LOST ILLUSIONS

1821. Handsome poet Lucien is poor, but highly ambitious. Failing to make a name for himself in his provincial hometown, he naively follows his married patroness to the glamorous beau monde of Paris.

But Lucien has entered a society far more dangerous than he realised, and the venomous denizens of the salons conspire to keep him out of their ranks. Lucien is forced to abandon his principles and find work at a low-brow newspaper, where his scathing critiques soon cause a sensation and arouse the interest of admirers and publishers. But in a society where profit and status rule, what is really left for Lucien?