Original subtitles

THE ROGUE'S BANQUET

Part Two

Yes?

Mr Marquis: Pierre-Henri Beaumont de la Garde.

- Lord of Saint-Charles. - Show him in.

Have a seat Mr Marquis, have a seat.

What is this honour worth to me? Twelve hundred pounds?

I'll be damned.

Twelve hundred pounds?

Twelve hundred for The Claw's capture.

Is it not your name and your signature

that can be read here?

You still need to bring him to me.

In a moment, sir, in a moment.

If you'll come with me?

Come.

Arpagon, impudent and miserable.

1200 pounds for me! They call me the modern Cartouche.

Or a new Mandrin.

My own nicknames are infinitely better than yours.

You tight-fisted bastard.

Bourdeau! Bourdeau! Summon Le Floch at once!

Please!

Bourdeau! Do you hear me?

Bourdeau!

Bourdeau!

Bound and gagged

like a goose ready to roast.

Well, let's get started.

You will notice that I don't exceed the rates.

Have you any other secret chests

where you've hidden your other treasures?

Maybe over there.

Here? There? No? Yes?

Here?

Here? Here? Nothing at all!

Am I getting warm? Cold? No?

Warm? Cold? Nothing! Nothing!

Perhaps...

Perhaps over here? No?

Perhaps it's here.

Over here?

What have we got here?

The chest!

It's a wonder! Come on, let's go!

Don't move!

Don't move, will you?

That'll do.

Suffer, Lieutenant General of Police, now we must part,

respect intact, still friends.

Was your business fruitful?

So-so, Larousse has less money than one thinks.

And since the old miser didn't yield to our purposes,

we'll go to Mr de Villerbois

to continue our rounds.

Larousse is there.

Watchmen with officers in tow.

This young commissioner doesn't lack persistence.

However, he has not realised quite how popular I am.

Mr de Sartine?

Mr de Sartine?

Sir, the Lieutenant General has been shut up in there a while.

- It's locked. - We don't have a key

And we can hear grunting.

We are loathe to say we recognise them as those of Mr de Sartine.

Spare me my life! At least spare me my life!

Oh, your life, whatever it may be worth.

I will gladly spare it.

It is now time,

as is expected of me by the masses,

to show a bit of panache.

My emeralds, rubies, diamonds, everything!

He took everything!

I'm ruined! I'm ruined!

That's mine!

At the window!

- Yes! - We were waiting elsewhere.

I don't care if you were waiting for him! I want him now!

Faster than now! On the wheel!

Cretin!

The bringer of foulness!

Came here to challenge my power!

To attack a magistrate of my authority in such a way!

Oh my darlings,

the day that thug who violated you is caught,

I swear that I will stay seated in the front row,

to enjoy at my leisure the spectacle of his torture.

Oh yes, what's that?

Thank you!

Commissioner.

The book! The book!

As we all know, people pursuing the police's gold

are putting themselves in danger.

Whip out, driver! May the devil carry us!

One imagines de Sartine's delight at knowing the use of his work.

He doesn't need to know.

You saved just the one?

Can we trust you?

Of course Mr Inspector.

Thanks.

Ingested lump!

Full-gorged lout!

Withered shrimp!

Nasty woodlouse!

It's a fact! Hedge-pig!

I didn't know French had so many words to perfectly describe filth.

I'd suspected it, although no one ever confirmed it.

Now I know for sure.

Woodlouse!

- That's enough, madam. - Mangy dog!

Serpent egg!

Urchin snout! Cud-chewing beast!

Ninnyhammer!

Syphilitic rat!

Syphilitic rat!

Are you quite done, madam?

What do you know about The Claw that you've hidden,

and didn't tell me last time?

Nothing!

Madam, it'll do little for you to hold on to your last ammunition.

Well, madam?

I can't breathe for your stench.

It's up to you to regain a decent expression and your best assets.

Sir, you have the victory, but by treacherous means!

Saying I smell like piss, just to sound good!

I was unaware of that, madam.

But you can sense it!

Come on, now.

Well, sir...

I'd have liked to have kept one last asset.

I'd have liked to throw the couple onto the street, but The Claw...

I didn't even know their identity.

Under the threat of a weapon, I was ordered to keep the girl

amongst the protected ones.

There you go.

Thanks.

Suzon works in my house

but not permanently.

She comes and goes as she pleases.

Her hours aren't fixed at all,

just whenever she fancies.

Le Floch!

Le Floch!

Please!

Thank you.

Suzon knows me but not you.

Do you know how to approach her in a suitable way?

Have our friend Semacgus summoned.

For meat stew at Marie's inn.

Gentlemen, I have been entrusted with a secret mission

which requires your help.

We need to guard some treasure, a quantity of gold

temporarily kept in one of the security rooms at Versailles.

- The reason for his presence? - The game.

The King is besotted, and certain noble men...

were persuaded to attend the next duel between Faldoni

- and the knight of St Georges. - Signor Faldoni?

It will be well-attended.

The King wasn't born yesterday, you can't trick him like that.

He wouldn't mind seeing his champion victorious.

- Who is his champion? - The mulatto.

Would his Majesty know if the dice were loaded?

Thing is, it's a pretty penny.

The kingdom's finances are very dilapidated.

Here we go, one poultry in aspic.

I prepared it for a neighbour who's baptising his first born.

It will make you stronger.

And to cleanse your palette I have cherries,

the year's first batch, baked in cinnamon wine.

Another pitcher please.

- What about your neighbour? - Oh, we'll make do.

What's my part in all this?

One that a married man cannot decently play.

Alas, three times alas!

It'll be at a place you wouldn't usually frequent.

You'll flawlessly trick the indicated lodger into thinking

you are local nobility.

As rich as you are depraved

and endlessly greedy.

- Gentlemen, your pitcher. - For once, I agree.

From the sounds of it, the role could fit me like a glove.

So, you will be a depraved nobleman,

who has come to Paris

to bet a large sum on an operation you happened upon

through a court gentleman.

If they press you for a name, the Count of Borde will do fine.

Very well, but while I'm impersonating him...

The most perilous moment

is when you need to persuade the Lieutenant his ego's too large.

Come on.

Onto our aspic.

What's that?

A list made by the police

in their endless thirst for knowledge.

The great fortunes of the kingdom and its principal establishments.

I want you to see if any names come back to you.

Madam de Mercueil? Good. She has a large fortune.

- Is that all? - Yes.

The Duke of Vintimille? Very good.

Suzon.

You seem to be in a really foul mood.

Yours doesn't seem much better.

The creature is wealthy, vicious, and with a beastly appetite.

Get what you can from him.

And I'll take half.

Don't worry,

your dandy will soon be skinned, roasted, served,

and grated down to the bone, or I don't know where.

My little bumble bees.

- Oh, Count! - "Count", quite right!

Oh Count!

The crowned hand is the hand of power.

But I'm in heaven!

Well would you look at that.

Well, well...

Like a buttercup, come on then.

- Sir. - Madam.

It'd seem three is not too many.

But please, feel free.

It would seem, Mr Commissioner, that your pal

has been hasty to don the garb of rich, depraved nobility.

Or rather... to remove it.

By God.

The man seems well cut out for the role!

Madam Clémence Louise Honorine, Marquise of Villerbois.

Mr Marquis Pierre Henri Beaumont de Lagarde.

- Lord of Saint-Charles. - Show them in.

Clémence de Villerbois.

Well my friend? This air of contentment.

It seems you've been transformed in the cocoon

into a celestial butterfly.

Come closer, come closer.

Thank you, Count.

- My pleasure, Count. - Thank you ladies.

Well my friend, these assets of great worth,

the brilliance of your garb...

All these things in such abundance.

Well...

The wealth of our encounter is quite just.

Haven't you let yourself be undressed

with generosity and talent?

But rich in gold, I mean.

Ah, gold.

Yes.

I am indeed,

and will soon be richer, much richer than Croesus.

I don't know who this Croesus is,

but how does he do it?

Because gold doesn't grow on trees.

Don't fool yourself, fair Hermione.

You can find treasure among the branches.

Imagine a bet,

a large bet,

that my dealings with the King's house

assure me that I will win.

- The King's house? - Yes, the King's house.

We'll take this off you.

We'll take everything.

And this?

It's mine.

Perfect!

Let's go.

Young ladies...

I have only one thing to say: happiness.

Happiness.

Wonderful, my friend.

He's surprised me with a share of the room.

- What a servant! - Thank you!

What robust obstinacy of action.

Sir, you are lacking neither in energy nor imagination.

And the organ itself commands respect.

You noticed...

"Scarso" is worth as much as "obligato".

And freed in "moderato".

Prompt and lively in "allegro".

To "virtuoso"!

Were you convincing?

I think so.

When the bet caught the interest of the King's entourage,

the damsel did not rest until telling The Claw.

Tell me...

I sometimes have tipsy merchants come from their provinces.

Perhaps you could anonymously and undercover

give a few shows

meant to arouse their often very weak senses.

What do you think?

What do you think?

Password?

Gargoyle.

Nicolas...?

Oh, sorry.

Excuse me madam, I am looking for Commissioner Le Floch.

Oh, Commissioner...

I won't do it.

I am sorry, Commissioner.

She escaped me by one of the gates of Hell

which leads to the maze of catacombs.

And which the underworld

knows much better than we do.

It's not serious.

It would seem our friend Semacgus has had more luck than you.

So it would seem.

Excuse me.

Come and have a drink.

My wife is waiting, sir, and I promised the children

that I'd be home...

This is of great value and interests me.

All of these are fakes.

Terrible fakes.

They're worth nothing to me, you must have been tricked.

The jewels from your father

- are fakes. - Fakes?

Did you know?

I'm sure my father promised them a long time ago.

I thought the matter right.

Perhaps it's time to get rid of the wench,

who no longer serves a purpose.

Shut up, you slut!

I'm the only one who makes decisions around here!

Throw him down there.

Enjoy the show.

It might be the last time.

Do you have any idea who I am?

Not the slightest, and I don't care.

It's strange.

My treasure and watch are not missing,

might you be Delarousse?

Delarousse!

You don't lack audacity.

It's a choice blade you've got there.

Neither audacity, nor insolence.

You could be dead in an instant, What do you say?

I've naught to say, apart from...

that's a lovely blade.

- What price would you pay for it? - I wouldn't buy it.

When the time comes, I'll borrow it.

- What do you know about me? - Just enough to keep you alive.

Poor fool, you believe in chance and risk losing the game?

I heard nothing, I only know where the treasure is

and how to get at it.

So what do you say to being a double-act?

I'll give her to you if you want.

I'll give her to you as a seal of my word.

I'll take her.

It will be finished tomorrow, won't it?

It may be time for you to confide in us.

Confide what, Mr Commissioner?

The place where The Claw is hiding.

Don't count on me.

What sort of being could spark such a love?

That even in dying,

his victim has already pardoned him.

There are things between Heaven and Earth which we can't fathom.

I don't think the address would have been given to you, either.

No.

But I must locate it tomorrow.

An emissary will escort me from the Tuileries to Versailles.

So the die has been cast.

Gold, diamonds, several items of jewellery and pearls.

No loss that can't be compensated for.

On the contrary.

The Princess of Richemont's letters were taken.

Their contents, if revealed, could compromise her standing.

Who could the thief be?

The Claw!

Who else?

His swagger makes no mystery of it.

Nor did he conceal having Clémence de Villerbois under his thumb.

You mean his accomplice.

Regarding the armed duel...

It will take place tomorrow eve.

Would you have time to capture The Claw before then?

The animal is boastful.

Presumptuous.

He wouldn't resist a nice pile of gold guaranteed by his Majesty.

What do you mean, Nicolas?

That it's not before...

but during that the operation needs to take place.

It's double or nothing.

Just consider,

after all the humiliation endured by your police,

the glory of a public arrest.

At Versailles.

Are you not a gambler, Lieutenant?

Chess, Commissioner. Only chess.

Gambling is illegal.

Well, this location lacks for nothing.

Its appeals are certainly numerous.

I agree, but the treasure awaiting us is no less appealing.

Have no fears.

We are expected and have nothing to fear from anyone.

Though perhaps from your friends and thieves.

Those who, I'm sure you agree, add a certain spice.

Please announce Henri Charles Semacgus,

Count of Louisville, as well as my young cousin, the Marquis.

Pierre-Henri Beaumont de Lagarde, Lord of Saint Charles.

Observe the prejudice attached to titles and figures.

The peacock will fan out its tail.

"Fan", my cousin. The word repulses me more than the thing itself.

Come on, old friend, no point in being ceremonious.

Mr Marquis.

A note from my hand.

It guarantees two spots in the royal box.

It also gives you access to all the places you would like to visit.

I think you will find the stables interesting.

Is he your accomplice?

Your perspicacity pleases me.

Come, cousin.

A mark of gratitude is always in order before the duel starts.

It might be safer to stop proceedings

with a group of officials.

Certainly safer, yes.

But devoid of any panache.

The King!

It is him!

Yes.

Your Majesty.

There will be an armed duel between the best fencers in Europe.

The foils will be spotted according to the rules.

Two masters of arms will go head to head.

The blows of the two men will naturally be in vain.

Come, friends, we know it's merely an armed duel,

where the champions appear and have it out.

His Majesty seems very impatient.

You've noticed.

Everything's set up.

Come, Bourdeau.

Gentlemen.

Sirs, over to you.

One's experience against the other's dexterity.

Being on equal footing means things could go on forever.

Were I the musician, I'd have slain the baron ten times.

Were I the baron, I'd have pierced the musician as many times.

Whoever predicts the winner is a clever man.

If we'd dare to do so.

Well, my cousin...

Well, my cousin...

Is there anything finer?

What can better satisfy our deepest desires?

Fill your pockets, my cousin!

I doubt it will be enough.

Well, they'll have to do.

Is there anything finer than royal gold?

Is there anything rounder?

The wheel, my friend.

The wheel.

Dear Marquis,

I'm afraid you have no hope.

I've known more delicate situations.

I'm alone, this is certain.

You're not willing to go it alone.

But that won't stop me.

Imagine your sword is like a bird.

If you squeeze it too tight, it dies.

And if you hold it too loosely,

you'll lose it and it flies off.

So here we are, Commissioner.

Jacques?

That way, behind there.

I'll bet 30 on Ranreuil.

50 on the other.

I'll raise you 25.

I'm in.

Don't forget I owe you my life.

Give him his sword.

Don't expect such niceties from me, sir.

You don't owe me anything.

If I were you,

I wouldn't do anything, sir.

These irons, these fetters.

Do you not find such precaution to be redundant?

A forcefulness disproportionate to the danger I pose.

You have greatly displeased my boss.

Me?

The wigs?

Mr Lieutenant General of Police, please be kind.

Rather than intending to harm you,

it was the mark of an impulsive, volatile character,

somewhat inclined to jest.

Impulsive?

Volatile? Jesting?

He is mocking us, dear Nicolas, the rascal is mocking us.

Take him to be interrogated.

Immediately! Interrogate him.

What good is interrogation?

Mr Lieutenant General of Police...

I plead guilty to everything.

I laugh at your confessions, I couldn't care tuppence.

There is no option but... interrogation.

First of all, interrogation.

And afterwards, the wheel.

We will have to postpone this.

The King. Of course, the King.

If I was hard on you, sir,

it is only because this gold somewhat worries me.

The duel did not happen.

Neither a loser, nor a winner could be declared.

Except for your good self, Mr Marquis.

This chest contains my wager.

But also everyone else's.

It demands restitution.

I confess that I would not be opposed,

if he could find some legal quibble,

some semblance of law...

for authorising this chest to be left as it is.

If I may be so bold, sir...

The Count of Borde authorised us to watch over the duel.

The event itself is legal and fully authorised.

But gambling, your Majesty...

Gambling is banned throughout the kingdom.

Everywhere.

And that goes for everyone.

This gold can rightly be considered

as having aided the Commission in its offence.

They see it as property from which they cannot be separated.

I therefore declare this object

and its contents

as confiscated

by his Majesty's police

and thereby sequestrated.

It shall presently be given back in its entirety

to the Royal Treasury.

Well played!

Well played, Mr Lieutenant General of Police!

In the end, this little slight of hand

is indeed legal.

What comes out of one pocket goes back into the very same!

Well played!

You surprise me, Mr de Sartine.

You really do.

Mr Marquis, you know of my interest in the charming Canoness of Meudon.

But alas, the wheel is fickle,

and she never did return the interest.

This Claw, who, according to popular opinion,

had rather stolen her heart...

The Claw?

He's a real villain, is he not?

Certainly.

I charge you with having him write

a detailed confession of his colourful existence,

and the crimes he has committed, a sort of philosophical testament

which will be addressed to

the very beautiful and pure Olympe de Beauvoises.

In return,

I pledge, as soon as he's considered dead,

that he will be taken in secret

with a new identity to the Port de la Rochelle.

Destined for New France,

where the breadth and variety of his talents

will soon find opportunity to be expressed.

To the detriment of our friends, the English.

It is from the depths of hell,

to where I was cast, breathless, by a counter-fate,

that I write these lines to you, madam,

intended as much to appease the torments of my soul

as to testify to my love for you.

SUBTITLES: RED BEE MEDIA FRANCE