It's the start of the evening. A security guard in uniform sits alone at a table in a coffee bar, a young woman walks up to him.
She: Is this seat free?
[the security guard nods, she sits down]
She: You’re a security guard, aren’t you?
He: Did you guess from my clothes?
[Pause]
He: Rather cold evenings for spring.
She: True.
He: Why did you sit down here?
She: What do you mean?
He: There’s room elsewhere.
She: You seemed to need company.
He: Who, me?
She: Yes, you can tell.
He: You can? It’s the profession. People don’t usually come to talk to us.
She: Yes, you guys seem quite rough.
He: It’s just the surface. We’re human, too.
[Pause]
He: Now what? Shall we get married?
She: Why not. But first we must get to know each other.
He: How?
She: Usually the man asks you out, like to the movies.
He: You must’ve been asked often.
She: Sometimes.
He: Want to go to the movies?
She: When?
He: Tomorrow. I’ve still got to work tonight.
She: That’s okay.
Dialogue from the movie Lights in the Dusk (Laitakaupungin valot), by Aki Kaurismäki, 2006. Third and last instalment of the ‘Loser’ trilogy. Watched on MUBI, 2 March 2024 (excerpt 11’10’’ to 12’38’’). Image: Ger Duijzings through DreamStudio.
