Alyona Mikhailova is really quite good here as the all-but-obsessed "Antontina"" who takes a shine to the already acclaimed, but not especially wealthy, Russian composer Pyotr Tchaikovsky (Odin Lund Biron). She manages to use her influential friends to get her into his conservatoire but though a competent pianist, struggles to make the grade or to pay the 50 roubles per month fee! Her infatuation encourages her to propose marriage to him. He politely declines, but she perseveres and in the end he opts for a companionship style of relationship. Initially that works, but gradually her love wants to manifest itself in something more physical and that repels him. Repels him to the extent that he leaves her and seeks a divorce. She fights this and with poverty and extreme emotional loneliness looming we follow her life through to it's rather sad conclusion during which, despite having three children with her lawyer lover "Shlykov" (Vladimir Mishukov), she never fails in her love. History tells us a little of the man's peccadilloes, and indeed as the film progresses we soon see that his "preferred" company is of much more importance to him that his marriage. That drama plays out in an uncomfortable to watch series of scenarios that cannot help to elicit a great degree of sympathy for a lady caught up in something that neither can control. The films looks great capturing the imagery,…

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