The story takes place at the turn of the 17th century, a period full of religious conflicts, cruelty, violence and death, while ottomans were sweepings through Europe. Hungarian countess Elizabeth Bathory was known as the greatest murderess in the history of mankind. Legend has it that she tortured her victims, exclusively women, before killing them. She bathed in their blood, and tore the flesh from their bodies with her teeth while they were still alive. But is that really true? In four centuries, no historical document has been found to reveal what had exactly happened. Was the Hungarian Countess a persecuted Renaissance healer in a century heaving with religious war and witch-hunts, or a ruthless widowed countess whose cruel deeds against her subjects spawned rumors of vampirism?

A village in Protestant northern Germany. 1913- 1914. On the eve of World War I. The story of the children and teenagers of a choir run by the village schoolteacher, and their families: the baron, the steward, the pastor, the doctor, the midwife, the tenant farmers. Strange accidents occur and gradually take on the character of a punishment ritual. Who is behind it all?

Eric the postman is slipping through his fingers… His chaotic family, his wild stepsons and the cement mixer in the front garden don’t help, but it is Eric’s own secret that drives him to the brink. Can he face Lily, the woman he once loved 30 years ago? Despite outrageous efforts and misplaced goodwill from football fan mates, Eric continues to sink. In desperate times it takes a spliff and a special friend from foreign parts to challenge a lost postman to make that journey into the most perilous territory of all – the past.

Based on the novel by Colette. Paris at the beginning of the twentieth century is the sophisticated centre of the world. The city’s artists, its fashion, the theatre and its music. But Paris is also famous for its courtesans: women who are so beautiful, intelligent and knowledgeable in the art of love that crown princes, dukes and captains of industry alike are willing to part with large sums of money for the pleasure of their company. One such lady is Léa. She can now afford to lead a comfortable life and has retired from her trade altogether. One day she goes to lunch with her old colleague Mme Peloux. She is accompanied by a young man who turns out to be her own son, Chéri, as his mother calls him. Mme Peloux has big plans for him, but beforehand, he needs to gain his manhood. Mme Peloux proposes that Léa initiate him. Léa accepts and, before long, something that begins as a playful flirt soon turns into a passionate love affair, a liaison lasting six years. In the meantime Mme Peloux has arranged a marriage for her son. Now that the wedding date approaches, the bride and bridegroom are to be presented to Léa. This marks the beginning of a tragic love story which causes misery for all concerned.

The film chronicles the rise of the small music recording studio Cadillac Records, its producer Leonard Chess and its recording artists. In this tale of sex, violence, race, and rock and roll in 1950s Chicago, «Cadillac Records» follows the exciting but turbulent lives of some of America’s musical legends, including Muddy Waters, Little Walter, Howlin’ Wolf, Etta James, Willie Dixon and Chuck Berry.

Based on a novel by Josiane Balasko. Divorced and living on her own, successful telesales presenter Judith is a woman in her fifties with no apparent problems. She hides a secret that only her sister, Irene, knows: she uses the sexual services of young men selected via Internet escort sites. That is until she meets Patrick, a handsome and seductive man whose kindness and simplicity win her over. But he is prisoner of a double-life as well. His real name is Marco and he works as an escort to pay the mortgage on the hair salon run by his beloved wife, Fanny. When she learns the truth, Marco stops selling his favours. However, little by little, as times get tougher and money grows scarce, Fanny herself pushes her husband back to his lucrative activities. And back to Judith.

Kromov was the military attache of the Russian Empire in France. After Nikolay the Sesond abdication and overthrow of the interjacent government he became the only keeper of the enormous sum, which was aimed for military supplies for the Russian army. His only will was enough to make the quarter from million of yellow metal his own. But count Kromov denied all of the flattering offers and neglected the threats of those who were after the money. He was not afraid of the war that was enforced to him or the blood shed because of his stubbornness. He returned the money back to Russia – this mussy, unfamiliar and unclear for him country – only because this country had the same name as the one he had given an oath to. He acted the way a soldier would do – he passed his way till the end and achieved victory no matter what.

In this second part of Theo Angelopoulos’ historical panorama, a director named A. begins making a film about the life of his parents, Spyros and Eleni. Time and again, the love story of these two Greek émigrés has been influenced by historical events: separated from each other during the Second World War, Spyros emigrated to the USA; in the wake of civil war in Greece Eleni found herself in the Soviet Union, along with other political exiles. A. was obliged to flee to Canada as a result of the Vietnam War. The fall of the Berlin Wall marked the beginning of a new era in their life.