The Red Queen

Vologda, 1953. Zoya Kolesnikova’s family is extremely poor, but her mother Dariya does everything to provide her daughter with at least the most basic things. An old lady offers Zoya to tell her fortune. A queen of clubs comes up, and the old lady tells Zoya it is her and the card says Regina. Zoya changes her name and leaves for Moscow hoping to start a new life.

In Moscow Regina meets a cultured elderly lady, Avgusta Leyontyevna, and her grandson Vladimir. Avgusta and Regina become friends and, influenced by her stories, the girl decides to apply to VGIK University, starts learning French and the rules of etiquette.

Regina finds herself at the police station. In the cell, she meets a man named James, the son of Vera Aralova the fashion designer. Aralova notices the girl’s unusual beauty and offers her to become a fashion model, but Regina does not take this offer seriously. Will she regret this decision?

Moscow is all abuzz: Christian Dior fashion house has come with a show right from Paris! Regina still cannot forget her fleeting meeting with a talented and handsome artist Lev Barsky. She decides to conquer his heart by all means. She decides to change her life and comes to Aralova, to the Fashion House: new job, new hairdo, beautiful clothes and new meetings.But destiny has its own plans.

When visiting Vera Aralova, Regina meets Lilya Brik. Mayakovsky’s muse advises the inexperienced girl how to intrigue the likes of Barsky. Regina learns to hold her posture and walk the catwalk until she’s exhausted. Regina’s first show turns into her triumph.

The Fashion House is preparing for the Paris trip, with the last sketches approved and the clothes sewn. The model list is finalized, and Regina is not on it. However, at the last moment thanks to Nikita Khrushchev’s decision the “politically unreliable” Regina gets the right to go to Paris instead of Lilya. How will the world fashion capital receive Soviet models?

After the Paris triumph, the Fashion House delegation comes back to the motherland, and the girls are invited “for a talk” to KGB. Lev Barsky cannot forget his Queen, files for a divorce and proposes to Regina. Regina’s life goes on like the stuff of dreams: shows, travels, admiring fans… She is the Queen of the catwalk. But will that bring her happiness?

Regina cannot forgive her husband’s adultery as Queens are not cheated on. KGB catches Lev right when he is buying dollars. At the interrogation, the investigator strongly advises Barsky to reconcile with his wife. But what for? Regina meets a young and talented fashion designer Slava Zaytsev, and he introduces the Red Queen to Pierre Cardin.

Lev begs his wife to save him from prison and to do everything KGB asks her for. Regina agrees to meet the British diplomat, and to temper her disgust takes some pills Barsky gives her. However, her emotional disorder only gets worse – she has nightmares and sees Marina’s and mother’s faces in the crowd… In the end Regina decides to go to Vologda to visit her mother.

Happy and inspired Regina tells Lev they are going to have a child. Barsky is adamantly against it; he is allegedly not sure it is his child. So he puts forward an ultimatum: either she has an abortion or he leaves her. The relationship between the spouses becomes even worse; Regina is depressed and has nightmares again.

Regina moves to Leningrad to live with Volodya. She needs a lot of time to start a new life but gradually warms up to it. Catwalk, photoshoots and magazine covers are all left in the past, now she enjoys family life. Still, she doesn’t have a child, and that is the only missing piece of the puzzle.