Antoine Doinel is a young boy growing up in Paris during the early 1950s. Misunderstood at home by his parents and tormented in school by his insensitive teacher, Antoine frequently runs away from both places. He decides to skip school and begins a downward spiral of lies and later stealing. His parents are at their wits end and after he';;s stopped by the police, they decide the best thing to do would be to let Antoine face the consequences. He';;s sent to a juvenile detention facility where he doesn';;t do much better.