早已功成名就的女性神秘小说家莎拉•莫顿（Charlotte Rampling 夏洛特•汉普林 饰）却为新作烦恼不已，在出版商约翰•布兰德（Charles Dance 查理士•当斯 饰）的建议下，她来到约翰的家乡别墅，一面休养，一面寻找灵感。乡间的悠哉生活使莎拉从久居伦敦的疲惫中解脱出来，尽情享受着难得的休闲时光。
　　某晚，自称约翰女儿的茱莉（Ludivine Sagnier 卢蒂文•萨尼埃 饰）不宣而至，茱莉开朗、张扬、放荡，与古板莎拉格格不入。莎拉的创作计划被打乱，而一丝不祥的气息也悄然弥漫开来……
　　本片荣获2003年欧洲电影界最佳女主角奖（夏洛特•汉普林）、2003年曼谷国际电影节最佳影片奖。

　　From the Louis Hemon novel "M. Ripois and His Nemesis" about Andre Ripois, a philanderer in pursuit of love and riches from Paris to London. Andre is breaking up with his wife, Catherine, over his attentions to her best friend Patricia. While Catherine is out arranging the divorce, Andre, just to keep in practice, hits on the girl upstairs, Diana and then turns his attention back to Patricia, who he tricks into having dinner at his flat on the pretext that Catherine will be there. When he cannot make any progress with her via his usual tactics, he tries to arouse her pity be telling her of his past. In his early, impoverished days in London, he made love to his boss Anne but her dreadful cooking drove him away. Next came Norah who he picked up on a bus and took to his flat and told her about his make-believe inheritance, but she insisted on marriage first, which was not in his plans. Marcelle, a French woman living in Soho, put him on his feet with money, and he repaid her by stealing fifty pounds and running off. He met the wealthy Catherine at his flat where she came to be tutored in French lessons, and ended up marrying him. But, even at his wedding, he had eyes only for Patricia and, he tells her she is his one true love.

　　莉拉（帕特丽夏·阿奎特 Patricia Arquette 饰）崇尚自然，是一位自然主义者，然而她的男友内森（蒂姆·罗宾斯 Tim Robbins 饰）却是个实实在在的教条主义者，这两个性格和生活理念截然迥异的人，他们的爱情能够长久吗？最终，选择放弃自我的那个人是莉拉。
　　一个名为帕弗（瑞斯·伊凡斯 Rhys Ifans 饰）的男人的出现打破了莉拉和内森之间艰难维系的平衡，帕弗从小就跟随着父亲生活在深山老林之中，外表和内心都和“野人”无异。内森兴致勃勃地要在帕弗身上开始自己的计划，而莉拉却感到了犹豫和矛盾。一边是被压抑的真性情，一边是和恋人多年的感情，莉拉会做出怎样的选择呢？