In 19th-century Papal Rome, Bartolomeo is a wealthy and greedy parvenu who craves a noble title. While trying to raise the money he needs to strike a deal with a prince for the hand of his daughter, he'll find himself caught in a magical journey between past, present and future. Assisted by some rather illustrious companions, he'll have to come to terms with whom he really is and give his life a new meaning.

Aging opera singer Maria Callas tries to make a comeback by performing in a production of Bizet's "Carmen."

Two penniless cousins have a common passion: to be inventors, but they never managed to make money out of their patents. Their only hope is represented by their hateful and rich uncle.

A safecracker takes a job where he must go to Istanbul and steal a scepter that once belonged to the god Gilgamesh but is now in the temple of a secret cult.

Elba island, 1814. Martino is a young teacher, idealist and strongly anti Napoleon, in love with the beautiful and noble Baroness Emily. The young man finds himself serving as librarian to the Great Emperor in exile, whom he deeply hates, yet soon begins recording Napoleon's memoirs, getting to know and learning to value the man behind the myth. Among seductions and affairs, expectations and fears, he will craft a precise portrait that nevertheless will not manage to hide a final, inevitable, disappointment.

An aspiring designer from the slums of Chicago puts herself through fashion school in the hopes of becoming one of the world's top designers. Her ambition leads her to Rome spurring a choice between the man she loves or her newfound success.

Michelle lives in Paris with René, who is influential politicians. One morning as Michelle discovers that her 18-year-old daughter Lauren has not come home from a pub tonight. René does not want to involve the police, because he does not want a scandal that could affect his political career negative. They decide instead to hire a private investigator. It turns out that Lauren has been kidnapped to be used by a gang producing snuff. Detective withdraws from the case, however, because he fears for his life and Michelle decides to find their own daughter. The hunt goes by porn swamps in Paris, Amsterdam and Hamburg.