Two Loves

Anna Vorontosov arrives at the rural North Island school, devoted to her unorthodox pedagogy. She learns that a new superintendent has already visited, and she and the headmaster decide to bring in an older student to assist for a few weeks. They select 15-year-old Whareparita from Paul Lathrope's class as the assistant, hoping to stabilize the room and keep the children engaged.

Abercrombie, the new superintendent, meets Anna and shows interest in a book compiled by the children under her guidance. He asks to borrow it, while Anna defends her method, insisting that learning should come from feeling and context rather than sanitized stories. Their talk foreshadows a complicated professional and personal dynamic.

During recess, Mark Cutter reveals Matawhero ran away, and Anna rushes to the Maori compound. Matawhero explains he was hit with a big stick at school, an act Anna suspects came from Paul Lathrope. She persuades Matawhero to return to class and resolves to confront the issue of discipline with Paul.

Anna berates Paul for using fear as a method of discipline, and he opens up about his insecurities and sense of failure in his first teaching job. He shares that he dreams of becoming a singer, which softens her view of him. They agree to go on a date that evening at her place so he can sing for her.

Paul performs a bold German song at the piano while Anna accompanies him. The performance is charged with emotion, and she offers some critique that he takes badly. He hints he would like to stay the night, but she retreats, reminding him that her life centers on her students.

Back at the school, Abercrombie reads a story from the children's book and is impressed by what the kids know, including mature topics. Anna explains that the children learn through lived experience and culture, not just abstract readings. He proposes printing pilot copies of the book with the school's blessing, which she cautiously entertains but resists editorial changes without the children's consent.

In a class on social hygiene, Whareparita shows her growing maturity when a younger girl cries about lice. Later, during a school outing, Whareparita faints and reveals she is pregnant. She is matter-of-fact about the father not being part of the baby's life, and the Chief and the community rally around the child.

Abercrombie shares that he is from England and that his wife and sons have returned to London, describing an unsatisfying marriage. This loneliness fuels his interest in Anna, and his pursuit of her grows beyond professional boundaries. The dynamic deepens as he contemplates a divorce for a chance at happiness.

In town on a rainy evening, Paul appears drunk and Anna helps him home, bridging the gap between teacher and troubled man. The moment reveals his vulnerability and loneliness, as he clings to her for stability. Their relationship remains fraught with attraction and hesitation.

Paul turns up outside Anna's house late at night, still seeking her company. She keeps boundaries firm, explaining why she can't cross certain lines. The encounter ends with renewed tension as she rejects his advances, leaving both to wrestle with unfulfilled desire and professional restraint.

Paul dies in a motorcycle crash after a late-night departure, leaving Whareparita devastated at his funeral. Anna wrestles with guilt, wondering if she could have saved him. Abercrombie suggests his death may have been accidental and uses the moment to acknowledge his own feelings for Anna and his intention to divorce his wife.

In the final moment, Abercrombie and Anna walk together across the school grounds, with Abercrombie whistling as Anna goes into her classroom. The scene hints at a fragile new bond and the ongoing work of teaching in a community under strain. Anna steps back into her role with her students as the immediate future unfolds.