影片根据真实事件改编; 在洛杉矶有这样一个家庭,丈夫贝斯患有严重的心理疾病,自从他的母亲去世后,这种情况变本加厉。他不但限制家人的自由,更把只有四岁的小女儿卡蒂囚禁起来,并加以残酷的虐待。转眼之间八年过去了,卡蒂已经变成一个十二岁的小女孩,但却始终过着与世隔绝的生活。由于错过了最佳的语言学习时期,她甚至还不会说话,面对这一切,温顺的妻子斯坦蒂只能忍气吞声。但丈夫日益不正常的举动,让她似乎预感到了什么。为了挽救小女儿的生命,在儿子的帮助下,斯坦蒂带着卡蒂逃了出来并向警察求救。一时间,被囚禁八年,几乎像野人一样的小女孩卡蒂成为了社会的焦点,每天都有数不清的记者和好奇的人们想要一探究竟。 在大学主修语言学的学生桑德拉在格雷斯教授的带领下,也来到了这个城市,这一次,他们的任务是证明在语言最佳学习期后,仍然可以学会说话。桑德拉的出现,改变了卡蒂的命运。卡蒂第一...On November 4, 1970 on The CBS Evening News, Walter Cronkite reported on a true, horrific story that was about to rock the country. A 13-year-old girl was discovered in the small Los Angeles suburb of Arcadia who was still in diapers, barely able to walk and unable to speak. Kept in severe isolation by her parents with virtually no human contact for more than 10 years, she was confined to her bedroom, tied to her potty-chair and left to fend for herself. As Cronkite noted, it was one of the most horrendous cases of child abuse ever to surface. Much like an animal, the girl spat, sniffed and clawed. She had none of the traits or characteristics of conventional human behavior, nor could she comprehend such modern societal conveniences as silverware or bathroom etiquette. Her emotional development was practically non-existent, and she could not speak. With this heartbreaking story, the world was being introduced to a fragile, beautiful teenager who seemed and behaved like an infant, or Wild Child.