The Last of the Mohicans

Alice and Cora Munro leave Albany to join their father at Fort Munro, accompanied by Major Duncan Heyward and the enigmatic Mohican scout Magua. They move under the shadow of war, as French forces and their Native allies push deeper into the frontier. The journey tests loyalties and introduces a web of danger surrounding their party.

Magua secretly plots to murder Colonel Munro and abduct the girls, feeding his vendetta with the support of his war party. He lures the group toward an ambush while pretending to guide them safely. The tension hints at the violent struggle that will engulf the travelers.

Natty Bumppo, known as Hawk-eye, arrives with Chingachgook and Uncas and intervenes just as the ambush unfolds. The unlikely trio defeats Magua's men and frees the women and the escort. The travelers press on with renewed resolve.

During the journey, Uncas falls in love with Cora, while Hawk-eye and Alice are drawn to each other. The developing romance adds emotional tension to the perilous trek. The bond among the travelers deepens even as danger closes in.

The fort is besieged by French forces under General Montcalm and their Indian allies. Hawk-eye secretly overhears Magua steering the Indians to attack the colonial settlements at night. Colonel Munro remains wary, delaying action in the face of uncertain rumors.

Munro refuses to trust Hawk-eye's warning and forbids the colonial militia to leave. Hawk-eye engineers a plan to withdraw the troops, but is charged with insubordination and sentenced to death. The captain's stubbornness sets up a dramatic confrontation with the frontier scout.

During the fighting, Colonel Munro is fatally wounded and Alice and Cora are carried off by Magua's war party. Magua mocks them, claiming Cora will become his squaw and Alice will be burned. The sisters face a grim fate as the conflict rages around the fort.

Hawk-eye and his friends break out of the stockade and pursue Magua. They, along with Heyward, split at a stream; Hawk-eye and Chingachgook head downstream while Heyward and Uncas go upstream. The pursuit tightens the noose around Magua's party.

Uncas frees Cora but is killed as Magua's men press the confrontation near a cliff. Cora dies by choosing to leap from the heights rather than become Magua's captive. The dying Mohican drags himself to Cora and dies holding her hand.

Chingachgook fights Magua one-on-one to avenge Uncas. Hawk-eye restrains Heyward from interfering, and Chingachgook drowns Magua in the river. The Mohicans secure a measure of vengeance as dawn approaches.

Alice is taken to a large Indian settlement to be burned at the stake. Hawk-eye offers to exchange himself for Alice, and Heyward volunteers to go in her place, but Hawk-eye reveals his plan by swapping places with Heyward. Two men claim to be Hawk-eye, and the enemy chief orders a shooting contest to decide which is the real Hawk-eye.

The real Hawk-eye is identified after the shooting contest, and Alice kisses him before he is tied to a stake and surrounded by fire. Heyward's impersonation is discovered, and the two seem equally brave as they face death and the plan to burn them. Moments later, a British relief force storms the camp and frees Hawk-eye.

Hawk-eye faces a court-martial for insubordination, but the charges are dismissed after Heyward's testimony. He then enlists in the British Army and joins the march to attack French Canada. Alice resolves to wait for him in Albany.