On new year's eve 1899 a young woman is betrothed to marry a man she doesn't want to. The best man arrives on the scene an she falls instantly in love.<br /><br />The art direction and costumes are beautiful in this period drama, but many of the tongue-in-cheek references are a bit jarring. For no reason characters say things like, "I wonder if we'll go to the moon in the next century" and "the 1900s will know no war.<br /><br />As far as portrayal of women. It starts out as a woman trying to take control of her life and ends up depicting her as an obsessive, submissive nut who is convinced she married the best man at her wedding rather than the groom.