NETFLIX PRESENTS
[woman vocalizing]
Taxi!
[driver] Where to?
- [Anya] Gare de l'Est. - No, I don't there.
Please.
[tires screeching]
- I'm in a hurry. - [driver] Fine. Get in.
[tires screeching]
Stay right there! That's my daughter. She's not going anywhere.
Anya, that's enough.
Enough.
[siren wailing]
What are you doing?
[Anya] I'm going home.
Mom, let me go.
I'm going to Berlin. I'm in danger here.
Stop it, honey.
Stop it.
Come on.
[theme music playing]
BASED ON THE NOVEL THE PERFECT MOTHER BY NINA DARNTON
- [in German] Come on. Let's go home. - Thanks.
[kissing]
Whoa.
Oh my God.
My God, I'm sorry.
Shit.
I thought you wanted it too.
What is this then? What game are you playing at?
What do you want?
I'm sorry.
- Lukas. Where were you? - Not now.
Hold on, Lukas. Wait. Your future's at stake.
What will you do without a diploma?
I'm sitting here, worrying about you. You don't answer.
What's going on in your head?
My sister was raped.
Your daughter!
- I know. - You worry about my exams?
Your patients? Everything except the one who needs it.
You should be in Paris with mom.
You don't have a clue. Do you know what it's like? I'm...
You're what? Selfish?
A coward?
What do you mean?
[somber music playing]
My love for you and Anya has no bounds. How can you doubt?
How could you not see what was happening?
Because she didn't tell me. I'm no psychic.
- You didn't either. - Of course, she didn't. Nor did I.
So you wouldn't be upset, so you'd be proud of your perfect kids.
- Lukas... - Be honest.
You didn't see anything because you didn't want to.
Open your eyes, damn it! You knew something was wrong with her.
You weren't there for her, Dad.
And neither was I.
Hey, come here.
It's all right.
You're right. I wasn't there.
Listen.
Let's stop pretending everything's fine.
[sobbing]
[exhales]
[Anya in English] I wanna go home.
Anya, I don't understand you.
- I want to go home. - Alone? Without telling me?
[whimpers]
Why run if you have nothing to hide?
We have to go.
They're waiting for us at the precinct. We can't stay any longer.
I want answers.
Anya...
Hélène, it already looks suspicious enough.
[whimpers quietly]
How can I protect you if you won't tell me the truth?
Tell me the truth.
[people speaking indistinctly]
[Hélène] Right now.
Okay.
Your grandma said you went out earlier. Why did you do that?
To see Kamal.
[sighs]
Was he the man at Damien's?
Is he a friend of yours?
What are you afraid of, Anya?
Just tell what happened in that apartment with Kamal.
Did he stab Damien?
[Anya] It was an accident.
It's my fault.
It never should've happened.
I liked him, but I couldn't tell he was out of his mind.
When we went to his place, I had no clue that he would drug and hit me,
or that he'd rape me.
[door locks]
[banging on door]
[Damien] Open up! Open the door!
Open the door or I'll kick it in!
Open up, God damn it!
[Anya] Once I was in the bathroom, I called Kamal to come get me.
- [Hélène] You had your cellphone? - [Anya] Yeah.
- Come on, Kamal. Come on. - [Damien] I said open the door!
[crying]
You can get in through the rooftop.
I told him about the open window you can get to from the roof.
It's... it's... [crying]
I'm in the bathroom.
[suspenseful music playing]
[grunts]
Anya?
Anya!
[Anya] I could barely stand up.
I knew he must've drugged me.
Hey.
Hey, it's all right. I'm here. Look at me. Come on. Let's go.
Come on. Here.
What's going on, you little whore?
When Damien saw Kamal, he just lost it.
And he called me a whore.
- What're you doing in my place, thief? - I'm nobody. Come on. Let's go.
- Get out or I'll call the cops. - [Anya] He called Kamal a thief.
- We're leaving. - Get the fuck out!
[laughs] Look at this fucking clown. I didn't even touch you.
[Anya] He said he was gonna call the police.
Kamal just wanted to get me out of there.
Damien is the one who attacked us.
- [grunts] - [knife clinks]
[Hélène] So Damien had the knife?
I picked it up after he dropped it.
Kamal was just trying to keep Damien away from me.
No!
[grunts]
[Anya] He completely lost his mind.
We didn't mean to...
Ah!
I don't know what kind of drug he was on.
There was blood everywhere.
He wouldn't let go of Kamal.
[grunts]
[thuds]
[breathing heavily]
[Kamal panting]
[panting]
[knife clinks]
[Anya] Kamal was just trying to protect me.
Staying quiet makes you an accessory. Why didn't you call the police?
Because Kamal is here illegally.
Anya, what you're describing here is clearly self-defense.
- You should've told the police. - He's undocumented.
Didn't you hear me?
He's from Libya.
Mom, how do you think the police really treat people like Kamal?
I don't understand why you call Kamal? You could've called anyone.
Because I love him.
But you went home with Damien.
The security footage shows you kissed him first.
We had a fight. He wasn't always upfront with me, and I...
I thought he was cheating. I wanted to get back at him.
I love him. I should've never doubted him.
We met at the law center. I helped him with his asylum application.
How long has this been going on?
Six months. Before the shelter.
What we have is special.
We love each other.
Why didn't you tell me?
I have to go back to Germany, Mom,
with Kamal to make sure he'll be safe.
[grunts]
What's wrong with you?
I need your help.
I found drugs
at the shelter, under your sink. GHB.
What are you talking about?
Mom, I have no idea what you're talking about.
[phone vibrates]
[Anya] Please, I swear.
We have to go right now.
Once we made up our minds not to call the police, we had no choice.
We had to tell them I really didn't do anything.
And that's the truth, I swear.
And the drugs?
But that could've been anyone in the shelter, Mom!
I really need you, okay?
We have to help Kamal.
He saved me. Now we can return the favor.
- [Julie] Here. - [Kamal] I can't take all this.
It's just a week worth of tips. Take it.
It's really kind. Thank you.
It's not kind.
It's the least I can do.
Why are you running?
Why don't you tell the police what really happened?
- I'll lose everything. - You don't owe Anya.
I do. She's done a lot for me, okay? It's not her fault.
She pulled you into this.
She's selfish.
[Kamal] Julie, come on.
You know how much I owe her.
Just stay safe, okay?
Okay.
- Call me? - [Kamal] I promise.
[ominous music playing]
I know I screwed up. I shouldn't have lied.
Don't abandon me.
I'm begging you, Mom.
[sniffles]
You have to tell the police.
Kamal needs to talk to them too
because the sooner he tells the truth, the better for him.
What's his phone number?
I don't think I know it by heart.
As long as he's on the run, there's no chance the police will let you go free.
Damien drugged and raped you.
If your story is true, you'll be fine.
And Kamal?
With a good lawyer, he won't go to prison.
- So that means he'll be deported. - Yes, it's possible.
We need to go now before the cops show up,
otherwise things could get ugly.
Take Anya to the police station.
I'll try to find Kamal.
You're right. We have to go.
I'll go with you. We can take my car.
Huh? Let's go. Come on.
[in German] Give him a second chance.
Please.
You see,
a few days ago, my family was struck by a tornado.
The situation has been hard on us.
Lukas couldn't take his exams under the circumstances.
I can't consider every student's circumstances.
I know. This is an exception. Please, Mr. Radeck.
We have to find a solution. I have to be in Paris for my daughter.
[in English] I don't know her.
She's my daughter, but why don't I know her?
[grandma] Anya is like you, Hélène. Totally independent.
- Stubborn, very passionate, extreme. - I'm not like that.
You try to hide it, but it's who you are.
[somber music playing]
[Matthias in German] Lukas' sister...
She was raped.
The police have accused her of killing her attacker.
They're wrong.
This is the second time she's the victim of sexual abuse.
Lukas has been affected by these events.
I know Lukas is a good student.
- And I understand that everything... - No, if I may.
With all due respect, you don't understand.
You couldn't.
I can ask the board to let Lukas retake the exams in September.
- Good. - During the make-up session.
I can't guarantee that they'll accept it.
Thank you.
[car honks]
[people speaking indistinctly]
[knocking]
[in English] Hi, I'm sorry to bother you. I'm looking for Kamal Mawasen.
I was just at the night shelter, but I couldn't find him.
- Are you his sister? - Who are you?
[Hélène] Ah.
I'm a volunteer. I work at the law center. I...
I work with Mathieu Garrec, the young man helping him with his asylum application.
- He's the one who gave me your address. - Why are you looking for Kamal?
Well, I need to speak with him to help him. It's very important.
- Does he ever come by? - [baby whimpers]
You came tog... Wait!
I really need to speak with him. The police are looking for him.
But I can help him stay safe and get out of this.
Please.
What do they want?
[baby whimpers]
Why are they looking for him?
A man was killed.
I have to speak with him before the police do.
We haven't heard from him in four days.
We're lost without him.
Kamal isn't my brother.
He's my husband.
[baby whimpers]
[mother shushing]
[door closes]
[baby sneezes]
How long have you been married to Kamal?
Four years.
Just before Kamal left the village.
I came to France last summer.
But you don't... you don't live together?
I'm here illegally.
It's the same with my son.
We live separately in case Kamal gets caught.
Technically, he isn't even allowed to work.
But he's an honest man,
and... and he always puts food on the table.
[baby whimpers]
We can't... we can't go back there.
It's impossi...
Do you know where he is?
[wife] I have no idea.
The police are looking everywhere.
Is this because of the money?
Because I swear that... that money was just to help us.
He didn't do anything wrong, I swear.
Yeah, it's because of the money.
When he brought it back, I told him I didn't want it here.
The problems it would...
And... and where is the money now?
He gave it all back.
I swear he gave it all back.
Do you know much there was?
- No, I don't know. - [baby crying]
There were tons of bills in... in a gym bag. That's all I saw.
[baby wailing]
[crying]
[mother shushing]
[shutter clicking]
[baby whimpers]
[Anya] It's bullshit.
Now why would your mom make that up?
I love him.
Kamal is a good man.
Okay.
We talked about getting married.
- He's already married, Anya. - No.
For four years. He even has a son.
His family came to France a few months ago.
- They live in a studio outside Paris. - That's not true.
Here.
Look at the photo.
That's him, right?
Next to his wife.
[cricket chirping]
[somber music playing]
[Lukas] Hey.
[Mia in German] I'm sorry about earlier.
It hurt my pride.
It was dumb. Let's forget about it.
No. You're right. I haven't been upfront.
I don't know what I want. I do what I'm told.
I have to learn to make my own decisions.
So do I.
I mean, look at us.
We are babies.
At our age, we should be somewhere else.
Living.
Taking risks, doing something crazy.
Kissing your best friend?
Mia.
You're perfect.
You understand me, whatever it is.
You always tell the truth.
Lukas, it's okay. Don't worry.
I don't want your pity.
It's not pity.
[kissing]
[knocks]
[investigator in English] So?
She has no way of getting in touch with him.
Let's see if her mom can get it out of her.
There's nothing on her phone.
Just keep looking. I'll talk to the judge for now.
We're in love. It's bullshit.
You said you're fighting because you thought there was another woman, right?
- It's bullshit! - [banging]
Anya, we're being watched. Calm down.
Honey.
[Anya] We had plans. We were gonna...
It's not true.
[Vincent] Anya.
Detective Mani wants to indict you.
You really have to tell us what you know now.
[Hélène] Think about your future.
Kamal's wife told me about a bag full of money.
What the hell are you doing?
[Hélène] Anya, what's wrong?
Anya.
Why do you wanna see me suffer?
[sobbing]
I was happy with him.
Fuck. I'm an idiot.
I'm so fucking stupid!
[crying]
And I helped him.
I did everything for him.
He was so selfish.
Anya.
This man has a family.
He has to deal with a lot of hardship.
Do you know where he is?
Maybe he really loves me, Mom.
When I was at Damien's, I called, and he rescued me.
If you know how to contact him, now is the time.
Tell him we'll find him a good lawyer.
He should turn himself in.
It's the only way we can get you home,
and now, it's the only way we can help you get him and his family out of this mess.
[ominous music playing]
I think I remember his phone number.
[Vincent] I'm all ears.
[dialing]
[phone rings]
[Kamal] Hello?
It's me. Where are you?
I'm at Gare du Nord. I'm trying to head to England.
[panting] I...
I'm going to Calais.
I'm leaving, like you said.
Anya?
Everything will be okay.
You said so yourself.
We'll get through it.
You lied to me.
I know you have a wife and a kid.
You've been using me, Kamal.
Uh, Anya, no, no.
I'm sorry.
Things are different over there. Anya, we were 16. It's, uh...
You have to understand. The families are different over there.
Anya.
- Anya, are you there? - [Anya] I already told them everything.
They know that you killed Damien, that you're at the Gare du Nord.
[Kamal] Anya, why are you talking about?
Hello, Kamal, this is Detective Julien Mani. Listen to me.
I'm asking you to go to the nearest police station.
It's for your own good.
- Kamal. - [phone disconnects]
[Mani] Kamal? Kamal?
[suspenseful music playing]
- Hello, Ladan? - Kamal?
- Go to Lyon. Go with Khaalid. - [Ladan] Lyon?
- Go to your cousin's, okay? - [Ladan] Why?
- Trust me. Everything will be okay. - [Ladan] You want me to leave?
Trust me. I didn't want to hurt anyone. I don't know what happened. I don't know.
- [Ladan] Okay. - Promise me you'll take care of the baby.
[Ladan] A woman came by. She said...
No, no, you can't trust anyone. You have to go right now.
Hey, over there. Stay where you are!
- [Ladan] Kamal? - Sir, sir? We're police.
Just stay calm.
Don't move, all right? Don't move. Stay put.
- Just a minute. - Come with us. It's gonna be all right.
We just wanna ask you a few questions.
Everything is gonna be okay, sir.
- We'll just go to the station. No! - No, no! No!
Don't be stupid!
- Don't do it! - Calm down. Calm down. Calm down.
- Come back up. - Don't do it.
Come back up. Come on. Come on. Listen.
We're not going to hurt you. We just wanna talk, okay?
We just wanna talk.
Do you trust me?
- Don't be stupid. Just come with us. - Come on.
We just wanna ask you some questions. Kamal?
- No. - Kamal Mawasen?
[drum beats]
[distant] Mrs. Berg?
Mrs. Berg.
Oh.
Sorry about that.
Kamal is dead.
He jumped off a foot bridge.
Oh no.
Our colleagues said he was desperate to avoid being arrested.
We found Damien's watch with his belongings.
But what about Anya?
We'll compare Kamal's DNA with what we took from the knife.
- Anya will be have to go before a judge. - For complicity?
Given the circumstances, if the DNA is a match,
I think Anya will definitely be free to go.
[somber music playing]
[sighs]
[door opens]
Excuse me, please.
Does Anya know?
Yeah.
I think it's over now.
They've identified the man who killed Damien.
They told me he died last night trying to outrun the police.
So it's finally over?
Is it over?
I don't know what you mean by "over."
Not if my son's remembered as a rapist.
Mom...
He raped her.
And you know it wasn't the first time.
Damien raped Anya Berg. He had a problem.
He was my son.
My baby boy.
Please, Mom.
You have another child.
Mom, I'm here. I've always been here.
Damien thought he was entitled to everything.
He treated women like toys, and you know it.
How can you say that?
Call me when you decide you're ready to have a real relationship with me.
[phone rings]
[man] Miss?
I think this is the case involving your friend, right?
DEATH OF THE IMMIGRANT SUSPECTED OF MURDER
THE MAN DIED DURING POLICE ARREST
What a crazy story, huh?
Weren't you two inseparable?
Hey, hey, miss, are you all right?
Kamal's DNA matches the other sample they found on the knife.
This time they know you were telling the truth.
I fought for him...
gave him everything.
I shared my money.
I even got him a job.
Right here in front of the police station.
You got it, sir.
- Thank you. - No problem.
[officer] Mr. Duc?
Anya Berg is good to go.
The judge will see her this afternoon, three o'clock.
That's great.
You all right?
- [Matthias] Hi. - Yeah, I'm fine.
My name is Matthias Berg.
I'm here to see my daughter, Anya Berg.
Just a minute, please.
[keyboard clacking]
Have a seat over here.
All right. Thanks.
Excuse me. Mr. Berg?
Yeah.
Vincent Duc.
Pleasure.
I'm... I'm Anya's lawyer.
All right. Hi.
Would you like to see your daughter?
- Yes, please. - I'll take him.
- [woman] Okay. - Thanks.
[in German] Anya, sweetheart.
[in English] I'm so sorry.
Well, I'll leave you alone.
I'll see you at the courthouse.
I'm here now.
Huh?
How is she doing?
It's like being with a stranger.
Like she has two faces, one for us, one for everyone else.
In Berlin,
last year...
- You remember Leo... Leo Dicker? - Yeah. Leo.
He attacked Anya.
What do you mean?
He was drunk. He was doing drugs.
He assaulted her physically, sexually.
Lukas took some photos of her when she came home. They're horrible.
Anya asked Lukas not to say anything. They've both been hiding it for a year.
Anya went to Paris to move on.
So she was trying to heal herself.
What does that mean?
She told me she's been working in a women's shelter for months.
I thought I'd always been there for my family.
Anya, Lukas, and you were everything to me.
You're a perfect mother, Hélène.
I'm not.
I'm so lost.
I'm so alone.
[eerie music playing]
You're Anya's lawyer, right?
Yeah. The investigation's over though.
Kamal didn't do anything.
He told me how everything happened.
Anya can be persuasive. She got me to volunteer at the shelter.
I do my best, but she...
She treats every case like her life depends on it.
One day, a guy showed up there to see his wife.
She got in his face and told him to go fuck himself.
She wasn't afraid.
She grabbed his finger and jerked it backwards. We heard the bone snap.
She acted like it was nothing. She said he deserved it.
That men like him deserve worse.
I'm not sure I see the connection with Kamal. Sorry, I'm busy...
It was Anya. She started this.
- The judge will see us soon, okay? - Ah.
- Isn't the lawyer coming? - He'll be here.
[ominous music playing]
Hélène, I...
I have to speak with you. Alone.
Uh...
[in German] Give us a minute, Matthias.
[in English] I... I don't know how to tell you this.
Trust me this is really hard for me to say.
Everything that happened between us...
I think I'm finally seeing things clearly.
I can't bear the thought of losing you again.
That's... that's not it.
Uh... um, Listen.
Oh God.
The whole case.
Damien, how he met Anya, the drugs, everything...
Anya had it all planned out.
And it wasn't the first time.
Two months ago, she blackmailed a college professor.
He'd been harassing a cleaning lady,
so Anya decided to frame him and make him pay.
She wanted to do the same with Damien.
Damien raped a girl, but he paid her to keep quiet.
And as soon as Anya heard about it, she decided he'd become the next victim.
What do you mean victim? What are you saying?
- Anya is the only victim. - Let... Let me finish.
Julie, one of Anya's friends, came to see me at my office.
She told me everything.
She was in on it with Anya when they got the professor.
Julie was the bait. She came on to him.
As soon as he fell for it,
Anya showed up and asked him for money.
Anya managed to find the cleaning lady.
She wouldn't testify,
but Anya still wanted the guy to pay.
- Pay? - Pay, literally.
She set him up.
She blackmailed him. He had no way out.
[Vincent] Their strategy was to take GHB voluntarily.
The date rape drug.
Once Julie was alone with the professor,
she took her pill,
then Anya showed up.
He could either pay, or the police would run a blood test on Julie.
Anya was raped by Damien.
The judge is going to release her today.
- She's the victim. - Hey...
- Listen to me, Hélène. Listen to me. - She's the victim, Vincent.
Remember the money Kamal's wife was talking about?
That's the money.
Kamal was supposed to hold on to it. The shelter was struggling financially.
And that was Anya's plan to cover their costs.
Stop it, Vincent. I don't want to hear this.
Julie wanted out.
So Anya decided she'd deal with Damien herself.
[upbeat music playing]
[woman laughing]
What's your problem?
[speaking indistinctly]
Fuck it! I'm out.
[melancholy music playing]
[Vincent] She probably told him she'd taken the drug,
and if he didn't give her the money, she'd go to the cops.
You know, if you don't pay up, I'll go and tell the cops you roofied me.
GHB is not something to play with.
I don't care about your fucking dope, you little slut.
Who do you think you are?
[Vincent] Damien already thought the rules don't apply to him.
You wanna call the cops, huh? Go ahead. Call them.
[Vincent] Add cocaine to the mix.
[grunts]
[shouts]
I don't mind paying. I just want my money's worth, you know what I mean?
[moans]
[shouts]
Let me go! No!
[chuckles]
- You'll see you're gonna love it. - [shouts]
She lost control.
Okay, that's enough.
Then, that's when he must've raped her.
[sad music playing]
[Damien moans] Fuck!
- [Anya strains] - [Damine grunts]
- Fucking bitch. - [groans]
[shrieks]
- [shrieks] - [glass shatters]
[breathing heavily]
[Vincent] The first thrust
was probably just self-defense,
but then she was raging.
Kamal? It's me.
I did something bad.
[Vincent] Kamal told Julie that she called him after everything had happened
because he was the only man she loved, the only one she trusted.
She called him to come rescue her.
[Kamal] Anya?
Anya, are you okay?
Oh my God. What happened?
What are you doing with that? Let go.
Come on. Get up.
[clinks]
What the hell?
- I'm calling the police. - No.
- We have to do something. It's serious. - Don't call anyone.
- It could be bad. - You can't call them.
- Let's get out of here. - Sorry.
[Vincent] He was furious. He couldn't believe she'd done it again,
that she pulled him into this mess.
So he told her they had to call the police,
but Anya wouldn't let him.
[Matthias and Lukas] Happy birthday...
- Take this. - No, I can't.
We need it. Take it. Now go.
Go, Kamal!
♪ Happy birthday to you And many more ♪
[Lukas] Happy birthday.
[dramatic music playing]
[breathing heavily]
She was assaulted in Berlin.
She never told us.
Julie is not gonna go to the police.
She's in too deep.
Help me bring Anya home.
Hélène, this will destroy you. Trust me.
Please.
Hélène, listen.
Your daughter is going to need help.
Do you understand?
I'll be there. I'll defend her.
I'll be there with you both of you. We'll be there to...
You said you saw things more clearly.
I'm her mother, Vincent.
I'm asking you to defend her.
The judge is waiting.
Were you talking about Anya?
- Yeah. - Listen, Hélène.
Hold on. Listen.
I know I fucked up.
I just want you to be happy, okay?
But if we still have a chance, I'll do whatever it takes. I promise.
[somber music playing]
- Thank you, detective. - Your honor.
Anya Berg. Come in.
Sir?
We'll be right here. I'm going to bring you home.
[Vincent] Under the circumstances, your honor,
and given the perfusion of evidence in the murder of Damien Carnau,
which, according to the police department itself, points overwhelmingly
towards Mr. Kamal Mawasen as the sole culprit...
And given last night's tragic events, which ended in the death of Mawasen,
we're asking that all charges against my client be dropped immediately.
So our hope is that Anya Berg, who we know was raped by Damien Carmau,
will be able to return to her loved ones as soon as possible.
[judge] Very well.
[unsettling music playing]
[door opens]
[gasps]
[somber music playing]
[in German] Come on. Let's go.
[vibrant music playing]
[theme music playing]