The film chronicles the last days of the alcoholic, tubercular artist Amedeo Modigliani in Montparnasse, Paris. It charts his relationships with three women: a masochistic British journalist, a kindly bistro owner, and a young innocent who models for some of his most famous paintings.

A favorite of Jean-Luc Godard, this portrait of a dying artist was intended to be made by Max Ophüls, but the legendary filmmaker fell ill before production. Jacques Becker, hand-picked by Ophüls, took over and made it his own, crafting a moving film for the ages, filled with humanism and sincerity.