Lost in the Stars

In August 1949, Stephen Kumalo learns from a letter that his sister is in trouble. He decides to travel to Johannesburg to help her and to search for his son Absalom. The call of family duty sets the story in motion.

Stephen leaves his village and heads toward Johannesburg. His sister refuses to leave her home and asks him to take care of her young son, Alex. He accepts the burden and prepares to find Absalom.

In Johannesburg, Stephen learns that his sister will not relocate and she entrusts him with care of her son, Alex. The new responsibility compounds the moral weight of his journey. He senses the broader danger awaiting his son Absalom in the mines.

Stephen finally locates Absalom, who has recently been in jail. Absalom has begun planning with friends to steal in order to avoid a life in the gold mines. The reunion reveals the distance between father and son.

Absalom and his friends plot a robbery to raise money. Irina, Absalom's pregnant girlfriend, pleads with him not to go through with it, but he presses on. The conflict foreshadows the tragedy to come.

During the robbery, Absalom kills Arthur Jarvis, a white friend of Stephen. The act shatters the family and sends Absalom to jail. Stephen confronts the personal and moral consequences of his son's crime.

As Absalom is jailed, Stephen worries about how to tell his wife Grace. He experiences a crisis of faith and prays for guidance, asking for strength to face the truth. The inner struggle intensifies as the legal process approaches.

At the trial, Absalom's two friends lie to the court and are released, but Absalom speaks the truth and is sentenced to hang. The verdict tests Stephen's faith and his resolve as a father. The courtroom drama crystallizes the film's moral conflict.

Stephen performs a wedding between Absalom and Irina inside the prison. He then returns home to Ndotsheni with Alex and Irina. The family begins a difficult reconciliation in a changed world.

Alex meets Arthur Jarvis's child and the two begin to form a friendship. This moment hints at healing possibilities despite the earlier violence. The return to normal life is permeated by a new sense of intergenerational connection.

Back in the village, Stephen informs his congregation that he can no longer serve as their minister. The haunting events have shaken his faith and his sense of vocation. The community watches as faith itself begins to fracture.

On the still-dark morning, Stephen waits alone for the clock to strike four. The long evening of moral struggle culminates in a quiet vigil before the execution. The weight of loss and responsibility presses on him.

The father of Arthur Jarvis visits Stephen and shares the sense that both have lost sons. The encounter crosses racial lines as they acknowledge their common pain. A fragile bond of empathy forms in the shadow of tragedy.

Stephen accepts the invitation to friendship extended by Arthur Jarvis's father. They recognize their mutual sorrow and allow a glimmer of forgiveness to enter their lives. The moment offers a small measure of healing amid the ongoing tragedy.