This film is set between 1900 and the First World War. Young Marcel was born in the country but raised in Marseilles. His father, Joseph, is a hard-working, atheistic school teacher in Marseilles. Marcel's maternal aunt Rose marries the rotund, jovial, and pious Roman Catholic Uncle Jules. The two men argue over religion. Over the summer, both men take their respective families to a house in Provence in southern France. Here, Jules offers to educate Joseph on hunting. Marcel wants to come with them, but they lie to him and leave the house early in the morning while they think he is asleep. Waking, he follows them stealthily and is angered by Jules humiliating Joseph by demonstrating the difference in their hunting prowess. Marcel then becomes lost but he meets a boy called Lili, who tells him where the hunting party is. Joseph takes potshots at two rock partridges and they fall to ground beside Marcel. He watches as Jules reprimands Joseph for missing the birds. At this point, Marcel reveals himself and the partridges. Later, Lili, who knows the countryside well, becomes Marcel's friend and teaches him about it. They regularly go exploring in the hills. As the holiday comes to an end, Marcel plans with Lili to hide himself in a cave and live as a hermit. On the day of his family's departure, Marcel gets up early in the morning. He has written a letter earlier, explaining his disappearance to his parents, and excusing his behaviour. He warns them that they will not be able to find him in his "new home," and should not bother searching. He then walks to the cave with Lili, who has been waiting for him near his house. As they arrive, Marcel begins to become afraid of living alone. He invents excuses to avoid living in the cave. He then runs home quickly to prevent his parents reading the letter, which he had placed on his pillow. As he returns home, everyone is already busy loading up a carriage for the journey home. He runs up to his room and, discovering that the letter is still on his pillow, assumes that no one has read it. As he gets ready to leave the house for a last time, his parents make a remark which indicates that they in fact did read the letter. The film ends with Marcel and his family departing in a coach, and Lili looking on.
