Abdel, a young French Arab from the hood, has an unusual talent for spotting rare antiques. His last heist brings him to a youth detention centre, sponsored by the Countess of Montberier, whose husband recently passed away. The next male heir is a nephew the Countess cannot stand. On one of the Countess' visits to the youth detention centre, Abdel escapes in the trunk of her car. After numerous trials and tribulations, an unlikely friendship ensues between the aristocrat and the young man; and they are both able to help each other out of their respective jams.—A. Abady

Crafty French petty antiques thief Abdelkader Bethala has an excellent taste, but his Arab ghetto roots imply a bad fencing network, so he lands in juvenile detention. There he's spotted by its sponsor, recently widowed countess Louise de Montarbie d'Haust, who detests the only tradition-fir male heir, cousin Gonzague, as her deadbeat son Pierre-Anne took ecclesiastical vows of poverty. Abdel escapes in her car trunk to the castle, where he's accidentally nearly drowned by the countess's anarchist rebel daughter, veterinarian Blanche. The countess has Abdel nursed and locked up in a castle room. He bickers with the haughty maid Fanny but strikes a rapport with Blanche and impresses the countess with his art expertise. As it becomes clear the municipality and Gonzague plan to transform the ancestral castle in a vulgar tourist center and returning Abdel to jail is canceled while he bonds with countess and daughter, a bold alternative takes form.—KGF Vissers