put something in front of you.

That's great!

Start?

I still can't keep this tempo.

Where's your wife?

There she is!

Let the potatoes! Come here!

I said let the potatoes!

Please don't have a rehearsal here! Police may come.

- Go get your violin! - No, I don't want!

Go get your violin! What are you doing?

- I have to go. - We do understand you.

I do understand you.

Buy, Doctor!

Where are you, you Arab?

You woke up the kid! Please, Doctor!

- Go away! We're closed. - We're thirsty!

You're all boozed up!

We'll make him come down with our music!

- What are you looking for, Doctor? - The radio tuner.

The Jew! The Manouche!

Your turn!

Listen to this!

Whenever I see barbed wires

I feel a knot in the stomach.

Good morning, Sir. I'm looking for Babino's caravan.

Babino?... Mandino! I'm Mandino!

- My grandson, Max... - Max is over there, in the caravan.

We're not getting well, my good man! We're not getting well at all!

- What's going on? - We're not getting well at all, my good man!

- There it is, Mr. Babino. - Mandino, Mandino Reinhardt.

Your house is one hundred years old!

- Are you a specialist? - I'm an antique dealer.

- A cup of tea, Mr. Mandino? - With pleasure!

- Oh, my grandson! - I'll bring him.

Max... Let's go.

No, it's not from 17th Century.

Is this wonderful bronze statue an antique?

No, this is recent. My granddaughter posed for a sculptor.

- May I have her phone-number? - I beg your pardon?

- This Galle... - It's a pity.

Once I had its pair.

But never mind, it's not authentic all the same!

Friday the 25th, I learned a new accord from Miraldo.

He told me that everyone, even the children, used to play music.

He also told me that the Gypsies, the Tziganes and the Manouche

were the same people.

What are doing there? Have you forgotten everything?

You shouldn't forget!

You're playing a way too fast.

That's the way to put your fingers!

Move that one a bit higher!

What's going on with you? Have you forgotten everything?

- You're not focused! - I have a headache. I have to leave.

- Have you got a headache again? - My head is aching badly.

Then you should go.

Don't forget about Saturday. I'll be here.

Swing, wait!

My grandma wants to see your father.

Why?

Cause she wants him to clean out the attic.

Give me the guitar!

- Would it be all right taking the guitar? - No one will come.

- There's a lot of trout over there! - Are you sure?

Yes, may be.

We're going to catch the trout with our hands.

- With our hands? - Yes but we must find a trout hole.

Stir the water with your feet to blind the fish.

How? Like that?

Tickle them in the belly with your fingers.

Stir the water with your feet to blind the fish.

- So what? - Wait!

I've caught one! Look here!

Your fish is sick. The water here is polluted.

Here's the pool of Power Company.

This is the only place where water isn't polluted.

Come with me.

- Everything's fine? - Yeah!

Saturday the 26th, Calo has become fond of me.

He showed me his guitar. It's very beautiful.

We played together. I can't do the "pompe manouche".

Sunday the 27th, Calo, Swing and I have found a big hedgehog.

The tziganes call it "niglo". Nothing else special happened.

Listen...

I'm going to teach you the music you learn with the ear.

Not the music you read with the eyes.

With that! And that! Understand?

With that! And that! Understand?

Swing! Come here!

- Would you like to drink, grandma? - No, I'm not thirsty.

You will sleep in the caravan tonight.

I didn't feel quite well last night. I must have told this to your father.

If one isn't Manouche, is it possible to marry with a Manouche?

Sometimes...

- What's up with you again? - I'm getting a headache.

Headache? Headache, once again?

Come with me. Leave your guitar.

Can you see this? It's an elm tree.

Whenever you have a headache, drink a good tea of slippery elm...

...and headache is gone!

And what's its name in French?

I don't know. I'm going to ask.

You make an ointment from this fruit. It gives you strength.

Watch your step! This is a puddle.

Keep your eyes open not to fall into it!

- Look at this plant! - Yes.

If your are stung by an insect, rub with this for soothing.

This is called willow tree.

You take the bark and can make a soup.

It brings down fever and heals rheumatism.

- Just a plain soup? - Yes.

Look at this flower.

You must grind up this flower.

Grind and then take 2-3 grains of rice...

...a pinch of salt, 3 or 4 stones.

You put them in the middle and the stones around like a pyramid.

Then you go back home and fall to sleep.

And then the one you love appears in front of you.

You will see her before your eyes.

Max!

I have a "niglo" Max! Come and see!

Come and see, Max!

Be careful! It stings!

Millions of spines! Like a big toothbrush!

- Free it! It's scared! - Are you nuts?

It has rolled in a ball.

You've taken too many.

Why are you doing this?

Give me a hair.

Wait.

Pour the salt.

Grandma, I'm going to show my room to Swing.

These chairs are truly good-looking! Marvellous! Superb!

They're like new! They're fantastic!

My cousin doesn't want much because he knows Max.

- Only 300 a chair! - But, Mr. Babino!

I gave the gramophone for the straw mats in the chairs!

- I beg your pardon? - That's right, Madame.

I'll show you the place I'll go.

- Here! - It's too small.

- This is a Greek island. - Why will you go there?

My mother will come and take me. She travels a lot.

She never stays at one place. I'm tired of following her.

I've never gone away.

- Come to the sea with me! - Father will never let me.

Stay here. I'll hide you in the woods and bring you food.

My good luck charm. I'm giving it to you.

I won't let you go.

If you're far away and want to talk me, just touch it.

We were travelling everywhere...

All over France...

And there were all with us. Children, family...

We were often walking around and eating outside the caravan.

That was our life.

That's a large caravan, isn't it?

It had to be large. This was our life.

It's good you want to learn all these things.

My kids are hardly interested in.

One day, I'll take the caravan and leave.

Away, far away... And I don't know where I'm going to end up.

They did us harm.

There was a time they were hunting us as if we were wild beasts.

At the beginning of the war

they forbade us to travel and play music.

It was on a Sunday morning.

They pulled my family out in the street...

Men, women and children...

And they put German Soldiers to guard us.

Then they forced us to get into the tracks.

I remember...

...the smoke and the fire

My mother was cooking potatoes.

They took us far away, in a concentration camp.

And there, we were being guarded by the Nazis.

They were watching and sneering at us.

We were like animals at there.

And then, we came to the end.

Just me and my brother were saved.

We were gone... My brother and I escaped.

We walked north up to Lille.

And the planes...

We were sleeping outside on the road.

Come on, let's go for a distant travel! Something we wanted for so long.

We are all together at last!

Let's play music, dance and drink!

Look! It's our family that's coming!

It's been a long time since we've been all together.

Let's welcome them and light a great fire!

They had stacked them up in the trains like animals

and the Nazis were sneering at them!

Now they're all dead.

Only Puri Day and her brother have survived.

Dr. Liebermann told me that the Manouche don't talk about the dead.

When a Manouche dies, they burn all his belongings.

Bring the gramophone to Mandino's place.

- And you, Max, how are you? - Fine, thanks.

- And how about the guitar? - I'm studying "Black Eyes".

I'm glad to hear it.

Stop it, Swing!

Cough please!

Breath!

Deeper!

Puri Day, I know you don't want to quit smoking...

...but you have to reduce it.

It's very important for you.

- As you know it. - Yes, I know.

Have you seen that? "Women's orchestra with men's aid".

- They've put up this poster everywhere. - What this affair about?

Without us they're nothing! We are the musicians!

Try to do this.

That means "I'm drunk".

- No, that's not right! - But this is the end...

You have to do it right.

Let's try one more time.

It has no accompaniment and it is done by percussion.

Let's try it. I'll show you how.

This is the onomatopoeia that explicates the tempo

Good! "Dum" is low and "tek teka" is high.

You can do it.

Go on!

Let's sing!

Almost! Let's do it one more time.

You have to do...

Not this way, but that way.

The other is...

Good! That's great! And now...

Yes but what I can hear is...

No! It is...

What about repeating it?

Come now! See you tomorrow.

Attention! This morning I feel awesome!

You don't play it correctly.

Stay to the tempo! Keep up the tempo!

What the hell are you doing?

What are you doing? You go too fast! You've lost tempo!

I didn't mean that...

Yes, that's it!

It's not possible. I'm going to Greece with my son.

No, I can't.

- What is this? - I wrote it during my vacation.

But I can't read!

You're soaking wet!

What have you done?

Let's go. Good bye, Swing.

Go to sleep, little girl

There's nothing to be afraid

Go to sleep, little girl

There's nothing to afraid.

Go into the scents of flowers and plants

Into the waves and into the light...

Go to sleep, little girl

And don't be afraid of sky and earth