Jim is a seventeen-year-old boxer in a small town. He's a golden boy, preparing for a fight that will elevate him to an early professional status. All bets are on his climb to success. But his father Stan is a demanding coach and a notorious alcoholic. As Jim begins to rethink why he is fighting, his life tangles with Whetu, a razor-tongued, gay Maori boy who spends his days in an old shack with his dog Moimoi where he cobbles together a fragile glamour and dreams of leaving town to become a musician. Away from the rainbow flags and Pride parades, Jim and Whetu must navigate isolation, hypocrisy, the brutality of small-town boxing, and an anonymous queer bashing that no one will talk about. As Jim stumbles towards discovering what it really is to be a gay man, he is forced to understand that strength has little to do with heroism.
Jim is preparing for his first professional fight but begins to rethink his life's trajectory and his sexuality after tangling with Whetu, a gay Maori boy who spends his days in an old shack down by the beach.