Pleasure

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PLEASURE:

Based on three stories

by Guy de Maupassant

Many attempts have been made

to depict three of my tales

I thought it would be simpler

to relate them myself

I've always loved the night,

the darkness

I'm so happy to be talking in

the dark as if I were beside you...

...and maybe I am

You can imagine my anxiety...

...because these are old tales

for your modern times

But we'll see

Here is the first story

One night, there was a ball

at the 'Palais de la Danse'

The lure of the orchestra

exploding like a storm...

...crashed through walls and roofs,

engulfing all

Come on, ladies and gentlemen.

Dance and be merry

The crowd flooded in

like water bursting a dam

Regulars from all over Paris,

regardless of class...

...came for rollicking fun...

...and debauchery

There were workers...

...pimps...

...and, above all, girls

From rough cotton

to the finest cambric

Rich old women

chasing their youth...

...and poor young girls desperate to

have fun and entice big spenders

Elegant suits after young flesh or

wilted but still fragrant blooms...

...prowled the excited crowd...

...searching and hunting

From the crowd a man emerged

Thin and dressed like a young dandy

He looked like a waxwork

A caricature of a fashion designers'

dream

And now, ladies and gentlemen,

the great dancer Monsieur Grandval

His dancing was convincing,

but clumsy

He seemed rusty, trying to

imitate the others

He seemed lost - as graceless as

a terrier amongst greyhounds

You're a good dancer

- What's your name?

- Frimousse. And you?

You're gorgeous

Carry on playing

Come on, maestro,

don't stop the music

- He'll live, won't he?

- Yes, he's just fainted

Call a doctor, quickly

At the end of the corridor

You're needed, doctor

- Where is he?

- On the stairs

- Are you a doctor?

- Yes, but I'm not here to...

You only have to cross the room.

Someone fainted on the dance floor

Remember me? Last winter in Nice.

We danced together

- I remember

- The rain stopped us

This time it won't. I'm delighted to

see you again. You're ravishing

Are you thirsty?

Georges, champagne!

I'll be back at once

I can't...

We're unlucky with dances

These are too tight. They'll

take an hour to undo

I'll cut them off. Can I have

some scissors?

Fetch some scissors. Hurry up

- Your cognac, doctor

- Not now

What's wrong?

Don't worry. You'll be fine

What happened?

Where's Frimousse?

I'm here

You'll see her later. Keep still

- Where do you live?

- Rue des A...

Rue des Amiraux

It's the other side of Montmartre

At the end of the

Rue des Poissonniers

You can go home to bed

My word!

Rue des Amiraux

Hold my hat

- Go and dance

- Not alone

Go on, quickly

Come in, ladies and gentlemen

Baron...

It was a big, but shabby, house

A house full of

miserable wretches...

...and with grimy stairs

I can't go any further

Come on, you're nearly there

- What about Frimousse?

- What?

She'll be waiting

She can wait

Is it the next floor?

Yes, ring twice

But your wife must be sleeping

No, she has insomnia

What is it now?

It's nothing

Come on

He fainted in...

...a public place

- At a ball

- You knew?

It's not the first time he's ended up

flat on his face

That's a relief

Come in

He ate nothing at dinner to be

lighter, but had a drink to be merry

Mind the steps

Why is he so keen on dancing?

I'll tell you why. So people think

he's young under the mask

So women take him for a dandy and

let him whisper dirty things to them

So he can rub against them with all

their perfumes, powders and creams

Can you help me pull off his sleeve?

That's it

And now the shoes. That's harder

That's it

If you think he'll move later to make

room for me, you're wrong

I'll have to sleep elsewhere

You playboy

So he acts the young man at balls

All the time. You can't imagine the

state he's in when he comes home

What drives him to it?

Regret. He's not what he used to be

He was once greater than

all the tenors and generals

He still looks good for his age,

doesn't he?

I'll make him a hot-water bottle

Are you surprised by his past?

You didn't know him in his prime

When I met him, I was hooked

Hooked like a fish on a line

He was so sweet I could have cried

He took me home

and I never left him

Not for a day, despite everything

- Are you married?

- Yes, thankfully

Or he would have left me like the

others. I've been his wife and maid

- What did he do?

- He was first assistant at Marcel's

The hairdresser's?

Yes, by the opera house.

All the actresses used it

I'll get a face cloth

The richest asked for Ambroise

- Ambroise?

- Yes, him

He made a fortune in tips

They're all the same. When they fancy

a man, they take him. It's so easy

I spent nights waiting for him

He'd finally come home bright-eyed

He'd say to me:

"Another one, Denise"

What a man! He felt the need

to boast about it

Some men derive more pleasure

from talking than doing

They called you because

you were on duty?

No, I was there

You're probably not married, then

When you are, it'll be different

I hope so

Men just have to hunt...

But he's older now

When I saw his first white hair, I did

my housework with a lighter heart

After two years, he was

unrecognizable

Women weren't after him any more

So he started going to dances

It became an obsession

- He's calling

- I'm all alone

I'm sorry I told you all that...

Please, don't apologize.

I've learnt a precious lesson

Doctor...

Give me your address

in case he gets worse

I don't think you need worry.

He could go on for years like this

That's good. I want him to live long

and carry on dancing

The doctor had witnessed a scene

from the eternal drama...

...played out every day in so many

forms and settings

To the 'Palais de la Danse'

I didn't just write sad stories

Would you now like something

more cheerful, bawdy even?

A fairy tale for grown-ups?

It's quite a long story,

based in Normandy...

...in a small Channel port

The setting is not exactly

residential...

...if you understand my meaning

It's the story of a house

Not exactly a block

of rented flats...

...but how can I put it

without shocking you?

It was a house, but a

very well kept house

Men would go there every night...

...meeting in little groups

They were respectable -

shopkeepers, young men...

They would drink and fondle

the girls or talk to Madame...

...whom they all respected

Too late

Madame was from a good

farming family...

...and saw her trade as no different

to a milliner's or linen maid's

There was less prejudice

in the countryside

Farmers said:

"It's a good trade"...

...and sent their daughters to run

harems as if they were girls' schools

The house was inherited

from an uncle

The new owners closed their inn...

...and embraced this new venture

They took over a business which,

lacking management, had been failing

They were nice people, and the staff

and neighbors liked them instantly

Monsieur died two years later

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