When Sam meets two 'Manilamen' carting the body of a dead Japanese diver, his ascent to maturity is set in motion. Sam is living in Broome in 1926. His father runs the outdoor cinema there, The Sun, and would like Sam to take over the business one day. But Sam has other ideas.
He would like to be a hero. How else will he attract the superb Amy O'Rourke, whose father is the local police sergeant, and a bit of a hero himself? And then there's Broome, multicultural capital of Australia, where Japanese men excel in the dangerous feat of diving for precious pearls.