 The 18th-century Viennese medical establishment is threatened by the radical yet successful healing methods of Austrian physician Franz Anton Mesmer (Alan Rickman). Blind pianist Maria Theresa Paradies (Amanda Ooms), daughter of a well-to-do businessman, becomes Mesmer s patient after he calms her seizure at a concert. As the two are drawn into an intimate relationship, the situation is used as an excuse to banish Mesmer from Vienna. Undaunted, he moves on, becoming a court favorite in Paris.