| Director | John Guillermin |
|---|---|
| Box office | $1.3 million |
Young teenager Agnes Larbaud, her retired widower father, Frederick and their caretaker Karen, live in an old house on the Brittany coast in France. Agnes, who is immature and perhaps backward, has been removed from school and lives an isolated and childlike life. While walking home from church, they witness a prison bus crash. The convicts attempt to flee and are shot at by the guards. One convict, Joseph, knocks down a guard and injures him before escaping.
Agnes finds Joseph in their shed. In her imagination, she thinks that she has created him from a scarecrow, and her creation belongs to her. She does not tell the police about him. The family hide him and he stays for a while. The gendarme dies and the police believe the family know something about the fugitive. He and Karen become close but Agnes catches them kissing and attacks Karen, who leaves.
Joseph leaves separately, refusing to go with Karen, but Agnes follows him and he brings her home. A relationship develops and, after, Frederick objects, they leave together for a town. However, she struggles to manage a household and returns home. The police question her about her absence. She says nothing but Joseph, following her home, is seen, chased and killed.