It's one of those adventure tales told through the eyes of a child e.g. The Fallen Idol, Kidnapped, Treasure Island, High Wind in Jamaica. Jon Whiteley is the young boy sent to live with relative Stewart Granger in a small coastal town in England. He soon comes to (a) idolise Granger and (b) realise his guardian is a smuggler.
It's not a feel good movie - the coast is a mostly treacherous place, full of jagged rocks and waves that crash up against them; towns are deserted and/or full of empty mansions; random people are left hung by the side of the road; local law enforcement and nobility are corrupt and/or incompetent. Some only real "good" people are a nice squire and a little girl who befriends Whiteley.
Yet in it's way this is a touching, warm film, as it is based around the relationship between Whiteley and Granger. The little kid adores him and he comes to love the kid - sticking up for him when his men want the kid's throat slit, making a sacrifice with his life. The ending, with a dying Granger telling Whiteley that he'll be along soon, is very moving. I count myself on the side of fans of this movie.
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