Paul is about to turn 13 when his mother leaves him with his uncle in a small village for the rest of the summer while she sorts things out. Feeling unwanted and depressed, Paul wanders around the village's industrial area. Sitting there, he opens a gift from his mother, a harmonica, and begins to play. The music attracts a scruffy, rough-looking man, who starts dancing.

Frightened by the man's deformed face, Paul runs away and soon meets a group of boys led by the tough 14-year-old Jasper, whom he joins. The boys fight, smoke cigarettes, sniff glue, and drink stolen alcohol. Their favorite pastime is tormenting Fränk, the disabled man whom Paul has met. However, something about the man arouses Paul's empathy. In the gang, Paul drifts into a world of vandalism and theft, but is that really what he wants?