An aspiring poet joins a cynical team of journalists in nineteenth-century Paris. When he agrees to write rave reviews for bribes, achieving material success at the expense of his conscience, and soon discovers that the written word can be an instrument of both beauty and deceit in this sumptuous adaptation of Honore de Balzac's epic novel, Lost Illusions.

1921 not far from Paris. It is party day at Marguerite Dumont's castle. Nobody knows much about this woman except that she is rich and that her whole life is devoted to her passion: music. When a young, provocative journalist decides to write a rave article on her latest performance, Marguerite starts to believe even further in her talent. This gives her the courage she needs to follow her dream.