Love (Szerelem)

Love

Screenplay

Cast

The cactus is in flower.

The old lady got up in a bad mood.

Is she up? That's a miracle!

She wants the new cover for her bedpan.

- Did you bring pastries? - Lots.

- And some housekeeping money for you. - Lots?

No way. 500. Will that be enough?

That's more than enough.

We'll settle up next time.

Remember, you don't have to skimp. Are there any other problems?

- None. Do you have any money left? - Plenty.

- Has the postman come? - Not yet.

Check the mailbox later.

A letter's coming from America.

I want her to read it while I'm here.

Wait, I'll go.

She's ringing again for the tenth time today!

Her hand's welded to that bell!

Silly cow!

Good morning, Mother!

Irén, where's my buttered toast?

It's me, Mother.

Oh, you? Did you bring pastries?

Of course. And what else did I bring?

Flowers, for sure.

Will you never learn to economise?

All right... I always say the same thing

because you always do the same thing.

Don't keep bringing flowers. Buy me perfume.

What else did I bring?

Show me!

Or did you lose it already?

Good. Kiss me, please.

Lovely. But how do you get all that money?

I earned it. I'm a filthy whore.

A whore? Stop it!

I'll tell János when he comes back.

He'll give you a good beating.

Put it on.

It's beautiful!

It was high time...

Professor Hetényi is coming today.

And Irén will be nervous.

She'll forget to put it away again.

The professor is used to bedpans.

But what makes you think he'll come today?

- She keeps eavesdropping. - She does not.

Eavesdropping, me?

Calm down, you'll have a stroke. Give her the toast.

Give her the toast.

The professor will be coming today.

He hasn't been for a long time.

It's been more than a month.

He promised he'd come once a month.

I know you're in love with the professor.

You want to talk to him about Goethe in German...

...and you don't want him to see your pee.

That's only natural, isn't it, Irén?

What's that?

Don't deny you're in love with him.

Why else would you learn all those Goethe quotations?

- Silly goose! - Why? For myself.

I eat toast for myself, too.

It's a pity he's so ugly.

We can't all be beautiful like you!

Am I beautiful?

- If only you were as clever. - As who?

As the professor?

Silly goose!

Oh, I almost forgot...

The professor phoned to say he's very busy and can't come.

He said you'll live to be 100 anyway.

So you'll see each other often.

He said that to me, too that I'd live to be 100.

Did he say the same to you over the phone?

- Are you kidding? - Of course.

Are you really?

Mother, I'm telling the truth. Don't you remember

the other day

we were talking about your 100th birthday

and who we'd invite,

and that I'd wear the low-cut red silk dress?

Don't you remember, Mother?

Alright then...

Didn't we choose the white silk dress?

- That's long gone. - What?

Nothing. Nothing!

Then give me some soda water.

Did the professor really say I'd live to be 100?

Oh, all these books! You can only read one at a time.

But I think about the rest. Leave them!

Have you done your German homework?

What will János say if you can't speak German when he comes home?

János! János!

I may have forgotten Hungarian by then!

- What was that? - I'm sick of your son.

You're teasing me again.

Of course.

Tell me about when you went to the spa.

To the spa?

When you all slept in one room.

- And? - Remember,

the night when your younger son was peeping?

Poor Gyuri?

You never knew him?

You told the boys

to turn to the wall.

When was that?

Long ago. 40 years or more.

You must have been very young then.

- Was I 36? - About that.

What was that about peeping?

Well, it was...

But I've told you before.

I don't quite remember! The children were in bed

and you wanted to undress.

You must have been beautiful.

Yes, I was very beautiful.

Large hats were in fashion then.

They had to be tied with wide, black ribbons.

Under the... what's the word? The chin.

And my husband gave me a wide, black moiré ribbon.

I tied it under the chin...

and all the young men turned to look.

Not only the young men!

Professor Hetényi would have turned too had he known you then.

Come on! He wasn't even born.

Well, go on.

About what?

About the peeping.

You know, this bonnet had the ribbon that my husband gave me.

But this one is velvet. It usually had a moiré ribbon.

- Never mind. - Never mind. Never mind.

- Perhaps it was velvet! - It could have been.

- What is it you want to know? - How you undressed.

Well, we all had to sleep in one room.

The boys were in bed and I wanted to undress.

You know... ladies wore corsets in those days.

My husband had to unlace mine and I didn't want the boys to see.

- But I've told you all this! - But I don't remember!

You told the boys to turn to the wall...

- Yes. - And then?

You made sure they weren't looking.

Yes. There I was in my petticoat.

No, in your bloomers.

White, lace-trimmed, knee-length bloomers.

In bloomers...

Then you saw that János had turned to the wall.

But Gyuri was peeping.

Peeping, sure enough.

He had lovely curly locks and he peeped out behind them.

- And then? - What then?

What happened then? I've forgotten.

You spread a towel over the bars of the cot...

- Of course I did. - Gyuri pulled it down and peered out.

Peered out...

He peered out, yes, and giggled.

And János?

He just stayed turned to the wall

and didn't move, poor thing.

Because he was honest even then, wasn't he?

Silly goose!

You remember better than I do.

Yes, even then he was very honest.

That's what you wanted to hear.

Nonsense!

- You love János. - Nonsense!

All right. Don't joke.

I want to talk seriously.

When János comes back from America

tell him he mustn't be so headstrong.

- Why not? - You just tell him.

Why don't you tell him?

He won't be back for a long time.

You've got a letter.

János?

How should I know? I haven't read it.

Give me the magnifying glass, please.

"I have little time for writing...

"My film will be shown before long...

"in the largest New York cinema...

"which can seat 30,000 people...

"and is being built on a mountain

"2,000 metres high.

"They have to finish it because mine will be the opening film.

"From the top you can see half of America...

"from the Cordilleras to the Andes...

"not to mention the Atlantic Ocean.

"The cinema will have an airport, too...

"for the rich who will all come by plane.

"Up till now I've been staying at the Waldorf Astoria...

"in a 20-room suite...

"on the 100th floor.

"But the reporters were such a nuisance

"that we moved...

"to a 16th century castle...

"brought over here stone by stone from France.