TELEWIZJA POLSKA presents
in film
DECALOGUE SEVEN
Screenplay
Excuse me.
Yes?
I want to return my record book.
Won't you appeal?
You have a chance as a senior.
They've expelled me, haven't they?
Ten pages are missing.
I tore out my latest grades.
– What's your destination? – Canada.
– Visiting whom? – Friends.
Your passport.
You need the mother's consent for the child.
– I wanted to check if she has a passport. – She does.
– And if I come back with the consent? – I'll give you the passport.
Ania!
Go away!
Get out!
Mum...
You can't calm her down. Get out!
Anulka!
It's OK...
What happened? You had a dream about wolves?
My little daughter...
Mum told you there were no wolves.
Are you all right?
You're going to sleep.
Dad...
– I can't stand it anymore. – Calm down.
You also used to scream when you were a kid.
She keeps on telling her about wolves.
Aren't you supposed to get up early?
It's okay. Calm down.
Listen...
Ania!
You are free, Your Highness.
Enta... Enta...
Perhaps one of you remembers?
One, two, three! Open Sesame!
I invite you to a huge party!
Are we playing hide-and-seek?
Let's play a joke on Mum.
I have no coat.
I've brought it for you.
Miss! My child's missing.
My daughter's missing.
Don't you understand? My child's missing.
Ania?
– Would you like a ride? – What on?
Have a look.
Have you kidnapped me?
What?
Kidnapped me. Like "Kidnapped in Turkistan".
You're a big girl, right?
So Mum says.
Exactly.
Look at me.
Mum...
Mum is not your real mum.
I have no mum?
Yes, you have.
Your mum...
...I'm your real mum.
We even have...
two tents and mattresses.
Majka's gone on vacation with the students.
Call in a week, please.
Ania?
Ewa!
Ania...
...is missing.
What?
– I want a wee-wee. – Do it over there. He's not looking.
Is it her?
Yes.
When she's upset she always wants a pee.
What do you want?
Will you let us in?
What do you want?
I've run away with her.
You've run away and...?
Hi!
Hi.
It's changed here.
Yes. We haven't seen each other for...
My father died. Three years ago.
And you?
TEDDY BEAR MAKER
I make teddy bears.
What about your studies, your plans, your writings?
I gave up.
And what's that?
Can I get you anything to eat? Tea?
She's gone to sleep.
Why don't I move her to the sofa?
No, she's happy. Look...
Do you still remember me?
No.
It cost me a lot. Not anymore.
– Do they know? – No.
I took her from the theatre.
Mother went crazy.
She almost fell down the steps!
Why are you talking like that?
You should be pleased.
I think I've hated her for some time.
You haven't changed.
It's either-or, and nothing in between.
Nothing.
I took Ania and won't give her back.
I've been thinking about it for four years.
I'm no longer the nice girl in a navy blue skirt
who fell in love with her young Polish teacher
because his classes were different.
It's still early days to go.
You haven't yet stolen, or killed.
Can you steal what's yours?
I don't know. I guess not.
So I didn't steal.
Right.
And kill?
I think I could kill her.
You don't know your mother.
I've just learnt all about her.
Why she's the way she is.
After I was born...
she couldn't have any more children.
Though she wanted to.
So when Ania was born... That explains it.
You forget you agreed.
I was sixteen then.
Joan of Arc wasn't much older.
You said that once before.
They said they meant well, they wanted me to finish school.
Now I know the kid was the real reason.
Think of the scandal:
her the school principal, me a teacher, and you a student.
But the main thing is
that you didn't tell them that you wanted the kid to be ours.
I couldn't.
You couldn't?
You stood in the middle.
Mother told you to shut up
if you wanted no trouble for seducing a minor,
if you wanted to go on teaching, right?
Did she?
I heard her telling father. It's like her.
She told your father that?
Yes.
Was she lying?
A little bit.
It's incredible that in Poland...
you can make your child formally someone else's.
All you need is a doctor. This one didn't even know.
I always have an hour nap in the afternoon.
Go ahead.
There's no reason to change your habits.
You're glad I agreed then.
You have peace of mind.
Yes.
I won't be a nuisance for long.
Going somewhere?
On a trip to Rumania. In summer.
It's been ages since I saw a passport.
Have a look.
What is it?
A certificate that I bore a child six years ago.
Will your mum agree to give her back?
– Mum? – Mother.
She has to.
You wouldn't recognise her.
I didn't know she could be so affectionate and tender.
She was never like that with me.
I'll tell you something...
...that I shouldn't really tell anyone.
When Ania was about six months old...
I came back from a camp earlier.
They kept sending me to camps then.
I came back earlier and saw...
that she was feeding her.
– Nothing unusual. – No.
She was breastfeeding her.
– But she didn't have any... – No, she didn't!
But the kid was sucking.
Now she won't let you go.
What happened?
I hurt my finger.
It won't hurt anymore.
Go to sleep, my angel.
Go to sleep, darling.
I'm going out, take care of her.
What do you want to do?
I'm going to badger Mummy a little.
– I'm going to call her. – Wait!
Call her from here.
No. Not from here. They'll have notified the police.
A kidnapping. Yours may be tapped.
I'll call from a booth.
Want me to go with you? The booth is near the station.
You'll leave her alone?
I'll read you something.
About your mother and...
...your grandmother.
"An Italian movie.
Mother and daughter.
A few scenes...
...which I touch...
...around me."
– Well! – Be quiet!
– Are the teddy bears ready? – Yes.
Who's that?
My daughter.
Stay away for a while, there might be trouble.
With her?
Hello?
Dad?
Yes, Daughter.
I'm with her.
– What do you want? – Put Mother on.
Tell me.
You can't help me, Dad.
Mother has been crying all the time.
She took a sedative. She's asleep.
Who's that?
Hello?
I am with her.
My God!
Did you notify the police?
Yes, but it's not important. Where are you?
Call them off.
Tell them she's been found.
All right. Where are you?
We'll fetch you. Stefan!
Where are you? We'll be right there.
I won't tell you. You have to change everything.
What?
What must I change?
Everything. Ania must be mine.
That's impossible.
She must be!
– No one knows. – They will know.
– I'll prove it. – You'll prove nothing.
Ania's registered as my child.
Only Aunt Jadwiga knows but she'll never tell.
Where are you?
Father also knows.
Father knows absolutely nothing.
There's also Wojtek.
Don't count on him.
One day I'll tell you something. When we've retired.
You stole my child. Things were to be different.
You stole my child.
And the fact that I'm a mother, and love.
You robbed me of yourself,
of the two of you, of everything.
I'll give you two hours.
And then I'll tell you what to do.
Call Majka.
She'll be right back.
Why did you wake up?
I often wake up.
Majka told me I had no mum.
You got it all wrong. You do!
And a dad?
Of course.
– She also told me you were my... – You don't want to sleep?
Want me to show you how I make the bears?
These ones?
Yes.
Did you know she'd take her?
No.
I don't have a spot.
Yes, you do. Here and here.
Here I have a spot. Fantastic.
You're a magician.
Am I?
– Yes. – No.
Yes.
I used to be a magician.
A tremendously big magician and a wicked one.
– Wicked? – Yes.
– Do you know any other tricks? – Yes.
What tricks?
Why aren't you asleep?
She woke up.
Majka!
He says he's a magician.
I asked you to call me Mum.
Majka.
Say "Mum".
– Say "Mum". – Majka.
Mum.
Majka.
Ania, please.
Say "Mum", do you hear me?
Call your mum Mum.
Please, say it.
Mum! Do you hear me?
Please, say it.
Mum!
Ania!
Mum.
Hello?
Who? Oh, yes, I recognise you.
It's all right.
I don't know. I haven't seen her for six years.
Okay, I'm sorry.
Okay.
They're looking for you.
I know.
He doesn't know.
– We're waking up so many people. – It won't kill them.
We know nothing about our child.
Who are her friends. Where she is now.
We've lost her. I didn't realise that she...
She loves Ania.
We must give her back.
I can't.
Majka was always your little daughter.
Ania was mine.
Majka couldn't be yours.
You demanded so much from her
so that she'd be unable to cope.
She knew she had to earn your love.
When you saw her
with tracers of a bandage on her stomach in her sixth month
you began to shout.
I knew that was the final cut.
She stood there and said nothing.
I know the history of our family!
You think Majka doesn't? She does.
Stefan. She wants to take her away for good.
She wants to take her away.
She wants to take her far away.
For good.
Where?
To Canada.
She got an invitation.
A fictitious, phony one.
At the time I thought...
All right, go and leave Ania with us.
But she planned it all very carefully.
They will both leave, we'll lose both of them.
We have to find them.
– Go and see somebody. – Who?
You had so many friends.
But not anymore.
Wake Grzegorz up.
Stefan, I beg you.
Ania!
Ania, wake up.
It's all right, go back to sleep.
It's all right.
She's stopped.
She's been screaming in her sleep for a long time.
She has some dream but she's never said what it is.
I don't know what she's scared of.
Of the future.
If you want to go away with her...
Where?
Never mind where. Just far away.
It'll be too much for her.
Your shouts, your tugging, your hysterics.
She's too delicate.
You're scared of something.
– You can stay here. – Not of that.
Yes.
You'll ruin the child.
She's also yours.
You ought to go back.
I see.
She ought to have a home.
Her toys, her bed, her milk... Do you understand?
– I understand. – What?
She ought to have a home.
You're right.
I have a friend with a car.
You can be home before dawn.
Okay. Go.
You can stay here. I'll move out.
No, you're right. Get the car.
Ania, wake up. Do you hear me? Let's go.
Get up. Change your clothes.
Where's Wojtek?
Wojtek doesn't want us here.
He gave you a teddy bear.
Did I wake you?
I'm sorry. This is absurd...
Ewa... You know her.
She kissed my hand so that I would come here.
I'm scared, that's all.
I can't help you much.
Perhaps I'll try to get...
a message on television.
Her passport could be delayed.
If she hasn't collected it yet.
I'm sorry again.
I didn't wake the kids?
No, they're asleep.
I was afraid of that. She's run away.
What are we to do?
Two hours have passed.
Yes, two and a half even.
Listen to me.
You'll both come home.
Father will sell the car, his organ, you'll buy a flat.
You'll be able to visit Ania whenever you want.
Take her out on Sundays.
Go to the movies with her.
Ania will be mine and yours.
When I die she'll be all yours.
Do you want anything more?
Yes. Your consent to Ania going to Canada.
Tomorrow.
You understand?
I beg you! I can't!
Then you'll never see us again!
Ania's asleep on my shoulder.
I don't care anymore.
I've learned today...
that I have only her, no one else.
I'll count up to five.
If you won't agree, you can say goodbye to us.
One, two...
Three, four, five!
Majka! Yes! I agree!
Majka!
Majka! Come back! I agree!
Hello?
– It's me, Wojtek. – Who?
Wojtek.
Yes, it's me.
You lied to us before.
Yes, I did.
Is she there?
She was.
She took off with Ania when...
Where is she?
She said she didn't care.
She can't have gone far.
– I'll take the left side of the tracks. – In your neighbourhood?
Yes. Near Jozefow.
Want to sail a twig?
Go on.
Ania.
Kiss me.
Kiss me hard.
Do you love me?
– Nothing? – Nothing.
I'm so scared.
– It went wrong. – Let's check the stations.
There are no trains. It's Sunday.
We're not lucky for you.
You're not.
I'll go east via the wood.
Go now.
– When's the train? – Where to?
Doesn't matter.
In two hours. Today's Sunday.
Run away from your old man?
From everything.
Come over here.
It's warm here. You'll take a nap.
Have you seen a girl with a child?
A girl with a child? Have you?
A young girl wearing glasses...
with a big bag... and a six-year-old girl.
She came here and went away two hours ago.
Where?
She asked about the highway.
Ania!
Mum!
Ania!
Anka!
My darling!
My little girl.
Majka!
Majka...
My daughter...
Starring
Directed by