Kidnapped

The film opens with the aftermath of the Battle of Culloden as Duke of Cumberland's troops ruthlessly suppress the Jacobite Rebellion. Highland life is harsh under occupation and the Redcoats' presence looms over every decision. This atmosphere frames the danger that will follow David Balfour's inheritance dispute.

David Balfour arrives to claim his inheritance at the bleak House of Shaws. Ebenezer Balfour immediately resists and tries to murder him to seize control of the property. The confrontation throws David into a perilous power struggle within his own family.

Ebenezer has David kidnapped and shipped with sea captain Hoseason for a West Indies venture. Hoseason intends to sell the boy as a slave in the Carolinas, while Ebenezer schemes to keep the inheritance for himself. The voyage launches David into a world of danger far from home.

Alan Breck joins David when his coble is run down by Hoseason's ship. The two quickly form an uneasy alliance as they fend off the crew, and the ship wrecks on Loch Linnhe. Only Breck and David survive and reach land, bound by a shared will to stay alive.

Breck and David press on toward Edinburgh, dodging Redcoat patrols through the Scottish countryside. Along the way they meet Breck's circle, including his cousin James Stewart and James's daughter Catriona, with whom David falls in love. The journey blends peril with new allegiances and romance.

Breck hopes to incite another Highland rebellion, but James Stewart and his clan oppose the idea after Culloden. They warn that Redcoats’ tactics and guns would crush any uprising. The disagreement highlights the clash between romantic Jacobite dreams and grim reality.

A skirmish on a farm ends with a Redcoat captain dead and James badly wounded. James is presumed dead, abandoned, and later captured, ending up imprisoned in the Castle. David, Breck, and Catriona are drawn deeper into the political tragedy surrounding them.

David and Catriona enlist a lawyer to defend James and visit him in the Castle, arguing his innocence. The Lord Advocate and his daughter arrive, speaking of a New Scotland in the making as part of the Union and signaling Breck’s continued danger. The scene blends legal drama with the era's political tension.

The Lord Advocate, who claims Highland roots, hints that the future belongs to the Union and would prefer Breck captured or killed. Unseen by him, Breck hides and listens, seething with anger and resolve to press on with rebellion in some form. The moment intensifies the moral conflict for all involved.

Catriona journeys into the countryside to plead with Alan Breck to abandon violent rebellion. She argues that Scotland no longer needs armed conflict, appealing to his better nature. Breck's inner turmoil remains unresolved as he weighs love, loyalty, and national fate.

Realizing the rebellion may be futile, Breck contemplates his future and the cost of fighting. He ultimately decides to hand himself in to the Castle's Redcoat authorities to save James, choosing sacrifice over continued conflict. The film ends with this decisive, selfless act.