Original subtitles

I heard that Ithaca was welcoming.

But... I didn't expect to be welcomed like a king.

You're not Ulysses?

Ulysses the fearless.

Ulysses the clever.

Ulysses the voyager.

No. Such honor is not mine.

I'm a simple storyteller

who sings of the fabulous adventures of Ithaca's king.

Why this sail?

When we land on an island,

we always fly the colors of its king.

I'm Telemachus.

- Ulysses' son. - My prince!

Welcome.

Where are you from?

From the east.

We've been sailing the islands for 5 years.

Did you meet Ulysses?

We met many people during these years.

We heard many stories.

Perhaps Ulysses was one of them.

Follow me. We'll go to the palace.

He told you his travels?

He was all over Greece.

He met many warriors.

- Did he see Ulysses? - He didn't say.

But nothing can stop the wedding.

He may have met him or someone who knew him.

The free men demand a king. It's too late.

- You can't marry that rat! - I can't but I must.

Excuse me, sir. The people seem happy.

- Is it a celebration? - It's grief!

Sorry, I'm a stranger here. What do you mean?

- The queen is to marry. - Penelope, marry another?

It's a betrayal, she was trapped.

Our great hunter!

So, it's you, Eukaristos?

The wonderful storyteller.

Tomorrow, I'm counting on you to tell your best stories.

I'll do my best to please Queen Penelope.

How about pleasing the new king?

I can be very generous,

just don't disappoint me.

Be sure I like your story.

Count on me, my king.

They say she is very beautiful.

It's a matter of taste.

Is the legend true?

She is faithful to Ulysses?

For 20 years.

She's as cold as the statue of Artemis.

OK, come on.

Here.

I thought of you.

That's nice.

Thanks for my daughter.

I know you spoke to Penelope.

Thank Telemachus.

She listened to him.

My job stops here.

The queen will replace Ulysses. She no longer needs me.

I'll clean them, it will look better.

Honey will soothe the burns, you'll see.

You should be glad.

Leocritus gives you Ithaca's best lands.

You can send for your family.

"The best lands"

he keeps for himself.

He's the king.

But who made him king?

Did he win a battle?

Was he a hero?

Did he rid Ithaca of Ulysses' family?

I thought we all agreed.

He lulled us with fine talk.

He made himself king and left us the crumbs.

- My dear future wife. - Quiet.

- Let's be done with it. - Yes, let's.

Why the rush?

To celebrate this great day, I'd like to offer you a show.

A storyteller has just arrived in Ithaca.

Then, we will have the ceremony.

After you, my dear.

Forgive me. They force me to marry Leocritus.

But in my heart I'm your son's wife.

As you like, Penelope. Be the wife of a ghost.

Your son Ulysses is dead. The gods send me to you.

No one can replace Ulysses.

Ah, Telemachus! Come sit by me.

Like a son by his father.

Storytellers and lyre-players come from the muses and Apollo.

But kings come from Zeus.

Greetings, child of Zeus. Do honor to my song.

And I will remember you.

- Happy is he who has... - You're not king yet.

How dare you?

Happy is he who has the muses' grace. Welcome.

Your beauty exceeds what all Greece says of you.

For her, I will honor

the Trojan War heroes.

I will tell their story.

Under cover of darkness,

the Greeks set fire to their own camp.

Their tents are in flames.

The sun finally rises over Troy.

Not a single Greek is seen.

They've all left.

And in their place...

is a wooden horse,

as tall as a mountain.

Priam and his sons

come out to look

and are speechless with admiration.

Opinion is divided.

A present from the conquered to their conquerors.

A bad omen.

It must be burned immediately.

But Priam, the king,

in his vanity, decides.

And the Trojans bring

the wooden horse into the city.

Cassandra, the king's daughter, says:

"Beware of Greeks

"bearing gifts."

Then she adds:

"This horse is a ploy.

"It's the work of Ulysses!

"Apollo! May your arm guide my spear

"and strike the Greeks right in the heart."

The soldiers' spears thrust

into the horse's sides.

The Greeks avoid them and keep their secret.

Don't rewrite history.

- They didn't suspect. - How do you know?

You were here playing watchdog for her.

Stop!

Listen. Eukaristos, continue.

But one of the spears pierces a soldier's arm.

The wound rips his arm open

from hand to elbow.

Stop! We never heard of this story of a spear.

You seem troubled, Leocritus.

Show us your scar.

You said a Trojan wounded you in a duel.

You were in the horse?

He's telling the truth?

Yes, I was there.

It was my arm that was pierced.

The horse was never filled with soldiers.

We were 4.

Ajax...

Neoptolemus,

Ulysses, and me.

Who told you this story?

Answer.

A man, a soldier, I guess... I don't know.

It was a thrilling version. I adopted it.

- When? - It was...

- a year ago... - The man's name?

He didn't say.

What was he like?

About 40...

- A beard. - Any distinctive marks?

A scar.

A scar shaped like a star on his thigh.

Ulysses.

It's my father.

Ulysses told you that.

The wound,

he got it hunting when he was my age.

He's alive!

He saw this man a year ago.

- Maybe it was Ajax. - He's dead.

I'm the only survivor.

- It was him. - Be quiet!

My father's alive.

Ulysses is alive!

The others died at Troy.

Only Ulysses could have told this story.

He's alive.

Telemachus lies.

He's a cheater like his mother.

- Ulysses is our king. - You've waited 10 years.

Do you want to be deprived of everything?

You'll betray your king and steal his throne?

Leocritus is right, young prince.

We need a king if Ulysses is dead.

And if he's alive?

What'll he say upon learning you made the queen

share his bed with another man?

In the valley, there's a family of wolves.

You've seen them.

When the father goes hunting, the young wait for him.

They don't turn to the fox.

They're wolves.

You'd forget Ulysses,

your father,

your only legitimate king?

You'd force Penelope to marry another?

Trust the gods.

Ulysses will return to us.

Telemachus is right.

Let's wait for Ulysses,

our only king!

We should've taken the palace by force!

That won't be necessary.

Soon, no kingdoms

or islands will trade with the queen and

the free men will change their minds.

They'll beg me.

It'd be faster to kill Telemachus and his mother.

Not a drop of blood of Ulysses' family will be spilled.

The gods would never forgive us.

"The gods!"

They're like me, they want only blood.

Be careful, the gods hate being insulted.

Come forward.

I want to thank you

for saving me from this marriage.

Would you and your troupe like to stay?

Thank you, Penelope.

You surpass what is said about you.

And what is said about me?

They say that Ulysses' wife awaits him from the 1st day.

Her beauty and virtue are admired in Greece.

But they don't say

that her eyes are as deep as the waves in the open sea

and that her smile...

You dare speak thus to her?

Eukaristos meant no harm.

Your words made Ulysses come back for a short while.

As thanks,

I give you this slave. I know

you'll take care of her.

Why her? She's wounded.

She's not worth much.

She's pretty

and Eukaristos likes her.

- You like her, don't you? - Yes, my queen.

We'll see each other tomorrow.

And I hope that you'll tell us more wonderful stories.

You can't give him Clea.

- Her name is Clea? - We're short on slaves.

Now she belongs to Eukaristos.

- Why are you mad at her? - She betrayed me.

She was punished.

You shouldn't get attached to slaves.

She's a Trojan and you're a Greek prince.

Give him another slave, please.

I cannot take back a gift.

It would dishonor Ulysses' house.

Why separate me from my daughter?

You spent 10 years without her.

You'll get over it.

You don't live far from your son.

Why should I live far from my child?

I'm a queen.

You're a slave.

I'm a mother like you.

I'm sending Clea away to protect my son.

He shouldn't get too attached.

Ulysses won't come back, not tonight or tomorrow.

You're wasting your time.

Maybe he'll be gentle with you.

He doesn't seem brutal.

He'll take you far away.

You'll get to travel.

I don't want to go.

Leave us.

I have to go to my new master.

Don't go.

She has to go.

He expects you tonight.

He can touch me all he wants.

I'll never be his.

Do what you want, but do it quickly.

And don't hurt me.

Please.

Leave.

Soil from the Nile. It'll heal your wounds.

Is it true that the queen awaits Ulysses

every night and looks for his ship every morning?

Yes, for 20 years.

Do you think there is room in her heart for another man?

No. She is Ulysses' wife.

Have you seen her naked?

I've washed her many times.

What does she look like?

What is her body like?

Her skin?

Her breasts?

I want to know everything.

This waiting has made the free men of Ithaca into women.

They clap at Telemachus' speeches...

Where is Achilles' blood, where are the Greeks?

You know the law as well as I.

If we find another man than the king in her bed,

she'll be dethroned.

Hello, my queen.

Would you like to hear the rest of Ulysses' adventures?

You saw him? Spoke to him?

As I see you now.

And if I had known you then,

I would've told him he must be crazy

to leave such beauty and never return.

If the gods wish, Ulysses will return soon.

Tell me, Eukaristos,

I'm sure you know words to open women's hearts.

There's only one woman I'm interested in.

But she's unapproachable.

For the common mortal, perhaps.

But for you, no woman is unapproachable.

Leave us.

A princess's place is not in a stable.

You're of royal blood, aren't you?

I was, but not anymore.

Do you think often of Troy?

I've erased all my memories.

Your husband and son, massacred...

I remember nothing!

When you find your people,

you'll tell them you remember nothing?

That you spent 10 years in this house

without ever trying to avenge them?

That's what you'll say?

You also attacked Troy.

I could start with you.

I was just a soldier. I was obeying orders.

If you help me get Eukaristos into Penelope's bedroom...

So that you can have the throne?

I'll never betray the queen.

You're right.

Don't betray the queen who beat your daughter

and is sending her far away from you.

The daughter you just got back.

Dear Penelope!

Speak.

You ruined the liver. It's half gone.

So what? Tell me what you see.

- You're in love with a queen. - Big news.

And a queen loves you.

In a way.

- What do you mean? - Just half a liver.

- A kind of love... - Go on.

Her husband has been gone a long time.

He may be dead.

Watch what you say, Thyoscos.

Don't question the queen's honor.

I can't really tell.

It's unclear with half a liver.

You can have it.

He didn't touch me.

He spoke of your mother.

Her beauty,

her gentleness, her grace...

I don't want to go!

I want to stay with you.

I'll be back.

- Eukaristos. - Yes, prince?

- I want to see you. - About what?

I want the slave my mother gave you. Sell her to me.

Sorry, it's impossible. It would insult the queen.

What do you want?

I'll give you the slave

if I can have dinner with Penelope.

She'll never agree to it.

Even to hear the adventures of the man I met?

Ulysses.

Tell me!

- He was with a woman. - What woman?

I won't tell you.

I will only tell your mother.

- He saw this woman. - He's making things up.

He lied to you.

But yesterday he told the truth.

Leocritus was in the horse.

He wants to see you and tell you all.

Give me some of the queen's wine.

I'll drink to her health.

You were also kind of a queen, right?

"Kind of," yes.

But what's left now...

Come here.

Come on.

Drink with me.

You won't leave.

You're staying with me.

Now you're my slave.

Starting today,

you'll only serve me.

You'll only obey me.

- You'll only make love to me. - Whatever you like.

What should I call you now?

Master?

Son of the great Ulysses?

Telemachus.

I'll always be Telemachus.

I could call you king of Ithaca.

But I'm not a king.

You should be king, not one of them.

If you were king,

I'd no longer be afraid.

I could stay with you all the time.

No one could stop me.

Eukaristos is in his room.

When it's time, give the signal.

I found land for you

near the sea.

Listen to me, Eurynome,

as soon as I'm king, you'll

be free and your daughter too.

The land will be yours.

You can live there in peace with Clea.

Ulysses came to welcome us.

He had a thick gray beard,

powerful muscles,

a lot of presence.

I see why you love him, my queen.

The scar... tell me about the scar.

I want to be sure it's him.

It starts here

and goes up the thigh.

He helped us build a fire.

Then he sat down on the beach with us.

I thought he was a storyteller, like me.

He told us he had sailed to strange islands,

confronted a Cyclops on a mysterious isle,

survived incredible storms...

This woman...

Tell me about this woman.

Leave us.

Tell me.

Her name is Calypso.

Calypso?

A nymph.

A magician of amazing beauty.

She's keeping Ulysses by magic.

He doesn't love her.

What's she like?

Describe her, please.

She's as I imagine Aphrodite.

Her beauty is a gift of the gods.

Her black hair...

is thick and fragrant.

It cascades and one could drown in it.

Her mouth,

you could drink from her very lips.

Leave me.

Her eyes pierce me

like the points of arrows.

Her stomach is smooth...

as a river stone.

Penelope...

Subtitles: Eclair Group