Black Mercedes (Czarny Mercedes)

Have a good trip, pretty lady.

WARSAW, NOVEMBER 1941

HITLER THREATENS TO ANNEX GDANSK

JUNE 1939

-I'm finished, can I turn it in? -So quickly?

There's still 45 minutes, maybe you want to add something?

No, there is no need. I wrote everything I knew.

Perhaps I can check it and grade it now unless you're in a hurry.

No, I'll be happy to wait.

Please.

-Give me your grade-book, please. -Here you are.

-Born and raised in London? -Born and raised.

-And you speak Polish so well? -Because I'm Polish.

My father does business in London, but my family lives in Tarnopol, Poland.

Congratulations, this is excellent.

-It ought to be published somewhere. -Thank you.

-Goodbye. -Goodbye.

I gave it my all.

Will you miss me?

I don't want to miss you.

-I don't want you to go. -You know I have to…

but it won't take long.

-But I will go crazy here without you. -So stay the night.

No way!

They'd throw me out of the house.

They think you really only teach me English.

Don't I?

Do you think a war is coming?

BASED ON THE NOVEL BY JANUSZ MAJEWSKI

Listen, folks

To the sad tale I sing for you…

WARSAW JEWISH GHETTO NOVEMBER, 1940

BLUMENFELD OUTBUILDING ON THE RIGHT

-Mr. Grodecki? -Do you know the password?

Blumenfeld.

Here.

How much is there?

As agreed but you can count it.

No.

Please sign for it.

More documents, not all are believable but you can verify it.

Filthy Jewish brats…

you want potatoes, eat shit!

Stop! Stop!

Careful! Not so fast, young man!

Leave him alone!

Are you German?

No.

I'm a Pole.

-But you speak excellent German? -Well, it happens.

Forgive me, but your accent intrigues me.

I truly am Polish, although my name is Holzer.

I am a lawyer, my office is here.

Maximilian Graf von Fleckenstein.

It is a pleasure to meet you, counsellor.

I heard Saxon notes in your excellent German pronunciation.

You are a linguist or have perfect pitch.

You're right, my great-great-great grandfather,

Theodor Christian Holzer, was from Dresden.

In that case, you are German.

No, Count, I am fourth-generation Polish.

I must assist you. It's just how I was raised.

Please leave it.

Thank you very much.

Is the boss very busy, Mrs. Stefa?

That street vendor just bought professor Zieleniecki's villa in Żoliborz!

The times we live in!

Yes, you can go in now.

-Coffee? -Yes, please.

Just a moment.

Counsellor, the world has no idea what's happening there.

Even people in Warsaw have no idea.

I see it with my own eyes but my mind says: "no, that's not possible."

Diseases, starvation, corpses on the street,

can you imagine, about sixty nightclubs.

Caviar, champagne and whores.

So why do they sign and stamp everything?

If we get caught, we'll hang, all of us.

They need it for those sellers.

They show them all the papers so it's legal and open.

Not in front of the Germans, only among us.

That means nothing, if we are caught,

the Gestapo will beat it all out of us anyway.

But we won't get caught. Because I'm just lucky.

Today, an SS officer saved me from a roundup.

She's not here, she hasn't returned.

You keep coming for nothing.

She went to Tarnopol just before the war. To be with her sick grandfather.

How can she get back with the Russians there?

I don't know but… I'll keep coming by.

-Maybe she'll come back. -Her former flat is locked up.

Some German wanted the key but I told him I don't have it.

Let them break in. Thieves.

Why do you call it her former flat?

I wish you the best, but don't believe in miracles.

Mister, listen to what my wife is saying.

Don't come around, someone might see.

ONE YEAR LATER NOVEMBER 16TH, 1941

-Is the egg too soft, Sir? -No, it's exactly how I like it.

I wanted to make scrambled eggs the way you like but your wife said…

She said that soft-boiled are healthier.

And we don't have any butter.

Good morning.

Good morning. How are you doing, Mr. Klamka?

Well it's about the new registration forms, sir.

And my name is Klamocki.

Then I apologize, I didn't know Mr. Klamocki.

You know, I'm in a bit of a hurry. I need to go to the office,

so I'll fill it out this evening and Cesia will bring it to you.

Fine, there's no rush, if she brings it then…

-Goodbye. -Goodbye.

Remember that Max is coming for coffee tomorrow?

-Yes. -Good.

Maybe you two could bake a cake?

If we can get flour.

Thank you.

I'm leaving now. Mrs. Stefa, you should close up and go home too.

It's cold in here.

It's past three already!

They should turn on the heating soon.

What they will use for fuel, I don't know.

Alright, goodbye.

Goodbye, sir.

Krystyna?

Krysia, are you here?

Krystyna!

Cesia.

Hello, police station?

Inspector Rafał Król. Did you call us?

Yes, Karol Holzer, attorney.

The victim is here.

Who was she?

She was my wife.

I found her like this when I returned from work.

And I called the station immediately.

She was killed about two or three hours before your return.

Rigor mortis has set in already. Was she alone?

No, she was with the maid, but when I came

home, Cesia was not here.

I got here at half past three as usual, for dinner.

To prepare dinner for half past three one needs to start cooking no later

than between 12 and 1 o'clock.

So she was murdered around noon as indicated by rigor mortis.

Our maid always cleans the apartment, then goes shopping

and later starts cooking dinner.

The groceries are here, the place is cleaned…

No signs of cooking.

Where did she sleep?

Here, it's the maid's room.

Suitcase,

her clothes are here as well.

What was her name and how old was she?

The blade entered precisely beneath the shoulder blade.

And punctured the heart, hence such hemorrhaging.

This indicates that the perpetrator knew his stuff.

Nice looking lady, pity.

But will she go to heaven?

She probably wasn't baptized.

Broken middle finger of the right hand.

Probably no rape occurred.

We won't need to check.

A beautiful woman.

Anything missing from the apartment?

Money, jewelry, documents…

Nothing's been touched.

Do you have a building supervisor here?

Yes, he lives in the outbuilding.

Why are you banging on the door you fucking lout?!

Klamka, good to see you. Weren't you in prison?

Mr. Inspector?

Please, please come in.

They let us out from Rawicz on September 2nd. I have the certificate!

Everybody was yelling: "hooray for the war!", but not me.

I'd have preferred to do my time.

I only had a year to go.

Mr. Inspector, I didn't kill her. On my honor.

Klamka, let's not talk about honor here.

Who didn't you kill?

That attorney's wife, from the second floor.

Mrs. Holzer?

She was murdered? How do you know that?

Inspector, sir, please don't toy with me.

I confess, I saw her

lying on the floor with a knife in her back.

So you were in the apartment? You broke in.

God forbid! I was sweeping the stairs,

because my whore wife, says that her back hurts, but she goes to church anyway!

Calm down, or I'll give you a beating, you'll be hurting until New Year's.

Tell me what happened!

Well, I was sweeping the stairs and I saw that

on the second floor, at the lawyer's, the door is ajar.

I thought that Cesia was taking out rubbish.

Well, I stuck my head in the open door

and I shouted: "Cesia". But there was silence.

Then I shout: "Mrs. Holzer!". Again silence.

So, I thought I should go in because something must have happened.

-Where did you go first? -To the kitchen.

And I saw her right away,

she was lying face down, the knife sticking out from her back.

I thought she was still alive,