The Long Memory

Philip boards the boat with Fay Driver and they share a moment of closeness, setting the stage for a personal feud. The scene establishes their bond and the danger Fay faces from her criminal associations. It foreshadows the long arc of revenge to come.

Philip goes below to try to convince Fay's alcoholic father, Captain Driver, not to involve her in his schemes. He speaks of danger and consequences, hoping to avert tragedy. The tension on deck signals a mounting conflict.

Boyd brings aboard Delaney and two henchmen, raising the stakes of the night. He insists on a higher payment, pushing the situation toward violence. The atmosphere thickens with threats and anger.

A fight erupts over the payment, and Delaney is knocked out. A broken oil lamp starts a fire, drawing the attention of the authorities. Philip is fished from the water as the boat sinks into flames, leaving survivors in shock.

A charred corpse is found in the sunken boat, prompting a deceitful cover-up. The Drivers and Tim Pewsey perjure themselves by identifying the dead man as Boyd and claiming there was no other man present. This lie directly leads to Philip's conviction for Boyd's murder.

Philip is granted parole after twelve years in prison, marking a hard-won, if fragile, release. He steps back into a world that no longer feels safe or fair. The hope of retribution now has a legal path back through his life.

Upon release, Philip is kept under police surveillance on the orders of Superintendent Bob Lowther, who is now Fay's husband. The monitoring underscores the state’s suspicion of him and the barriers to reclaiming a normal life. Philip contemplates his next move while being watched.

Philip discovers an abandoned barge claimed by Jackson, a kindly hermit, and decides to live rough while he searches for witnesses. The barge becomes a temporary refuge and a launchpad for his plot of revenge. He contemplates the best way to uncover the truth.

Three people attempt to befriend him: Jackson withdraws rent, then Craig the newspaperman arrives. Philip ejects Craig, but Craig tumbles down an open hatch and is knocked unconscious; Philip rescues him. The uneasy dynamic on the barge begins to shift.

Ilse, a traumatised refugee, is rescued from a sailor's assault and allowed to stay on the barge. She falls in love with Philip, adding a personal dilemma to his quest for revenge. The barge becomes a makeshift home and a possible new life.

Craig informs Philip that Captain Driver died four years earlier, prompting Philip to start stalking Pewsey with Lowther and Craig in pursuit. The pursuit intensifies as old wounds reopen and the net tightens. Pewsey is pressured to reveal the truth.

Pewsey is frightened into confessing to Lowther that there was another man present at the murder. The revelation cracks the foundation of the perjury and strains Lowther's marriage as suspicions grow. The possibility of true justice starts to feel reachable to Phillip.

Fay confesses she lied to protect her father and asks Boyd, who calls himself George Berry, for money so they can leave the country together. The revelation deepens Phillip's resolve and complicates his moral choices. The web of lies tightens around them all.

Ilse pleads with Philip to abandon revenge and start anew, a plea that resonates as Phillip confronts Fay at her home and chooses a different path. Soon after, Phillip is hired to deliver a letter to Berry and confronts Boyd in his office; a struggle ensues and Boyd shoots Phillip in the arm. The chase spills toward the barge where Jackson intervenes.

Boyd pursues Phillip toward London Waterloo and is shot dead by Jackson just before a final, fatal confrontation could occur. Ilse and Phillip decide to decline police help and choose to face their pasts together. The film closes on a fragile peace forged by mutual resolve.