Lovable Amsterdam street urchin, 11 year old Ciske is nevertheless much in need of love as the Dutch 1984 title suggests. He is a scamp with a heart of gold. He causes havoc in the classroom pouring ink over his teacher yet when a polio-crippled boy joins the class Ciske is one of the only children to befriend him and is bullied as a result. His mother works in a bar and Ciske helps out often late into the night - his father is at sea and his mother supplements her income with prostitution. Ciske is also a very angry young man and he smoulders with rage at life's injustices.
Jan has been married to Gedda for 35 years. Gedda loves Jan so much that she smothers him: before he can grab a glass from the table, she has already given him one. She picks out his clothing, his friends, his vacations and all their other activities. In an attempt to get some space Jan concocts a strange plan that literally transforms his marriage into a locked ward. Their daughter finds herself in a similar predicament with her exacting and jealous boyfriend.
Melissa is a 15-year-old girl who loves to dance. Her parents think she is taking classes in classical ballet, but once at the dance school she devotes herself to the hip-hop dance classes. Melissa is good friends with Jordi and he is very happy for Melissa when she is asked to dance in the music video of the famous rapper Brainpower. But because of bad influences, her life becomes a nightmare. Until her real friends decide to get her out of there.
