The film is set in the early 18th Century and involves smugglers and preventative officers. The on-shore leaders of the smugglers are a rascally lawyer and his wife who organise regular 'runs' of contraband. Richard Merivale, a wealthy young boy, whose parents are believed to have been lost at sea comes to live with them. By his efforts and with help of local children who endure many exciting adventures, the gang are brought to justice and Richard is reunited with the father.
Reviews
Absolutely Brilliant!
While it is a pity that the story wasn't told with more visual finesse, this is trivial compared to our real-world problems. It takes a good movie to put that into perspective.
The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.
The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.