in the outskirts of paris, deep in the latin quarter sits a man at his typewriter and a woman atop an opulent stage. the streets smell of liquor and turpentine yet the run down flats of montmartre hold celebrating bohemians as the nineteenth century comes to a close. the closest thing to the underworld-the intoxicating and erotic moulin rouge-can be seen from miles away, home to prostitutes and ghoul-like men and women. the passionate writer, determined to find love in its rawest form and the courtesan, searching for a way to save her beloved home become intertwined in a story of intimacy.