Carlo Lizzani, historian of Italian cinema and witness of important decisions in the life of Visconti, reconstitutes the life of the Italian film maker as from the places where he spent his childhood and adolescence: Pallazo Visconti, in Milan, and Villa Erbi, in Cernobbio. The documentary also shows the first cities where he worked (Como, Milan, and Rome), locations where he filmed (Hotel des Bains, in Venice, and the Castle of Neuschwanstein, in Bavaria).

     With statements from Visconti himself, from friends and persons he worked with, together with scenes from his films and photographs taken during the filming, the movie portrays one of the most brilliant directors of Italian cinema.