[9][3][2] A young rabbit named Fiver has a vision of machines coming to destroy the warren where he lives with his elder brother Hazel.

The seven rabbits narrowly escape from their warren’s Owsla, led by Captain Holly, by crossing a river and head into the wild countryside.

Over the next few days, the group encounter several hazards on their journey, including fighting off a flock of crows and seeking shelter during savage rainstorms.

While traveling to Efrafa, Holly, Blackberry, and Bluebell are stopped by a patrol of rabbit soldiers from the warren and brought before its leader, General Woundwort, where they are marked and imprisoned.

The following night, Holly's group stages a breakout with the assistance of an Efrafan doe named Hyzenthlay and they barely manage to escape with their lives.

Leaving Captain Holly, Strawberry, and Haystack back at Watership Down, Hazel leads the rest of the rabbits on a daring rescue mission to Efrafa.

The rabbits hide in a nearby human village, thank Kehaar for his bravery the next morning before he leaves them, and travel downriver to throw the Efrafans off their scent.

Even this easy-listening version, which lays on the romance, jokes and limp dialogue, has moments of grandeur and the sweep of a fantasy epic.