The Seekers

The Becket anchors off the New Zealand coast and Philip Wayne and Paddy Clarke land to explore. They soon discover a Māori burial cave and are captured by the local tribe who accuse them of sacrilege. Wayne earns a trial by challenge and the respect of the chief, which begins their fraught encounter with Māori customs.

Wayne undergoes a trial by challenge and proves himself in the eyes of the Māori. The chief Hongi Tepe is impressed enough to adopt Wayne and grant him a portion of land. The sailors return to the Becket, which sails back to England after the ordeal.

The Becket sails back to England with the two explorers. On their voyage home, Wayne and Clarke reflect on the consequences of their encounter with the Māori and the trials ahead.

Back in Britain, Captain Bryce frames Wayne and Clarke on charges of murdering natives. A severed Māori head—presented to Wayne as a traditional gift but later revealed to have been recovered by Bryce—lands them with heavy fines. The men face the threat of imprisonment if they cannot pay.

Wayne decides to seek a new life away from Britain and to return to New Zealand. His fiancée Marion Southey still wants to marry him, and they sail back to New Zealand with Clarke aboard a private ship.

Wayne builds a house near the Māori tribe he befriended, establishing a foothold on the frontier. Marion stays with him, and Moana’s presence hovers around the settlement as trust slowly grows. Marion begins teaching some English and Christian ideas to the locals.

The Becket returns and Wayne confronts Bryce, who is revealed to be smuggling severed heads of dead Māori captives into Britain as profitable souvenirs. The revelation strains the fragile alliance between settlers and local Māori, increasing mistrust.

News arrives by the six-monthly ship that Wayne and Clarke have been exonerated by a higher court. They are told Wayne has been appointed a justice of the peace for his locality. The community breathes a cautious sigh of relief, hoping for stability.

Wishart and Sergeant Paul join the small group just as Marion discovers she is pregnant. With new company and rising tensions, the settlement braces for what comes next. Hope for peace struggles against growing threats from hostile tribes.

Marion gives birth to a son, Richard. Moana shadows Wayne during hunts and they share a kiss, testing loyalties. Hongi Tepe’s conversion to Christianity complicates his tribal decisions and foreshadows a growing rift between English settlers and Māori.

A rift between English settlers and Māori widens as old loyalties collide with new faith and power. Wishart accidentally shoots a Māori dog, thinking it is a goat, and a warrior is killed in the ensuing fight. Wayne reassures the Māori that he will pursue justice through proper channels, deepening the sense of competing authorities.

A night siege begins as the settlers defend against superior forces. Muskets give initial advantage, but the attackers use catapults and fire-bombs to set the house alight. Wayne saves Hongi Tepe’s life by shooting an attacker, Wishart is killed, and the house collapses with the colonists inside.

The sole British survivor is Marion and Wayne’s baby, Richard, who Marion hid and later survives. He is found and adopted by Hongi Tepe, symbolizing a fragile continuation of Maori-British ties. The film closes with friendly Māori watching a new group of colonists arriving on the beach.