South Africa, 1823. The Zulu Empire, headed by King Shaka, a brilliant but ruthless military strategist, begin to encroach on the British colony of Cape Town. A volunteer cadre of explorers, mercenaries and professional soldiers are sent to Zululand to try to make contact with Shaka and assess the real threat of his army.

In Ireland in the mid 1960s, two feuding brothers and their respective Ceilidh bands compete at a music festival.

A South African girl guides anti-apartheid guerrilla fighters across the border from Botswana to South Africa.