Russian author Dostoyevsky learns about an impending anarchist attack from one of his fans. Upon hearing that his novels have been formative in the philosophy of these terrorists, he feels somewhat responsible — which is expertly captured by this nervous cue.

In the aftermath of a terrorist attack, a mournful theme emerges while a mother is mourning her innocent child lost in the senseless violence. It's also the perfect time for revealing the title of the movie.

Waiting to learn more about his supposedly insane follower, Dostoyevsky travels to an insane asylum to meet the enigmatic Gusiev. His nervous waiting in the hall is colored by this cue and the distant cry of the local inmates.

A flashback to the past recalls Dostoyevsky’s previous run-in with the law as he got arrested due to the contents of his writings. The lengthy cue covers the author’s arrest and trial while he is forced to listen to the number of fabricated crimes he’s charged with.

Gusiev is summoned to testify against his fellow anarchists; while the inmate tries to buy some time by pretending to be insane, Morricone’s music predicts he can’t fool the authorities for long.

Dostoyevsky meets an inspector in order to explain his side of the anarchist plot. The discussion reveals that both men have their own methods to stop the terrorists: Dostoyevsky favors rationality while the investigator is leaning towards good old fashioned police work.

This is Morricone's love theme for Dostoyevsky’s relationship with his stenographer, Anna. The professional relationship turns more intimate in one of the author’s more vulnerable moments when he confesses that he prefers a female stenographer to a male one.

Realizing that he's been fed false information in order to fool the police, Dostoyevsky tries to right the wrong with a daring escape. The action cue underscoring the elderly writer’s last attempt to stop the terrorists while jumping across rooftops is wonderfully melodramatic.

The beautiful anarchist leader Alexandra has a logical reasoning for the attacks and confronts Dostoyevsky with his own quotes in order to point out the righteousness of their mission. The tense cue underscoring the strained meeting is a wonderful expression of the author’s moral defeat.

Singer Paola Cecchi performs on this track while Dostoyevsky has nervous flashbacks to his times in the Siberian labor camps. Instead of depicting the harsh surroundings, Morricone focuses on the unbreakable human spirit with this music.

The program is rounded out by one more track that seems to have been recorded for the album only (its slate number M0 indicates it had no specific place in the film).

The anarchists set a trap for their latest target and Dostoyevsky furiously tries to reach the intended victim before he could enter an Orthodox church already prepared for the attack.

Morricone provided original music for Dostoyevsky’s arrival to witness the anarchist plot and the nightmarish explosion of a church – but this musical highlight was omitted from the film and got replaced with Orthodox source music.

The sight of a carriage in the rain conjures a shadowy figure with suitably eerie suspense strings covering the unlikely vision. The second half of the cue is more fragmented, underscoring Gusiev’s echoing words before the writer collapses on the staircase in an epileptic fit.

After witnessing a violent protest by the workers, Dostoyevsky gives them his piece of mind by reminiscing about his times in Siberia. The change to the flashback is underscored with a hypnotic cue that introduces the author’s darkest period in life.

Dostoyevsky wanders back to his Siberian memories and recall a highly symbolic event – letting a bird of prey back to nature. The bird of freedom closes the movie as the music soars over the end credits.