The Sleeping Dictionary

John Truscott, a young Englishman, travels to the British protectorate of Sarawak with the intent to apply his father’s humanitarian ideals to the Iban people. He plans to build schools and introduce education as a civilizing mission, hoping to translate Western ideas into daily life. This marks the start of his immersion into a culture very different from his own.

John meets his skeptical boss Henry Bullard and his wife Aggie, who oversee the colonial project. Selima, a local woman, agrees to guide him by teaching language and customs, effectively becoming his sleeping dictionary. Their professional bond begins to blur as cultural barriers loosen.

John is dispatched upriver to reach the Yakata tribe, accompanied by Selima who helps him navigate unfamiliar terrain. Along the way he witnesses a mining operation run by European miners, hinting at the exploitation behind the mission. The journey deepens his exposure to colonial power and local life.

John discovers that the Yakata have been given rice by the miners, which raises the possibility that it is poisoned to drive the tribe away. Fearing miners' revenge, he warns the Yakata, who in turn respond by wiping out the European workers. The violence forces him to confront the consequences of colonial interference.

As John spends more time among the Yakata, he and Selima are drawn toward a forbidden romance that defies longhouse rules and social boundaries. The attraction complicates his mission and threatens the delicate balance of power and duty. The romance marks a turning point in both their lives.

John shares his intention to marry Selima with Henry Bullard, triggering backlash from the longhouse and colonial authorities. Selima is locked up, reflecting the social and political constraints placed on intercultural relationships. The tension tests John's loyalties to both his vocation and Selima.

Bullard imposes a hard choice: John must abandon Selima and travel to Britain for a year, where he will meet Bullard’s daughter Cecilia. The arrangement underscores empire-wide hierarchies and personal ambition clashing with love. John consents outwardly, though his heart remains unsettled.

A year passes in Britain, and John is seen marrying Cecilia, stepping into a conventional imperial career. Yet the memory of Selima lingers as a personal question mark that continues to tug at him. The marriage contrasts sharply with his earlier feelings and loyalties.

Back in Sarawak, Cecilia senses the pull toward Selima and homeland, and John finally admits that Selima is married to Belansai and has a child. The confessions deepen the emotional stakes and reveal the complexity of his sense of belonging. The situation destabilizes his relationship with Cecilia and the colonial project.

While at a lakeside site collecting rocks, John spots Selima with a baby and suspects the child might be his. He asks a local fixer named Famous to arrange a discreet meeting, hoping to reconcile facts with his feelings. The moment rekindles a dangerous, intimate possibility.

Belansai, angered by John's relationship with Selima, confronts him and blades him with a razor. He is ultimately captured and sentenced to hang, a punishment that John reluctantly accepts in the name of law and order. This confrontation intensifies the conflict between personal loyalties and colonial justice.

That night, Selima aids Belansai by breaking him out of custody and handing him a gun, signaling her sympathy for him and disillusionment with the system. She then plans to flee with John, meeting at the dock to embark on a new life beyond the borders. The act deepens the rift between Selima and the colonial establishment.

The following day, the longhouse turns against Selima and she is forced back into the role of Neville's sleeping dictionary. Cecilia reveals she is pregnant, adding another layer of tension and jeopardy to John's loyalties. The social backlash tightens around Selima and the couple.

Selima fights back when Neville attacks and escapes with her child, knocking Neville unconscious. John is torn between his feelings for Selima and his obligations to Cecilia, and Aggie urges Neville to pursue them. The pursuit underscores the fragility of love within empire.

Neville confronts John and Selima with a gun, but the Yakata intervene and kill Neville, removing the immediate threat. John and Selima choose to migrate to a life among the Yakata, away from empire and language to build a shared future. The film closes on their decision to start anew with the Yakata.