A passionate love story set against a backdrop of sexual freedom, loosely based on the relationship between 19th-century authors Pierre Louÿs and Marie de Régnier.Paris 1895; Pierre is a Parisian dandy and poet on the verge of fame. He and his poet friend Henri are both madly in love with Marie, the cheeky daughter of their mentor, Franco-Cuban poet José-Maria de Heredia. Although she loves Pierre, obeying her father she marries Henri to pay off her father’s debt and in search of a better social position. Thereupon Pierre decides to flee to Algeria and there meets Zohar, with whom he shares a passion for erotic photography.