Strangeness (La stranezza)

THE STRANGENESS

I PUT A SIGN ON THE DOOR OF MY OFFICE WITH THIS NOTICE

"HEARINGS SUSPENDED AS OF TODAY FOR ALL CHARACTERS."

Drink the lemonade! It's fresh lemonade!

Drink the lemonade!

- God bless you, Don Luigi. - Good morning, Nardo.

Nardo, why are you so sulky?

Maristella died.

Your wet-nurse.

- When? - Overnight.

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners,

now and at the hour of our death. Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.

Take a seat, Your Excellency.

Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.

Her mouth scares you, right?

You won't believe it, I tried many times,

but after a second she opened it again.

Mariste', you always kept quiet, now that you're dead you trust anyone?

Look who came to see you.

Evening has come, the time of gloom.

Filiberto, don't you ever feel troubled about anything?

"How can you always be so calm?"

How can you always be so calm?

Go!

Go, Tano!

Tano, he's talking to you, answer him!

Listen to me, Tano!

"Filiberto, don't you ever feel troubled about anything?"

"How can you always be so calm?"

I have no one.

I fuck and I'm happy.

Please, everyone!

Not like that, Tano.

I have no purpose and I'm happy.

I have no purpose...

I have no one.

- I fuck... - Not like that, Tano!

I have no purpose and I'm happy.

I fuck and I'm happy.

Yeah, fuck and screw it.

Having fun, are you?

Too bad it's a drama and this is not his job.

Will you tell Don Ciccio?

Don Ciccio!

Your brother-in-law said it beautifully!

He should have been an actor!

He's been passionate about theatre since he was a little boy.

It shows!

It really shows.

I'd like to understand.

Harnessed horses.

A first-class carriage with a coachman and a groom in tailcoats and top hats.

Who pays all this money

for someone who died in the middle of nowhere?

Hey, I'm talking to you.

Are you still sulking?

We can't have someone in the drama saying "I fuck and I'm happy."

Forgive me.

Theatre should be poetry, purity, freedom.

Don Ciccio will have you killed, this is the freedom you'll get.

- You still don't get it! - Shame on you.

What's taking you so long?

How many times have I told you?

Dead people are alive.

Why are you so late?

I told you there was a wedding after, the couple's already here.

We had to baptize a new actor: Tano.

- Don Ciccio's brother-in-law. - The garbage man?

So you take that moron and you cut my lines?

I can't believe it, they were fewer than last time already.

Either you make them longer or you can forget the theatre.

No way, Father.

If you put it this way, it won't do, I'm sorry.

We can do something about it, but you can't blackmail us.

- Either you trust us or you don't. - Is that so?

You can't use the theatre any more, do the play at your house.

He said it!

Fine, we can give you a longer part.

Right, well done.

The theatre is now compromised.

See you inside.

Forgive us. The horse had bowel problems.

Anyway, best wishes to the newly-wed.

Where did you find these two?

They are the only gravediggers in town.

Eternal rest, grant unto her, O Lord.

Seventy-five, seventy-six, seventy-seven.

- What number was it? - It was 384.

- Almost there, this is 381. - This is 382.

Then 382, 383.

And 384.

Are we to put the body here? The burial niche is full.

The flowers are fresh. Who put this body here?

- He walked on his feet? - This niche is ours.

- The municipality says so. - It's not the right one, it's taken.

What do I tell the client?

How should I know? You look for him and tell him.

- Good morning. - You look for him and...

Good morning.

- Did you request our services? - Yes, exactly.

- Good morning. - Hello, I'm Onofrio Principato.

I'm the owner of the funeral home.

Our friend was telling us that there was a misunderstanding.

The niches got swapped, these things happen.

Someone sold the same niche twice.

There are too many dead and not enough burial sites.

And they gamble with them.

- I understand. - We'll fix it.

What do you plan to do? I'm in a hurry.

- I have to be in Catania tomorrow. - Tomorrow?

You can leave, we'll take care of the burial.

No, I want to be there.

Are you a relative?

No, but it's as if I were.

Well, I understand.

Let's say you go home

while we go to the cemetery office at city hall

and settle this unfortunate matter.

Not at all, I prefer to come with you to city hall.

- All right, let's go. - Let's go.

- This way? Thank you. - Come along.

Come here, Santuccio.

- Are you looking for Don Mimmo Casa? - Yes, is he busy?

- Very busy. - How long will he be?

I can't say.

Madam.

Madam.

Now you can go in.

If everything goes smoothly, it will take at least a week.

At the very least.

What do you mean a week, Mimmo?

Our client is busy and has to leave soon.

- How soon? - Tomorrow.

Tomorrow? Does he come from the Moon?

We can't control time, sir.

- It's in God's hands. - Mimmo.

You already took the bribe, so hurry up.

It's not up to me.

You know how it is at the cemetery.

I understand how it works. Is this enough?

We'll meet this afternoon.

Thank you, Mimmo.

You were paid twice for this body, you owe us one.

Aren't you hungry?

No thanks, I'm too old for that.

- For some, the taste is too strong. - It's certainly not delicate.

I'm curious, where are you from?

From Sicily, but I live in Rome.

- What do you do? - I teach literature.

We actually make literature.

How so?

I enjoy writing.

What do you write?

So far farces, comic stuff to make people laugh.

But in three days, I'll debut with my first drama.

- A comic drama. - Not at all!

As Aristotle said: "Catharsis is medicine."

Enema and purge.

Stop it.

Look.

I had these printed, take one.

We would love for you to come and see us.

Perhaps you, professor, don't know much about theatre?

As a matter of fact, I don't go much.

Why so?

I don't care for it.

Deep down, I feel a certain mistrust, there's too much fiction.

What fiction, professor?

- Theatre is about truth, not fiction. - Is it?

Then explain something to me.

How can you believe people

who dress up in ruffs, feathered hats and puffed trousers?

Who put on fake noses and moustaches to look like what they're not.

How can you?

Professor, with all due respect, go back to teaching.

I can see that you're unfamiliar with theatre.

A woman died an hour ago.

She was the sister-in-law of a lady who lives nearby at number 81.

I get it.

It's an 81-year-old woman who lives in Salita Cognata number four.

Speak clearly!

We can't go there, Babbo.

We are busy with this sir, we have to go to city hall.

Tell them to wait, it's too hot anyway.

What did I tell you?

With a little patience, everything can be fixed.

Tomorrow morning at 9 o'clock sharp, Maristella will finally rest in peace.

In the meantime, for tonight,

you can put her in the post-mortem room.

I already arranged it.

Nice to see you again.

Come on, let's go.

- Nunzio! - Huh?

- Did they bring those things? - No, nobody showed up.

Nobody showed up.

How long have they been waiting here?

It depends, some more and some less.