Zazie, a young girl, meets her uncle in Paris. Her mother and her lover want to spend two romantic days in the city. But she escapes her uncle’s house and finds her own adventure. She wants one thing especially: take a subway ride. Unfortunately, there is a strike, so she heads out into Paris on her own. Her wild cheerfulness gets her into the funniest situations… She’s chased by Agent Trouscaillon, her uncle gets kidnapped by tourists and finally she drives everyone mad with her never-ending questions, and brutal remarks.
The movie is based on the famous novel by Raymond Queneau, and Malle replaces the imaginative vocabulary of the writer with the creative images and visual jokes on screen. He also made Zazie a little younger in the movie, which makes the story enjoyable and accessible for the whole family.