 The first movie version, from the age of black&white, of Flemish (heimat-)author Ernest Claes  classical novel, titled after the nickname (Dutch  the White , referring to a blond male) of the main character: a smart but naughty farmhands son whose eternal mischief, pranks and disobedience drive his elders (especially teachers, family and father s grumpy employer, a rich farmer) and classmates to despair in a time when a boy s punishment was still inevitable, swift and often severe.