Original subtitles

What's happened?

The horses bolted. The carriage ran away.

Yes, I remember. My stepmother... Mme. Danglars.

Both ladies are unhurt. A little shaken perhaps, nothing worse.

Thank heaven.

You were the only one to suffer injury. You hurt your head when it happened.

- Who are you? - Maximilian Morrel.

I am Valentine de Villefort.

Thank you, monsieur, for your kind attention.

I am quite recovered now.

You must rest a while longer, mademoiselle.

Are you a doctor?

That's true, I'm not a physician

but my profession does demand a certain knowledge of medicine.

I still do not know where I am.

The house of the Count of Monte Cristo.

The accident happened at his very door.

How strange.

Now you must not excite yourself, mademoiselle.

Shut your eyes and try to sleep.

Mlle. Valentine.

More champagne, madame?

Delicious. I feel quite revived.

It was as if the man had been posted there

- for the sole purpose of saving us. - It was providential.

Tell me who's that enormous black fellow?

Ari, madame. The count's Nubian mute.

But I don't understand why was he in that precise spot

at that precise moment armed with a lasso.

Ari was a great hunter in his own land.

He could kill buffalo and lion with a lasso.

Now he's afraid of losing his skill.

When he's not about his duties the master allows him to practice.

In the avenue outside he's got all the space he needs.

Happily he was there when your carriage came by.

Happily indeed. It almost makes me believe in miracles.

What heavens, Bertuccio? What on earth is the matter with you?

- That woman! - What woman, Bertuccio?

- The dark one in the green gown! - Mme. Danglars?

Yes! It's she, Excellency! I've recognized her instantly!

It's marvelous how little she's changed.

You are trying to tell me, Bertuccio, that Mme. Danglars

is this mysterious lady you saw in the garden at Auteuil?

- I swear it, Excellency! - But I know it, Bertuccio!

Mme. Danglars is the mother of your Benedetto.

But did you know that de Villefort was the father?

Ladies, have you recovered from your ordeal?

As if we'd woken from some dreadful dream.

But how is Valentine, poor child? Is it serious?

She is suffering from a mild concussion.

There are no complications, and she is being very well cared for.

You make light of my fears?

I can assure you, madame, that she has no intention of dying.

And my wicked, treacherous horses?

Ari has examined them, and they are none the worse for their experience.

I was so proud of them.

Now my husband will never permit me to use them again.

I think he will.

I have taken the liberty of giving your coachman a prescription.

A simple drug much used by the Tartars for taming wild stallions.

Two or three drops daily

and your dappled grays will become quite tractable

without losing their natural spirits and vivacity.

My dear Count, you'll never cease to surprise us.

I think you must be a magician.

Only in some respects, madame.

When it comes to entering the society of your capital

I shall need every guidance.

It has been suggested that you might be the very person to assist me.

However, even if you were prepared to be so generous

I certainly could not solicit your advice without first meeting your husband.

That is easily arranged.

I shall send Mr. de Villefort to fetch my stepdaughter

when she sufficiently recovered.

Mr. de Villefort, Excellency.

Monsieur, the signal service which you this morning

rendered my wife and daughter.

Allow me, therefore, to express my gratitude.

If the Procureur du Roi thinks that the simple expression of his thanks

for having saved his daughter's life confer upon me some sort of honor,

I will not dispute it.

I would merely remark that this honour, however estimable,

is unequal to the keen satisfaction that this moment gives me.

Sir, you seem geographically engaged.

It is a rich study for you, who, as I hear,

have visited most parts of the globe.

Yes, sir. I have sought to make on the human race, taken in the mass,

what you practice every day upon the individual,

a psychological study.

I have believed it is much easier to descend from the whole to a part

than to ascend from a part to the whole.

Sit down, sir, I beg of you.

You philosophize.

Well, sir, if I, like you, had nothing else to do,

I would seek a more amusing occupation.

Why, sir, in truth, man is but an ugly caterpillar

for him who was studying him under a solar microscope.

But you said, I think, that I have nothing else to do.

Now, really, sir, let me ask you, have you?

And do you believe that you'd do anything?

Or to put it in plain terms, do you really think

that what you have to do deserves to be called anything?

Sir, you are a stranger to this country, and I believe

a portion of your life has been spent in the Orient.

Perhaps you are not aware how human justice,

so expedient in barbarous countries,

with us takes a prudent and well-studied course.

Yes I am, sir.

Yes I am. I know all that.

For it is with the justice of all countries especially that I have occupied myself,

and I must say that it is with the justice of primitive nations,

that is the law of retaliation, that I have most frequently found

to be in accordance with the law of God.

If this law were adopted it would greatly simplify our legal code.

And as you say we magistrates would find ourselves with not much to do.

It may come to that in time.

In the meantime our laws are in full force.

The moment you become an inhabitant of France

you become subjected to the laws of France.

I know it sir.

And when I visit a country,

I make it my business to make a study by all possible means

of the men from whom I have anything to hope or to fear,

so that in the end I know them as well, if not better, than they know themselves.

So then it comes to the point that the Procureur du Roi

of whichever country I may visit, whoever he may be,

would most assuredly be more imbalanced than I.

You mean, that human nature being weak, every man has his faults.

- Faults or crimes? - And you alone are perfect.

Not perfect.

Impenetrable.

There is no greater mystery in the world than the mind of a man.

Now you, as Procureur du Roi, may prove a murderer's guilt.

In the process you will reveal the motive of his crime.

His head will be cut off and justice will have been done.

That is what my function demands of me, that justice be done.

Yes, no more than that.

- And what more prey do you ask? - Nothing of the Procureur du Roi.

Now let us suppose that your murder is penniless

and killed for money because he was hungry.

Well there are plenty of penniless hungry people in the world

but they don't all become murderers.

We can be thankful for small mercies. At least I can.

But I am not clear of the precise nature of the point you wish to make.

I am asking myself

what makes this man different from his fellows?

What fault in the mechanism of his brain prompts him to a deed

from which his fellows would shrink?

The answer is surely simple, moral turpitude.

The fellow is a natural born rogue.

No, monsieur, that answer is far too facile.

Who amongst us has not been guilty at some time in his life of some

secret act of which he remains forever ashamed?

Truly, the mind of man is a mysterious and dark continent.

And you would seek to lay this mystery there.

You are in danger of falling into grave error.

You confuse man's mind with his soul.

I do not believe that they are separable.

Upon my word, you sacrifice greatly to pride.

When a man would play god, the devil stands at his elbow.

You're detecting in me the sin of pride?

If I am mistaken, I demand your apology.

But yes, there was, in the manner of your pronouncement,

or so it seemed to my ears, a note of pride.

Did I make any pronouncement?

I thought that I'd merely made an expression.

Then I judged you, too quickly.

In you, Mr. le Comte, I perceive a superior being,

endowed with curious perception, and remarkable powers of intelligence.

These are qualities of greatness. I salute them gladly.

I would only add this.

You may be above others, but above you there is God.

Above us all, monsieur, there is God.

I have my pride for men, that's true.

But I lay aside my pride before God, who has taken me from nothing,

to make me what I am.

Upon my word I've been so elevated by our conversation

I have not noticed the time.

Conduct Mr. de Villefort to his daughter.

At once, Excellency.

Monsieur, I look forward to meeting and talking with you again.

Thank you, Mr. de Villefort.

I look forward to our next meeting.

My dear Maximilian, I must confess,

I'd feel somewhat weak in the knees myself

if I had to ask old Villefort for his daughter's hand.

And you have everything. Title, riches, distinguished parents.

- And an intended bride. - Mlle. Danglars.

You have yet to meet Eugénie.

Why do you speak thus? You must love her.

Do I?

No, I guess love doesn't come into our relationship.

You cannot possibly marry her.

My dear Maximilien, how refreshing you are.

I didn't know such innocence still existed in Paris.

The plain truth of the matter

is my father and Baron Danglarsr are old friends.

They want this bond between our two families.

Albert, I have heard that Mme. Eugénie

is both handsome and talented!

She sings like a bird, moves like a goddess,

and scares me to death.

My poor friend...

Well, if this is so, then you cannot possibly persevere in your suit.

I'm inclined to agree.

But these arrangements, made between two men

like my father and Baron Danglars, are not easily overturned.

Though I must confess, I'm much torn in my mind.

And you must reach a decision.

With help, so I shall.

I intend to take the best advice in Paris.

So? And where are you going to find that?

There is only one man to ask.

Monte Cristo! And you know what?

That is precisely what you should do also.

- I? - That's it.

He shall have both of us.

Goodbye, Mr Thomson, and thank you.

No one, to my knowledge,

has ever challenged the solvency of Baron Danglars.

It is a fact, however, that as a result of the political situation,

his investments have suffered some damaging blows.

Not unnaturally he's been at pains to disguise their true nature,

but they must have been very considerable.

No doubt the setback is only temporary

but since you have a letter of unlimited credit with him

I felt it my bounden duty to warn you.

Should he invite you to speculate in some plausible enterprise,

the chairing of doing so, as things stand at the present time,

I don't believe he could meet another major setback.

Should that occur, I think we should see the empire

of Baron Danglars crumble into ruin.

Thank you. Mr. Thomson.

They're here.

- Who are here, Bertuccio? - Benedetto and Cavalcanti.

Capital! I scarcely expected them so soon!

I did.

I'll be shutting them into the servants' quarters!

But, my dear Bertuccio,

Cavalcanti is one of the most ancient names in Italy,

and Benedetto's veins are bursting with noble French blood.

I invite them to my house and you send them to the kitchen?

Cavalcanti is a penniless old rogue.

Benedetto, a foundling who robbed his foster parents of their life savings.

As a father-and-son partnership,

they've committed enough crimes to go to the gallows for 20 years.

You make them sound a very promising pair. Send them in.

Good evening, gentlemen.

It was very courteous of you

to make the journey from Rome with such expedition.

Mr. le Comte de Monte Cristo,

since both money and the means of convenience

were lavishly provided, there was nothing to hinder us.

Still, you could have spent the money and left my relays to rot.

Your letters, monsieur,

hinted at even greater benefits awaiting us in Paris.

So there shall be, provided you perform to the letter what I require of you.

That, monsieur, must depend upon the nature of your requirements.

Quite not. You will accept my proposals unconditionally

or you will both go to prison for a good many years.

I told you it was a trap.

But my dear sirs, you are most welcome.

It is le Marquis Cavalcanti?

Le Marquis Cavalcanti... Yes, I really am he.

Ex-major in the Austrian army.

- Was I a major? - Yes, you were a major.

But you have an income of half a million a year.

- Half a million, is it? - Yes.

I'll be at half a million then. I had no idea it was so much.

And I have the honor of addressing

Mr. le Vicomte Andrea Cavalcanti, your adored son.

Yes.

Please sit down, gentlemen.

What on earth am I thinking of keeping you standing?

Please don't mention it.

The service you will perform for me is not arduous nor even dangerous,

provided you obey absolutely what I tell you.

You will live within the limits of almost unlimited wealth.

I cannot imagine that the experience

will be in the slightest degree disagreeable.

If what you say is true, Mr. le Comte,

you have only to command us.

Yes, I am aware of that.

Gentlemen, from this moment, you are Major Cavalcanti,

Italian aristocrat and millionaire,

and you, Benedetto, are his son, le Vicomte Andrea Cavalcanti.

Your place of residence will be my country house at Auteuil.

Tomorrow morning, Major Cavalcanti,

together with a letter of reference which I shall give you,

you will open an account at the banking house of Baron Danglars.

From this account you will draw what money you need for yourself,

and you will also make an allowance for your dear son.

The amount of the allowance will be 50,000 livres per year.

Per year?

You will live in a style becoming your rank and station,

and since you are rich, you will dress simply and without pretension.

Gentlemen, do you understand me?

This cannot be all you require of us.

If it were, I would scarcely have gone to the trouble and expense.

You will enjoy the life that I have described,

which you will at all times be entirely at my disposal.

And you will be ready day and night

to obey any instruction which I may give you.

Good night, gentlemen.

Did you find it amusing, Mr. le Baron?

Delightful, quite delightful.

And you, madame?

My dear Count, I've never seen its equal.

It was quite disturbing.

I thought she was exquisitely beautiful.

What was your impression, mademoiselle?

I agree with Mme. de Villefort. The girl was beautiful.

Her dance was not.

- You didn't like it? - I detested it.

Why?

Because, Vicomte, for me it symbolized the degradation of my sex.

I don't understand.

I'm not criticizing her skill and artistry.

But the spirit which informed her dance!

Come, Eugénie, whatever you say!

No, this is most interesting. Pray continue, mademoiselle!

Every movement of her body acknowledged the existence

of a world in which man is the master!

That is the Oriental attitude, is it not, Mr. le Comte?

- Most certainly! - It is not one to which I subscribe.

Because this is France.

And in France, mademoiselle, man is the adoring slave of lovely women!

Listen to him! What romantic nonsense, Vicomte.

You humiliate us at every turn

and then try to hide the fact by employing ridiculous phrases like that.

I've never humiliated a woman in my life. I'd rather cut off my right hand first.

Another empty phrase.

You know perfectly well you would do nothing so foolish.

We are shackled by conventions imposed by men for their convenience.

Is a woman permitted to marry the man she loves?

Or must she marry the man her father chooses?

For shame, Eugénie. Remember where you are.

Come, Mr. le Baron, you must not be so severe.

I was most impressed by what your daughter had to say.

Impressed?

Good heavens, Count. If all her sex began thinking as she does...

I congratulate you, Mlle. Eugénie.

You cannot mean that you agree with me.

But why not?

You have just expressed a most profound truth.

The problem is, what are you going to do about it?

Nothing.

I scandalize my friends by saying what I think,

but I'm too much of a coward to act on my beliefs.

You have had the courage to express them.

This is already a very great deal.

How long do you propose remaining in Paris, monsieur?

Perhaps six months.

If the life suits my son, he may stay longer.

You should find him a French wife, monsieur.

Nothing would please me more, madame.

I have the greatest admiration for French women.

I'm beginning to suspect that Andrea shares my views.

Have you found yourself a place of residence yet?

My son and I are most fortunate. Mr. le Comte de Monte Cristo

has very graciously put his country residence at Auteuil at our disposal.

Auteuil?

I didn't know you had a house in Auteuil, monsieur.

I have only recently acquired it, madame.

But whereabouts, Mr. le Comte?

- 28, Rue de La Fontaine. - Extraordinary.

What is extraordinary, Monsieur de Villefort?

That house belonged to my father-in-law,

the Marquis de Saint-Méran.

That indeed is a very great coincidence.

Naturally, my steward conducted the transaction for the lease,

but I'm almost sure that he told me

that the house had been empty for many years.

Yes. The Marquis lived and died in Marseille.

He seldom made the journey to Paris.

I doubt if the house has been occupied for the last 20 years.

The house has a sudden curiosity for me.

A crime was committed there.

- A crime? - Beware, monsieur.

You are in the presence of the Procurer du Roi.

Then actually this is the very moment to declare it.

What sort of crime?

My gardeners were digging over the soil to lay a new lawn

and they came across the skeleton of a newly born child.

A newly born child? Infanticide is a serious matter.

How can you know it was infanticide?

It is surely murder to bury a child alive, monsieur.

You cannot possibly say that it was buried alive.

Then why bury it in a garden if it were dead?

No, the cemetery is the proper place.

The count is right, it was certainly murder.

Stop! I can't bear it.

What is done to infanticides in this country?

Their heads are cut off.

Is that not right, Mr. de Villefort?

Yes, you are right.

You are right.

Subtitles LAPORT INC.