The Counselor (2013)
Michael Fassbender: Counselor
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Quotes
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Westray : Well, I'm perfectly willing to believe you had nothing to do with this but I'm not the party you have to convince.
Counselor : Convince of what, for Christ sake?
Westray : That this is some sort of coincidence. Because they don't really believe in coincidences. They've heard of them. They've just never seen one.
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Jefe : Machado would have traded every word, every poem, every verse he ever wrote for one more hour with his beloved. And that is because when it comes to grief, the normal rules of exchange do not apply, because grief transcends value. A man would give entire nations to lift grief off his heart. And yet, you cannot buy anything with grief, because grief is worthless.
Counselor : Why are you telling me this?
Jefe : Because you continue to deny the reality of the world you're in. Do you love your wife so much, so completely, that you would exchange places with her upon the wheel? And I don't mean dying, because dying is easy.
Counselor : Yes! Yes, damn you!
Jefe : Well, that is good to hear, Counselor.
Counselor : What are you saying? Are you saying this is a possibility?
Jefe : No. It's impossible.
Counselor : You said I was that man - at that crossing.
Jefe : Yes. At the understanding that life is not going to take you back. You are the world you have created. And when you cease to exist, this world that you have created will also cease to exist. But for those with the understanding that they're living the last days of the world, death acquires a different meaning. The extinction of all reality is a concept no resignation can encompass. And then, all the grand designs and all the grand plans will be finally exposed and revealed for what they are. And now, Counselor, I have to go, because I have to make other calls. If I have time, I think I'll take a small nap.
[hangs up]
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Reiner : I don't know what
[Malkina]
Reiner : knows. I don't want to know.
Counselor : You don't trust her.
Reiner : Jesus Counselor, she's a woman.
Counselor : Yeah, well.
Reiner : Yeah, well, I don't mean to sound cold, I just mean that where women are concerned, they've got their own agenda. I always liked smart women, but it's been an expensive hobby.
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Counselor : Will you help me?
Jefe : I would urge you to see the truth of the situation you're in, Counselor. That is my advice. It is not for me to tell you what you should have done or not done. The world in which you seek to undo the mistakes that you made is different from the world where the mistakes were made. You are now at the crossing. And you want to choose, but there is no choosing there. There's only accepting. The choosing was done a long time ago... Are you there Counselor?
Counselor : [distraught] Yes.
Jefe : I don't mean to offend you, but reflective men often find themselves at a place removed from the realities of life. In any case, we should all prepare a place where we can accommodate all the tragedies that sooner or later will come to our lives. But this is an economy few people care to practice.
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Counselor : I want her to have something that she would not be uncomfortable wearing. I don't want to give her a diamond so big she'd be afraid to wear it.
Diamond Dealer : She is probably more courageous than you imagine.
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Westray : Maybe I should tell you what Mickey Rourke told what's-his-face? That's my recommendation anyway, Counselor. Don't do it.
Counselor : [cites] "This arson is a serious crime."
Westray : Yeah. And so is this.
Counselor : [laughs quietly] Well, I guess I'm a little taken aback at the cautionary nature of this conversation.
Westray : Good word, 'cautionary'.
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Counselor : Life is being in bed with you. Everything else is just waiting.
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Counselor : You're a glory.
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Reiner : Women like you.
Counselor : All right.
Reiner : Do you know what they like about you?
Counselor : I'm a good fuck?
Reiner : Right! No, they can sniff out the moral dilemma. The paradox. "Moral dilemma." Yeah, they're drawn to it. Not sure why. Maybe it's just that lacking any moral sense themselves, they're fascinated by it in men. Men are attracted to flawed women, too, of course, but their illusion is that they can fix them. Women don't want to fix anything. They only want to be entertained. The truth about women is you can do anything to them except bore them.
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Cafe Man : Señores I must close.
Counselor : I know.
Cafe Man : You have no place to go, maybe?
Counselor : I fell asleep, I'm sorry.
Cafe Man : There is no harm.
Counselor : No harm. That's a lovely thought. A magical thought. Good night.
Cafe Man : It's very dangerous out there. In the street.
Counselor : I know.
Cafe Man : If they hear somebody in the street, they shoot them. Then they turn on the light to see who is dead.
Counselor : Why do they do that?
Cafe Man : To make a joke. To show that death doesn't care. That death has no meaning.
Counselor : Do you believe that?
Cafe Man : No. Of course not. All my family is dead. I'm the one who has no meaning.
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Counselor : You like this stone?
Diamond Dealer : I like that stone.
Counselor : How many carats is it?
Diamond Dealer : 3.9.
Counselor : It's expensive.
Diamond Dealer : Tell me what you see. Remember, you are not looking for merit. This is a cynical business, we seek only imperfection. This is a 5 carat stone. Tell me what you see.
Counselor : The culet seems big. Crown and pavilion don't fit. The girdle comes out crooked.
Diamond Dealer : Very good.
Counselor : But there is no perfect diamond?
Diamond Dealer : En esta mundo, nada es perfecto, as my father would say.
Counselor : You're Sephardic.
Diamond Dealer : Yes.
Counselor : Do you know Spain?
Diamond Dealer : I do. And Spain, me. At one time I thought she would return from the grave, but that is not to be. Every country that has driven out the Jews has suffered the same fate.
Counselor : Which is?
Diamond Dealer : You don't want to hear. We should talk stones. The most rare stone is the red diamond from the Argyle mines. So very rare. I've seen two in a long life, a prize almost beyond belief.
Counselor : I do want to hear.
Diamond Dealer : Ah. Well. How to say... there's no culture save for the Semitic culture. There. The last known culture before that was the Greek, and there will be no culture after. Nothing.
Counselor : That's a bold claim.
Diamond Dealer : The heart of any culture is to be found in the nature of the hero. Who is that man who is revered? In a Classical world, it is the warrior, but in the Western world, it is the man of God. From Moses to Christ. The Prophet, the Penitent. Such a figure was unknown to the Greeks. Unheard of. Unimaginable. Because there is only a man of God, not a man of gods. And this God is the God of the Jewish people. There is no other god. We see him, what is the word... purloined. Purloined in the West. How do you steal a God? The Jew beholds his tormentor dressed in the vestments of his own ancient culture. Everything bares a strange familiarity, but the fit is always poor, and the hands are always dripping blood. "That coat. Didn't that belong to Uncle Chaim? What about the shoes?"
Diamond Dealer : Enough, I see your look. No more philosophy. The stones themselves have their own view of things. Perhaps they are not so silent as you think. They were piped up out of the earth in a time before any witness was. But here they are. Let me show you. This is a... cautionary stone. Although I suppose every diamond is cautionary.
Counselor : A cautionary diamond?
Diamond Dealer : Of course. Why not? That's not a small thing to wish for, however unattainable. To aspire to the stone's endless destiny. Isn't that the meaning of adornment? To enhance the beauty of the beloved is to acknowledge both her frailty and the nobility of that frailty. We announce to darkness that we will not be diminished by the brevity of our lives. That we will not thereby be made less. You will see.
