Curse of the Faceless Man is a 1958 independently made American low-budget black-and-white horror film, produced by Robert E. Kent, directed by Edward L. Cahn, that stars Richard Anderson, Elaine Edwards, Adele Mara, and Luis van Rooten. Science fiction writer Jerome Bixby wrote the screenplay. The film was theatrically released in the U.S. by United Artists as a double feature with It! The Terror from Beyond Space.
The film's storyline concerns a Roman gladiator, buried alive in Pompeii during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in A.D. 79, who returns to life in modern times to find the reincarnation of the woman he loves.
Source: Wikipedia
The film's storyline concerns a Roman gladiator, buried alive in Pompeii during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in A.D. 79, who returns to life in modern times to find the reincarnation of the woman he loves.
Source: Wikipedia
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Short filmTranscript
00:01:0079 years after the birth of Christ, the city of Pompeii ceased to exist, destroyed by a
00:01:25mountain of seething hell known as Vesuvius. On a quiet August afternoon, almost 2,000 years ago,
00:01:34the volcano erupted. The earth shook. Day became night. Birds fell dead from the sky. Fish died
00:01:42as the ocean boiled. And the people of Pompeii perished under an avalanche of volcanic ash and
00:01:49stone. Burned, suffocated, crushed. Many strange and mysterious things happened on that day. Some
00:02:00have been explained by archaeologists over the years. Some, perhaps, will never be explained.
00:02:07The startling narrative of the Faceless Man begins on June 3rd of this year, when a gold
00:02:23jewel box was discovered by a workman of the expedition unearthing the ancient ruins at Pompeii.
00:02:37The terrified laborer was the first to bring the news of the white, stone-like hand to the
00:03:00headquarters of the expedition. That same day, the body was taken from the earth, where it had
00:03:05been buried for 2,000 years.
00:03:07I bet you were comfortable. You sounded worried on the telephone. Anything wrong? Come in, please, come in.
00:03:30A very strange thing has happened, Paul. Oh? A discovery was made yesterday at the Pompeii
00:03:40Dickings by one of Dr. Emmanuel's workmen. A body, almost 2,000 years old. A body? Well,
00:03:50it is not a mummy such as we usually find at the Egyptian section of Pompeii. It is a body. And I
00:03:57am not even sure if it is dead. Carlo, what is this nonsense? You think your friend Carlo is losing
00:04:04his mind? Well, I would think so, too, if I had not seen the body myself in Dr. Emmanuel's
00:04:10laboratory this morning. Carlo, it's been proven that anything so old cannot support life. And what
00:04:17about the things that we have not proven? When I examined the body, I discovered a certain
00:04:44resiliency of the crust. Crust? A form of outer shell. That's why I want you to work with me,
00:04:48Paul. You are a doctor. You're a specialist in tissue culture, the preservation of the cells.
00:04:52Well, Maria is a medical doctor now. Couldn't she run some tests for you? Well, yes, but she doesn't
00:04:58have your specific training, Paul. Of course, she'll give you all the help you need. What about
00:05:01your assistant, Dr. Ricci? He's on his way now with Maria. Maria, I wish your father had called
00:05:16in someone other than Paul Malone. My father knows what he is doing, Enrico. My past relationship
00:05:22with Paul has nothing to do with it. At the time that the body was discovered, another important
00:05:32find was made. A small chest of jewels, a brooch of pure gold, a tiara set with precious stones,
00:05:40some golden pearl pins, and a bronze medallion. Was the chest discovered with the body? In the
00:05:49same pit and by the same workman. In all probability, it was being carried by the man
00:05:54that we discovered. A bronze medallion would seem to have little worth as compared to the
00:05:59other pieces. You are wondering why it was in the chest with the jewels. So are we. If a man is
00:06:09trying to save valuables while escaping from a volcano, he would take something of greater value.
00:06:14No distinguishing marks or designs on it. I saw the medallion, Paul. There was something
00:06:22written on it in ancient Etruscan. Etruscan? Wait a minute. The Etruscans died out as a
00:06:28people long before the Roman Empire. No, not entirely. They were absorbed by the Romans,
00:06:33but some of the bloodlines were kept intact. Very strange people, mysterious. They had strange
00:06:40cults dealing with the supernatural. We have not been able to find out very much about them.
00:07:11Can the words on the medallion be translated? Dr. Emanuel is having it done. As soon as the
00:07:22translation is completed, he is turning over the collection of jewels to the museum for display.
00:07:26There has been an accident. The truck crashed and the driver is dead.
00:07:56How could it happen? Tony was such a reliable driver. Well, the truck isn't badly damaged.
00:08:21I can't figure out the wound on the back of his head. Nothing in here could have caused it. The
00:08:33shoal on the back of his skull was just wiped away. Senor, we must ask you to touch nothing.
00:08:38I am Maria Fiorillo of the Pompeii Museum. This was one of our trucks.
00:08:45Your pardon, Miss Senorina. We must ask that nothing be touched. There are some things we
00:08:50are not sure of. It must have been thrown here from the crash. Well, at least the body was not
00:09:07destroyed. Dr. Emanuel is coming. I am sorry it takes something like this for me to be able to see
00:09:22you again, Paul. I thought you knew, Maria. I am engaged to be married. I had not heard. What is
00:09:32her name? Tina Enright. She's an artist. Please let me congratulate you. Thank you. Terrible thing.
00:09:40Terrible. No one seems to know what happened, Dr. Emanuel. I'm glad you're here, Dr. Emanuel.
00:09:46Carlo, I have some news about the medallion. You have it translated? Is the body still intact? Oh,
00:09:55yes. It wasn't damaged. Good, good. Dr. Ricci, you will see that it reaches the museum safely now.
00:10:03Of course. Dr. Emanuel, what about the medallion? We had better discuss it in private.
00:10:12This is the medallion. Undoubtedly, when the workman uncovered it, it was the first time
00:10:31it had seen the light of day in 2,000 years. But the translation, Dr. Emanuel, what was the
00:10:38necessity for so much privacy? Because one man is already dead. And there could be more. But the
00:10:48driver of the truck, now that was an accident. Maybe we'll know more about that when Dr. Ricci
00:10:54brings the body in here for you to examine. What do you mean, there could be more that could die?
00:10:59This is the translation from the medallion. The house on the fourth hill of Pompeii shall fall.
00:11:09Its people shall perish. And whatsoever stands between me and what is mine shall perish. I visit
00:11:17the curse upon them until eternity. The fires of the earth shall consume them. I am the son
00:11:24of Etruscan gods. I will live when the Roman is no more. It is signed, Coetilus Aurelius.
00:11:32Fires from the earth shall consume them. Vesuvio was a fire from the earth. Father, are we going
00:11:40to believe that this man's curse actually caused the volcano to erupt and destroy Pompeii? Or that
00:11:46Tony died because of this 2,000-year-old medallion? What we believe is unimportant. The
00:11:54only important things are what we can prove. I think right now our greatest concern is this
00:12:01sentence in the translation. I will live when the Roman is no more. In short, Dr. Mellon,
00:12:11is that thing alive or isn't it? It is the most frightening thing I have ever seen. Dr. Mellon,
00:12:40you may begin your examination. All right, Dr. Mellon. Wait a minute. This is blood. I think
00:12:53you will find, Dr. Mellon, that the blood is not from the creature, but from the wound that killed
00:12:58the truck driver. Now look, Dr. Mellon, I don't believe in this curse. I don't believe that this
00:13:04thing killed Tony, and I don't believe that this thing is alive. I pray that you're right, Dr. Mellon.
00:13:10Good evening, darling. Sorry to be late. What time is it? 8.30. Oh, I've been working steadily and
00:13:30didn't realize. Dr. Fiorillo asked me to come up to the Pompeii Museum this afternoon. I've been
00:13:34there ever since. Museum? Yes, he wanted me to examine a body they found at the site of the
00:13:38diggings. When was this body found? Yesterday. Well, what's this? Did you paint this? It was a
00:13:52dream I had last night, Paul. It felt so strong, I could feel the presence of it in my room.
00:13:59This morning, it's almost as if I were being forced to paint it, to bring it to life. What did
00:14:07you dream, Tina? I saw the excavation and the workmen finding the body. First the hand, white,
00:14:17dead, and yet not dead. Its hands were bound as if it were being held in slavery. Anything else?
00:14:24Well, later it was in a box or a crate on a truck, and it got out, killed a driver.
00:14:34You dreamt all that? It was trying to get to me, Paul. It was the most terrible nightmare I've
00:14:43ever had. Impossible. I examined that body myself. Of course, I can only analyze the outer crust
00:14:48around it, the rock dust, chemicals, the earth. Nothing can convince me that that thing is living.
00:14:55Living? A truck driver was killed today. Oh, no. No, it was only an accident. That's all it was.
00:15:04It was an odd coincidence. That's all it was to it. Well, where is the body now? It's in the room,
00:15:08the main room at the museum. The police are coming up there tonight to ask us some questions. I have
00:15:12to go back. Paul, I want to go with you. Just wait a minute. No, I must see it, Paul. Please take me,
00:15:18please. Tina, why don't we get married tomorrow? Go back to New York and forget this whole thing.
00:15:23Paul, I have my studies and you have your work. What would we be running away from? A bad dream?
00:15:30An impossibility? Isn't it better to stay here and prove it's an impossibility? I'll be dressed
00:15:40in a few minutes, Paul. Dr. Paul Mallon began to feel a deep concern for his fiancée, for he was
00:15:52wondering now if the faceless apparition she had painted was an impossibility.
00:15:57So, Dr. Fiorello, this is the thing you dug up. You see, it's human. It was once, inspector,
00:16:14as human as your eye. I'm afraid my superiors would think I've grown too old for my job if I
00:16:19were to list this as a suspect. Suspect? We have definitely proved that your driver did not die
00:16:25in an accident. He was murdered. But who would want to kill Tony? What reason would they have?
00:16:33That's why we are here ourselves tonight. If you have any information to give us,
00:16:37please tell us. Oh, uh, Dr. Mallon, Inspector Rinaldi. How do you do, Inspector Rinaldi? Tina,
00:16:44uh, Tina. Oh, I'm sorry. Uh, Miss Enright, Dr. Maria Fiorello, her father, Dr. Fiorello.
00:16:53Dr. Ricci, Inspector Rinaldi. You, you are Paul's fiancée. We're to be married in September. Paul
00:17:01has told me about you. You are very beautiful. Well, thank you. Please, I'm sorry. With a killer
00:17:09loose, I do not like to waste time. Oh, uh, the police have discovered that Tony was murdered.
00:17:23Perhaps you can give me some information. Uh, Inspector, I made a chemical analysis this morning.
00:17:30Tony's blood was on his hand. What would you have me believe, Dr. Mallon? You asked me for
00:17:35information. That's all I know. So, the hand of the thing could have brushed against the driver
00:17:43after the truck had crashed? No. No, I believe the killer is a great deal younger than 2,000
00:17:52years. Dr. Fiorello, these valuable jewels found by the body, could someone be after them?
00:18:01They were in Dr. Emanuel's possession at the time. The only one who knew about them was the workmen
00:18:05who discovered them in our cells. The workmen. That gives us motivation and a starting point.
00:18:12Policemen have to be practical about crime. We do not get paid for following ghosts and...
00:18:19Or the walking dead. Now, we will find your murder, but until we do, I must ask you to keep the museum closed.
00:18:25Closed? But, but why? The motivation may still be here. Good night. Inspector?
00:18:35Uh, I think you'd all better listen to what Tina has to say.
00:18:49Shall we go into my office?
00:18:57I felt very strange, of course. It was almost like trying to paint a picture from one's own imagination.
00:19:07But I didn't attach any significance to the painting until Paul told me what had happened.
00:19:14I thought it would be better not to tell the police about this.
00:19:17You are wise. If you had shown such knowledge of the murder, they would have listed you as one of the suspects.
00:19:25Dr. Fiorello, would you mind if I came here tomorrow to make some sketches of the body?
00:19:32But why, Tina? My painting isn't finished. And now we're the actual subject in the next room.
00:19:40No, no, no. Please, Miss Enright, do not ask. We do not know what that thing is.
00:19:45Paul hasn't completed his work. We were unable to penetrate the outer shell.
00:19:49Now, when we do know, you can come and make your sketches. But please, not now.
00:19:55My father and I have quarters of the museum, and I am not even sure I like that now.
00:20:03All right. Thanks anyhow. I'll wait.
00:20:08After some further examinations in the morning, it won't be much longer.
00:20:12Come on, Tina. I'll show you home.
00:20:18Dr. Fiorello was puzzled and worried over what was obviously more than just a coincidence.
00:20:25For Tina Enright, the strange dreams persisted,
00:20:29as though the stone-like man lying in the museum had forced her to think of him,
00:20:34had impressed himself so indelibly on her mind that she had to go to him,
00:20:39so that his portrait might be finished.
00:23:04Ah!
00:23:31Ah!
00:23:34No!
00:23:37No!
00:23:39No!
00:23:42No!
00:24:04No!
00:24:06No!
00:24:30Bloody hell! The watchman! Hurry!
00:24:36Oh!
00:24:52She's in shock.
00:24:53The watchman?
00:24:54Dead.
00:24:56What could have happened here, Maria? What could have happened?
00:24:59Perhaps Tina could tell us that when she's able to.
00:25:03The brooch from the guillotine's chest.
00:25:05But how could she be wearing it?
00:25:07Perhaps she took it unconsciously. Anything is possible in deep shock.
00:25:11I'm going to call Paul.
00:25:13Maria, two men have died today.
00:25:16The inscription on the medallion said,
00:25:19whosoever stands between me and what is mine shall perish.
00:25:23Father, we still have no proof that this thing is responsible.
00:25:28Perhaps the inspector is right.
00:25:31Perhaps the same thieves are still trying to get the jewels.
00:25:34Perhaps. Perhaps.
00:25:38Who will die next?
00:25:40I'm going to telephone Paul.
00:25:44Dr. Fiorello studied the ancient books of his library for hours
00:25:48and finally found what he wanted.
00:25:50A picture of Roman women at the time that the Roman Empire flourished.
00:25:55For Tina Enright, time had ceased to exist
00:25:58as she lay suspended in the vague twilight between the past and the present.
00:26:04Maria, isn't there anything you can do?
00:26:06No.
00:26:08Shock is like a heavy door in the mind, Paul.
00:26:11Sometimes it can be opened with the same keys that caused it to close.
00:26:16I don't know what put her into it.
00:26:18I thought when the police tried to question her why she'd snap out of it,
00:26:21she didn't even hear them.
00:26:23Paul, Maria.
00:26:25Look at this.
00:26:27Notice the brooches on the women.
00:26:30Here, use this.
00:26:35That is exactly where the brooch was pinned on Tina.
00:26:38What does this have to do with what's happened?
00:26:40I'm not sure, Paul.
00:26:42Perhaps this brooch will be the key that will open that heavy door.
00:26:47Carlo, are you trying to say that that monster had something to do with it?
00:26:52I know, Paul. I know.
00:26:54To most people, the past is something that happened a long time ago and is gone forever.
00:26:58But to a curator of a museum, such as myself,
00:27:01he lives in the past. It's all around him, present, here, now.
00:27:05Now, where is the dividing line between yesterday and today,
00:27:07between the past and the present, even between life and death?
00:27:12Carlo, two men have died,
00:27:14and each time the body of that thing was lying nearby.
00:27:17Now, if it were alive,
00:27:19if it could move, why did it stop?
00:27:21Why did it keep going?
00:27:23We can only hope that this brooch will give us the answer to that, too.
00:27:27Now, first, I want you to take Tina back to her apartment.
00:27:30Why?
00:27:32I don't think that she should be anywhere near Quintillos.
00:27:35Now, please do as I say.
00:27:37Come, Paul. I will help you.
00:27:39I will stay here. There are still some books I want to go through.
00:27:42Maria, do you think it's safe to leave her here?
00:27:45I'm hoping she will sleep at night to some good.
00:27:54If she doesn't come back, I'm afraid I'll have to leave her here.
00:27:58I'm afraid so, too.
00:28:00I'm afraid so, too.
00:28:02I'm afraid so, too.
00:28:04I'm afraid so, too.
00:28:06I'm afraid so, too.
00:28:08I'm afraid so, too.
00:28:10If she's not better by morning, I suggest she be taken to a hospital.
00:28:14Do you think she might have a concussion?
00:28:17I almost wish it were.
00:28:20Sometimes it is better to deal with a concussion than it is with a mental state.
00:28:25Mental state?
00:28:28It was perfectly all right until they found that creature.
00:28:32Then you are beginning to think, as my father does,
00:28:35that there's something supernatural about Tina's dream.
00:28:38Well, you'd like to believe that she's probably insane.
00:28:41Paul!
00:28:43I'm sorry, Maria.
00:28:45I shouldn't have said that.
00:28:47It's just that I'm... I'm concerned about Tina.
00:28:51Paul.
00:28:53I wanted you once very much.
00:28:56But when I lost you, I...
00:28:59I was able to rationalize.
00:29:02My life was not disrupted.
00:29:05Maybe it has been bad for me seeing you again
00:29:08and seeing how much you love Tina.
00:29:11But I can still rationalize.
00:29:14Believe me, I want Tina to get well.
00:29:20Father thinks the brooch is the answer to a lot of things.
00:29:23Let us find out.
00:29:28All right.
00:29:30An ancient brooch.
00:29:33An ancient brooch.
00:29:35Yet the mystery of it had survived the ages
00:29:38to make itself felt again in the presence of Tina Enright.
00:29:42Now, perhaps, a phase of the mystery might be solved.
00:29:50Don't close the door. Stay near to it.
00:29:53We may want to get out quickly.
00:30:03Now, I will place the brooch near the body.
00:30:07But the thing has no eyes. How will it see the brooch?
00:30:10Quintellus may have some sort of inner vision.
00:30:14If his mind is intact, it receives images.
00:30:17But it seems almost impossible to see the brooch.
00:30:20It's impossible to see the brooch.
00:30:23It's impossible to see the brooch.
00:30:26It's impossible to see the brooch.
00:30:29It's impossible to see the brooch.
00:30:32It's almost impossible that an image reflection
00:30:35could penetrate the crust over the head.
00:30:38Cats can see without eyes. The blind have vision, too.
00:30:41Not exactly like ours, but still some kind of sight
00:30:44that guides them instinctively.
00:31:02Now, now we shall see.
00:31:10Keep your eyes on Quintellus.
00:31:17Quintellus.
00:31:20Quintellus.
00:31:23Quintellus.
00:31:26Quintellus.
00:31:29Quintellus.
00:31:31Quintellus.
00:31:42It moved. Are you sure?
00:31:45I couldn't see.
00:31:48Perhaps it was the shadow that...
00:31:51Look!
00:31:54That's what Tina said.
00:32:06See if Quintellus goes for the brooch.
00:32:09See if Quintellus goes for the brooch.
00:32:22Don't move.
00:32:39That was great.
00:32:46They're coming towards us.
00:32:49We cannot stop it.
00:32:52Don't let them get near. They could kill you with those fists.
00:32:56Get back.
00:32:59Get out of this room.
00:33:09You are hurt, Pauls. Don't go. You cannot stop it.
00:33:12It's going after Tina. It's doing what she dreamed.
00:33:15Maria, call the inspector immediately.
00:33:18Tell him to put armed guards at Tina's apartment.
00:33:39Inspector Reynaldo is sending men to Tina's place immediately.
00:33:42Did you tell him what you wanted them there for?
00:33:45Yes, but I don't think he believed it.
00:33:48It's a good thing it is so late. There would be nobody around for him to run into.
00:33:51For the first time since the destruction of Pompeii,
00:33:54Quintellus Aurelius was a free man.
00:33:58The dreams in the mind of Tina Enright returned.
00:34:01Baffling dreams that she could not understand.
00:34:04Yet the dreams were very real.
00:34:07For she could see the approach of a man of stone.
00:34:10Could feel his terrifying presence
00:34:13as he neared the apartment in which she slept.
00:34:24Take your poster.
00:34:27You mean we're actually to watch for the stone corpse we see at the museum?
00:34:30Yes.
00:34:33If what they told me on the phone is true,
00:34:37it must be it before it sees you.
00:34:40These were not the streets and avenues
00:34:43as Quintellus had known them 2,000 years ago.
00:34:46What were once well-traveled thoroughfares
00:34:49were now alleys and the backyards of homes.
00:34:52But the stone man's strange memory and instinct
00:34:55guided him surely toward Tina Enright.
00:34:58We are still waiting for your fantastic dead man to make his appearance.
00:35:01Good. Then nothing's happened.
00:35:04Nothing except we're losing sleep.
00:35:07Then maybe we should wait in Tina's apartment.
00:35:10No. I would be afraid for Tina if something should happen.
00:35:13She should be brought out of the shock carefully.
00:35:58Inspector, would you know the location of an old area
00:36:01once known as the 4th Hill of Pompeii?
00:36:04Of course. You are standing on it.
00:36:10Why do you ask?
00:36:13I just wanted to make sure.
00:36:16What's that?
00:36:19Why do you ask?
00:36:22I just wanted to make sure.
00:36:46What's that?
00:37:16What's that?
00:37:46The basement!
00:38:09Tina!
00:38:16I'm all right, Paul.
00:38:19I'm all right.
00:38:22I'm all right, Paul.
00:38:25I'm all right.
00:38:28He just fell down there.
00:38:31He just fell down there.
00:38:34So he died.
00:38:37Collapsed, like he did before.
00:38:40Something's driving that thing. Something motivates it.
00:38:44Paul, I had that dream again.
00:38:47Paul, I had that dream again.
00:38:50I knew it was coming for me.
00:38:53How could I know, Paul? Why should I know?
00:38:56It isn't possible.
00:38:59It has no face, no eyes, and yet it knows where to go.
00:39:02It can only be instinct.
00:39:05Something that has survived from long ago to guide it.
00:39:08The way the blind are sometimes guided.
00:39:11Not the way we know life.
00:39:14It is not dead, not as we know death.
00:39:42The police have gone already.
00:39:45They left about ten minutes ago.
00:39:48One more of these killings and they will hold me criminally responsible.
00:39:51The fools.
00:39:54Here we are so close to solving the mystery of life and death.
00:39:57And they worry about their precious lives.
00:40:00The body has been returned here.
00:40:03It's in the laboratory.
00:40:06And the girl?
00:40:09Maria and Enrico went to Rome.
00:40:12They will be back with the machinery later today.
00:40:15We are making progress.
00:40:18Tell me, how do you think this information will affect Miss Enright?
00:40:21We shall see, Carlo. We shall see.
00:40:27We know now that some sort of force gives life to the creature.
00:40:30And that suddenly, seemingly without reason,
00:40:33the body collapses and becomes suspended
00:40:36somewhere between life and death.
00:40:39The reaction may be a tangible one.
00:40:42Some chemical reaction that takes place inside that outer crust.
00:40:45Dr. Mellon.
00:40:52These old books deal with alchemy.
00:40:55As you know, the word alchemy is generally explained
00:40:58as Egyptian art.
00:41:01The black arts of the land of Khem.
00:41:05Read these books before you make your chemical test today.
00:41:08Well, doctor, after what's happened,
00:41:11I'm almost willing to believe anything.
00:41:14Even the black arts of Egypt.
00:41:17Bear in mind the body was discovered in the ruins of the temple of Isis.
00:41:20The Egyptian section of Pompeii.
00:41:25I'll remember.
00:41:28Tina, ever since Quintilis was found,
00:41:31Dr. Emmanuel has searched everything.
00:41:34Books, old papers, scrolls, parchments.
00:41:37He's found something that I think may be very disturbing to you.
00:41:42I don't think anything can be more disturbing
00:41:45than what's already happened.
00:41:48I think it can.
00:41:51Now, please, tell us exactly what happened
00:41:54when you came to make the sketches of Quintilis.
00:41:57Well, there isn't much that I know.
00:42:01All I can remember is
00:42:04suddenly the body rising,
00:42:07getting off the dais,
00:42:10coming toward me.
00:42:19Just before I fainted,
00:42:22I saw him bend over me,
00:42:26pin something on my jacket.
00:42:32What he pinned on you was a brooch from his jewel box.
00:42:35Miss Enright,
00:42:38it was a custom of the Etruscan civilization
00:42:41for a man to pin a jewel over the heart
00:42:44of the woman he loved.
00:42:47What are you trying to say?
00:42:50Thousands of years separate me from that thing.
00:42:53Leave her alone, Doctor. I think she's had enough.
00:42:56No, he's right. I must know.
00:42:59If we don't get that to truth, this might affect her mind permanently.
00:43:02He's right, Paul. I've got to know.
00:43:07All right. What do you want, Doctor?
00:43:10Will you come to my home now so that we can talk?
00:43:17And I will phone you here when we're finished.
00:43:22Well, it's better not to worry about her now, huh?
00:43:25Yes.
00:43:28Take these books and study them.
00:43:31It will occupy your mind.
00:43:38If you don't mind, we'll make one stop on the way.
00:43:41If you wish.
00:43:44Have you ever been to a bay near the beach called the Cove of the Blind Fisherman?
00:43:47No, I've never heard of it.
00:43:50That's where we will stop. All right.
00:43:53Only scholars of ancient history had ever heard of the Cove of the Blind Fisherman.
00:43:57The test which Dr. Emanuel was about to conduct
00:44:00would be a conclusive one for Tina Enright.
00:44:04For Quintilis, the Cove of the Blind Fisherman,
00:44:07as it had been for the people of old Pompeii,
00:44:10was a reality.
00:44:13Not a name long lost in the archives of musty history.
00:44:17If the ghosts of memory exist in time,
00:44:20then the Cove of the Blind Fisherman was alive with ghosts.
00:44:24For this had once been the scene of violent death.
00:44:29Do you still think you have never been here?
00:44:32Strange. Now I don't know.
00:44:36Let us go toward the water.
00:44:44What did you bring me here for?
00:44:47I have no idea.
00:44:50I have no idea.
00:44:53I have no idea.
00:44:56I have no idea.
00:45:00What did you bring me here for?
00:45:03Try to think.
00:45:06See if you know.
00:45:12There was a blind fisherman who lived here once.
00:45:18He was killed like the others.
00:45:21This has not been known as the Cove of the Blind Fisherman
00:45:24since the days of the Romans.
00:45:27Hundreds of them.
00:45:30All trying to escape from the volcano.
00:45:34They rushed into the sea.
00:45:37The water was boiling hot.
00:45:40They were all killed.
00:45:44Terrible.
00:45:48I can... I can...
00:45:51I can almost hear their screams.
00:45:54We can go now.
00:46:24Carlo!
00:46:28They have isolated one of the substances.
00:46:33It's a form of vanillamine.
00:46:36Do you think it could be what the Egyptians called ferranti?
00:46:39Yes, and other unknown chemicals included.
00:46:42But vanillamine is the base.
00:46:45An organic substance.
00:46:48I don't know.
00:46:51Vanillamine is the base.
00:46:54An organic base, Carlo.
00:46:57Derived from ammonia by the substitution of atoms of phenol
00:47:00with equal amounts of hydrogen.
00:47:03Ferranti is believed to have been the vital ingredient
00:47:06in the lost heart of Egyptian embalming.
00:47:09How do they know all about these complex compounds?
00:47:12Civilizations appeared on the face of the earth
00:47:15and then vanished.
00:47:19It is quite probable that Quintilis was trapped in the temple of Isis
00:47:22where the high priests keep their vats of embalming solution.
00:47:25Even if the stuff saturated this corpse, it couldn't...
00:47:28But there is another thing. The heat of the volcano.
00:47:31Enough heat to boil any liquid in the body.
00:47:34From there on, we can only theorize as to what power could have been created.
00:47:40Hello? Yes, this is Dr. Mallon.
00:47:43Yes.
00:47:45Well, is Tina still there?
00:47:48Oh. Okay, I'll come right over.
00:47:51Right.
00:47:53It's Dr. Emanuel. He wants me to come right over.
00:47:56Is she all right? Yeah, she's fine.
00:47:58She's resting back at her apartment.
00:48:01I'll go on over and I'll call you later.
00:48:05Once Miss Enright was in deep hypnosis,
00:48:08I regressed her deep into her subconscious memory.
00:48:11Then allowed her to talk freely.
00:48:14Once I brought her out of hypnosis,
00:48:17she remembered nothing of what you are about to hear.
00:48:20Did she agree to being regressed?
00:48:23Yes.
00:48:25The skies have been dark since yesterday.
00:48:28When Father went to the temple of Isis,
00:48:31The skies have been dark since yesterday.
00:48:34When Father returned from the Senate in Rome.
00:48:37I feel that something terrible is going to happen.
00:48:42There has been no rain, no clouds.
00:48:45Just the gray light over Pompeii that depresses me.
00:48:51As I look from my window and see Vesuvius,
00:48:54and I remember the curse placed upon my family
00:48:58by the slave Quintilus Aurelius,
00:49:01who calls himself the son of Etruscan gods.
00:49:06I fear the slave and his strength,
00:49:09for he is the most powerful gladiator in all the empire.
00:49:12for he is the most powerful gladiator in all the empire.
00:49:15He has threatened to escape his cell and take me from my house,
00:49:18and those who try to stop him will die.
00:49:21Yet, how can I return his love?
00:49:27I have an aristocrat.
00:49:30He is a slave, and it is not permitted for...
00:49:35There is a rumbling in the ground.
00:49:40The house shakes.
00:49:42The gods are angry and the sky is black with smoke.
00:49:46I hear shouts in the streets.
00:49:48The crying of children.
00:49:50It is a volcano.
00:49:52It is Vesuvius.
00:49:55I can see other houses on the fourth hill crashing to the ground.
00:49:59And now our house is falling about me.
00:50:02The wall.
00:50:05That's all of it.
00:50:07Well, doctor, what does it mean?
00:50:10The reason I took such drastic measures with your fiancé, Dr. Mellon,
00:50:14was because of this.
00:50:16This is a photograph of a bust in the Chardin Museum in Berlin.
00:50:20Oh, this is Tina.
00:50:22No, not Miss Enright.
00:50:25We have the complete history,
00:50:27since the girl belonged to a prominent Roman family.
00:50:30The photograph is of a girl named Lucilla Helena.
00:50:37Queen Tilda's was a family slave, a powerful man.
00:50:40Lucilla's father trained him to be a gladiator.
00:50:43Obviously, the slave fell very deeply in love with the girl.
00:50:47A love that has lasted through 2,000 years.
00:50:50A love that would not die.
00:50:52Doctor, slaves don't have chests with precious jewels in them.
00:50:59Two of the jewels were of Egyptian design.
00:51:02Queen Tilda's could have stolen the chest from the temple of Isis.
00:51:06Perhaps he was just about to get out of the temple
00:51:09and go to the fourth hill and present the chest to the girl.
00:51:14Well, Doctor, I don't know what's happened,
00:51:16but Tina Enright is not Lucilla Helena.
00:51:21I'm going to get Tina out of Italy and away from Pompeii
00:51:25just as soon as possible.
00:51:27Separating her from these surroundings might help Dr. Mellon,
00:51:31but I don't think so.
00:51:33At the risk of sounding ridiculous,
00:51:35I think she would have a better chance if the curse were destroyed.
00:51:39The curse?
00:51:41Doctor, you can't destroy that without destroying Quintellus.
00:51:45Science has proven you can't kill something that's already dead.
00:51:50You told me of the chemical discovery you made this afternoon.
00:51:53Surely you can...
00:51:54There's no more time for experimenting, Doctor.
00:51:56I'm going to get Tina out of Italy tonight.
00:52:00Dr. Emanuel knew that Paul Mellon would never run away
00:52:03from what had happened.
00:52:05Dr. Emanuel knew that Paul Mellon
00:52:07could never run away from what had happened.
00:52:09The only escape was in death.
00:52:12Tina's or that of Quintellus.
00:52:15For Tina, her painting of Quintellus had become an obsession.
00:52:19An obsession that had begun with a tragic love affair
00:52:222,000 years ago
00:52:24when a slave in bondage had dared to love a girl of the Roman nobility.
00:52:29Paul, still determined to get Tina out of Italy,
00:52:33arrived at Tina's apartment.
00:52:43Tina?
00:53:03Tina?
00:53:12The hand holding the knife could mean but one thing.
00:53:15The release of Quintellus from his bonds of slavery.
00:53:19And the canvas was still wet.
00:53:22The hand and the knife had just been painted.
00:53:26But Paul was too late.
00:53:28Quintellus had already been released from his bonds.
00:54:03Quintellus.
00:54:33Tina!
00:54:35Tina, get out the door!
00:55:03Tina!
00:55:34When Paul sees these x-rays, I think that...
00:55:39Who'd leave the door open like that?
00:55:48Hurry!
00:56:04He's more fortunate than Enrico.
00:56:06There's no fracture, just a slight concussion.
00:56:09How long will it be before we can question him?
00:56:12He should regain consciousness soon.
00:56:15You say there were no other witnesses.
00:56:17Where was the museum guard?
00:56:19Well, he was in his quarters, asleep. It was after 11.
00:56:22Then there was no one here at that time
00:56:24other than Dr. Marlon, Dr. Ritchie, and the body.
00:56:27Well, I don't know.
00:56:29At that time, other than Dr. Marlon, Dr. Ritchie, and the body.
00:56:32Well, I have told you.
00:56:34We were returning with the developed x-ray photographs we had taken.
00:56:37We were not here at the time it happened.
00:56:39Someone wanted that thing to get away.
00:56:43The canvas bonds holding the body were cut with a knife.
00:56:48Well, who would do such a thing? Why?
00:56:51I am only interested in one thing,
00:56:53to keep that monster from killing anyone else.
00:56:55Half the police of Naples are out looking for it now.
00:56:58Tina.
00:56:59Hey.
00:57:00Oh, you called for Tina.
00:57:02Yes, yes.
00:57:04Where is she?
00:57:05What do you mean? Was she here?
00:57:07Yes. Where did she go?
00:57:09We have not seen her. She was not here.
00:57:16Quintelis must have gotten to her.
00:57:18The police are looking now. There is nothing you can do.
00:57:20Well, what about Dr. Ritchie? Where is he?
00:57:22He is in the hospital. He is very badly injured.
00:57:24We will not know how badly until the doctors have made a thorough investigation.
00:57:27That thing must be killed now, tonight.
00:57:30You are scientists.
00:57:32How do we kill it?
00:57:34What gives it life?
00:57:36Paul, we have the x-ray plates.
00:57:38Inside that shell, which has become part of the body,
00:57:40there is a human being, a man.
00:57:44A man?
00:57:45The body of a man.
00:57:47Flesh and bones.
00:57:50And a brain?
00:57:51Kept alive probably by the radioactivity of the ground,
00:57:54which has preserved the cells and provided energy.
00:57:56When the body was taken out of the ground,
00:57:58the source of energy was stopped,
00:58:00so that the body collapsed and lay dormant.
00:58:02It must have been the x-ray machine.
00:58:05In all probability, the x-ray machine did give it new energy.
00:58:09I will get it.
00:58:12Yes?
00:58:13Yes, this is Inspector Rinaldi.
00:58:18I see.
00:58:19All right, begin to close the circle.
00:58:21Issue instructions to all units and give me a report every 30 minutes.
00:58:24Yes.
00:58:28No sign of the thing.
00:58:30Nor of Miss Enright.
00:58:32Well, we can't wait here.
00:58:33Dr. Mallon, as much as it is within our power,
00:58:36we have formed a circle around the Pompeii-Naples area.
00:58:39That circle is being closed now.
00:58:41There is nothing we can do but wait.
00:58:51For Quintilis and Tina Enright,
00:58:53the terror of that August day in the year 79 A.D.,
00:58:57when Vesuvius erupted and destroyed Pompeii,
00:59:00was being relived.
00:59:02For them, this was the day.
00:59:05Pompeii was beginning to die under flaming ash and stone.
00:59:21The end
00:59:37Yes?
00:59:39One moment.
00:59:40It's for you.
00:59:43Hello?
00:59:45Yes, this is Maria Fiorillo.
00:59:51Thank you for letting me know.
00:59:52Goodbye.
00:59:54That was the hospital.
00:59:55Enrico is out of danger.
00:59:57He will be all right.
00:59:59I'm glad, Maria.
01:00:00He would have been a great loss to your work.
01:00:03Perhaps to me, too.
01:00:05I have been blind and very stubborn.
01:00:22Quintilis!
01:00:24Quintilis!
01:00:26Quintilis!
01:00:29Quintilis!
01:00:35There was only one escape for Quintilis
01:00:38and the girl he had loved for all eternity.
01:00:41The sea.
01:00:43So you still refuse to tell me
01:00:45why Quintilis wished to kidnap Miss Enright.
01:00:48I didn't say he tried to kidnap her.
01:00:50He took her because he thinks she belongs to him.
01:00:52Belongs?
01:00:53That's your half-hour call.
01:00:56Hello?
01:00:57Yes.
01:00:58Yes.
01:00:59The beach.
01:01:01Send every available car to the area.
01:01:03Yes.
01:01:06A shepherd reported seeing the creature carrying Miss Enright
01:01:08through the woods toward the Bay of Naples.
01:01:10She seemed to be unconscious.
01:01:11The bay?
01:01:12He has carried her over 15 miles.
01:01:14You said something about the beach.
01:01:15He's heading toward the south end of the bay.
01:01:17That's it.
01:01:18Dr. Emanuel told me about the place.
01:01:20It's a place called the Cove of the Blind Fisherman.
01:01:23Quintilis is trying to reach water.
01:01:25But why?
01:01:26Because today is August 24th,
01:01:27the day that Vesuvius erupted and buried Pompeii 2,000 years ago.
01:01:31He thinks he's trying to save her.
01:01:33If he takes her into the water, she will drown.
01:01:35She's unconscious.
01:01:36Quickly!
01:01:39Vesuvius was reaching its terrible climax of death and destruction
01:01:44and the strange, unreal strength of the stone man drove him on,
01:01:47seeking escape,
01:01:49seeking the water of the Cove of the Blind Fisherman
01:01:52to save his beloved Lucilla Helena.
01:02:14The Cove of the Blind Fisherman
01:02:45The Cove of the Blind Fisherman
01:02:48Get closer with the gun, but don't hit the girl.
01:03:15Shoot now!
01:03:28Go get the girl.
01:03:45The Cove of the Blind Fisherman
01:03:58Keena!
01:04:03Stay away!
01:04:15He is dissolving.
01:04:27He's turning to powder.
01:04:44The Cove of the Blind Fisherman
01:05:14The Cove of the Blind Fisherman
01:05:24Paul?
01:05:25It's all right, honey, everything's okay now.
01:05:27What are we doing at the beach?
01:05:31You mean you don't know why you're here?
01:05:33I can't seem to remember anything.
01:05:39Just as well.
01:05:40Let's go home, honey.
01:05:45The strange narrative of Quintillus Aurelius
01:05:49ended here, in the quiet waters of the Bay of Naples.
01:05:54The story is finished,
01:05:56and perhaps Quintillus Aurelius has found the true Lucilla Helena,
01:06:01where mortal men don't walk,
01:06:04and time is eternal.
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