Original subtitles

Haji...

How are you? Is it okay if I sit down?

I won't take up much of your time. I wanted to ask you...

- You heard about the boss? - Yes.

What I wanted to know is...

When you build a mosque, do you go to heaven?

If I build a mosque,

but my heart isn't really 100% pure,

will I still go to heaven?

For heaven, lots of things...

He built a mosque. That's very good.

- But it's no guarantee of heaven. - Right.

To go to heaven, the beginning...

Always adoration to Allah,

always with sincerity to Allah. Sincerity.

When there's no sincerity, there's no work with Allah.

Islam, wisdom. Islam, healing.

Islam, the solution. For everybody.

Muslims make many problems and

many good things. Like everyone.

- Sure. - Yes, no problem.

- Very good. Thank you. - Right, thanks, Haji.

You know, I converted...

- It's a secret. - Good direction.

But I still have a lot of work to do.

- Slowly. - Right.

It's from the heart...

- With wisdom. - And with God.

With wisdom and sincerity. Allah's easy...

The work you must do in Islam... Adoration.

So, work hard, full of joy, and no problem.

Estas cierto. Joy.

I pray, I recite the Qur'an. I keep fit, I jog.

I do yoga, roller-blading,

horse-riding, swimming, lots of things.

You must.

Islam, Qur'an, ability to keep going forward.

With joy and faith.

Faith and joy!

I should start learning Arabic, though?

From time to time, I'll come to

see you and you'll help me...

Maybe, I don't know if I can be the Imam but...

Easy, easy, but it takes one condition...

Willpower.

- Willpower? - Eso es correcto.

Let's wait till it's gone. It's a loud one.

- The airport nearby. - The airport, yes.

Let me take a look at that.

You were late this morning.

- I wasn't. - You were.

You were quarter of an hour late.

I'm just kidding.

Okay, Haj? How's it going?

No, let me see that.

Where does it say the time?

You arrived at 6:39?

- Yes. - 39?

Traffic...

You were late the other day.

You got here at 7. No more, Haj.

- Go on, it's okay. - Thanks.

- You don't look happy. - Sorry?

You don't look happy.

I can't hear you.

No, I'm happy.

- You're happy? - Sure.

Thanks.

I'm very happy, boss.

- That's good. - Yes, very happy.

You better be.

- What's all this tape? - I scraped it.

It looks terrible.

I scraped at it, to get rid of the logo.

You scraped it off? Okay...

That way, he gets no advertising.

When Mao sees that, he'll kill you.

Hey, Titi!

Watch out!

Keep going.

Stop.

- How's things, Titi? - How's it going?

- Well? - Well, what?

- Did you do it? - Get off my case, fellas.

Don't keep busting my balls. Fill her up.

Please...

- So, did you do it? - Back off!

You got any questions, send me your sisters.

- You douchebag! - C'mon, Titi!

Obsessed with my dick! Screw you!

I'll cut it for you, you'll see!

Don't talk like that. Respect. You're a Muslim now.

- Fill her up! - Not a real Muslim.

You're gonna be in a hump that we're late,

so don't bust my balls about my dick!

You're gonna do it or you did it?

- You're gonna do it? - Come on...

- Answer the question. - Tell us.

You invite us to yours. C'mon, answer, you joker.

When the time's right. For now, just back off.

We got work to do. Are you done?

- We respect your dick. - As if.

- We just wanna know. - Later.

- Okay? - Yeah, move it.

The cap!

- I'll do your cap. - Stop fooling around.

Here's your damn cap, Titi.

And back off about my dick!

Okay, you're good.

Let's see...

Bullshitter?

Not a bullshitter?

Hey, shitheads.

What's wrong?

Go on, sit down.

I'll go get the boss.

Breathe deep.

Gently.

Move your leg there.

We'll call you.

- We'll get him there fast. - Thanks.

Koita's back in the groove.

Here.

Salaam. You okay?

He's back!

Hey, my brothers.

- Are you better? - Yeah.

Are you gonna show us?

- It's not right yet, but it's better. - Yeah?

It's been 2 weeks.

- Already? - Yeah.

I need the doctor's green light,

- but it should be okay. - Can we look?

I'm one of the ummah now. I'm a good Muslim.

Now, you're a Muslim. You can say you are one now.

Before, you weren't a good Muslim.

- That's not fair. - Yeah, if you hadn't cut it off...

I should've asked the Imam, not my pals.

I should've gone to the Imam.

- I wouldn't have messed up then. - You're a real Muslim now.

You weren't a good Muslim because it was uncut.

Let's do some work.

I brought my Accident at Work form.

Accident where?

At work.

Cold,

I tried to... I wanted to become a real Muslim.

I circumcised myself.

You did?

Yeah, but I messed up. I injured myself, in fact.

You expect me to sign this?

It'll cost me 1,650 euros otherwise.

There's 900 for the wotsit...

Yeah, I understand. It's pushing it.

I don't know what to say.

God, I don't know what to say.

You didn't have to do that.

A Muslim doesn't have to be circumcised.

It's not in any text.

Straight up.

I should have researched it, talked to the Imam.

- I got it into my head... - Work!

I didn't listen to anyone, 'cos

no one told me any of that.

But I had a talk with Jamil and Bachir.

Giant was there that evening, too.

It's awkward. I don't know why I did it.

Here, fella.

Fuck it!

Friday, we're going to prayers at the hotel.

Did you all get that?

I'll say it one more time.

I said, Friday prayers are at the hotel.

For everybody.

Everybody! Kante?

Did you hear? Yes yes? Okay!

I'd like to introduce our Imam, Haj Larbi.

Welcome to this new mosque. Thank you.

Thank you.

Adhan.

Adhan.

I'd like to ask a question.

There's something bothering me.

Why didn't we have a say

in the choice of Imam?

I think maybe my brothers

would agree with me

that we should have a mashura...

El khutba estubo bien

but we should have a

debate to choose the Imam.

Why did Mao put you there

without asking our opinion?

Haji, the problem we have with

you, with all due respect,

is that Mao funded this.

I'm happy that my brothers

have somewhere to pray,

but Mao owes us money. Mao makes you Imam...

You have the knowledge and

learning, and we respect you,

but it means Mao's going to

paradise because he has money

and pays for my brothers

to have somewhere to pray.

He decides you're the Imam,

Haji, with all due respect,

and I'm glad you're here...

So, where do we stand? Are you the boss's man?

We're pleased Mao gave us this

jammah, this place to pray.

We're all very pleased to have this place.

It's just that it's true

that it's not right that he

gets to decide who the Imam is.

Many of us here

would prefer to vote to choose our Imam.

Sorry, the Imam like doctor,

through knowledge, not vote.

Vote for the town hall and president.

estamos bien con tu conocimeinto y aprendizage,

no problem. We agree with all that.

But we don't want to be manipulated.

We're not here to give a salat for Mao.

The prayer is for Allah. There are three Imams,

three kinds of Imam.

The true Imam, the political

Imam and the phony Imam.

- Phony Imam knows nothing. - And the boss's Imam?

He didn't ask our opinion.

You're a friend of Mao's?

- He's your friend. - Why?

He's a friend of yours.

They're not friends.

He chose him, but they're not friends.

- The Imam with everybody! - He's a real Imam.

Mao owes us money.

- He's a crook! - He builds mosques.

The faithful are happy.

Honestly, we're very happy. It's great.

It's just that Mao builds to do

hasanat, good deeds and all that,

but he doesn't pay up.

He owes us masses of overtime.

That's why we're all going to get together

and decide if you're our divine guide or not.

We all should have a say.

Excuse me, brother, are you...

If it's you, bien, but everybody speaks.

We should vote.

That's exactly what I said earlier.

Who's your spokesman?

I am.

It's manipulation.

We're going to... Go ahead. Speak up, brother.

Where's the consultation?

You were consulted!

- It's in the Qur'an. - There has to be consultation.

And then we can decide all

together which Imam we want.

- Exactly. - That's how it's decided.

- It's not politics. - No, consultation's a sura.

It's a sura!

- Brothers... - We want a choice!

Brothers, the boss decided I'm the Imam of this mosque.

I'm the Imam, I do the prayer.

I'm not, I leave.

- Okay, we've lost. - It doesn't matter.

We'll regret it, brothers.

They're manipulating you.

Wake up, guys, you're being manipulated.

I'm the Imam. Who accepts?

Come on, Titi.

Easy does it.

Mao can't take it with him!

Easy does it. Always. Talk softly.

After the pressure of the truth,

all your problems healed.

But easy does it.

God bless you.

But easy does it. With my friends, go easy.

Shake hands with them. Then my brothers...

Perhaps tomorrow, arrive here and pray for us.

Because the devil makes problems.

After pressure of the truth,

good direction and devil flees.

Are the workers pleased about the jammah?

- Yes, full of joy. - Full of joy?

The mosque a big thing.

Give strength to work hard.

Because we work with Allah.

Full of joy.

Everybody says bravo!

Because our boss very, very good.

Adoration is very important for...

men.

Love is very important for good relationship

between workers and boss.

But maybe Bachir and Jamil say

his Imam is Titi.

Titi's a nice guy.

- Very natural. - Natural?

Because he listens.

He says, yes.

Maybe he's crazy...

Do you think?

To be Imam, he knows nothing.

To want to be Imam just after

converting, he must be loopy.

He talks a lot with me about religion.

To learn...

a lot of things.

Titi knows nothing about Islam.

Even the ablutions, he doesn't know.

An Imam should know ablutions.

I'm happy he's converted to Islam.

Very good.

The next one's Giant. He has to convert, too.

I want you to take care of him.

Get close to him, eat with him,

talk with him. Tell him there's only one path.

God willing, maybe he'll convert.

Can you do that?

And I want you to watch the other

mechanics, Jamil and Bachir.

Keep your eye on them.

Don't let them talk to the others.

Okay?

Good.

And keep reminding all the guys to

come to the mosque every Friday.

Tell them it's good for them. Good for their hearts and minds.

Good for their bodies and

good for their work.

It's mandatory or I'll cut their bonuses.

That's incredible.

It's how it works.

It'll be much better.

What we're asking

is that the best you can do,

you do.

- I can stretch to 125. - 125, that's...

- 125, before bonuses. - That's not much.

- It's a fuckin' lot! - Just imagine that we...

No, Koita, no!

Five days, how much is that worth?

A hundred and how many euros?

- You know, that's a hell of a lot. - Right.

Hold on, I have a crew of ten workers.

All you do is check the pallets.

I was the one who suggested a rise, wasn't I?

We asked.

You didn't ask at all. I came to see you to suggest it.

You never asked me. Not you, the

village chief, or the others.

Esta eso correcto?

I came to you and said,

I've opened a mosque, to be a good Muslim.

I don't pay you well for your

hard work, just the minimum wage.

I make a bit of money. That's called surplus value.

Now I can reduce my surplus by a little bit.

But not by that much. Don't push it!

You said the mosque is for prayers.

That's good news for all the Muslims.

Even those that aren't here, if they're in work.

We're lucky enough

to have a boss who accepts us going to prayers

and even built the mosque for us.

That's very important

for our religion.

So when they see all those things

we never hassle you about,

it was because of religion.

Take pity on us, boss.

You...

gotta take pity on us.

Every day, five o'clock in the morning, we're up.

We come out here in the cold

and rain, and work hard.

So, like you said,

you're Muslim, we're Muslims.

It's up to you now.

- I think... - You gotta choose.

I think the real issue is more...

What do you say?

It's more complex than that.

- Really? - Yes.

Don't walk away.

You have to answer the question.

Let's get back to work.

Listen to what I'm saying.

You can't just walk away.

Don't walk away from me, come back.

If you walk away, it's not good.

- Gotta clock out. - Move it!

C'mon, Haji, let's go!

It's 5:30, we're done. We're not gonna sleep here.

We're not gonna do overtime.

Even if you stay on, he won't pay you.

Demasiado bien hecho!

Hey, we're waiting here. Get in the line.

Look, we're all waiting.

- I'm in a hurry. - There's a line.

Even if you're in a hurry.

Go for it, Giant.

C'mon!

Move your ass!

Don't insult the big guy.

I'll smash the clock, I swear.

I'll wait for you.

See you, guys!

Hey, fellas!

Look at this!

I'm not working here anymore.

- What's wrong? - Look what's in the pit.

- What? - Check it out.

- It's a giant rat! - What the fuck is that?

- Look at it! - What the hell!

What is it?

I dunno, maybe a beaver.

No way! It's got a round tail.

A beaver's tail is flat.

- Huge, isn't it? - It's a giant rat.

It's a beaver.

- Don't talk shit, Jamil! - It's a beaver.

A beaver has a flat tail. I already told you!

- It's a big fella. - How'd it get there?

How should I know? I came down to start work

and it's there in the pit.

Go get the boss to get rid of it.

I dunno, how'd you expect us

to work in these conditions?

He can call the Humane Society to find it a home.

- I'm not going in there. - Me neither.

I'll go get Mao.

C'mon, Giant, you're the biggest.

Just grab it by its neck like that.

Holy shit!

It's got orange teeth!

Buy it some Colgate.

- This is crazy! - Big, isn't it?

Did you see that?

- It doesn't like you, Jamil! - Look!

It attacks!

You're on your own!

Help me!

Listen to its breathing!

Talk about decent working conditions!

Honestly!

Rats in the garage, guys.

- It attacks! - No kidding!

Put your foot in there.

Cut it out!

Who's gonna do the oil changes?

- Giant. - No, Mao!

In his rotten shop.

I'm not working in these conditions, Mao.

- Look at that. - It's a beaver!

- The hell it's a beaver! - What is it?

Can't you tell the difference

between a coypu and a beaver?

- Right... - A coypu!

It comes from America.

They brought them from America?

At least a century ago.

Up on his hind legs, ready to pounce.

I'd never even heard of them.

I got a truck to finish.

- Yeah, I'm off, too. It's all yours. - I'm coming.

C'mon, little guy...

We can't change the oil...

We've got work to do.

We need a cage.

I'll go find you one.

He's gotta be starving.

He must've come from the canal in back.

Look at those little hands he's got. Weird!

How many fingers? 4?

- No, 5. - He hasn't got any thumbs.

He does. There's a little thumb

on the side.

Here, comrade.

- He's cute, - Yeah, very. A fine coat.

I think that's why they

introduced them into France.

For their fur.

We gotta find a way to get him out, though.

We'll find something.

Scared,

You don't want your apple?

You won't believe your eyes.

Go on, go for it. Jump!

Can I take this?

How are you doing?

Hey, Alfredo.

- Doing okay? - Fine, thanks.

It's been a long time.

How's things? It's been a long time.

Estas en lo cierto

Look what we brought.

Look!

- Hold on... - Put them down there.

Let's get some pallets.

Thanks, cuz, you kept your word.

It's for a good cause.

Wait up before you thank us.

Check them out.

Take a look.

Look what we've got for you.

- Wonderful! - Beautiful,

Smile, guys!

You'll get lots of hasanat with these.

- They're superb. - Hold on...

They're all handmade.

- Look... - It's traveled 5,000 km.

Stroke it, it sings.

- Straight from Afghanistan. - Eso esta correcto.

- Like the colors? - Great! Just what we need.

The red one'll look great in the mosque.

- To think little girls make them! - Old women, these ones.

- Really? - No kidding.

Got any Moroccan?

- That's a Moroccan one. - No, this one's Turkish.

4 Persians and then a Moroccan!

Este esta bien. Verde, tambien

Beautiful, isn't it? Look how long it is.

- Check out the workmanship. - Magnificent.

- All handmade. - Excellent carpets!

- How much? - For all of them...

- There's this one, too. - All of them, 1,500.

Are you nuts? It's for the mosque, brother.

We ain't got 1,500. We're mechanics.

- 1,500 buys one usually. - I got a deal for you.

I saw your car.

- It's yours, - Yeah.

It's a wreck. It's all bashed up, Alfredo.

A nightmare!

I park it one night...

Next morning, I wake up chilled out

and I see that.

The insurance guys won't believe me.

A nightmare!

Gonna cost me...

I don't know how much. I've no idea.

Look, we're mechanics, aren't we, Mehdi?

- Mehdi's my cousin... - He's the best.

You're my cuz's friend.

Here's the deal, it's dead easy...

We repair your wheels.

Cool, that's good to hear.

You give us the carpets.

- No way! - It's a swap.

- A swap? - We fix your car and...

You know what they're worth?

For a bust fender and a dinged wing.

We're mechanics, cuz.

We ain't got 1,000 euros in ready cash.

We scratch your back, you scratch ours.

You're nuts.

- That'll cost you 4 grand. - You know their real value?

Look at this one. Look! Mehdi, show them.

Stop now.

He's my cousin, I'm not bargaining.

I asked him a favor and I'll do you one in return.

- Let's get a coffee. - We'll find an arrangement.

- C'mon, they're family. - Tu estas bien?

It's for people like us, ordinary people!

I've got bad news for you.

I did my accounts and I'm

losing too much money here.

Yeah, and?

The shop's losing me money.

That means I'm...

I'm gonna have to shut it down.

What's that mean for us?

I can find you a job on the pallets.

We don't drive fork-lifts.

I can find you a job or training.

I'm not talking about firing you.

Yeah, but we're mechanics. We like our job.

We want to stay mechanics.

I don't need mechanics!

- We don't buy that. - You don't need us, so that's it!

What you're saying is,

we've always worked here and

suddenly you don't need mechanics.

When you needed us, we were always there.

I'm selling the trucks, I don't need them.

I'll sub-contract.

So now it's not profitable anymore,

you don't give a shit about us.

When you needed us, you were glad we were around.

Do what you want, we won't bend over.

What I want is to shut the shop.

Shut it and we'll see what happens.

We're gonna fight this.

C'mon, Giant.

Titi, we're gonna load up the engine.

You got it.

Back it up slowly.

Careful, guys.

- Okay? - Nice and easy.

Slowly.

Watch out!

Take it easy.

You think we'll let him? No way!

We'll burn all his trucks and pallets

if we have to.

We gotta get organized.

We should start a union.

Why don't we?

How many you gotta be to start a union?

Two!

- That's all? - Sure.

Look how many guys work here.

A cooperative would work.

- Where'd we get the money? - True.

You know what I think?

We can't lie down and take it. If we do,

we're shafted.

Whatever Mao does, we fight.

It's like that shit with the engine.

He'll make stuff up.

We gotta get organized. One of us... You, Giant!

You go talk to Mao.

They can't just fire us. If they do, we can sue.

But if you think we can start a union, let's do it.

- We're not gonna roll over. - He's gone too far.

Huh, Bachir?

- Yeah, I'm with you. - What's "yeah" mean?

- Back off! - He fucks us up and you go, Yeah!

I said I'm with you. We'll do it. Back off, man.

It's serious shit he's trying to pull.

I said we'll take care of it. Stop busting my balls!

Slow down, Jamil. They open mosques,

but they won't let you unionize.

Eso no esta cierto

Straight up.

He can back up a bit more,

Eso esta bien. Mira!

It's blocked.

There's a puddle there.

Fuck the puddle!

That's good. They'll never get past.

Do we put some chairs out?

- Nobody'll get past. - Nobody!

From now on, no more bullshit.

You gotta go see Mao.

We wanna talk.

The boss is good to us.

You shut us out, but we work.

No, you're not going to work!

He's good to us, that's all. We got a bonus. 150 euros.

We can't just go on strike.

We've got children and families. We have to work.

- Can we get a word in? - Are you done?

- No, we're not done. He's good to us. - Let him talk...

Okay, he's good to them.

He's Muslim and he's good to us. He gave us bonuses.

Do you think you're well paid?

He treats you like slaves.

Guys, are you with us or against us?

We're not going on strike.

What is this shit, you won't go on strike?

Get off me! You're all cowards!

It's Mao's fault...

Mao's the problem here!

Stop it, for fuck's sake!

We're not going on strike. We'll go to the police.

You hoodlums!

Crazyheads!

- Capitalists! - Shove it!

You're not real Muslims!

You're fake Muslims!

Bunch of idiots!

Watch out!

Hey, boss!

What's up? What are you doing?

Giant, Jamil and Bachir have...

The jerks!

We're not on strike.

They shut us out.

- Who, the mechanics? - Yeah, the mechanics.

They blockaded the shop.

- Did they put that truck there? - Eso esta correcro

It was Giant, Jamil, Bachir...

Titi's with them. Jamil even pulled a gun on us.

Jamil did?

Eso es cierto, he pulled a gun.

We said we wouldn't go on strike.

They said, It's all the boss's fault.

Jamil pulled a gun on us!

Go get a coffee, all of you.

Go back to your mosque!

To get people on your side!

- You traitor! - Buying people off, duping them!

Get lost!

What do you want?

- To get into my place. - Pig-headed,

You got our dough?

- We take checks. - It's not yours now. No more.

Terminado.

You chumps, do you think you scare me?

Come on!

You're on the wrong side for once.

You're stuck. How's it feel?

Okay, what do you want?

We want to keep the shop open

and never see you again!

- Sure, but it's mine. - It's yours?

- Yeah, it's mine. - Not anymore.

- What do you mean? - You're through.

We're on strike. None of this is yours anymore.

You're on my land, private property.

Your strike's illegal.

You think a mosque's enough? You stiffed us!

Our bonuses!

Let the others in to get their stuff. Then we'll talk.

Nobody's coming in. No one! This is a blockade!

See how strong we are? 4 of us doing all this!

Go settle what you gotta settle.

Since when are you an Imam?

You only just converted!

Shame on you!

- Don't even talk to me. - I thought it through.

I got all big-headed, just like you.

You earn shitloads

and you don't pay what you owe. Give it up.

Hanging around here won't change anything.

That's enough, guys!

- Get off me! - Stop!

Get off, I said!