Manfish

Inspector Warren from Scotland Yard arrives in Jamaica seeking the extradition of the pirate-turned-prisoner known as The Professor. He exchanges credentials with a Jamaican Inspector at the headquarters and lays out his mission. The meeting sets up a frame for the story told in flashback.

The Jamaican Inspector refuses to extradite The Professor, arguing for his own jurisdiction and the paradoxes of the case. Warren's challenge to extradition leads the Inspector to recount the story in flashback. The refusal pivots the narrative into the professor's past and the treasure-hunting scheme.

Devil-may-care Brannigan clinches the ship Manfish and its first mate Swede in a high-stakes poker session, winning them from the ship's creditors. The victory foreshadows Brannigan's reckless yet charismatic path. His avoidance of the creditors hints at his opportunistic, daredevil nature.

During a drunken evening out, Brannigan notices a woman seated with an older man—The Professor—and the two brawl over her. In the fracas, Brannigan spots the Professor wearing a heavy skull-and-crossbones ring. The incident plants the seeds of a future confrontation.

The following day, the Manfish sails into the Caribbean to hunt turtles. The voyage shifts from festivity to danger as Brannigan's world intersects with the Professor's secret life. The crew's routine voyage hides a looming chase.

Two divers from the Manfish discover a skeleton underwater holding a bottle. Brannigan dives to retrieve it and breaks the bottle open on deck, revealing a ripped 1793 paper with French writing and a ring matching the Professor's. The discovery links the past to the present adventure.

Brannigan tracks down the Professor and persuades him to disclose what he knows. The Professor reveals that he possesses half of a Lafitte document, with the other half missing. This revelation drives the treasure-hunt motive and the dangerous alliance between them.

Fearing for his life yet driven by greed, the Professor translates the half-map to reveal a treasure on Hispaniola, then destroys the original map and memorizes its contents. His actions secure his safety by keeping the plan secret from rivals. The fragile trust between Brannigan and the Professor solidifies into a shared yet treacherous plan.

Once on the island of Hispaniola, Brannigan and the Professor locate and recover a treasure worth £25,000, a fortune that promises more adventures. The find validates their risky collaboration and fuels their greed. The island setting becomes the climactic stage for the treasure hunt.

The Professor notes that the Hispaniola treasure is only a drop in the ocean compared to a further treasure Lafitte buried, which he promises to locate. His boast ignites the potential for even larger exploits and keeps the partnership alive under tension. The teaser hints at a never-ending game of cat and mouse.

With the lure of Lafitte's hidden treasure, the two men contend with the threats of rival treasure hunters and the Professor's own precarious status. Warren's pursuit is not the only pressure; the ongoing tension between Brannigan and the Professor threatens their fragile alliance. The future expeditions are set into motion.

The Jamaican Inspector's recounting wraps up the flashback as the modern-day extradition debate resumes. Warren considers the Professor's cunning and the long, tangled history that connects the two stories. The timeline returns to the present, setting up the possibility of extradition or pursuit continuing.