Sir, time is running out. You must leave immediately. I'm begging you.
They will arrest you.
Bring me the candles.
- I'm going to work late tonight. - But, sir...
And my usual glass of wine.
Our world had to change.
The revolution has become a terror sweeping the land...
and soon I, too, will become its victim.
Convictions can make men blind and drive them mad.
They can devour their hearts...
and transform them into beasts.
It was in the year 1764...
that the beast first appeared on our land and made it its own.
One year later...
its infamy had spread beyond the borders of our province...
and we came to believe no mortal would be able to eliminate the terror.
Under its attack, the province of Gevaudan...
sank deeper and deeper into darkness.
Who are you?
What has he done?
- What has he done? - He's a thief.
And the girl?
His daughter... a bloody witch!
I'm a healer. I took care of their horses. They won't pay me.
Don't listen to him, sir. These people can't be trusted.
- And did he heal the horses? - Yes.
Be on your way.
Welcome to the land of the beast, my lords...
but beware of the wolf traps!
The knight Gregoire de Fronsac and his companion Mani...
were neither hunters, nor were they soldiers.
Naturalist and taxidermist to the king and royal gardens...
Sir de Fronsac had quite a reputation in Paris...
for being a libertine and a sharp wit.
As for the man that followed him like a shadow...
he was a foreigner, and you knew nothing about him.
As night fell...
the two voyagers arrived at the castle of the Marquis d'Apcher...
who had offered them refuge in the Gevaudan region...
for as long as their mission endured.
Our people would not be afraid of a simple wolf.
The beast is different.
It flees from men as if it knew to fear them...
but it spares neither woman nor child.
- Have you ever seen it? - No.
Then how can you be sure this is the work of only one animal?
All those who survive give the same description.
The beast is much larger than a wolf...
and they say it has no fear of the hunter's bullet.
I understand your skepticism, Fronsac...
and I don't believe in... dragons any more than you do.
But I've had a report drawn up...
a memoir of the beast's crimes.
You may judge for yourself.
Grandfather tells me you fought the English in New France.
Yes.
I went there to study the flora and the fauna...
and I've returned with several scars and the rank of captain in the Royal...
I've opened a hospital for the victims of the beast...
in an old priory.
It's a woman from Lorcieres.
She was coming back from the fair when the beast attacked her on the road.
Her two companions came to her rescue. The beast ran off.
But it had enough time to destroy half of her face.
Tell me, Monsieur Fronsac...
has Monsieur Buffon heard the news from Paris?
And The Ingenue? Have you read The Ingenue?
Marquis, it's a bit late to discuss philosophy.
You're quite right. Let's discuss theater.
Do you know any actresses?
What's the theater this season?
You can put it there.
They say actresses are gallant.
I don't know if it's true...
but I've read some are quite free with their charm.
Tell me all about it.
Here's something to satisfy your curiosity.
The Mercure of France!
Here we have only the Avignon Courier.
- I'll show you the servants' quarters. - Leave him. He'll sleep here.
Very well. Good night, Sir de Fronsac.
It isn't Versailles, but his wine is good.
As large as a cow.
Jacques has seen many wolves...
but he says the animal that attacked him is not one.
His muzzle was elongated and his teeth are like knives.
If it wasn't a wolf, what was it?
The beast has attacked a girl near St. Alban.
There.
Calm, sir. No one's there.
Stop there!
What are they doing here? Damn sons of whores!
Good day, Captain.
Good day, Marquis.
I'm pleased to see you.
Be on your guard. There are traps everywhere.
Duhamel, this is Gregoire de Fronsac, of the king's royal gardens.
He would like to examine the body of this unfortunate woman more closely...
with your permission, of course.
So it was you, sir, who butchered my men.
I didn't know, Captain, that they were carrying out your orders.
They were not.
You did the right thing, and I offer you my apologies.
My soldiers are not from this province. They are trained for war, not hunting.
Beware. She has been filled with poison.
What sort of gardener are you?
When your men have killed the beast...
His Majesty wishes it to be brought back and studied in Paris.
I've been sent to capture its true nature on paper...
then naturalize it when the hunt has ended.
For the moment, I'm simply trying to get an idea.
My God! With a jaw this size, the beast must weigh 500 pounds.
This time I'll kill it, Marquis.
Before the first snow I'll shoot it.
If everyone shows at the hunt, it won't be able to escape.
Have you ever seen it?
One time, sir, in 13 months, I had it in my line of fire.
I shot it. My word, sir.
I saw it collapse and revive itself immediately.
We lost sight of it at the foot of Mont Mouchet...
as if it vanished into the woods.
Did it look anything like this?
It had a black stripe on its back...
with a line of spikes, you might say.
My friends...
I would like to present the author of these drawings.
Knight Gregoire de Fronsac...
man of the hour if there is one, as he's come to us from Paris to...
Capture the beast?
His Eminence the Bishop of Mende...
His Lordship the Duke de Moncan...
His Grace the Count of Morangias...
and Madame the Countess...
their son Jean-Franqois...
who has also traveled a great deal.
- Nice touch, sir. - Thank you, sir.
Monsieur Laffont, administrator...
Father Henri Sardis, of St. Alban's church.
And so, tell us all, sir:
Is there much talk of the beast in Paris?
- They even write songs. - When they should be saying prayers.
Do you think Captain Duhamel would truly need the help of God?
And who may do without it?
Duhamel can barely disguise his soldiers as women...
to lure the beast with strategy.
Duhamel does his best.
You're being very indulgent. Duhamel is incompetent.
His hunts exhaust the people...
his soldiers devastate our lands, and the beast is still at large.
- Certainly. - My word!
Is it to pay Duhamel that my taxes are sent to the ministries in Paris?
I would much rather give it to my valets.
- What do you think, sir? - Don't feel obliged to reply, sir.
My friend the duke loves to argue, but he's a good Christian.
When you arrived, this brilliant assembly was chattering away...
about the good lord and the whole saintly affair.
It seems the pope has even sent a spy to determine...
if the beast is or is not a manifestation of the devil.
Excuse me.
Your beauty has charms so powerful that I cannot resist...
Marianne de Morangias. Difficult, sir, very difficult.
All the best in the province have tried and failed.
- Who's the future victim? - Maxime des Forets, a playwright.
Then this will be easy.
Be careful. She's a Morangias.
- Mademoiselle. - Hello, sir. We were conversing...
- You're Maxime des Forets. - Maxime before you?
It's an honor to meet you. Authors of quality are so rare in these times.
- The marquis has spoken of you... - Really?
He wants to write a memoir of his family, and he's thinking of you.
Really?
Between us, he's in good spirits.
But do it with finesse, as if you didn't know.
And, above all, wait until he broaches the subject.
Mademoiselle, excuse me.
- Have you no shame? - Dear God, no!
And so, Mr. Naturalist, is our province to your liking?
For the moment, I've only glimpsed the beauty.
Well, at least one.
Is this how one speaks in the king's court?
No.
It's a couplet you've reserved for innocent provincials.
I might go to the court more often if I could meet young ladies like you.
They're serving, sir. Let's go to dinner.
Whither thou goest.
We had been sailing up the St. Lawrence River for 12 days...
when we brought up in our nets the strangest animal I'd ever seen.
The Indians had spoken to me of their sacred fish...
but I was sure that it was only a legend.
What I saw before me was a fish in the shape and size of a trout...
but whose body was entirely covered...
with jet-black, fine fur.
A furry trout? Sir, you must be joking.
No, sir.
Salmo trutta dermopilla from Canada.
It's as soft as mink.
- Nature is extraordinary. - The water must be very cold.
That proves that the impossible is sometimes possible.
Well said.
There's a discovery that must have earned you honors in the Royal Gardens.
But I doubt he deserves them.
However, I do recognize, sir, your talent for comedy.
Had I both my hands, I'd applaud you.
Jean-Franqois.
Would you please be kind enough to excuse him, sir?
Your son is right, Count de Morangias.
This animal does not exist.
My embalmer at the Royal Gardens is a skillful man.
Pardon me this little farce at your expense.
Are we to believe the moral of your story is...
that there is no beast in Gevaudan...
and that our province is filled with idiots?
The moral of my fable, mademoiselle...
is that we find dragons and unicorns only in books and poems.
Lies may often appear as truths when they're dressed in Latin.
Be careful, sir.
We may lose all sense of what you're saying.
But, indeed, what are you? A naturalist or a philosopher?
Or worse: an actor?
I think our friend is, above all, Parisian.
Enough said about this evil beast. After all, it only devours vermin.
Charades?
This morning I composed a little poem about love.
If Madame the Countess will permit?
- If it isn't indecent. - Indecent? Oh, no.
It's a poem. It's very chaste, very pure.
It's improvised. It just came to me.
It's entitled "To the Wolf, to the Wolf."
"I was caught unawares, though I thought not of evil.
I was caught in your stares. Your sly eye pierced my heart.
I'm ensnared."
Shall I see you again?
Have you other amazing animals to show me?
You seem rather set in your ideas about me.
- Permit me to change your opinion. - You can try.
- Will you come to Duhamel's hunt? - Most certainly.
I can't allow it. My dear, it's much too dangerous.
Obedience is the first virtue of well-bred young women.
The young man's right.
There was that day in Gevaudan...
the largest hunt ever organized in the kingdom of France.
The king offered a reward of 6,000 pounds...
to the beast's assassin.
There were thousands of enlisted peasants, swordsmen and soldiers...
as well as all the hunters and adventurers in the region.
And for several hours we forgot...
that we were the beast's prey.
Each one of you has a map and a meeting point.
The hunt will begin at 7:00. I thank you very much.
You may, Captain, you may. My men have other things to do.
Your generosity, Duke, rivals your courage and...
That's enough, Duhamel. I hope for your sake that we kill the beast.
It's a certainty, Duke.
What is that ruckus?
Fine weapon, isn't it?
I had it made by an armorer in Mende upon my return.
You understand, of course, it must be made to measure.
Here, look at this.
Even in Paris, you'll never find these bullets.
I make them myself.
Silver? Are you afraid of werewolves?
No.
But I like to sign my shots.
I am a hunter, Fronsac...
and it's a passion that has cost me dearly.
What happened to you?
Let's just say I learned the hard way...
some wild animals need more than a bullet to bring them down...
and no matter what Sardis says...
you need more than prayers to heal gangrene.
- Was it a bear that injured you? - A lion.
A lion?
Yes. Two years in the navy took me to many places.
Have you ever been to Africa, Fronsac?
My lords, my daughter is the cause of all this.
Here she is. Punish her as you see fit.
She's ill! She's sick! She's not possessed.
She is not possessed!
Keep her from swallowing her tongue. She'll suffocate.
She's not possessed.
I know.
Naturalist, philosopher, and even healer.
Bravo.
She didn't come, Fronsac. You owe me a gold piece.
Marquis.
And the natives?
Superstitious brutes, like anywhere. Like here.
Indian hunters eat the heart of their prey to boost their strength.
Are they brutes for doing so?
In Africa it's the heart of the enemy that the warrior devours.
Count de Morangias? Jean-Franqois?
Please ask your men to move to the east.
Well, here you are.
Mademoiselle, your mother will be worried.
My mother is always worried.
If I listened to her, I'd be in a convent.
I know you didn't believe me. You're a libertine.
I'm not a libertine when I'm in love.
You're in love?
That's ridiculous. We hardly know each other.
You thought I was speaking of you?
We'll have to teach her someday how to ride like a lady.
No harm in getting a little exercise at her age.
My father sees no evil.
And my son sees evil everywhere.
People have died here.
How do you know?
I hear their cries.
Mani, stop that.
He's right. This was once a Templar stronghold.
When it burned, 25 heretics were burned alive in the chapel.
- Is he a seer? - No need to be a seer.
Simply observe.
When I was young, I had played here with my brother.
Were you not afraid?
He told me he would protect me from ghosts.
Have you no taste for the hunt?
Is that a crime in these parts?
The Indians say to draw someone's portrait is to steal their soul.
Are you interested in my soul as well?
What are you doing on foot during the hunt? Do you want to be killed?
- It's my fault. - I asked nothing of you, sir.
- What possessed you? - It was a wolf.
- And if it were the beast? - I don't think so, Marianne.
Thank you.
I hope for your sake, Captain, that the beast is among these wolves.
In any case, these won't attack anyone again.
What a curious character. Where did you find him?
In New France.
He's a... What is it? An Acadian.
He's an Indian. An Iroquois, from the Mohawk tribe.
An Indian? A real one?
He doesn't look at all like an Indian.
Please join us tonight at St. Alban.
It will be amusing with your valet.
- He's not my valet. - Then what the devil is he?
He's my brother.
Really, how could you have mixed your blood...
with that of a savage?
A man is not a savage when he shares in your misfortune.
Mani helped me escape the English after the Battle ofThree Rivers.
I thought they were cannibals, those animals over there.
Well, as you can see, Monsieur Laffont...
Mani is not an animal.
Are you able to reproduce with a woman of our race?
All women have same color when candle is out.
And, yes, they even have humor.
If Indians slept with the whites, they even had children...
which proves we are the same species.
Don't speak too soon. It's a bit like the Negroes, actually.
What say you, Sardis?
Without doubt your blood brother is, like us, a creature of God.
- Have you had him baptized? - He didn't request it.
Poor reasoning. You're a man of your times.
Mani has his own beliefs.
At home he was a sort of... priest, one might say.
If Indians have priests, they're surely lost.
What exactly are their beliefs?
The Mohawks believe for each man there is an animal spirit.
- They call it totem. - Very amusing, but I don't understand.
Would you, please?
Don't be afraid. It doesn't hurt.
You... oskenunda.
Caribou. It's a kind of stag.
Oh, yes, a stag.
And what do you think, my dear?
Am I a stag because of my horns or because of something else?
And my dear Thomas... what is his "totem"?
Worm. Bookworm, probably.
- Serpent. - Serpent?
To the Indians, the serpent represents wisdom.
Serpent wise.
And you, Laffont?
- His Grace? - A bull.
Laugh, Laffont.
For these barbarians, pigs may be the symbol of nobility, eh?
Whose turn now? Sardis?
No.
It's mine. What am I?
Half lion?
Half eagle?
Go on, transform me into a lizard, Indian, so my arm may grow back.
Jean-Franqois, that's enough!
What's the matter? Am I in poor taste?
Let me go!
Mademoiselle, would it please you?
Pardon me, sir, but I've tired of your games...
and I prefer to retire before you begin juggling or dancing on a ball.
Good night.
This will cheer your spirit, Fronsac.
It certainly isn't Paris, but it's the best house in Mende...
and you'll sleep better here than at the inn.
They're all for you, my lords...
and we have a new girl, very, very...
My dear marquis.
Come.
I'm costly, Gregoire de Fronsac.
Do you know me?
From here, Gevaudan is small.
Italian.
Just passing through the region.
I have money.
You'll need more than just money.
What, then?
Who did this to you?
An Iroquois arrow.
Far from your heart?
I hope so.
I'm a lucky man.
And this?
A bear.
And he didn't like me at all.
You haven't seen anything yet.
My business is dangerous...
and all men are not like you.
Something to remember me by.
None of this scandal in my house!
- Valentine, what is it? - Madame, I won't sleep with a sorcerer.
- What are you talking about? - He has snakes on his body.
- Our reputation! You must go. - It's nothing.
Our friend is an Indian, not a sorcerer.
- Well, I will not sleep with Indians. - Your whores are quite delicate.
Come on, girls. Who's going to take care of the redskin?
Come on, I'll double the price.
- I like his tattoos. - There we go. All arranged.
So, are you really a sorcerer?
Will you draw my portrait?
If you don't behave.
As the weeks passed, it became apparent...
that Duhamel's soldiers could not find the beast.
It was to be our third winter spent under the beast's reign...
and we knew that the snow and the cold would not stop it...
any more than our guns and our dogs.
Remember the warnings of God sent to us in the words of Moses.
"I shall come unto you like a bear whose cubs have been ravished.
Like a lion I will devour your children and tear out their entrails.
I will set upon you a ferocious beast...
who will consume you and your flocks...
and turn your fields into deserts."
How long, O Lord, wouldst thou forsake us?
A candle for each victim.
Is this truly the Age of Reason?
Mercy!
I'll ask forgiveness!
Mercy!
Bless me, Father.
What has happened, my son?
God has punished me. My children disappeared at Mont Mouchet.
I am damned.
We are all damned!
Gather your men, Marquis. We're leaving immediately.
Tell Mani. I'll meet you on the road.
Hello, sir, friend to the wolves.
I have something for you.
I'd like to see you again, Marianne. Alone.
In ten days.
My mother is going to a retreat and my father will be in...
- Ten days? - I am not as free as you.
Bring the torch.
Bring the torch!
A storm is coming. The men are tired.
We had better go back.
No, we must find the girl.
I found the child!
Captain, the traps with which you have infested this region...
have killed more peasants than wolves.
Your men have long been extorting the population.
And since your hunt, the wolf has killed 12 times.
I don't understand. It should never have gotten away.
- What's that? - It should never have gotten away.
And you, Sir de Fronsac?
Do you know what sort of wolf we're up against?
Gentlemen...
my only certainty concerning the beast is that it's not a wolf.
Contrary to popular belief, wolves do not attack people, or very rarely.
I made a study of them in New France.
The wolves in this country are perhaps of a different type.
A rabid wolf would attack anyone.
When an animal is rabid, it will die within a fortnight...
but the beast has bled your country dry for two years.
I've seen wounds on the cadavers that no wolf could inflict.
And I also found in the body of a victim...
this piece of metal.
And so?
And so...
no animal has fangs of steel.
The beast is not an animal. So be it.
Then tell us, sir, how to capture it.
While we speculate, it's killing our people.
Gentlemen...
I think we should listen to Monsieur de Fronsac with the utmost attention.
So, sir, according to you...
the beast would not be an ordinary animal?
We all think the same thing.
And as for me...
I am pleased that you admit to its supernatural character.
I did not admit to anything, Father.
I have only doubts.
Fronsac, have you anything to add?
No, sir.
Gentlemen, I've just received this from Paris.
Captain Duhamel, His Majesty has been informed...
of your failed attempts to kill the beast...
and he's asked me to dismiss you from your functions.
You and your men will join your regiment in Langogne at once.
Monsieur Beauterne, the king's master-at-arms, is on his way...
and His Majesty has sent him to kill the ferocious wolf.
He is the only authorized hunter in the diocese.
Gentlemen.
Have you forgiven me?
Let's say I was curious to know my totem. Is that how you say it?
I would say a mermaid.
Are you never serious?
I'll ask your redskin.
And the beast... have you seen it yet?
No.
You don't wish to speak of it?
I have nothing to say but absurd suppositions...
that will earn me the title of fool in the king's garden.
If I were to say that the beast is made up of flesh and steel...
that it could reason and that it could disappear at will...
what would you think?
That our country air has affected your head.
As if it were eluding me.
You haven't been here three months...
and you expect to have finished already?
Did you think the beast would surrender when it saw you?
- Perhaps it's frightened of you. - Am I really that frightening?
A victory that comes dearly is better savored.
Jean-Franqois tells me you'd like to go to Africa.
For the moment it's only a dream of a naturalist...
who's had enough of winter.
And you? Have you never wanted to know other horizons?
The girls here have more duties than desires.
Do you see Sardis on the ramparts?
- Are you being watched? - Oh, no.
He's there to protect me.
Alone with you in this park, God knows what might happen to me.
Let's go in. Our priest will catch cold.
Good evening, sir.
You are in love.
I don't know.
I know.
The cards?
I've never had a need for them for you, my friend.
So let's drink.
To Mademoiselle de Morangias.
What?
Her brother was here last night.
And you slept with him?
Slept with him? He can't stand to be touched.
He watches, he drinks...
and when he's drunk too much, he talks in his sleep, like all men.
Do I talk in my sleep?
And I say?
Do you know how Florentine women keep their husbands at home?
No.
Each morning they slip them poison, slow poison...
and each evening, the antidote.
The husband who doesn't come home...
has a very bad night.
A woman like you has no need of that.
No.
Anyway, we're not married.
Make way for Antoine de Beauterne, royal master-at-arms...
who has come to rid the country of the beast.
Sir, I'm Gregoire de Fronsac.
Oh, yes, sent by Buffon. The royal taxidermist.
Lord Beauterne is staying at Sir Laffont's.
We're expected at 2:00 precisely.
His Majesty has asked my advice concerning your report.
Very complicated fables, indeed.
I think the beast is a wolf.
I will ride into the country tomorrow.
I do not wish you to accompany me.
And why is that?
It pleases the king to assign me this matter, young man...
and to let me handle it as I see fit.
I have no need of you to terminate this affair.
On the table you will find a letter signed by the Count de Buffon...
and by our beloved king.
I follow his orders, sir, but believe me, this is not a wolf.
I've already read your memoir.
Take no more pains over this beast, my friend.
I'll handle it.
You are dismissed.
Come here. Come.
Come!
It's a woman from Lorcieres.
She was coming back from the fair when the beast attacked her on the road.
We lost sight of it at the foot of Mont Mouchet...
as if it vanished into the woods.
Fronsac, the beast has attacked a girl near St. Alban.
God has punished me. My children have vanished at Mont Mouchet.
I don't believe in dragons any more than you do.
Is there much talk of the beast in Paris?
My only certainty concerning the beast is that it's not a wolf.
A rabid wolf would attack anyone.
I am pleased that you admit...
No animal has fangs of steel.
Sir, you must come. Please hurry.
I saw him!
He was using poison while reciting satanic incantations.
God only knows for how long.
Let him go.
It's an Indian remedy, Father.
Only our prayers may save her.
But... She was...
A miracle!
Tell me: What happened to your brother?
- A man with the beast? - Come now.
The child knows not what she's saying.
Yes, sir, the beast is dead.
Ten bullets. It never had a chance.
We have brought you the necessary equipment.
Begin your work at once.
That!
Get to work. Lord Beauterne is on his way.
- Ridiculous. This is not the beast! - You must wait for Lord Beauterne!
I don't like your tone, braggart.
Hello, sir.
Leave us.
So, Fronsac, my beast doesn't please you?
What does all this mean, Beauterne?
That animal is not the beast and you know it.
Good God! His jaws are two times the size of these.
- You have all you need here to fix that. - What do you mean?
As you know, I must bring the beast back to Paris...
and I have only this wolf, so you're gonna make me a beast.
- And you hope to make the king... - No, Fronsac.
I'm carrying out his wishes.
You would be wise to do the same.
- You threaten me, sir. - At my age? Come now.
You know who I am...
and you are far too intelligent to be threatened.
If you do your duty, the king will be very grateful.
If not, he will be very disappointed.
You have everything you need. I'm counting on you.
Good-bye for now.
Good evening, my unhappy friend.
Are you sad to be returning to Paris?
The Beast is dead. You should be happy.
Do you want me to tell you a secret?
I collect them.
Beauterne killed a simple wolf.
He's an impostor.
And I am his accomplice.
Come! Let's drink to our betrayals!
You saw nothing.
You are no longer welcome at the castle, sir!.
You will tell mademoiselle de Morangias that I'm here.
-I already told you... -Speaking of the devil...
My son and I were speaking
About you sir...
It is your daughter i've come to visit.
-I'm afraid that will be impossible. -I insist.
Let him in, mother
Be careful, Jean-Franqois ...
You know how these matters end.
Leave us.
Fronsac...
Marianne...
is suffering.
I don't understand.
However, Fronsac...
you're responsible for her illness .
Where is she?
Follow me.
So kind of you to visit.
Mademoiselle, My orders are return to Paris,
but that depends on you...
Have a safe journey!
I warned you Fronsac!
You once gave me a present.
I give you too...
For your collection.
I had been warned about man of your kind.
Man of my kind, mademoiselle...
never condemn people without having listened to them.
I don't know how this happend, but please... Allow me to explain!
No need to bother.
Marianne !
Please, Sir!
Don't make this more difficult, than it already is...
Admit that you are not the man for my sister.
And leave it at that. No regrets.
Do you believe that she will nurse you...
for the rest of her life?
Fronsac...
Are you not happy to leave our province in one piece?
In other times, my men would have beat you up just for looking at her.
Times change.
Not everywhere, Fronsac.
In any case, not here.
Ouch! Jean-Francois!
I'm sorry.
Will you hit me too..
If I tell you...
to leave?
Goodbye!
Have no regrets, he did not deserve you.
On this historic day...
I would first like to thank Sir Gregoire de Fronsac...
of His Majesty's Royal Gardens.
The beast of Gevaudan is dead, thanks to him.
But it is, above all, thanks to Your Majesty.
Let it be said...
it is you alone who possesses the sovereign power.
Only an animal can ignore that...
but that animal is no more.
I am deserving of little merit, in all truth.
Invested with your power...
I had only to appear in Gevaudan...
for the beast to surrender its life.
Monsieur Laffont, what is this masquerade?
Beauterne carried out the orders he received.
We must all do the same, mustn't we?
- What orders? - Mine.
Fronsac, may I present Monsieur Mercier...
special counsel to His Majesty in charge of affairs of the interior.
It was his idea to send Antoine de Beauterne to Gevaudan.
So it is to you, sir, that we owe this prompt victory over the beast.
Your scruples do you honor, Fronsac, but this is an affair of state.
Have you read this?
You will no longer find this book for sale, but keep it as a souvenir.
Did you have it censored?
Disguised as a novel, this book undermines the king's authority.
If we had waited too long, this affair would have been troublesome.
People are so gullible.
If I understand you, sir...
it is better to lie than to let lies be spread.
The truth is very complicated.
To govern, you must make things simple.
The beast was causing a problem. No more beast... no more problem.
- It will continue to kill. - No one will hear of the beast again.
That's what counts.
Ah, I'd forgotten.
His Majesty would like to thank you for all you've done.
It is said you would like to explore Africa.
In six months a schooner will sail from Nantes destined for Senegal.
If you so desire, you may make the voyage.
Of course, we'll never speak again of Gevaudan, will we, Fronsac?
Well, Fronsac?
Marianne de Morangias?
Madame?
- I don't believe I know you?
- We both have,
a friend in common.
What are you doing here?
It's useless to hide behind that veil.
Your perfume is not that of a lady.
-Shhh!
Grégoire de Fronsac has only loved one woman.
It is your name that he calls out in his sleep...
He will soon be leaving, on a long journey.
Just perfect.
When you see Fronsac,
Do not tell him anything of our meeting.
Or you would lose him forever.
Who was that, my child?
No one.
That one, in the hole with the others.
This one and this, in my cabin. Be careful! They are fragile!
Hallo, Fronsac!.
Hey, Marquis!
Good to see you!
Two days after you left the crimes began again.
The king no longer send us soldiers.
I can not even find volunteers for the hunt...
I can't do anything for you Marquis, I don't know how to catch the Beast.
To be frank I wasn't only thinking of you...
Mani found the child. One hunt, Fronsac.
One only. You will be back in one month.
Impossible! The king forbid us to return to Gevaudan.
-But the king won't know. -Don't be so sure.
is his tranquillity worth these sacrifices?
You won't change my mind.
Do you want to bet?
The last time we made a bet, you lost!
I will have prefered not to use this to convince you.
But well... It's from Marianne.
And Mani?
- Hey, Mani!
How are you?
We are leaving for the hunt, Mani.
This time we will do it your way.
So, my friend, good news?
The best in the world, Marquis!
The best in the world.
Officially, the beast was dead.
What truly happened cannot be found in history books.
The affair was kept very quiet.
Is he bidding us welcome?
He wants to help us.
Go to the castle.
I'll join you there later.
Fronsac left Mani to prepare for the hunt.
The beast was not his only reason for returning to Gevaudan.
What is it?
Where is the home ofJeanne and Pierre Roulier?
Go straight on. It's the last house in the village.
Calm down.
This is Jeanne.
My nanny.
Pierre, go fetch some wine.
My mother is having me watched. Perhaps they know you've returned.
To hell with your family. I'll tear you away from them.
I can't stand my mother anymore. Nor Jean-Franqois.
I want to go far away from here.
In one week I'll bring you to Paris.
Why wait?
I'm leaving again for the hunt.
- I promised the Marquis. - I thought you had returned for me.
No!
Marianne, leave... slowly!
Look at me!
Come on!
What's going on here?
My God!
Tell me, Fronsac:
Do you really think we'll find the beast?
- I thought we would have more men. - Mani knows what he's doing.
I'm hunting a man.
- A man? - The beast is only an instrument.
A weapon in the hands of a sick mind.
- An assassin would be more secretive. - Quite right, Marquis.
The first mystery of the beast is its celebrity.
Its master wants people to talk.
- He wants to make noise and frighten us. - What do you mean?
This book is sold throughout the kingdom.
The author maintains that the beast has come...
to punish the king for his indulgence of the philosophers.
- Just gossip. Who's the author? - That I don't know.
But the beast has a master, and it's him that I want.
Perhaps your weapon will be useful...
but only in your hands, Marquis.
And you, Mani?
Which will you choose?
Mani doesn't like firearms.
Too much noise, too much smoke...
very bad smell.
Everything will be fine, Grandfather.
Don't you worry.
We're well prepared.
Tell me about the Americas.
The Americas?
Will you ever return?
Bad memories.
And Mani? Does he not miss his tribe?
His tribe no longer exists.
Before our attack, the pox had already decimated his village.
We'd received orders to execute all the survivors.
The women and the children.
Only Mani escaped.
How?
My captain wanted a Mohawk interpreter.
I was to teach him our language...
and three weeks later I find him slitting the captain's throat.
Why didn't you turn him in?
You know how that man fought his battles.
He gave his scouts the infected sheets from a hospital in Quebec.
The Iroquois bought them and fell sick.
Three weeks later we finished off the job.
Is that how war is fought?
In any case, that's how we lost.
Where did Mani go?
- To speak to the trees. - To the trees?
The trees speak.
White man does not know how to listen... or to see.
See what, Mani?
You want to learn?
- What's that? - An Indian sacrament.
At your own risk, Marquis.
- What does it do? - It depends on the person.
The Indians say you see what cannot be seen.
Well, Mani?
The beast is in the forest.
- The wolves will help us. - I don't see anything.
Tonight we will dance the dance of blood...
and the beast will come to us with the sun.
I feel nothing.
It's not doing anyth...
That night, Mani called forth the spirits of the forest...
in a language that even the knight himself did not understand...
and the wolves brought them to the beast.
Don't worry. I'll take care of this.
It's all right, Pretty.
I'll heal you.
I'll take care of you.
Thomas is asleep.
He very nearly died.
I'm so sorry for the Indian.
What is over there?
Tell me: What is that house? I need to know.
It's a domain, a hunting domain.
Monsieur, you are in need of rest.
Fronsac returned to Mani's body.
His vengeance was far from being exacted.
But according to Indian custom, it was at the first light of dawn...
that he could best help his friend join his ancestors.
What do you want?
Far too much blood has been shed.
You're in great peril if you don't leave the province immediately.
I have no intention of leaving. I have a matter to settle.
Is it worth risking your life?
How long have you known?
I don't know what you're talking about.
You're lying, Sardis. Come on.
How could you have let this happen?
No one will believe you.
Leave here at once.
God bless you.
And may the devil take your soul.
Sir, you're under arrest.
By virtue of the powers invested in me by Monsieur Laffont...
I must ask you to follow us without resistance.
This is ridiculous, Lieut...
- Chief, there's a lady here to see you. - Later. Tonight.
- Get up. You have a visitor. - I'm no longer a secret?
Depend's from whom, my friend.
So sorry.
Bring some dinner to your guest.
How did you...
Many owe me favors.
You must help me. I must write to the king. You have no idea.
Even if I help you, you'll be hanged before your letter arrives.
That can't be. I haven't yet been judged.
Here.
- What do you know of the beast? - It's a trained animal.
Covered in armor.
I wounded him.
Since when does this interest you?
Two years ago, a confidential letter from Sardis...
was given to the pope.
It announced the creation of a secret society...
whose goal, let's say...
was to spread and defend the word of the church...
by all possible means.
The Brotherhood.
Sardis!
He will use the beast.
The beast is a warning to the king.
"Respect the power of God or risk the apocalypse."
The members call themselves the Wolves of God.
The brotherhood works for the church?
Sardis works for himself.
Enlightenment has driven him mad...
and Rome has no control over his organization.
And who do you work for?
Those who employ me also pay me to keep that information silent.
And you know enough already.
Mademoiselle de Morangias, to what do I owe this honor?
How fares your mother, Madame the Countess?
I pray you, please sit down.
And your father? Still taking the cure?
That man loves his rich food.
Sir Laffont, you have arrested Gregoire de Fronsac.
Yes.
Who would have thought that he could have fallen so low?
- He is neither thief nor assassin. - Oh, really?
I must say...
Sir de Fronsac surely had his reasons.
Perhaps those men killed the Indian that accompanied him.
Mademoiselle, that has nothing to do with it.
And even so...
one does not seek vengeance for a savage by spilling Christian blood.
I want to visit him.
That's impossible.
Very well.
We will see what they think of all this in Paris.
Marianne, you don't understand.
Fronsac died.
During the night.
In any case, he would have been hanged.
On reflection, he was lucky.
You were responsible for that man's life.
Perhaps he suffocated...
or perhaps he caught the plague from his mattress.
You're lying. You're all lying.
Have courage, my child. It is the will of God.
Father.
Come. I'll escort you home.
Mademoiselle would do well to get some rest.
Come.
- Leave me here. - You can do nothing for him now.
He's beginning to smell.
Let us bury him quickly in an unmarked grave.
She has threatened to speak to the king this time.
She's dangerous.
They buried Gregoire de Fronsac that very night...
long before the news of his death had reached Paris.
No one really knew what secrets the knight took with him to his grave.
For several days, the beast ceased to kill.
But the sudden disappearance of its most relentless adversary...
seemed to be a dark omen.
Quickly.
Bless me, Father, for I have sinned.
Forgive me.
Marianne... day and night I think of her.
Her heart beats in my breast every moment.
I want her by our side, Sardis.
The Lord is testing you.
But you know not what I endure.
Those visions.
Those damn visions torment me incessantly.
Deliver me, Father.
Deliver me from evil, I beg you.
For the evil within you there is only one remedy.
No.
Don't drink that, little sister.
They want to kill you...
but I will stop them.
But who, Jean-Franqois?
Who?
We're going to leave, just you and me.
Would you like to see America?
You made me suffer, you know, but I forgive you.
Please, what are you doing?
Where are you going?
Stay.
Do you think I would harm you?
Don't come any closer, please.
Marianne, I need you.
It was you who saved me when I was ill and no one else.
It was your face I saw when I woke from my nightmares.
It was your hand on my forehead that chased away the demons.
You cannot imagine what I have done to keep you close to me.
I beg you, don't push me away.
Tell me why.
Do I disgust you?
You don't frighten me. Leave me alone.
Is it because of this?
Don't worry.
From now on, I will take care of you.
Look.
No one knows...
but Sardis and I.
Leave. Get out of here!
But why?
You are not my brother.
It was another who returned from Africa.
Yes, that's true, but it was because of you that I left.
Marianne, without you, none of this would have happened.
None of this!
It's your smell.
It's your damned blood that the beast smelled on me!
Yes.
We have the same blood, Marianne.
When Father comes home...
he'll kill you.
And what if I kill him? He's come between us for so long.
Go on, do it! Go on.
Why didn't you do it?
It isn't as difficult as all that. Look.
- Stop. - So do you love me?
Marianne, I love you!
Brothers, the Lord has made it known to me...
the beast will return...
to herald the rebirth of our morality in this kingdom of decadence...
and a new France shall be born.
We shall be the invisible princes...
for God is with us.
Dominus nobiscum.
The people have yet to see the true wrath of God.
The unjust censure of the king...
cannot withstand the rage of the population...
and when that rage is at its peak...
we may then bargain with the king.
If he has failed to dominate the beast...
imagine, brothers, what shall happen if all the provinces in the kingdom...
were then attacked by other beasts.
The hour approaches when we shall reap what we have sown.
Let us read the Book of Malachi.
"The lips of the priest shall be the depository of science...
and from His mouth he shall gain the knowledge of the law...
for he is the angel of God."
"If one among you worships the beast or its image...
he shall drink the wine of God's wrath...
and he shall be tormented in fire...
and brimstone before the angels...
and the smoke of his torment shall rise to the century of centuries."
I have returned to name you before God.
Pierre-Jean Laffont.
Genevieve de Morangias.
Maxime des Forets.
Gontrand de Moncan.
Henri Sardis.
Jean-Franqois de Morangias.
Amen.
You damn sons of whores, you're all under arrest!
You may be a ghost...
but I will cut you in two.
You see? You no longer need to hold back.
I have no intention of doing so.
Too late, Fronsac. The beast is immortal now.
It, perhaps... but not you.
Sardis has trained you as you have trained the beast.
How did you find out?
You sign your crimes with a silver bullet!
Marianne, look!
Marianne's not here, you madman.
You have united us forever, Fronsac.
Bind these bastards up one by one, men.
Will you look at them, huh?
You're not so high and mighty now, are you? Where are you going?
- He's dead. - Now it's certain.
And Sardis?
Wherever he goes, we will find him...
or the mountains will take care of him.
Shall we celebrate our success properly?
You've already killed me once.
The better to revive you.
I could present you to the pope.
Will you come with me?
Too late.
I like you, Fronsac.
You helped me forget my duties.
Leave here before I change my mind.
Marquis!
What is it?
It's Marianne. I've had her brought home.
She's dying.
No!
Leave! Get out!
Go on, all of you!
Marianne, wake up.
Forgive me.
I love you.
Many years have passed...
but I have never forgotten...
Gregoire de Fronsac and Marianne de Morangias.
The world that created the beast is no more...
and I must hasten, for my story is also ending.
I can still remember accompanying Fronsac...
to the secret lair ofJean-Franqois de Morangias...
where the beast awaited its fate.
The old healer told us all he knew.
Jean-Franqois had brought a strange beast back from Africa...
who had cubs.
He kept only one... the strongest...
and with patience and cruelty...
he trained the beast to be vicious.
Thus died the beast of Gevaudan...
and I, Thomas d'Apcher...
I am the last to know the truth.
Off with his head!
Fronsac invited me to follow him to Africa...
but the province needed rebuilding.
I was beholden to my people, to my lands.
I have often thought of Gregoire and Marianne...
throughout all these peaceful years that have been my life.
I never saw them again...
but it pleases me to think they lived their lives happily...
far away from here.
THE BROTHERHOOD OF THE WOLF