Anthony Pelissier writes and directs this dark fantasy drama based on a short story by D.H. Lawrence. An adolescent boy, Paul (John Howard Davies), lives with his upper class family in London. His mother, Hester (Valerie Hobson), is a compulsive shopper, continually spending far beyond the family's means, while his father, Richard (Hugh Sinclair), is a gambler who eventually loses his job as a result of his bad habits. As his family fast approaches bankruptcy, Paul befriends handyman Bassett (John Mills) and discovers that he can magically predict the winner of horse races by riding his rocking horse. The money is soon rolling in, but Paul realises too late that it comes at a fatally high price.