To an entirely unanticipated and truly wonderful friendship.
[Nina] She's an actress.
[Nachevko] Both Lenin and Trotsky
have their favorite film directors.
I'm good friends with all of them
and could arrange introductions.
Pleasure is mine, Miss Urbanova.
Close the door on your way out.
-[crowd cheering] -Together, we can build
-a new Russia. -Mishka.
-You know him? -Yes.
[Count] I am truly sorry I came between you and Helena.
[Mishka] We can move forward
rather than back.
[Count] War and Peace, Tolstoy's finest work.
You have read it?
Consider it a Christmas present.
[Nina] Goodbye, Alexander Ilyich.
Will you be all right without me?
[Count] Oh, my dear Nina,
there's really no need
for you to concern yourself
with an old fuddy-duddy like me.
[Nina] All the same. I shall.
♪ slow, dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
[breathing unsteadily]
♪♪♪
[exhales deeply]
-[bell clanging] -[traffic passing]
[explosion]
Progress, they say.
Well, the coffee's ready.
Might as well come along.
♪ lush orchestral music ♪
♪♪♪
[coffee boiling]
[Abram sighs]
Well, thank you.
I'm sorry, I don't think we've ever been properly introduced.
Abram. I'm the caretaker of this place.
Well, I'm delighted to make your acquaintance.
-My name is Alexander Ily... -Oh...
I know who you are.
-[explosion] -[pigeon wings flapping]
Is that cannon fire?
They're-they're clearing away the old buildings.
The bees do their best to ignore it.
Here. The fruit of their labor.
Mmm. Oh, that's delicious.
Just a hint of lilac.
-From Alexander Gardens. -Oh.
You know, in a week or so,
the honey will taste of cherries.
The honey on our estate in Nizhny,
it tasted like apples, all the way through spring.
Where the apple blossoms fall like snow.
-Yes. -I know it well.
[both laugh]
[narrator] The death of Lenin
plunged the country into a power struggle
between Trotsky and General Secretary Stalin.
Life inside the Metropol remained largely the same.
Good morning.
-[man] Good morning. -[woman] And you.
Ah, beautiful, Marina.
[narrator] The Count settled into comfortable routine.
Days passed, seasons turned.
Nina!
Oh.
-How was school this year? -[sighs]
Did you misbehave yourself?
[both] Mm?
[Nina] The capitalist system is at the root of imperialism.
Yes, but the individual has a role to play, too.
I mean, do you think, without ambition
and a particularly strained relationship
-with his mother... -[chuckles]
...Napoleon would have conquered Europe?
If not him,
it would've been someone else.
When they exhaust resources at home,
nations develop expansionist policies and pursue wars
that only serve the ruling class.
Secretary Stalin tells us this.
Your move, I believe.
[piano music playing]
I don't remember my position being quite so desperate.
-[reporters clamoring] -Anna.
-Just over here, over here. -Anna.
-Give us a smile. -Give us a smile.
Look this way, Anna.
Lovely.
And turn to the right.
[clamoring continues]
-Beautiful. -Comrade Urbanova.
Anna, how was it working with Golubev?
Comrade Urbanova.
-Excuse me, young man. -How can I help you today?
I just wondered if the room was ready.
Yes, certainly.
[clamoring continues]
-Anna. -Lovely, lovely, thank you.
-Oh, one more, Anna. -[Anna] Thank you,
-gentlemen. -Anna, just one more...
[narrator] In the dozen or so times that Anna had returned
to the hotel since their night together...
...not a single word had been exchanged.
Make your move.
♪ contemplative music ♪
♪♪♪
[chuckles]
[Nachevko] May I introduce Sergey Ivanovich Semenov?
He's writing a piece on you.
He wants to hear all about your new film.
It's lovely to meet you.
[Anna] Pleasure.
Audrius. Bottle of Bollinger.
The 1917, if you'd be so kind.
Again?
Never fear failure, rather fear never trying.
[Audrius] But you have tried.
Many, many times before.
Yes, all right.
Give her this note with the champagne, all right? Thank you.
[indistinct conversation]
[Audrius] Comrade Urbanova.
Mishka.
I wasn't expecting you for another week.
What is it?
We should go upstairs.
[Mishka] The Party still monitors the activities
of exiles abroad.
I was made aware yesterday that the Countess died.
[breathing shakily]
I am truly sorry.
How did it happen?
It was reported that she'd been in ill health
for a number of years.
I don't know the cause exactly.
She was 87 years old.
I will count myself lucky to live so long.
And her funeral was befitting of a woman of her standing?
I understand there's a magnificent Orthodox church
in London.
A service was held at the crematorium in Golders Green.
A crematorium?
And her-her ashes are to stay in exile?
She deserves better.
I should hold some sort of church service for her.
She still has friends in Moscow.
We do not engage in ceremonious superstition anymore.
Oh. God is in exile, too.
I'm the last of the Rostovs.
After me...
...there is no one else.
♪ somber music ♪
♪♪♪
♪ confident, dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
[Count] The wine must be Châteauneuf-du-Pape.
We'll serve caviar to taste on arrival.
Vichyssoise. Steamed fish.
To go along with the main event, whole spring lamb.
♪♪♪
And what's the occasion?
[Andrey] You want all this to be served
at the same time, after the caviar?
[Count] Yes, of course.
It wouldn't be a feast
if it was served piecemeal.
A gathering in remembrance of my late grandmama,
the Countess Rostova.
H-How many guests?
Twenty.
[scoffs]
When my husband died, we weren't allowed to hold a service.
Be careful. This will be frowned upon.
Oh, I'm sorry. I had no idea.
Why would you?
[Count] Ah, yes.
Well, it's been years since it was used.
Stand up straight. You're slouching.
[Count] I feel we could restore it
to something akin to its former glory.
What do you say, gentlemen?
Stop sucking it in.
An outrageous slander.
"Sucking it in," she said, Yasha.
[laughs]
Maybe there is a reason this fine china
hasn't been used for the best part of a decade.
It's against Party rules.
[Emile] Even so,
don't you miss serving people who have the refinement
to appreciate our efforts?
If you could send the measurements
to Sidorov on Nikolskaya.
Gregor has made suits for me before.
Shouldn't be difficult for him to make one in the style
of my father's suit.
[Andrey] We have to be very careful not to
draw too much attention.
Don't worry.
I'll make sure everyone is on their best behavior.
[Bishop] Ready to order, sir?
[Damir] I'll have the Latvian stew.
[Bishop] And would you like a glass of wine with your stew?
Might I suggest the Rioja?
[Count] Rioja?
I'm terribly sorry. Please, I'll, uh... Ignore me.
I believe you wanted the Rioja.
No, no, no. You can't. You simply can't
have the Rioja.
What you want is a bottle of Mukuzani.
The Georgians practically grow their grapes
in the hopes that, one day, they'll accompany such a stew.
We better have one of those, then.
Of course.
♪ slow, contemplative music ♪
♪♪♪
[sighs]
Good heavens, child! What do you think you're doing?
Stop that at once!
Manager Halecki. Mr. Halecki, have you seen this barbarism?
Ah, yeah.
We were informed late last night
there would be some... adjustments.
[Count] But they can't.
We have our instructions.
There's a gentleman in the piazza asking for you.
[Count] So, you finally conquered
volume two.
-Did you enjoy it? -Some of it.
The war rather than the peace?
[man] Here you are, comrade.
[Osip] They mock General Secretary Stalin.
They're Trotsky's disciples.
Educated, privileged.
Two of them are the children of doctors.
Another has a father who is a physicist.
They think they're entitled to power.
They're gaining a foothold, and the Party is dividing.
Was there a particular reason you wanted to see me?
What do you know of my background?
Very little.
Our conversations have tended to focus on mine.
Oh.
Well, you were a soldier once, an infantryman.
You rose to the rank of colonel by the war's end.
How would you know?
Well, it's the business of gentlemen to distinguish
between men of rank.
And what else?
Only an Eastern Georgian would have his lunch
with a bottle of Rkatsiteli.
Because he is a hayseed?
No. Because he misses home.
In my family,
we would share a bottle of Châteauneuf-du-Pape
to mark special occasions.
I didn't have a formal education.
My parents never had books, so I never had books.
My daughter is eight.
She loves to read.
We watch them constantly,
but it's not enough to know their next move.
I need to understand the privileged classes.
And how do you propose that I help?
From time to time, you and I will meet and talk.
You will teach me what I want to know.
Very well.
You will never share the contents of our conversations.
I still do not know your name.
Osip Glebnikov.
♪ tense, dramatic music ♪
♪♪♪
[Nina] I was sorry to hear of your grandmother.
[Count] Thank you, Nina.
Are you familiar with the story of the moths of Manchester?
No.
For thousands of years,
the peppered moth had white wings with black speckles.
It was perfectly camouflaged against
the bark of the silver birch trees.
Naturally, there were aberrations,
moths with pitch-black wings.
They were quickly snapped off the trees
by birds before they had a chance to mate.
In the late 19th century,
when Manchester became crowded with factories,
soot covered all the buildings and trees,
and the white-winged moth found itself exposed and picked off,
while the black-winged moths thrived.
In less than a century, the black-winged moth,
which had made up ten percent of the moth population,
now made up over 90%,
and the white-winged moth, well...
found itself in the minority.
So?
[Count] It used to take generations
for a way of life to fade.
Under current circumstances,
we must acknowledge that the process
can occur in the blink of an eye.
Like Darwin says,
"Adapt or die."
[Mishka] I was surprised
to receive an invitation.
It'll just be a simple gathering
marking the passing of my grandmother.
There's nothing simple about it.
A service for the Countess will not be tolerated by the Party.
There have been other society events in Moscow
in recent times.
I understand that, only six months ago,
Vladimir and Yelena Trubetskov
were married in the Church of the Great Ascension.
Yes, and there was more secret police
in congregation than attendants.
Vladimir is now missing,
and Yelena, she lives alone in fear.
You'll be putting your guests in danger.
Is this the brave new world that you dreamt of?
Rome wasn't built in a day.
No, but it was burned down in one.
I know the love you had
for your grandmother, but this isn't the way to show it.
People like you are--
People like... people like me?
A gathering of the old elite
will be seen as an act of defiance.
Things have changed, Alexander.
You have to understand that. It's dangerous.
I won't be offended if you feel like you can't attend.
Listen to what I have said.
[glass thumps on table]
I'd better go.
All right.
Thank you for the books.
[phone rings]
[Audrius] Good evening.
Certainly. I shall have that
sent up to your suite right away,
Miss Urbanova.
[Count] Audrius, I couldn't help
but notice that you and the boys are absolutely
rushed off your feet down here.
Um...
♪ lighthearted music ♪
♪♪♪
Good evening. I believe you ordered room service.
Now hold on a minute.
Ah, Miss Urbanova.
May I set it here, where you might make yourself comfortable?
What in seven blazes do you think you're doing?
Olga, I think you're finished for today.
He can't... You can't really...
[sighs]
I give up. I really do.
[scoffs]
[door closes]
[Tchaikovsky's "Waltz of the Flowers" playing on radio]
[cork pops]
Madam.
Are you not pouring yourself one?
That is why you brought two glasses?
Well, in hope rather than presumption.
I must confess that, after our...
previous liaison
and your subsequent disregard,
that I was concerned that I may have caused
some... offense.
-Why are you smirking? -I'm not.
Oh, certainly you are.
When a man is dismissed from a woman's bed,
it is incomprehensible to him that she might simply
have had her enjoyment and now wishes to sleep.
-Her enjoyment? -And yet, when the shoe
is on the other foot...
Well, that's not true of all men.
I imagine I'm rather more experienced in the matter.
You make a fair point.
So, I was merely a passing fancy?
No, there was nothing mere about it, but...
yes, if you like.
I did like. I do.
And I suppose there's an added attraction
to a man who's unable to chase me down the street
when I choose to leave.
So why has it taken us so long to speak again?
-I was waiting for you. -Waiting for me?
-But I-I sent you champagne... -You did.
And I enjoyed drinking it.
You didn't send yourself.
You mean, all those nights you stayed at the hotel, I...
I could just have knocked at the door?
Depends.
Depends on what?
On whether or not I was in the mood
for you to knock on my door.
Bring the champagne.
[Count] I was surprised to read that your father
was a factory worker from Saint Petersburg.
Mm. His hands always smelt of machine oil,
no matter how long he scrubbed them.
You told me he was a fisherman.
I thought it might appeal to you,
as I thought the rise of a factory worker's daughter
would appeal to the readership of Spectacles.
Neither story is true?
No.
So what did your father do?
My father was a famous matador.
We toured the great arenas of Spain together.
One day, before the crowds arrived, I, I stole his cape
and snuck into the bullring.
I wasn't quick enough. The... the bull caught me
by the shoulder
with his horn.
I fell to the ground.
Just as the bull was bearing down on me,
my father...
...threw himself in front of me to save my life.
Costing him his?
He died in my arms.
[laughs]
You are like one of the moths of Manchester.
I have no idea what that means.
Well, towards the end of the 19th century--
I'm sorry, what are you doing?
I was about to explain to you about the moths of Manchester?
No, please, Lord, no.
Oh.
Why were you upset?
In the bar, with your friend.
My grandmama passed away.
She brought me up from the age of ten.
I'm sorry for you.
It's a privilege to grieve.
Means you loved someone and someone loved you.
Where are your family?
Olga is my family.
Now, I've a lot to do tomorrow,
and you've absolutely exhausted me.
Well, it had been four years.
Given our respective circumstances,
I'd appreciate your discretion in--
Oh, naturally. Of course.
[kisses]
Congratulations on your moving picture.
I'm sure the General Secretary will be a huge fan.
-Don't forget to close the-- -Close the door on the way out.
Yes, I-I remember.
♪ slow, contemplative music ♪
Until the next time?
Perhaps.
Good night.
[explosion in distance]
Alexander.
I found the queen dead this morning.
[Count] Well, there's still honey.
[Abram] Hive must have turned on her.
It happens when the colony's failing.
-[explosion in distance] -Unless it was hornets.
Maybe the hornets out there.
They tore up the Imperial Gardens.
Flowers, trees.
I mean, what is the sense in that?
They'll be back, Abram.
Your bees will be searching somewhere new for their pollen.
I've had a working hive here for the last 20 years.
It's over.
♪ somber choral music ♪
♪♪♪
[quiet chatter]
[piano playing softly]
You've forgotten my lessons in etiquette entirely.
I'm making a list of all the prime numbers.
Just imagine identifying a prime number so high
that no one has ever discovered it before.
Well, yes, that would be something.
I hope you can attend the dinner I'm planning.
There is something I have to do first, but I'll try.
-You ready to order? -[table clatters]
Good God, man. Must you sneak up like that?
I apologize.
Are-are we ready to order?
Shouldn't you be working in the piazza, Leplevsky?
I was deemed worthy of a promotion.
Your order, if you wouldn't mind.
-I'll have the duck. -[Nina] Same.
[Bishop] Of course.
And will you be requiring any wine this evening?
Yes, a bottle of the San Lorenzo Barolo, 1912.
Yes, now, is that the red or the white you'll be having?
A Barolo is a red.
Then you'll be having the red.
Yes.
The Barolo is a red.
I-I-I... I do a-apologize if I'm-I'm not being clear.
For your selection of wine this evening,
there are only two options:
white and red.
A complaint was filed with Comrade Teodorov,
the Commissar of Food, claiming that
the existence of our wine list runs counter
to the ideals of the Revolution.
Apparently, it is a monument to the privilege of nobility.
[Count] They've removed all the labels.
This is preposterous.
Who would want to perpetrate such cultural vandalism?
Who would make such a complaint?
Your waiter. Comrade Leplevsky.
I can only presume he has a friend.
A friend?
With influence.
Which makes him someone to be wary of.
They won't stop till they've destroyed
everything that came before.
Châteauneuf-du-Pape.
Yes. [chuckles softly]
♪ sentimental music ♪
♪♪♪
Well, I can see that Sidorov has lost none of his talents.
He closed his shop two years ago.
Well, who made this?
You?
[chuckles] Yeah, just remember,
I've dozens of sheets and pillowcases to mend every day,
the housekeeping, and a boy to run around after.
Marina...
I'm incredibly grateful you would go to such efforts for me.
Well, I don't expect what you would pay Sidorov.
Well, you will have it, all the same.
There.
How's that?
Is something wrong?
My father wore it better.
If you don't like it,
-I-I can... -It's perfect, Marina.
Thank you.
You have excelled yourself.
Brava.
[indistinct chatter]
Vasily, what is the meaning of all this?
Oh, we're holding a reception for Miss Urbanova's film.
It's rumored that General Secretary Stalin himself
will be attending.
Have any of my guests arrived?
Only one.
[Nachevko] It's important that General Secretary Stalin
be allowed to set the topic of conversation.
Good evening.
[Nachevko] Should he engage in conversation,
be sure to emphasize the superiority
of the Russian film industry over Hollywood.
Don't worry, I know how to stick to my lines.
[Count] Mishka.
I'm so glad you could come.
I'm here for you, not your grandmother.
Well, I appreciate it.
Shall we?
[Nina] Ready? One, two, three...
♪ slow, tense music ♪
♪♪♪
[clock ticking]
Sasha, they would have been nervous about coming
even before Stalin was coming to the hotel.
They loved my grandmother.
They will want to pay their respects.
[clock continues ticking]
[footsteps approaching]
[Bishop] More red?
Leave it, please. Leave it.
I don't understand why Andrey isn't taking care of us.
I was asked to attend.
By whom exactly?
[Nina] Good evening.
Nina, good of you to join us.
Allow me to introduce you to Mishka, an old friend of mine.
Well...
I see you are helping redecorate the hotel.
I'm glad to be doing my part for Mother Russia.
You're glad?
[Andrey] Your Excellency, uh...
Emile wanted me to inform you
that the rest of the food has been ready for some time.
We are still awaiting the arrival of our guests.
Much longer and it will spoil.
We both know how combustible Emile can be...
Goddamn it! We will wait.
[clears throat] A-Apologies, Andrey.
Excuse me.
Give my apologies to Emile and my sincere thanks.
[sighs]
Do you think this shawl is too much, maybe?
It's fine.
[busy chatter]
On my cue, start playing.
The General Secretary's car is on its way.
[Halecki] Everybody get ready.
Well, you never know.
[Halecki] Music, please, music.
♪ soft, lively music ♪
♪♪♪
Here we go.
[chuckles softly]
Sasha, you must understand the risk they would be
putting themselves in by coming tonight.
They'd be drawing attention to themselves.
The Istomins are octogenarians.
What possible threat could they pose?
Are they going to foment a revolution over the starters?
Do you know what the Party has done now?
They have removed the labels from all the wine bottles.
It's madness.
It's only wine.
Only wine?
♪♪♪
A bottle of wine...
it captures a moment in history.
Its flavor tells a story of place, of time,
of the ground beneath the winemaker's feet.
Whether the season was wet or dry.
But now we have to accept that none of that matters.
A wine is simply red or white.
Now it's a monument to privilege.
-The absurdity of it all. -It is.
It is what?
It's a monument to privilege.
♪♪♪
Thank you! Thank you.
Thank you. That'll do.
Thank you.
Regretfully...
...Stalin is no longer attending the reception.
[Count] And what of me?
Should I be done away with, too?
Should our whole past be done away with
for the glory of the Revolution?
All of it must be burned to the ground, and for what?
For the country to progress.
Progress? How is any of it progress?
What have they done to you?
♪ slow, somber music ♪
♪♪♪
I'm sorry for your grandmother, Alexander.
Good night, Mishka.
Nina, please. I'm sorry. Stay. S-Sit.
[Halecki] Right.
[claps hands]
Everybody back to work.
[murmuring]
Are you all right?
This is an embarrassment.
You should go.
I'm happy to stay.
No, please, Mishka, just leave me.
Shall we clear away the food?
Shall we clear the food?
-Shall we? -[glass shatters]
Let's get rid of it all. All of it.
Everything. Clear it all away!
[footsteps approaching]
Countess Osipova scrubs floors at the sanatorium.
The Istomin sisters,
they live like wraiths in a single room,
dreaming of the return of the old order.
The rest of your guests share similar fates.
You wanted to see if any of them would come?
Be very careful, Alexander.
You are still a prisoner here.
[departing footsteps]
♪ somber choral music ♪
♪♪♪
Know when you are beaten.
[scribbling on paper]
♪♪♪
-Alexander. -[gasps]
You were right.
The bees.
They've come back.
Come and see.
Please.
[breathing heavily]
[fire crackling]
[bees buzzing]
Here.
Now taste that.
Apples.
They must have flown from Nizhny Novgorod.
They must have heard you talking about your home.
You see?
You said they'd find a way.
You said they'd come back.
It's a sign.
They want you to stay.
They want you to look after them.
No.
You're their owner.
I'm old and tired.
You have so much more to give.
Don't waste it.
♪ slow, tender music ♪
♪♪♪
[breathing shakily]
♪ gentle piano music ♪
♪♪♪
[glasses rattling]
Audrius, a brandy, if you wouldn't mind.
Thank you.
♪ slow, tender music ♪
♪♪♪
Are you not scared of being seen with me?
Well, it won't make a difference now.
I think my career might be over.
Stalin didn't enjoy the film.
I suspect it went over his head,
which is hardly surprising, given his diminutive stature.
A toast.
To the confederacy of the humbled.
The confederacy of the humbled.
[glasses clink]
Audrius.
I trust you can still pick out a bottle of Bollinger.
Absolutely, Count Rostov.
Please. Alexander.
Shall we?
♪♪♪
♪ romantic string music ♪
♪♪♪