With 2,433,000 viewers it was the most popular Dutch film of all-time until surpassed a few years later by Fanfare.[1] The film was shown at the Venice Film Festival, where it won a Silver Lion of San Marco. It has also received an honorable mention from the Office Catholique Internationale du Cinéma.
A German version has been made with other actors, titled Ciske: Ein Kind braucht Liebe (Ciske: A Child Needs Love).
The story is set in the Amsterdam of the 30s, and told from the perspective of a teacher named Bruis. The narrative is centered around Cis Vrijmoeth, an oaf who never sees his father, because he is a sailor, and who is neglected by his mother. Time after time he is expelled from school. Only teacher Bruis can really handle and restrain the boy. In an fit of rage and fear, Ciske kills his mother with a knife and is sent to a youth detention center. In the end, his father returns from the sea and decides to take care of him, together with his wife Aunt Jans.
