This is a beautifully composed Italian film from the opening shot to the final one. It opens on a cold snowy Milanese evening at a birthday dinner party at the home of the wealthy Recchi family. Slowly the elaborate and dazzling dinner unfolds and we learn who’s who. The family patriarch is retiring and passing on the family business to his son, Tancredi and grandson Edoardo. In the following year or so the story follows the members of the Recchi family through love, loss, betrayal and tragedy. The focus is most certainly on Emma, Tancredi’s Russian-born wife Emma. The character is played impeccably by Tilda Swinton who falls in love with her son’s (Edoardo) friend, Antonio. Meanwhile there is a seemingly good offer to buy the family business that Tancredi might not mind taking. It’s a very beautifully shot film with characters that I liked and cared about.