The Night of the Generals Page #3

Leave us, sergeant.

I, um...

I don't seem

to understand you, corporal.

I want to survive, sir.

I want to live through the war.

Well, naturally. We all do.

But we are soldiers, we must fight.

Yes, sir. And I have.

And you don't want to go back.

Is this the "reincarnation

of Siegfried"?

I'm sorry, sir,

but I have a horror of death.

Even in a good cause?

Let me see now...

According to your papers,

in civilian life you were

a student at Dresden?

Music conservatory,

yes, sir. I studied piano.

Music, piano, yes. Yes.

Yes. I think I have

an assignment for you.

But one which requires great courage.

Only a man who has killed...

How many was it? Let me see.

Yes, 40 Russians single-handed,

would be equal to the task.

Now, what about Chopin,

wasn't he Polish?

Didn't he write the Polonaises?

Can you play them?

Yes, madam.

You don't sound

very enthusiastic.

Well, madam,

they were patriotic pieces,

celebrating the glory

of Poland.

Well, the glory of Poland

isn't precisely what

we're here to celebrate.

No, madam. So I thought

that perhaps we might play...

Wagner.

I remember the Fuhrer saying to me

after a performance of Parsifal,

"There's no such thing

as too much Wagner."

After Parsifal?

I must say, it's unusual

to find a fighting man

who also knows about music.

Thank you, madam.

Oh, no, don't thank me,

wait until I've thanked you.

And I won't until

after the soiree.

I dislike being a bore, major.

You never bore me, Engel.

But I can't help wondering

what you're trying to prove.

Just what do you think you're doing?

My job.

But if you say anything to

any of them, he'll know...

The murderer will know

that you're after him.

That's the point of the exercise.

Good evening, sergeant.

Sir.

But look, sir, why do you care

who killed that b*tch?

She's better off dead anyway.

Have you ever heard

of the Eumenides?

The what?

Greek mythology.

A number of disagreeable ladies,

sometimes known as the Furies.

They believe that spilled blood

calls out for vengeance.

That's how justice began.

Well, we don't want it to end,

do we, just because there's a war on?

Wait for me here.

I'm afraid I won't be long.

Mad.

Grau.

Colonel Mannheim.

What on earth are you doing here?

You must be out of your mind.

If the generals won't see me,

I must come here to see them.

Well, God help you, Grau.

I won't.

Better have some champagne.

You'll need it.

You may be right, sir.

General Tanz, to my mind

you're a model man in every respect.

Except one.

You've not married.

May I ask why not?

No opportunity. Greatly regret it.

Well, perhaps you've allowed

opportunities to slip by.

My dear, General Tanz is

a young man whose life

has been spent as a soldier.

His generation has been denied

the pleasures of domesticity.

We live in a period which makes

great demands upon us.

Consequently, there is little time

for what is commonly known

as private life.

Quite right. Champagne, general?

Water.

Water?

A glass of water for General Tanz.

Ah. Here comes Ulrike.

You remember her from Berlin.

Good evening, general.

She's been with me over

a year now, as a soldier.

An excellent soldier.

Thank you, Father.

I must say, I still find it hard

to get used to the idea

of young girls in the army.

We're building a new world order,

and women should not be exempt

from playing their part.

I knew you would understand,

general.

Ulrike has now decided

to become a nurse

in a military hospital run

by an order of nuns in Bavaria.

We're very proud of our girl.

Tell me, general, is it true

that in the battle of Leningrad

you used frozen bodies instead

of sandbags for your artillery?

The story is exaggerated.

Oh, I am sorry.

Some soldiers lie and rot

in the battlefield.

I thought it most imaginative,

putting the dead to work,

you might say.

Nobody rots with me.

Your water, general.

Thank you.

My compliments. I liked the bit

about the frozen bodies.

Oh, thank you, general.

Be careful.

Ulrike has

a most original way

of expressing herself.

Needless to say,

I shall miss not

having her with me.

Then why let her go?

Come along, general,

let's have some supper.

You'll join us, too,

Kahlenberge?

Courage.

Is not enough.

How dare you speak like that

to General Tanz?

It serves you right, Mother,

for what you're doing to me.

Whatever I do is for your own good.

I think only of you.

Only of me?

You have changed.

When did I begin

to interest you so much?

Good evening.

You've become vicious.

Yes, it's the war, Mother.

Well, the nuns will soon

improve your manners.

Suppose I refuse to go?

You will be ordered to go.

I have seen to that already.

You have no choice.

You really are a terrible

woman, Mother.

I suppose we deserve

each other.

Colonel Mannheim!

Good evening.

Yes, I'd love to dance with you.

In my memoirs,

I keep a record of everything.

Yours will be the place of honor

in the Warsaw chapter.

General von Seidlitz-Gabler?

Sir.

Oh, yes, you are Major?

Grau, Intelligence.

Under Colonel Mannheim.

I tried to see you today.

In fact, I tried to see each of you,

without much success, I'm afraid.

I'm sorry, major, but general

officers are sometimes busy,

you know?

Of course.

What was it you wanted

to see us about?

Last night,

a prostitute was murdered.

A prostitute?

That's an occupational

hazard, isn't it?

When you hear the details,

I'm sure you'll agree

it's a unique case.

Unique?

You can't be serious.

We live in an age in which bodies lie

around streets like cobblestones.

What's so unique

about this case?

All right, all right,

come to the point, major.

Last night, a woman

was murdered.

Yes, general, in

Bulkowa Street, number 27,

fourth-floor apartment,

Maria Kupiecka, a prostitute,

also one of our agents.

She was stabbed to death

most brutally.

Cut to pieces, in fact.

A charming story.

But what has that to do with us?

Preliminary investigation

has established that

each of you was...

well, unaccounted

for last night.

To whom should we be

accountable, major?

I fail to see what my...

What our movements should

have to do with you or

with this woman's death.

Well, the murderer was seen

leaving the woman's room.

In that case,

you must know who he is.

Not exactly.

The face was not visible,

but the uniform was.

It was the uniform

of a German officer.

In fact, a German general.

This is a serious charge.

I hope you know what you're doing.

Oh, yes, sir, my duty.

Then consider your duty

done, major. Good night.

Are you, by any chance,

using perfume?

I occasionally use a strong

eau de cologne after shaving.

Good night, sir.

I will, of course, want to see

each of you tomorrow, if I may,

in line of duty.

It is quite possible

we've been misled,

but we don't want to leave

any loose ends dangling, do we?

Until tomorrow.

Good night, generals.

Astonishing behavior!

Who invited him?

Not I.

Socially, Major Grau

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