In the French countryside, Agnes (Patricia Gozzi), a withdrawn teenager, lives in relative seclusion with her hermetic ex-judge father, Frederick (Melvyn Douglas). Agnes, who longs for male companionship, falls in love with Joseph (Dean Stockwell), an injured escaped convict her family has taken in and nursed back to health. When Frederick expresses his disapproval of their romance, the two run off to Paris, where the perils of the city soon catch up with both of them.