Original subtitles

Did you do it?

Suckers.

And your dad?

It's a risk we have to take.

Later people would wonder where this tragedy began.

Some would say it started here.

In the parking lot of a supermarket in Wageningen Zuid.

I, on the other hand, am convinced

it started the Tuesday after that, when Maarten Moreau

Professor of Evolutionary Philosophy at Wageningen University

wondered if he actually existed.

It wasn't a new idea, especially not for men of a certain age.

But he always considered it purely a theoretical matter,

not an actual question.

Until now.

Did he actually exist?

He had loved this woman.

He had fathered these children.

But did this offer him any certainty?

Couldn't that have just as easily been someone else entirely?

-Good morning! -Hi, Dad. Can I have a rice cracker?

You already have a sandwich.

Well ...probably.

Over the past decade

Maarten had replaced every part of himself for something more boring.

His sense of humor for sarcasm, his friendliness for conformity,

his civic duty for apathy.

Now he was merely a ghost ship that returned to port.

A hovering Dutchman.

What is the driving force behind change?

And is change necessarily good?

Now look at the behaviour of this ant.

It seems to have no purpose.

What is he doing?

Lamarcks theory states that change or "Evolution"

happens through the will of the individual.

The giraffe strechtes its neck...

And by repeating this,

the giraffe neck's grows over each generation

Of course, Darwin demolished Lamarck's theory and said:

There's no hope for the individuals will or intend.

You are either fit enough for the task or you die.

Now what does that say about you little ant here?

At one point Maarten caught himself hoping for disasters.

Maybe prostate cancer.

A lovely plane crash.

I'm not saying that you should become someone else entirely.

All I ask is that once in a while you would do a tiny,

tiny,

tiny bit more.

Grocery shopping would do.

That's toilet paper, coffee

and, oh yes, overnight diapers for Kai. Not the house brand, because they break

-Excuse me? Maarten? -Yes.

Well, you'll figure something out. Bye.

As a young man

Maarten wrote his thesis on the Taoist who dreamed he was a butterfly.

And now no longer knew if he was a man who had dreamed he was a butterfly

or a butterfly that dreamed he was a man.

I felt sorry for the butterfly who dreamed Maarten's life.

It would be better for him to wake up soon.

Maarten?

-What? -The safe.

-What? -The safe.

Donny?

Fuck! Oh fuck!

Fuck!

Sorry.

Okay.

It was on this Tuesday afternoon, in aisle four

that Maarten's life took a new turn.

The day he met me.

BOY MEETS GUN

-Mister Moreau? -Yes.

-Moreau. Is that with two O's? -E-A-U.

E-A-U. Well, well.

You have a firm grip.

I am Monique Vloemans, Wageningen police.

I have to ask you a few questions.

You said the suspect started shooting at you,

after which you decided to lay on the flour.

Maarten.

That's my husband.

-Jesus Christ, you scared me to death. -Hi.

Oh, hi.

Monique Vloemans, Wageningen police.

-Right, okay. Are you on the case? -Yes, I'm all over it.

-So, did you see anything? -No, not really.

Okay. Well, that's all right.

-I'd go home if I were -Great, yes. I'll take him home.

Oh yes, should you think of something give us a call, okay?

Yes.

Fuck!

Fuck!

Fuck, fuck, fuck!

Yo, Donny, what happened?

-She recognized me, Richard. -The bitch, fucking Wendy.

-Fuck! I killed her. -You shot the cunt.

-Did you hear what I said? -Yeah, man, yes.

It's fucking horrible. A tragedy. Where's the gun?

-We have to go back. -Whoa, go back?

-I dropped the weapon. -Yeah, so what?

-Donny! -Let go off me, dammit!

-Calm down! -You don't get it.

-I'd rather risk the police -Than what?

Than my father.

-Daddy. -Hey!

He gave us quite a scare, eh, guys?

Wageningen police, can I help you?

Yes, hello. This is Maarten Moreau. I was involved in a robbery.

- Eh, involved in a robbery? -Yes, I was there.

What I mean is, eh, I was a victim.

You were robbed today? -No, Monique Vloemans gave me her card.

She asked me to call if I remembered something.

Mrs Vloemans is here at eleven tomorrow.

Okay.

Right Then...

Then I'll come,

then I'll come in some time tomorrow afternoon.

That will be just fine, Mr Vloemans.

-No, no. I'm Mr Moreau. -I'm sorry?

Well, it doesn't matter. Okay. Thank you.

That night Maarten no longer dreamed about butterflies.

Or about Taoists.

Maarten.

Maarten's gun ownership was supposed to last a single day.

Gun in his briefcase, take it to class and then to the station.

This is how it was supposed to go: Brief explanation, rush home.

Jump into bed, and fall asleep again.

That was the plan, that's how it would go.

Hey, Maarten.

That was the rational course of action Maarten Moreau had decided on.

-Hey, Maarten. -Hey, Diederik.

-Hey, Maarten. -Hey, Jocelyn.

After all, he was a rational man.

Hello, Johan.

Maarten had made up his mind.

Totally made up his mind.

-Hey, Maarten. -Hey, Berend.

-Did you see that CC? -The what?

The email One of the students sent an email.

You failed her, but what she took issue with was your reaction to her thesis.

-Take issue, how? -She took issue, that's all.

I believe the word was 'tone-deaf'?

Will you rectify that?

Well, no. No, I don't think so.

No, I'm not going to 'rectify it'. No.

Are you all right?

-After the robbery and all? -Yes.

I am still a bit in shock from the robbery.

-I'm going to take this. -Okay.

-Maarten speaking. -Hi, it's Monique.

You called? Yesterday evening?

-Monique. Hi, hello. Yes. -You remembered something?

Yes, that's right. Let me think

No, I made a mistake. I thought I remembered something, but...

It turned out I actually didn't.

-Okay. -Yes, silly of me.

But what did you remember?

Nothing, really. Or, well...

-Mr Moreau? -No, wait a moment.

I remember.

Donny.

-That girl said Donny. -Donny.

Donny, Donny, yes.

-Okay. -Does that help?

-I should think so. -Oh, good. That's great.

-If you remember anything else -Yes, of course.

Okay.

A .357?

It's a .44 fired from a semi-automatic weapon.

-Okay. -Quite a caliber.

It's a Desert Eagle, a fucking hand-held cannon.

-It's a lousy shot, but is impressive. -We are looking for a .44 Desert Eagle.

There's also the .5, which is bigger

What you're gonna do, have all water

in a 2-km radius dragged and check every trash can.

-Check. -Go.

You don't happen to know anybody with such a gun?

Again, the local police is confronted with a mysterious assassination.

Four victims were found in an apartment after the neighbors heard screams.

The crime scene is currently being investigated for clues.

According to police,

the assassination is probably the work of a professional hitman.

The cause of death is still unknown. A search in the house...

-Hey, Dad. -Simon.

Simon?

I'm just a little tired.

Goddammit. Jesus Christ!

Maart?

Are you coming?

We are replicating the American research, now,

but we would rather build on it.

To do it right you need a lot more money.

Then don't do it Just say, I won't do it.

I'm not in a position to refuse things, honey.

Sure you do, it's a commercial company. Plenty of money.

It's very interesting research, I really want to do it.

Mommy works for a freak show.

Well that freak show is paying our mortgage, or most of it.

And it's truly interesting, fundamental research

into our genetical building blocks.

I mean, it's new knowledge, instead of old theories...

Professor.

-Professor. -Hi.

-Rosa, right? -Yes.

How do you like Holland?

I wanted to talk to you about the paper,

about Richard Dawkins and the 'memes' in the human brain.

-Yes, what about it? -I can not.

You can not what?

I have a little... How do you call it?

Dispute with my landlord. He is very angry.

And I have no computer. And my notes are on it...

I am working on a solution...

-You went to the Barbieri? -Sorry?

You went to the barber? You look good.

Healthy.

Just send it to me next Friday.

-I was not flirting. -No, me neither.

Not?

I was jonking.

Friday then. Yes?

-Next, next Friday. -Thank you.

Bye.

What defines "Fitness"?

As Darwin says Fitness describes the needs an individual has for survival

or reproduction.

For instance: the ability To flee from a predator

or to fight it of, or any other 'survival strategy'.

As some of you might know, I was in a robbery some time ago.

I was not the robber, I was the victim.

And I survived, as you can clearly see.

But I will show you what I did.

This was my survival strategy.

Through me, Maarten regained a part of himself. Something he lost long ago.

No, I'm serious. This is me. Flat on the floor.

Or something he hadn't found yet.

Something that was hidden at first.

In the middle of Maarten's life, his life started anew.

Where others indulged themselves with a hobby car, or did Bikram yoga

a wine course or African dance

from now on all Maarten wanted was me.

And all was well.

-What was that? -What?

-What was that? -What was what?

Outside. That bang.

I don't hear anything.

No, it's not still going on. I just heard a bang a moment ago.

-When? -Just now. Five seconds ago.

I don't hear anything.

Right. God damn it!

-What? -The side-view mirror's been destroyed.

-The car's side-view mirror? -Yes, the car's side-view mirror, yes.

-I told you so. -What do you mean, you told me so?

-To call the community liaison officer. -Nonsense. Community liaison officer.

Someone should talk to those boys.

Yes. I guess you could.

Maarten?

Hey.

Are you guys going round destroying side-view mirrors?

I just came outside and saw you kicking off my car's side-view mirror.

No, wasn't us.

Sir, we've been here the whole time.

Yeah, I see you guys drive by all the time.

Where?

Here, the street behind me.

-Near the Parkweg? -No, right here, by the park.

I don't know what you're talking about.

You don't? Then I suppose I'll just have to show you.

Maarten thought it was time somebody dealt with these petty criminals

vultures and cowards who took advantage of defenseless people.

Maarten was not a defenseless person and they would soon find out.

-This is the mirror I was talking about -It was an accident.

Really? -No, I did it on purpose.

Sorry, I'm really sorry. I just never realized how annoying that could be.

We won't do it again, sir. I'm sorry.

Right.

I just don't understand what the problem is, ma'am.

-I understand but we don't accept cash. -But it's money, hard-earned money.

But we don't accept cash.

Ma'am...

I need this operation.

I suggest you go to your bank, deposit the money in your account

and transfer it to the surgery department.

-Yo. Did it work out? -No, Richard, it did not work out.

God damn

-So we go to the next one. -There is no next one.

This is the only one in Holland that does this.

Or just don't do it.

You look the way you look.

Don't you?

Second pair this week.

Awesome, man.

I have to talk to the police tomorrow.

All the employees have to.

But don't worry, man. It will be a 100 percent fine.

My supervisor told me they don't have a clue.

They haven't even found the fucking gun.

-What? -Yeah.

But it's not easily overlooked, Richard.

No.

No

So, you didn't take that one?

-Maarten? To your health. -Cheers.

Yes, people, cheers.

May I say... Maybe this is terrible,

but in a way for Maarten this robbery...

How can I put it? I'm sorry, I know that it was horrible,

but I think that if for some reason you look death in the eye

-Anyway, I thought he was very brave. -I'll say.

-What a story, man. -Yes.

-Yes, it surprised me too. -But you were right.

-It was great. -He was so angry.

-I really was angry, yes. -You went right outside.

I didn't think, I just went.

-In his towel. -No way.

-Really. -Jesus, Maarten, I wouldn't dare.

Go out in the street and grab that boy.

-By his ear. -Yes.

In Afghanistan we had a guy, also not the warrior type

-No offense, Maarten. -Of course.

But he could explode.

Totally lose control. He had those Indonesian genes, you know?

That's not racist, but you immediately know what I mean.

Three generations of denial and aggression issues

-What? -Okay.

One day he was coming towards me.

Apparently he thought I offended him in some way

and he wanted to grab me by the throat.

Yes, and we have all been trained, right?

Hold this.

-Maarten, try and grab me. -Arie...

Watch out for your ears, Arie.

What do I have to do? Hold this. What do I have to do?

It doesn't matter. Come on. Just try to grab a hold of me.

Okay? Grab a hold of me.

No, choke me.

Be gentle with him, he's still recuperating.

-Like this? -Well, put some strength into it.

But look, I'll whack him here

and bam. He's incapacitated, you see?

So that he could cool off.

Yeah, that hurts.

-Did I hurt you? -No, no.

-I did. Shit, sorry. -It's okay, really.

Oh fuck, how stupid.

-Are you okay? -Yes, I'm fine.

But I am keeping an eye on you.

He really is a jerk, to be honest. Don't you think?

He's just jealous of your intelligence.

The only way he can beat you is to get physical.

By the way, my mice will be staying here for a week.

Oh, it's such a childish form of masculinity.

I'm so happy you're not like that.

Maarten?

Are you coming?

-Richard. -Yes, ma'am?

Is that what they call you, Richard?

What else would they call me?

I don't know.

Maybe you have a nickname?

-What sort of nickname? -No idea.

Pounder, Viper, Sniper, Sunny, Sonny

Donny.

Richard is just fine.

Just Richard.

-Hey, Maarten. -Yeah, hi.

Maarten. -Hi.

Rosa.

Rosa.

I get a paper from you. Today.

-Hello, Maarten. -Yeah. Hi, Rob.

Yes.

No, I wanted to talk to you about that.

-I still don't have my stuff. - What do you mean?

The landlord, he locked me out. He wanted another month of rent

but he already got it. So now I still don't have my stuff.

He can't do that. How much is the rent?

-One thousand euro. -One thousand euros?

-It's for water and for gas... -How big is the house?

-Twenty square meters. -Twenty square...

-This man is a criminal. -Yes.

-You should call the police. -No.

I might lose my scholarship, so what can we do?

-You don't have to do this. - I do.

I want my paper.

Just ring the doorbell?

Yes.

No, ring it another time.

Yeah, what?

Right. Hello, we came to pick some stuff.

Yes, I want my stuff back.

We've come to pick up this girl's stuff.

Right, bye.

Sorry, can I call you back in a bit? Okay.

-Good. -Yes.

-Like I said, this girl... -Did you bring your father?

-I'm not her father. -Did you bring you daddy?

-No, this is my boyfriend. -No, no...

I'm not her boyfriend. I'm her philosophy teacher.

Rosa, your laptop and clothes are still inside, right?

Yes.

-And you need those, right? -Yes, of course.

But this asshole is trying to...

He changed the lock, So I can't go in anymore.

It's very annoying.

-Yes, fucking annoying. -Fucking annoying.

So I said to Rosa: 'This must be an misunderstanding...'

'We are going over there to get your stuff beack.'

-This is a misunderstanding right? -What is a misunderstanding?

-This. -Have you and me a misunderstanding?

-Yes, apparently we do. -Yes.

I gave that bitch a week to get out but she didn't.

Don't.

-So that cunt is not complying. -Don't call her names.

-Oh, or what? -Professor Moreau, let's go!

-Or what? -Or I'll get mad. We don't want that.

It is okay. We are going.

-So if I were you, I'd get her things. -Then why don't you get them.

Yes. So I thought.

I am sorry. That was very brave of you. But it's my own fault.

Professor?

Mister Moreau?

What the fuck, man.

Get your things.

Get your things.

Help.

What was that?

I don't know what you're talking about.

-What was that? -I don't know.

Help.

Help.

World, Maarten Moreau, Maarten Moreau, world.

Pleased to meet you. Get used to each other:

The days of invisibility and doing nothing are over.

From now on everyone would know the name of Maarten Moreau.

And it would burn on people's lips when faced with injustice.

I'm with Maarten Moreau, animal savior. How does it feel?

Pretty good, I think. Yes.

Any idea how many endangered birds there were?

No, I didn't have a chance to look.

The police stated that their market value was a few million.

-Really? -But did you expect that?

Going down the stairs to the cellar? Hundreds of rare parrots?

No, who would expect to find hundreds of parrots there? No, it's bizarre.

But you heard screams, went down the stairs, that was very well done.

Thank you. The funny thing is, I don't even like birds.

-But they are beautiful animals. -Yes.

What's going on?

Especially parrots. I believe parrots are the most intelligent birds

Parrots are among the most intelligent birds.

-It's him, there is no other option. -Yo, but really?

-I am sure, Richard. -One hundred percent?

-One thousand percent. Yes. -Okay, but Donny

-That cop asked if my name was Donny. -Wait, I'm coming over.

-Donny, they know your fucking name -Sorry, I have to take this.

Donny speaking.

Hello, sir. This is the VanderBeecke Clinic in Ostend.

Right. Well?

I have good news for you: I can confirm your appointment.

-Super. -See you next week.

See you next week. Bye.

Who is Donny?

Donny. That's me.

I'm pretty sure your mother called you Simon.

Yes. I know.

Do you believe that your mother didn't give you the right name?

No, no, no, Dad. That's not...

Do you believe that your mother didn't make you properly?

Everyone calls me Donny.

Then they are all wrong.

But, Dad, I can't pronounce Simon properly.

You can't pronounce anything properly, Simon.

-See you tonight. -Bye.

What?

-Nothing. -What? What?

-You have really... -What?

Changed.

For the better, right?

See you tonight.

Bye.

Now according to Dawkins the Darwinion rules of evolution

not only apply to the realm of organisms.

But also to another group of beings: ideas.

For what is an idea other than a parasite that inhabets the brain.

This can be a deadly parasite too.

How many people haven't decided to die for an idea?

Religion.

A football club even.

These 'memes', as Richard Dawkins calls them,

survive even if they are in absolute conflict

with our biological goals of survival or reproduction.

It seems to possess A will of their own.

Rosa!

Where is my paper?

-Sorry, Maarten. I quit the course. -You what?

-Yes, it wasn't for me. -Evolution!

-Evolution is not for you? -No. It depresses me.

-It does? -I'm going back to Italy.

No. No. No. Rosa, you just got here.

I am going to be a ballet dancer.

-But you're like thirty one. -Don't tell me what to do, Maarten.

I can be anything I want.

-Goodbye. -Goodbye!

Maarten?

Maarten.

Did you finally look at that email?

You quit your job?

Yes.

I think... I'm not quite sure I understand.

-What don't you understand? -You quit your job?

Yes.

But why exactly?

Because that job was eating me alive.

But I always thought that you really liked teaching.

-It was eating me alive. -But

Okay.

But what did you really want to do then?

I just wanted to do something.

Like what?

Make a difference.

-Make a difference, how? -Help people, do something. Do things.

This is precisely the problem, putting it in words.

While if I just do it, everyone understands.

Okay.

-Like write a book, or... -No. Not write a book.

The job was eating me alive, alive.

Sorry, I thought you liked it.

I'm having a spiritual breakthrough, okay?

If you paid attention, you might learn something.

No one tells me what to do.

-Okay. -And I'm not writing a book.

Cut the bullshit, Maarten.

Just tell me what's going on.

-People like you will never understand. -What kind of people?

Submissive people.

It was to be expected that his wife would not support him.

And when Maarten thought about it, his wife had never really supported him.

Maarten decided to move on with his life and not look back.

Maarten decided to move on with his life and not look back..

And bravely, Maarten walked into the darkness.

Gerard.

Sorry, I've come for a different reason.

The case I have is fucked up: A dead girl in a supermarket.

-Shit. -Yeah. Eighteen.

-Oh shit! -And I'm totally stuck.

How many guys do you know who own a Desert Eagle?

A Desert Eagle? About four. I'll make you a list.

-Yes, please. -I have one myself upstairs.

Come upstairs and have a look, if you like.

Let's not do that.

-I just thought I would stop by. -Here.

Not even a cup of coffee?

No.

No, I won't keep you.

How are things with you?

Pretty good. Eleven months and twenty-nine days.

Very good.

Yeah. It will be a while before I make it to ten years like you.

Yes, but just keep going. It gets easier.

Why don't we go to a meeting together?

And have a stiff drink afterwards.

We'll do that, real soon.

We'll definitely do that.

By the way

do you know anyone called Donny?

-Donny? -Yes.

-No. -I don't know anyone called Donny.

Yo. And?

Yo, I'm keeping a sharp eye on him.

But I can't tell if he's carrying the gun.

I have my knife on me, so I can get him if I want to.

He won't know what hit him. -Don't do a thing until I'm back, okay?

I'm serious, Richard.

Relax, Donny boy. Are you relaxed?

Hey, you will still be my buddy once your fucking handsome, yeah?

-You are my only buddy, Richard. -Nice.

I mean... You know. Good luck, okay?

Yo, thank you.

Mister Donny? We are ready.

It was on a Thursday night that Maarten Moreau suddenly wondered

what would happen if he hadn't been there.

Scum in the park would still be there.

Hundreds of rare birds would still be caged

in a cellar under terrible circumstances.

Maarten knew that nothing would happen if he didn't intervene.

That people after 2000 years of evolution,

discourse and microwave meals

had become weaklings and that without him

that without him they'd be too scared to get off the couch to

What the fuck?

That boy shouldn't have been there. Who lets kids play outside that late?

Weak parents, people with no moral compass.

The boy learned his lesson.

Maarten didn't have to feel guilty. Being out that late

As long as he had justice on his side, people should be grateful.

After all, Maarten kept the neighborhood safe and clean. No one.

Calm down, calm down.

Please, don't...

Maarten!

The police is outside.

Hey.

We've met before, right?

Mr Moreau.

-Yes? -Any news about the robbery?

No, this is...

-What a coincidence. -Yes.

There was a man with a gun in the park last night.

We're canvassing the neighborhood.

-A gun? -Jesus Christ. A gun.

So the question is: Were you in the arboretum across the street last night?

-Weren't you in the park last night? -No, I walked along the bike path.

What time was it?

-About eleven. -I was already home. Yes.

No. Didn't see a thing.

Okay.

-If you hear anything... -Yes. You'll be the first to hear.

-Thank you. Have a nice day. -Bye.

Hello, sir. I was wondering if Donny, I mean...

Simon. I mean Simon, if he is home.

He's not answering his phone.

No.

Oh. Okay.

But you can wait for him inside.

Well...

Maarten never considered getting rid of his weapon.

Right?

Deep inside he knew that the weapon and he were made for each other.

That without the gun he'd go back to being

the good-for-nothing he always was.

Maarten promised himself that he would never.

Dad?

Oh no...

Simon.

No, no, Dad. No, please, It's still very vulnerable. Don't, don't...

As far as I know you and I don't have a problem.

That's good to know.

Yes. I guarantee you that it is very good thing.

I'm going to try to make it as clear as possible.

You give me back my weapon

and everything will be fine.

Or you refuse

and I will murder your wife and your children.

That weapon is at the bottom of a lake.

Well, then I suggest you get your swimsuit.

Yes, but that's not very reasonable, is it?

You have till six o'clock tonight.

Maart?

Hey...

Hey.

I did something really stupid.

Can you talk about it?

Give 'em hell.

I don't have it.

I don't know if explaining it will help but I threw it in that lake.

I looked for it for two hours this afternoon, but I couldn't find it.

I don't know if that thing has sentimental value or something

but I promise you that no one will ever find it.

I could have fled with my family.

Yes, I know it wouldn't have mattered.

That's why I figured I would just show up.

To see if we could sort this out.

I thought that if I explain it

that I explain it and prove to you that I did my best and that I

well, there is nothing more I can do.

Yeah.

I swear I don't have it. I swear, I swear on my wife and children.

All Maarten had to do was wait for the right moment to strike.

And that moment was now.

Gerard?

It was on a Wednesday evening, the first time in ten years

that Gerard really longed for a drink.

Grab the plastic.

Get a move on, Simon It's going to rain soon.

Or maybe it won't be that bad.

Last night Donny had a dream.

Not the same dream he'd had every night since he was ten:

That he looked like everybody else.

No... This time Donny dreamed that everybody looked like him.

And everybody was very happy.

Donny knew that there was a lesson hidden in this dream.

He just couldn't figure out what it was.

BOY MEETS GUN