The Birds II: Land’s End

A group of seagulls gathers on the coast, signaling trouble to come. A fisherman in a small boat nets a dead bird and opens a white box to try an experiment. The seagulls rise and are joined by crows, and the fisherman is attacked and killed on his boat as the birds sweep over the water.

Ted and Mary Hocken move with their two daughters, Jill and Joanna, and their dog to Gull Island, hoping a quiet summer will help them start anew. Ted hopes to finish an important biology thesis while the family tries to forget their past loss. Gull Island marks a fresh, windswept backdrop for their lives.

That night, Ted dreams of losing his son Tommy in a car accident and wakes in distress. Mary comforts him as they try to settle into their new routine. The dream foreshadows the emotional strain that will shadow the family on Gull Island.

The next day, Ted, Mary and their daughters drive toward the small town, unaware a policeman is dragging an abandoned boat from the water. In an office they meet Frank, and later in a shop they encounter Helen the shopkeeper who interacts with the girls. The police later find the abandoned fishing boat, and the fisherman who used it is still missing.

Back at home the dog plays with and stalks the birds as dinner approaches. Ted, Mary, and the girls watch in disbelief when the dog returns with a small bird in its mouth and the turkey goes missing. Jill and Joanna plead to keep the small bird, adding to the family’s growing unease.

While working on their house, a seagull swoops at Ted and knocks him off his ladder, leaving him with a bleeding forehead. Mary tends the wound as the birds circle ominously overhead. He bandages the wound and continues with his day, while the sense of danger grows.

Ted runs into Helen again at the little shop and later enters a restaurant where he chats with Doc Rayburn, a local doctor. The hunter man nearby teases them, hinting at the menacing mood creeping through the town. The scene deepens the sense that something unusual is happening among the islanders.

Jill and Joanna come across a dead fisherman on the beach, their fear mounting as they see the fisherman’s eyes missing. A crow flits onto a hanging board as Karl, an elder, collects the dead birds and reflects on the odd events. The fisherman’s corpse is taken away, leaving the family shaken.

That night the family shares a sad talk about Tommy, then a crow crashes through a window, wounding Ted's hand and heightening the sense of danger. Mary rushes to help, while the crow caws and vanishes into the night. The haunting attack marks the first direct assault on the Hockens.

The next day Ted wears a cloth wrap on his hand and confides in Helen about the accident while trying to keep up appearances. Jill and Joanna are frightened by birds perched on windows and ask Karl to take them to the lighthouse. The birds’ presence becomes a constant, unnerving menace.

That night Jill and Joanna awake to find a small bird in their room; when the window is opened, hundreds of birds flood in and descend on them. Their parents rush to shield them, blocking the door as the cage holding the bird is broken. The home erupts in chaos as the birds overwhelm the room.

In a chaotic showdown, Doc Rayburn and other townsfolk fight the swarms as the birds attack restaurants and docks. A dangerous fire spreads, forcing the Hockens to flee toward a boat with Frank and others. The family escapes the immediate danger, clinging to a vessel and hoping the birds’ assault will subside.

On the water, the family slides beneath an upside-down boat to survive as the flock pelts the hull. The dog—who had already become a casualty of the chaos—has died, and the girls cling to their parents for safety. When the birds finally pull away, they paddle toward safety on the open sea.

Exhausted but alive, the Hockens watch the seagulls disappear into the sky and share a hard-won sense of relief. They allow themselves a small smile, recognizing they have endured a nightmare and survived as a family. The coast grows quiet again as the birds finally fly away.