The Navigator: A Mediaeval Odyssey (1988)

Cast: Bruce Lyons, Chris Haywood, Hamish McFarlane, Marshall Napier, Noel Appleby

Director: Vincent Ward

Rating: PG

Running Time: 92 min.

Synopsis: This modest Australian fantasy stars Hamish McFarlane as a young 14th Century boy with acute psychic powers. During the period of the Black Death, Hamish believes that he can rescue his fellow villagers by leading them into an abandoned mine. The fugitives tunnel their way through the darkness and emerge on the other side--into a bustling New Zealand metropolis in the year 1988. The phenomenon is seen from the point of view of the "aliens," to whom every modern convenience and invention is a miracle comparable to the Resurrection. The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey successfully creates and sustains its own logic, framing the story in the linear form of an ancient legend, and never treating the bedazzled time-travellers in a condescending manner.