In New York City in the 1870s, as the city prepares for the upcoming election, corrupt political boss William Tweed and his Tammany Hall political machine are working hard to re-elect their candidates, including Mayor Oakley, in order to continue exploiting the coffers of the city and state. The one voice opposing Boss Tweed's organization is John Matthews, a young naïve reporter for The New York Times. When Irish immigrant Timothy Moore and his singing daughter Rosie arrive in New York City hoping for a better life, they are set upon immediately by Rogan, one of Boss Tweed's men.
In New York City, German agents arrange for Jane Greystone to take a taxi driven by one of their own men. The abduction goes awry when the taxi collides with another vehicle. Both driver and passenger are taken to the hospital in an ambulance attended by intern Dr.
Maura (Sally Hawkins) is a down on her luck single mother who's facing eviction from her house, which lead her to the rash decision to marry an illegal immigrant, Wilson, in exchange of €9,000. Maura's daughter Molly believes that her mother truly loves Wilson and that she's getting a new father. Meanwhile, Freddie (Tom Riley), a nice guy with OCD-esque habits, is remarrying the selfish and very image-conscious Sophie after a recent divorce.
Emma Silver is a radio personality who relocated from New York City to establish her career in Seattle. After hearing of her grandfather Walt's death, Emma returns to her childhood home in Valleyville, Washington. After meeting with the attorney Bobby Ellis, Emma discovers that she has inherited Walt's farm and pumpkin seeds.
Alfred VII is a young and rich deposed king in exile in Paris and monumentally bored. When he becomes involved with a chorus girl whom he accidentally insults (by falling asleep), her indignation provides an opportunity for his loyal courtiers to bring him back to life.
Jordan is a successful businessman with commitment issues, so friends decided to match him with an NBC casting director Sarah, who is going through some emotional issues. They agree to sleep together after Jordan reveals he doesn't know the name of a woman he recently slept with. But later they decide to become a romantic couple.
At the same time that Dean, a successful graphic designer in Los Angeles, notices a sudden change in his vision due to middle age, an ex-lover from 15 years earlier contacts him unexpectedly in hopes of rekindling their relationship. When the two meet at a vacation house in the desert near Joshua Tree, secrets are revealed and passions rekindled that threaten to upend both of their lives. Forty-eight hours later, neither will ever be the same.
In Latin America, Larry O'Brien sees Diane Forsythe and quickly falls in love. She, however, is engaged to marry the much older Clive Lattimer. Larry discovers that her motive is to save her stepfather, Areal Pacheco, from being shot.
Ann Carter visits New York City to see her half-brother Martin Murphy and to try to start a music career. Martin works as a butler for Broadway producer Charles Gerard, so Ann takes a job working for Charles as a maid.
thumb|left|upright=0.9|Napakpapha Nakprasitte as Em. Adam, an English backpacker, breaks up with his girlfriend immediately after arriving with her in Thailand. He then strikes out on his own, leaving Bangkok for Ko Samui.
A Romeo and Juliet story set in Auckland, New Zealand, Emily Chu (Michelle Ang) is the daughter of traditional Chinese parents, whose only wishes are that she marry a good Chinese boy and become a doctor. But life seems to have other ideas for Emily, who dreams of becoming a world-famous director and falls in love with a white boy from university, James Harrison (Matt Whelan). When she and James, two kindred nerd spirits fall clumsily into love they must overcome the expectations of her parents.
In a port on the north-west coast of France, Caroline retires from her husband's dental practice at age 60. Her married daughters give her a trial subscription to “Les Beaux Jours”, a club for retired people, where she joins the computer class. She and Julien, the instructor who is in his thirties, feel a mutual attraction and start an affair of snatched encounters.
Because she married a circus performer, Judge Foster casts out his only daughter. Just before her death a few years later, she leaves her little girl Sally in the care of her friend McGargle, a good-natured crook, juggler and fakir. Sally grows up in this atmosphere and is unaware of her parentage.
After an argument, Lady Elinor Devine reveals to her husband, Sir Richard, that he is not actually the father of their son, also named Richard, but that he was fathered by her cousin, Lord Bellasis. Sir Richard throws his son out and storms off in a rage. Shortly afterwards, Richard Junior finds his biological father dead in the forest.
While visiting Vienna incognito, Russian Grand Duke Peter is lured from a masquerade ball by the beautiful Maria, only to find himself the prisoner of Polish nationalists. Peter is made to write a letter to his father, the tsar of Russia, offering to exchange him for Maria's father, who has been sentenced to be executed. Because their previous petitions for clemency were intercepted and never reached the Tsar, the Poles task secret agent Baron Stephan Wolensky to deliver the letter.
Learning of her mother's serious illness, Isabel (Geneviève Bujold) returns to her family's farm on the Gaspé Peninsula. Her mother dies before she can get there, and when her aged uncle Matthew (Gerard Parkes) asks her to stay on and help him with the farm, she reluctantly agrees. She finds herself haunted by memories of early years (domestic violence, incest and the mysterious deaths of her grandfather, who died in a freak accident, and her father and brother, who both drowned at sea) in a house full of eerie sights and sounds.
Judith Poe Wells is a would-be playwright who has almost no money. As a result of ordering a meal in a restaurant where she cannot afford to pay, she meets George Macrae, a musical writer with a lot of power. He offers her play North Winds to producer Sam Woods.
Jack Clark (Walter Pidgeon), a gifted young songwriter, dreams of composing a great American ballad and sharing his success with Flo Thompson (Jane Winton), a glamorous showgirl who has won his heart. Flo, however, is more interested in career than commitment—and less moved by Jack's patriotism than he would like. When Jack's loyal pal “Lefty” (Tommy Dugan) proudly announces he's enlisted, Jack is inspired to join the Army as well.
The film takes place in a small valley in the Mexican state of Sonora, near the Arizona Territory, around 1870. Steve Fallon, a drifter and gun-for-hire, is severely exhausted when travelling through the barren landscape and is found by Mike Summers and his wife, Franchea. He is taken into their home and, while recovering, he learns that a local land baron, Ortega, is pressuring local ranchers to sell their land to him with the help of Danny Pose and his gang of outlaws.
