Based on Lucie Aubrac's autobiographic novel, the movie tells the story of a couple of participants in the French Resistance to German occupation during World War II. Passion and wit help Lucie free her husband Raymond from certain death at the hands of the Gestapo (the German Secret Police) on more than one occasion. The movie highlights the relationship between Lucie and Raymond, and their and others' heroism in battle. Historians still debate whether, in reality, the Aubracs became turncoats and betrayed Jean Moulin ("Max"). Moulin, the Resistance's mastermind and most famous hero, subsequently died without speaking at the hands of notorious Gestapo officer and torturer Klaus Barbie, the "Butcher of Lyons".—
A love story or a tale of the resistance, this poignant movie tells both the haunting story of a French resistance cell in Lyon but also the love of Lucie Aubrac for her husband, and the lengths she goes to to rescue her husband from prison on more than one occasion. Based on a true story Lucie Aubrac works as both history lesson and love story.