A PIGEON ON A BRANCH

– REFLECTING ON EXISTENCE

TEXT AND DRAWINGS BY

ROY ANDERSSON

Copyright 2o11 Roy Andersson Filmproduktion AB

The pram

A young woman has sat down on a bench in a leafy park. There is a pram in front
of her. She has leaned over the pram and is confidently examining something we
cannot see.
It is early afternoon. In the distance we see a sunlit meadow where some youths
are throwing a frisbee.
The young woman’s hands are in the pram.
After a while she lifts up a pair of plump baby legs and kisses her child’s feet.
From a tree in the park a woodpigeon is heard:

– Ho, ho... ho, hoo... ho, ho... ho, hoo...

2
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The wine bottle

A couple in late middle age are going to have dinner one Friday or Saturday even-
ing. It is winter and snowing outside the window in the living room, where a table
is laid for two. The husband is standing by the table trying to open a bottle of
wine. In the background can be seen the kitchen, where the wife is preoccupied
with cooking the food. The husband cannot get the cork out of the wine bottle.
He tries various methods.
When he finally puts the bottle on the floor between his feet and with a great
effort tries to pull up the cork he has a heart attack, falls down and dies.
The wife neither sees nor hears what happens to the husband since her back is
to the living room, she is using a loud electric whisk and has the radio on playing
loud, happy music. She sings along to the song playing on the radio.

4
Test shot

5
The hospital

An old woman lies in her death bed in a hospital. The end is near. But it is uncer-
tain if she will die this day or the next. Her children are gathered around the bed.
Two sons and a daughter. The sons are annoyed with their sister, since the
mother in a moment of clarity asked the daughter to bring a special bag to the
hospice. They know that the bag contains amongst other things about seventy
thousand kronor, the mother’s jewellery and their dead father’s gold watch and
wedding ring.
The dying mother tensely holds on to the bag and screams loudly when anyone
as much as touches it.
A nurse explains to the adult children that staff have tried to get the mother to
give them the bag, but she said in a moment of clarity that she wants to take it to
heaven.
The oldest son tries to calmly persuade the mother to give him the bag and says
that sort of thing cannot be taken to heaven.

SON 1

– Hi... How’s it going...?

SON 2

– The doctor said nothing is going to happen tonight...

So we could go home, he said...

SON 1

What is this...? The bag... how has she got hold of it? Who brought it here ?

DAUGHTER

– I did.

6
Test shot

7
 SON 1

– Why?

DAUGHTER

– She wanted it.

SON 1

– What do you mean wanted it?!

SON 2

– She thinks she can take it to heaven.

DAUGHTER

– Yes...

SON 1

– I think you look drunk.

THE DAUGHTER

– Yes, you are as nasty as ever.

8
 SON 1

– You know what the fuck is in that bag... All her jewellery... and father’s gold
watch, wedding ring and cufflinks... And I know there is also an envelope with
the money she got for the car... And that was more than seventy thousand!
This is not on... We can’t leave it here... You realise that...

(Pause.)

– You will go to heaven mother, I know you will... Because you have been good...
Just like father... He is there now waiting for you... He couldn’t take his gold
watch with him...

He tries to work the bag loose from the mother’s hands. She screams loudly.
He looks dejectedly at the brother and sister and then at the mother.

– You can’t take it to heaven with you, mother... It’s not allowed...
You’ll get new jewellery in heaven, mother...! (He again tries to get the bag loose).
...You can’t take this with you! It doesn’t work like that, mother!

Both sons try and rip the bag from the mother’s hands. They tug so hard that
the bed starts to roll towards them, the mother yells and the hospital staff come
running.

9
The ferry

We are on the kind of medium-sized ferry that regularly transports people and
cars.
In the self-service restaurant, a middle aged man has collapsed in front of the
till just as he has paid for the contents on the tray, a shrimp sandwich and a lager.
It is evident that attempts to restart the man’s heart have been made. A Ship’s
Officer in a white shirt with black epaulettes kneels down and feels the man’s
neck one last time, but doesn’t feel a pulse. He looks up at a colleague standing
beside him and says dryly:

THE CAPTAIN

– This doesn’t look good.

SHIPS OFFICER 1

– No, he’s gone.

SHIPS OFFICER 2

– We’ve been trying to resuscitate him for over half an hour now...
And it isn’t working.

SHIPS OFFICER 1

– He is as dead as a stone.

THE CAPTAIN

– Ok... Then we’ll have to get a stretcher and take him to an empty cabin...
That is, if there is an empty cabin.

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Test shot

11
 SHIPS OFFICER 2

– Yes, there is.

THE CASHIER

– Can I ask something?

THE CAPTAIN

– Yes.

THE CASHIER

– What should we do with this now?

(She points at the tray with the shrimp sandwich and beer.)

THE CAPTAIN

– What do you mean?

THE CASHIER

– Well, he has paid...

THE CAPTAIN

– Erm... Good question... We can hardly sell it twice...

We’ll have to try and give it away.

12
 THE CASHIER

(Shouts out in the restaurant:) – Does anyone want this...?

A shrimp sandwich and a lager?

A GUEST IN THE RESTAURANT

I’ll take the beer!

13
The hairdresser

THE TEMPORARY HAIRDRESSER

– Well, hello... You may recognize me... Or some of you may do.
I am a Sea Captain... Or rather, have been... Yes, actually for almost fifteen
years... I was the Captain on one of our larger ferries...
But, as I say,... I’m not anymore... I had to quit... because I was struck by
dizziness as soon as we left land... A kind of sea sickness, one might say.
Yes, and now I am here...
It just so happens that my sister’s husband, my brother-in-law, as one says,
has been taken ill. He is a hairdresser and he owns this salon.
I have promised to help him run it until he gets better... To try, in any case.
I learnt a little about cutting hair in the military. It was many years ago,
but I remember a little and will in any case try and do the best I can.
One can’t do more than that.

The telephone rings in the small office. The hairdresser picks up the phone. The
waiting customer, Sam, takes the opportunity to escape.

– Yes, hello... Hello, hello... (He listens and after a while smilingly says:)
...It’s nice to hear you are doing well!

14
Test shot

15
Limping Lotta’s Pub 1

Lunch hour is over. A few guests who do not have to be elsewhere have remained.
By a pillar, Sam sits and waits for Jonathan to show up.
They have arranged to meet up after Sam has been to the hairdressers. Jona-
than arrives and is surprised.

JONATHAN

– Are you here already?!

SAM

– Yes, as you can see.

JONATHAN

– You were going to get your hair cut.

SAM

– Yes, maybe I was.

JONATHAN

– You haven’t done it.

SAM

– No, maybe I haven’t.

JONATHAN

– Why not?

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 SAM

– I don’t want to explain every fucking thing to you... ok?!

JONATHAN

– Why are you so angry now, then?

SAM

– Do you understand what I’m saying... I don’t want to explain every fucking
thing to you... right now... Do you understand?!

JONATHAN

(Starts to cry) – You are so nasty... You really are... All the time...

A GUEST AT A NEARBY TABLE

– Is he upset? Can I buy him a beer?

SAM

– No, he isn’t having anything now... We are going to see a customer.

A GUEST AT A NEARBY TABLE

– What is it you do?

SAM

– We sell novelty items.

18
 Jonathan stops sobbing and wipes the tears from his cheeks.

JONATHAN

– We want to help people have fun .

Further away in the pub a man is talking on a mobile phone to a relative.

THE MAN

– Nice to hear you’re doing well!

19
The balcony

Two young girls who enjoy life are waving happily from a balcony. After whisper-
ing something to each other they blow kisses to the camera. Embarrassed by their
behavior, they quickly crouch down behind the balcony railing so as not to be
seen.

20
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Customer visit 1

Sam and Jonathan are visiting an old customer in his shop where he sells tobacco,
newspapers, lottery tickets and novelty items. He has ordered a new batch of vam-
pire teeth.
They also show him a new version of the laughter bag that has a darker and
scarier laugh. They bring out one of the old version so the difference can be heard.
A customer standing in the shop filling in a lotto slip is watching, irritated with
what is going on. Jonathan feels he must explain himself and says to the customer:

JONATHAN

– We want to help people have fun.

They also show the latest product, the rubber mask “Uncle One Tooth”.
Jonathan turns his back on the shopkeeper and puts on the rubber mask. The
man with the lotto slip looks without expression at the mask.
To attain an element of surprise Jonathan quickly turns to face the shopkeeper.
At the same time, the shopkeeper’s wife comes out from a smalI office behind the
counter. She is shocked by what she sees and rushes into the office again, yelling.
The shopkeeper gestures helplessly with his arms and says:

THE SHOPKEEPER

– Thanks, but I will just take the vampire teeth today.

22
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The couple in the kitchen

It is dawn. A middle aged couple in night clothes have been woken by a relative
ringing. The wife stands by the kitchen workbench with the telephone to her ear
and listens. The husband sits at the kitchen table. He has difficulty staying awake.
The wife smiles at what she hears.

THE WIFE

– Nice to hear you’re doing well!

She turns to the sleepy husband and points the telephone receiver at him:

THE WIFE

– Do you want to say anything?

THE HUSBAND

– Say that I also think it’s nice to hear they are doing well.

The wife turns away from the husband and continues:

THE WIFE

– He says he also thinks it’s nice to hear they are doing well!

24
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The Managing Director

A director of one of the country’s largest companies is alone in his big, exclusive
study. It is night.
He holds a mobile phone to his ear and listens to someone who is clearly famil-
iar to him. In his left hand he has a gun.
On the table a sheet of paper and an expensive fountain pen can be seen. His
gaze is tired and his body slumped. His voice is low and vibrates with emotion.

THE MANAGING DIRECTOR

– Nice to hear you are doing well...

He repeats himself in a higher voice as he has difficulty hearing what the other
person is saying.

THE MANAGING DIRECTOR

– Nice to hear you are doing well...

26
Test shot

27
Jonathan alone in his room

Jonathan is sitting on his bed. On his little desk there is a record player on which
spins a crackling vinyl record of the song “Lilla vackra Anna” (“Beautiful little
Anna”).
He is noticeably emotional. With tears in his eyes, he sings along with the song
lyrics.
When he has heard the song’s last verse he begins to cry out loud. He lifts up
the record player pickup and moves it back so he can hear the words again.
When the passage about meeting ones parents again in heaven plays, he begins
to cry uncontrollably. He holds his mouth so no one can hear him.

28
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The scientist

A middle aged female scientist is holding her mobile phone to her ear and listens
to something positive that obviously has nothing to do with her work.
On the work surface in front of her is a rhesus monkey in a so-called restraint
chair, which means that the monkey cannot move at all, save for its eyes and
mouth.
On the monkey’s head can be seen electrodes that are attached by wires to a
measuring apparatus that also stands on the lab desk. Electrical pulses are sent to
the monkey’s brain which cause spastic eye and mouth movements.
The scientist radiates self confidence and experience. The conversation evokes a
smile whereupon she says:

THE SCIENTIST

– Nice to hear you’re doing well!

...Yes, I said it is nice to hear you are doing well!!!

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The Assyrian organ

In Old Testament times, Assyria was a powerful empire in the upper part of the
land between the rivers Euphrates and Tigris. Evidence shows that the Assyrians
were extremely cruel to their defeated enemies and enjoyed tormenting them in
public.
We do not know for sure if what we are calling “The Assyrian Organ” really
existed and was used. But the organ and the scene can serve as a foundation for
our fantasy about what people, throughout time, have been and are capable of do-
ing to other people in order to enrich their own existence.
In this case, captured people are shut into the enormous copper cylinder and
a fire is then lit underneath it. The screams of those shut in are transformed to
incredibly beautiful music that streams out through pipes with differently tuned
membranes.
The scene is clearly and consciously anachronistic, i.e. it contains several details
that do not come from the depicted epoch but have the function of connecting the
story to our own time.
This scene is a priority in the shooting schedule but that does not mean it will
be at the beginning of the film. It will probably end up somewhere in the middle.
However, the scene needs great attention and extensive preparatory work that
should begin now.
The music, the transformed screams, that stream out through the organ’s pipes
is intended to be laid over some of the films other scenes.
The composer Benny Andersson has been contacted and is willing to try and
compose some of the most beautiful music ever.

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The terrace

We see the empty terrace of a magnificent house with large sliding glass doors.
Inside can be seen elegant curtains that are drawn so there is no view of the
inside.
The glass doors reflect the big rotating copper cylinder and the flames under-
neath. The beautiful music from the cylinder’s membranes creates a calm and
solemn atmosphere.
After a while the curtains are drawn back by servants dressed in dark, elegant
clothes. A large group of people with champagne glasses in hand can now be seen
behind the glass doors.
When the glass doors are slid open they glide slowly out on to the terrace.
Some people wear glasses which reflect the firelight under the rotating cylinder.
They appear captivated by the beautiful music and sip carefully from the
champagne.

(Note: It might be possible that Sam and Jonathan are amongst the guests, but
dressed in their usual clothes. They are not as elegant as the others on the terrace.
The viewer does not get to know if the scene is a dream, a thought of Jonathan’s,
or a depiction of a historical event.)

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A horrified Jonathan

It is evening. Jonathan is sitting on his bed. He is motionless and has a horrified

look on his face. A knock is heard on his door but he does not react. After a
while, we hear the door to the room open and the light from the corridor illumi-
nates his room. Sam comes in. Jonathan remains motionless.

SAM

– What has happened?

JONATHAN

– I thought about something awful.

SAM

You had better fucking tell me what has happened.

JONATAN

– Not now... I will do it tomorrow.

SAM

– Don’t bother then, you stubborn sod! ...Good night!

Sam leaves Jonathan’s room without closing the door behind him.

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Jonathan on suffering

In the corridor. Jonathan’s door is open. Sam has not closed his door either. After
a while, Jonathan comes out of his room and shouts towards Sam’s door. Sam
comes out.

JONATHAN

– Sam! ...Sam!!!

SAM

– What is it now?

JONATHAN

It’s terrible when people have to suffer so that others can have fun...
...That people only think of their own pleasure...

SAM

– What’s wrong with doing things for your own sake?

...What the hell is wrong with that? Otherwise you will never get rich...
for fuck’s sake... that’s what’s wrong with you... Fucking peasant...!

At the far end of the corridor, a door opens and the hall porter comes out from
his office. He puts his index finger to his mouth and hushes:

THE HALL PORTER

– You’re not the only ones living here. There are others who have to
get up early in the morning!

Sam makes an apologetic gesture, goes into his room and closes the door. The hall
porter goes into his room and closes his door. Jonathan is left alone in the corri-
dor and looks towards Sam’s door.
38
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Sam and Jonathan on the way

Sam and Jonathan are on the way to a meeting with a customer. Jonathan is car-
rying the bag with the novelty items. He has fallen a little behind Sam who stops
and turns around. He looks at Jonathan who then also stops.

SAM

– Damn, it looks like you are asleep when you walk... You walk like this...

In a very exaggerated manner, Sam shows how he thinks Jonathan walks.

JONATHAN

– I don’t do that at all... I was walking the same as usual... like this...

Jonathan shows how he thinks he was walking. Sam irritatedly turns around and
continues onward.

40
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On the way to the defeat at Poltava

This scene consists of three parts that thematically touch different topics. The am-
bition is to merge these parts into one scene and perform it in a single take.
The scene is played out in a large but simple bar in a suburb on the edge of a large
town. It is dusk.
Sam and Jonathan have tried in vain to contact a customer who owes them
money. They have the address to a shop that they have found totally empty. There
is no sign that there has ever been a business there that has any connection with
their own. They are now trying to get help from the bar staff, but no one knows
of the person they are looking for or his where-abouts.
When asked what they do, they answer that they sell novelty items and that
they want to help people have fun.
The staff ask if they can see their products. Jonathan shows them the vampire
teeth that do not seem to interest anyone. Sam then takes out the latest version of
the laughing bag. When he squeezes it a dark, hysterical laughter is heard.
At the same time, the bar doors are opened by two Carolean Drabants. They
hold open both doors and a duty officer from Charles XII:s Caroleans rides into
the premises. With his horse he pushes tables and chairs out of the way to make
room. He points at the women in the premises and gestures for them to leave.
When they do not obey immediately he rides up to their tables in a threatening
manner. The women become scared and rush towards the open door. The horse-
man chases them and the two Drabants grab hold of their arms and kick them
when they do not move fast enough. marching soldiers can now be seen outside.
They are followed by horsemen, baggage wagons and wheeled gun-carriages. The
duty officer on horseback shouts:

THE DUTY OFFICER

– No women on the premises... The king is coming... show respect for the king,
fucking civilians!!!

He then rides out. Several officers have dismounted from their horses and enter
the premises. A colonel shouts in a shrill voice:

THE COLONEL

The king is thirsty! ...Show respect for the king!

42
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A ruddy complectioned, thin haired horseman without insignia rides skillfully
into the premises, with the reins in one hand and his hat in the other. An officer
rushes forward and takes hold of the horse’s halter. Another officer goes down on
his hands and knees so that the horseman can climb down on his back. A third
officer does the same thing by a bar stool so that the horseman can climb up and
sit down. A bartender pours beer into a tankard.

The duty officer comes back without his horse. When he sees the tankard be-
ing filled he shouts at all the staff that they should know the king does not drink
alcohol.

THE DUTY OFFICER

– Make sure to serve the king mineral water!

A bartender opens a bottle of mineral water and puts it and a glass in front of
the king. A strikingly beautiful young apprentice comes out of a door behind the
counter. The king looks long and intensely at the young man. He beckons the duty
officer to him and whispers something in his ear. The duty officer turns to the
bartender and commands:

THE DUTY OFFICER

– Would you see to it that the young man there pours the king’s mineral water!

The young apprentice pours the mineral water into the king’s glass with trembling
hands. The king raises the glass and takes a long drink while intensely looking at
the apprentice. Then he whispers:

THE KING

– Gorgeous!

He takes another swig of mineral water and turns to the staff.

44
 THE KING

– Now we are going to give it to the Russians good and proper..

He beckons the duty officer over again and whispers something. The duty officer
nods in understanding then goes to the doorway and shouts:

THE DUTY OFFICER

– The king wants you to sing!

The whole army then begins singing:

“ Charles the twelfth had a hundred thousand men, Charles the twelfth
had a hundred thousand men, Charles the twelfth had a hundred thousand
men when he marched on in smoke and macadam.”

(The scene can possibly be extended with the following:)

The king puts his empty glass down on the bar and looks at the young apprentice:

THE KING

– Such a beautiful fellow should come along to the field. The battlefield gives life
its meaning. He can sleep in my tent.

Thousands of soldiers, cavalry and wagons pass by outside the bar, jangling and
singing.

45
The lonely lieutenant colonel

It is evening. Lights shine out the windows of basement pub “Limping Lotta’s”.
The lonely lieutenant colonel is standing in the street outside the pub with his mo-
bile phone to his ear. The recorded voice says:

THE TELEPHONE VOICE

– You have no messages.

The lieutenant-colonel goes over to one of the basement pub’s windows. Murmurs
and laughter are heard faintly through the closed window. He bends down to see
if he knows anyone down there.

46
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Customer visit 2

Sam and Jonathan visit a customer that has not paid. Behind the shop counter
stands a worn-out looking woman. A child sits on the floor rolling a toy car back
and forth. The shop sells a basic range of toys as wells as novelty items.
Sam and Jonathan display their business to the haggard woman. She takes
some kind of order book out and asks what items they have supplied. She runs her
index finger over a list and nods in understanding:

THE WOMAN

– One moment... I will ask my husband...

She carefully opens the door to the office behind the counter, enters quietly and
closes the door. A short while later she comes out.

THE WOMAN

– Unfortunately, my husband is ill... He is sick...

He is in bed and cannot get up. I am sorry.

Indignantly, Sam explains that the items were delivered more than three months
ago, and that her husband told them a week ago on the phone that they could
come today. The worried young woman opens the door to the office again. Her
husband is lying under a blanket on the sofa. With a low voice the woman says
that a meeting was booked for today. The man lies motionless and shouts from
under the blanket:

THE MAN

– We don’t have any money!!!

48
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The flamenco lesson

A female dance teacher in her fifties is very attracted to one of her young male
students. She eagerly teaches him about posture and its importance in this special
dance, and takes every opportunity to touch him in an unrestrained manner.

50
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The cleaner

In the corridor outside the dance studio, a cleaner has taken a break in her work
to talk to a relative on her mobile phone. The dancers’ rhythmical steps are heard
from the dance studio. The dance studio door opens and the upset young dancer
leaves the flamenco lesson. He passes the cleaner who is preoccupied with her
phone call. She appears to hear something positive and bursts out in a smile:

THE CLEANER

– Good to hear you are doing well!...

The sound of dance steps increases in intensity and she feels she must speak
louder:

THE CLEANER

– Yes, I said it’s good to hear you are doing well!

The sound of dance steps becomes even more intense.

52
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A couple on the beach in September

On a warm and slightly hazy day during their holidays, a couple is lying on a
blanket at the beach.They lie high up on the beach, close to the sand dunes behind
them. They are fully dressed. They’re embracing but still. Next to the blanket,
their three year old daughter sits and pours sand into a plastic bucket, safe and
preoccupied by a secret fantasy.

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Jonathan does not want to meet his parents in heaven

It is evening. Jonathan is sitting by his small desk listening to the song about beau-
tiful Anna. He is very moved. Sam has entered the room. The hall porter is stand-
ing in the doorway. Jonathan wants them both to listen to the verse about how the
song’s lovers come to heaven and meet their parents again. He thinks it is terrible
to hear it, but he cannot keep himself from listening to it. When he has dried the
tears from his eyes he says:

JONATHAN

– Mom and dad were very nice, but I don’t want to meet them again in heaven.

The hall porter is troubled to hear this and goes away.

56
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I don’t know what I want

It is evening. “Limping Lotta’s” pub is half full of people, mostly regulars. One
such guest is sitting alone at his table. It seems like he has been sitting there a long
time thinking. There is a coffee cup and a half full glass of cognac on the table.
He sighs and looks at the guests in the bar and then at the camera. He spreads his
arms wearily and half shouts.

THE MAN

– I don’t know what I want!

The odd guest gives him a tired glance. It isn’t the first time they have heard this.
The waitresses carry on working as if they had not heard anything.

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After Poltava

It is afternoon. Lunch is over in the simple suburb bar. A few guests remain. Two
tired Carolean Drabants open up both the bar doors. A few Caroleans on horse-
back can be seen through the opening. They are in very poor shape. Some are
wounded.
The duty officer, who has now both aged and been wounded in the war, limps
into the bar. He leads a thinner horse by the halter. Hanging over the horse’s back
is an exhausted Charles XII.
Some officers in dirty, ripped uniforms limp in after the horse. An officer man-
ages to get down on his hands and knees next to the horse and two others help
the king get down onto his back. A fourth officer gets down on his hands and
knees next to a bar stool. The king looks at the barstool and mutters:

THE KING

– No, no...

He whispers something to the duty officer, who then goes to the bar and says to
the bartender:

THE DUTY OFFICER

– The king needs to use the toilet.

The bartender nods and points further into the premises. The two officers begin
to lead the stumbling king to the toilet. Barely audibly, he mutters:

THE KING

– If it had not started to rain and if we’d had more horses... We have lost half the
kingdom... If we had only had more horses...

60
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A stone in the shoe

Sam and Jonathan have taken a break and are resting on a bench or on a slope at
the side of a gravel path.
A young woman comes walking by. She is troubled by a stone in one of her
shoes. She stops and shakes the stone out. She then walks on unfettered.
Sam and Jonathan have been quietly watching the incident. When the young
woman moves away from them, Jonathan says:

JONATHAN

– She had a stone in her shoe.

SAM

– Yes, I saw that as well.

JONATHAN

– It was nice.

SAM

– Do you mean it’s nice to have a stone in your shoe?

JONATHAN

– No, but it was nice when she took it out.

62
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The poem

Children with Down’s Syndrome and their relatives are gathered in a lecture hall.
Some of the children are going to appear on the stage. A female teacher holds the
hand of a seven-year-old boy and accompanies him to the middle of the stage. She
steps aside. After a while she says:

THE FEMALE TEACHER

– Yes, Ola, you can start now.

OLA

– A pigeon on a branch...

THE FEMALE TEACHER

– Yes, and what did the pigeon do there...? Do you remember?

OLA

– I think he sat there thinking..

THE FEMALE TEACHER

– Yeess... good!...And what do you think he was thinking about?

OLA

– I don’t know...

THE FEMALE TEACHER

– Have you forgotten? ...Well, you can have a guess... try...

64
 OLA

– I think he was thinking about what it’s like being a pigeon…

65
The cheesemonger

A man is standing in the doorway of his cheese shop. He has just opened his shop
and is wearing a large newly ironed white apron over his work clothes.
Inside the shop a female employee is seen working with something. After a
while the cheesemonger says to the camera:

THE CHEESEMONGER

– I feel kind today... damn kind...

The woman in the shop stops working for a moment and looks at the cheesemon-
ger. She then carries on with her work but glances now and then at the cheese-
monger.

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An old regular tells a story

THE OLD MAN

I was the first to kiss Limping Lotta... I sat there. When she had finished
singing she came over here and stood like this and closed her eyes.
Well, I got up…..loads of people came and stood behind me.
...Well, afterwards I went and stood at the back of the line...
yes, there was one more time... So to speak... he, he...

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You shall pay with kisses

This scene is a loose interpretation and staging of the song about “Limping Lot-
ta’s” pub in Gothenburg.
The song will be sung by military servicemen, a mixture of seamen and infan-
trymen that made up the majority of the pub’s clientele during the Second World
War. This pub will be built in the studio and will be the setting for many of the
scenes both past and present.
No one knows for sure where the original was or what it looked like.

There have been many versions of the song. We will make our own version that
incorporates parts of other versions.
We begin with Limping Lotta, possibly with the help of other waitresses, sing-
ing the verse “The drink costs fifteen öre, the drink costs fifteen öre, the drink
costs fifteen öre up at Limping Lotta’s pub in Gothenburg.”
The military personal and others then sing: ”With what shall we pay, we who
have no money, with what shall we pay up at Limping Lotta’s pub in Gothen-
burg.”
Limping Lotta then sings, while walking around serving: ”Why, you shall pay
with kisses, you shall pay with kisses...”, and so on.
Much to her delight, many servicemen then stand up and begin to stand in line
to kiss Limping Lotta, while singing: “We shall pay with kisses, we shall pay with
kisses...”. The other waitresses are also kissed.

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An old regular goes home

The Old Regular gets up and walks towards the stairs that lead to the door.
Halfway there, he turns and looks cheekily at the camera:

THE OLD MAN

– Yes, those were the days. He, he...

He makes a gesture with his hands that implies there was more
going on than just kisses, then continues towards the stairs.
With his back to the camera we hear him one more time.

THE OLD MAN

– Very good days... He, he...

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After the flamenco lesson

The dance teacher is the only one left in the dance studio. She has changed into
her outdoor shoes. Her coat hangs over her arm and in her left hand she holds a
bag containing what appear to be her private clothes.
With her right hand she punches in a telephone number on her mobile phone, then
puts it to her ear and listens to a recorded voice:

THE TELEPHONE VOICE

– You have no messages.

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The unlucky lieutenant colonel

At Limping Lotta’s pub, the lieutenant-colonel has sat down at Sam and Jona-
than’s table. He looks crushed. He feels he is dogged by misfortune. On this very
day, for example, this happened:

THE LIEUTENANT COLONEL

– Well, when I left home it started to rain, of course. So I went home to get
my umbrella. But, of course, I had forgotten to take the keys to the flat. So I had
to walk to the bus stop in the pouring rain without an umbrella, of course.
When I got to the bus stop, well, I saw the bus driving off, of course.
And there is no cover there so of course I got soaking wet.

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A smoking man in a window

It is dusk. In a rented flat, a man has opened a window. He leans against the win-
dow ledge with a cigarette in his hand. He takes a long drag and then blows the
smoke out powerfully so that it doesn’t drift into the room where a woman is seen
moving around.
The man exudes harmony. The faint sound of traffic and the sound of wom-
en’s heels striking the pavement can be heard from below. Laughter is heard from
the women. Then, the smoking man leans out a little further and looks down.

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The reconciliation

Sam and Jonathan are standing in the corridor outside their rooms. Both the
doors are open.
Jonathan hangs his head and waits for Sam to start moaning at him about-
something.

JONATHAN

– Are you going to yell at me now...?

SAM

– No, not at all… I was being stupid before… I regret it, Jonathan…
We must stick together and be nice to each other... I know it’s usually
me who’s nasty... I will stop acting like that... Try to, at least...

JONATHAN

– Yes, you can always try...

SAM

– I said I’m going to try!!! ...Do you get it?!

JONATHAN

– Yes, yes... Good night...

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Jonathan goes into his room and closes the door. Sam walks towards his door. He
stops and thinks for a moment. Then he turns around, walks to Jonathan’s door
and listens. From inside, the song “Beautiful Little Anna” is heard. Sam bends
down to the keyhole and says, loudly:

SAM

– Tomorrow we will start again, Jonathan! We will sleep a while now and do big
business tomorrow. Damn it, Jonathan, tomorrow we will do big business!!!

At the end of the corridor the hall porter is seen coming out of his office. He puts
his middle finger to his mouth and says as quietly as he can:

THE HALL PORTER

– Sssshhhhh... you must be quiet now... There are others here who have to get up
early in the morning...

Sam nods understandingly to the hall porter and then walks towards his door,
stops for a moment and listens. Then he goes into his room and shuts the door.
The hall porter goes into his office and shuts his door. The light in the corridor
is almost totally off. Only the searchlights are left on. From Jonathan’s room, the
sound of the music and the song can be heard very faintly.

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It’s Wednesday again

An autumn morning. A bus stop. A small line of people appear to be on their way
to work. At the head of the queue, there’s a middle aged man with a bag in his
hand.
Now and then he looks at the people standing behind him. He then looks at
the camera and, with an expressionless face, says:

THE MAN

– Well, it’s Wednesday again.

THE PERSON STANDING IMMEDIATELY BEHIND HIM

– Well, what is so special about that? Its just another Wednesday.

THE MAN

–But really it could be any day.

It could just as well be Thursday.

THE PERSON STANDING IMMEDIATELY BEHIND

– Yes, but it isn’t. This day is called Wednesday so we can keep track of which
day is which. Otherwise it would be bloody confusing. It would just be chaos.

THE MAN

– Well...

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Copyright 2o11 Roy Andersson Filmproduktion AB