Cyrano, a Cadet from Gascony and a gifted poet, is unfortunately afflicted with a long ugly nose, which makes him everybody's laughing stock. His unprepossessing appearance does not prevent from having a heart though and he is madly in love with his beautiful cousin Roxane. But how could she love a man like him? Indeed, the one she is attracted to is a handsome young officer, Christian de Neuvillette. Ironically, being good-looking does not make Christian a man of letters, that's why he asks Cyrano to write love notes to Roxane for him. For want of anything better, Cyrano accepts. But the game is cruel since while the ugly one pours his heart and soul into the verses he writes,it is the nice-looking one that reaps all the benefits. The more hopelessly Cyrano loves his cousin, the more desperately Roxane loves Christian. And when Christian is killed during the siege of Arras, she is disconsolate. She will learn about who actually wrote the love letters she cherished only fourteen years later, as Cyrano tells her the whole truth just before dying.