Finding ‘Ohana (2021)

Finding ‘Ohana (2021) Full Recap

A girl named Pili teams up with her friend, Yoli, to participate in a geocaching competition in New York. After winning the competition, the organizer announces that Pili and Yoli have won a trip to a geocache camp in the Catskills. Pili looks excited by this, and she mentions that it's going to be the best summer ever. Unfortunately, things don't go exactly as planned, and Pili heads to Hawaii with her mom, Leilani, and her brother, Ioane, for the summer.

Interestingly, it turns out that Pili's grandfather, Kimo, recently had a heart attack, and this has made Leilani bring her family to stay with him for the holiday. Just as they arrive, Pili tries to steal Ioane's phone, but he catches her and asks what she wants to do with it. Pili says she needs to check her email because Yoli has promised to give her updates about the things happening at the camp. Ioane refuses to give up his phone, and he tells Pili to get a job if she wants one.

Leilani then tells Pili to relax because she'll be able to check her mail when she gets inside. Pili still seems frustrated, and she mentions that Kimo might not even have a stable Wi-Fi. After they enter the house, Leilani sees that the kitchen looks scattered, and she also checks some of Kimo's mail. Kimo doesn't happen to be around, and Ioane figures out that there's no Wi-Fi in the house.

Pili tries to take Ioane's phone again, and as he stops her, they start fighting. Leilani eventually tells them to apologize to each other, but they don't listen to her. As they continue insulting each other while they're looking for Kimo with Leilani, their grandfather hears them and scolds them for always fighting. Leilani then tells Kimo that he's supposed to be on bed rest, but he says that he has to take care of his land.

He adds that he has been fine for the last ten years without having anyone to tell him what to do. Leilani insists that the doctor wants him to rest, but Kimo says he doesn't care what anyone wants. He then looks at the kids and gives them a slice of an indigenous fruit. He also tells them to say a word in Hawaiian, and as Pili struggles with it, Kimo scolds Leilani for not teaching the kids about their roots.

Leilani doesn't say much about this, and she takes Kimo into the house. Ioane also follows them, but Pili stays back when she sees an old bus, which Kimo has turned into his art studio. After entering the bus, Pili looks around and sees an old journal written in Spanish. Some of the pages also have Hawaiian Post-it notes on them, but Pili doesn’t understand the language.

From the little Spanish she's able to translate, Pili realizes that the journal is about a treasure, and it’s owned by a sailor named Monks. Before she can translate more pages, she sees Kimo heading toward the bus, so she jumps out through the window. A boy named Casper sees her and asks if she's a thief, but she says she's not. As he notices that she's hiding the journal under her shirt, he asks what it is, but Pili says it's nothing.

Almost immediately, Kimo shows up and asks what Pili is doing there. As she looks nervous, Casper tells Kimo that she only came to check out his cat, Mortimer. Kimo believes this and asks Casper if they're still going to do what they planned. Casper says they will, and they walk to a part of the land where they plan to bury a dead bird.

After Casper buries the bird, Pili realizes that it wasn’t even his pet, and she asks why he's so concerned about a bird that is not his. Kimo then mentions that they love to honor the dead in Hawaii because it keeps their spirit alive. Later that day, while Pili is looking for her Hawaiian dictionary, she sees a wedding photo of her mom and her dad, Kua. As she admires it, Leilani sees it and says that she didn't know she still had the picture.

After this, she offers to go geocaching with Pili to make up for the missed camp that she's still sad about. Pili looks happy about this, and she thanks her mom. Shortly after, Pili starts reading the journal she found in Kimo's art studio. As she gets to a page about a group of people called Night Marchers, Ioane snatches the journal from her.

He then sees the page and wonders why she's reading about the ghosts of Hawaiian warriors. He says that someone named Bobby told him about the Night Marchers a while ago. Pili doesn't think Bobby knows much about Hawaii, but Ioane talks about how the Night Marchers usually move at night to protect the island. As he talks about some scary signs people notice when the Night Marchers are around, Pili looks terrified and wonders if Ioane is being serious.

The next morning, while the kids are having breakfast, they suddenly hear Kimo and Leilani arguing about something. Leilani says she can't believe that Kimo hasn't paid his property taxes in five years, and he's now about to lose his house. She adds that she thinks he would be better off in New York with her and the kids, but Kimo says he won't leave the land of his ancestors like she did. After this, Leilani angrily walks into the house and tells Ioane that they have to go out to get Kimo's medicine and a new router.

Pili says she thought she'd be going geocaching with her mom, but Leilani apologizes and says that they can go the next day. Almost immediately, Casper knocks on the door, and Ioane goes to meet him. Casper tries to be friendly toward him, but Ioane doesn't seem interested in this. As Casper then asks for Pili, Ioane suddenly sees a local girl named Hana walking toward the house.

Ioane finds her to be quite attractive, and as she gets to the house, he introduces himself to her. Hana also tells him her name and gives him the snacks she brought for Kimo. Casper eventually interrupts them while they're talking, and Ioane sounds quite rude to him. Hana scolds Ioane for this, and she tells him to just answer Casper's question politely.

Ioane then mentions that Pili is at the back, and as Casper heads there to check up on her, Hana walks away. Meanwhile, Pili happens to be reading the journal, and she learns that two men named Robinson and Brown teamed up with Monks on a quest to find a treasure. Casper eventually meets her while she’s reading the journal, and he sees that it was written by Monks. He then tells Pili that Monks is a legendary sailor of a ship called the Peruvian.

He adds that the story of the Peruvian's treasure is legendary. Pili then asks if he understands Hawaiian because she needs to translate some notes in the journal. Casper says he's not quite good at translating the language, but that his friend, Hana, is much better at it. As Pili continues reading the Spanish text in the journal, she mentions that Robinson and Brown decided to betray their team and steal the gold for themselves, so they lied to Monks to get him to be on their side.

After they successfully secured the gold, with the help of some other trusted men, Robinson and Brown agreed to hide the gold on an Island. As Pili struggles to translate the rest, Casper says he knows how the story ends. He then mentions that after they hid the treasure, Monks stayed back to guard it while Robinson and Brown sailed back to England. Unfortunately, they didn't make it back home because a storm hit their ship and got everyone lost at sea.

After this, Monks nearly got beaten to death before he was saved by an old Hawaiian couple who found him just in time. Pili asks about the person who beat up Monks, but Casper says it's still a mystery. He adds that Monks eventually gave his journal to the old couple as a way to thank them for saving his life. Since it’s now clear that Robinson, Brown, and Monks didn’t leave the Island with the treasure, Pili asks Casper where the treasure is.

Casper says there are rumors that Monks told the old couple about the treasure, but no one has been able to find it. Suddenly, Kimo finds them at the back, and he takes Pili inside to scold her for stealing the book from his studio. After Pili returns the book, Kimo says that it belonged to his grandfather, who actually got it from Monks. Pili looks surprised by this, and she asks Kimo if their family really saved Monks.

Kimo confirms this and shows her a gold pendant that he kept with him. Pili asks if it's real, and Kimo says it is. Pili then asks why he isn't living in a mansion or acting rich, but Kimo doesn't think that's important. Pili doesn't seem to understand this, and she asks if Kimo didn't find the gold.

Kimo just smiles at her and takes her to the Island where Monks and the others first landed when they came to hide the treasure. Kimo shows her some drawings in the journal that confirm this, and she also sees the mountain where the treasure is believed to be hidden. While walking around, Pili sees one of the markers that the explorers inscribed on a rock. As she starts reading the Spanish text again, Kimo looks shocked by this and says that it took him a while to translate the words.

Pili then realizes that the post-it notes in the journal were for her grandfather. As Pili wonders where the treasure could be, Kimo says that the journal is the treasure. Pili still thinks there has to be a treasure, and as she climbs some rocks to see if there are other markers in the area, Kimo tries to stop her, but he ends up falling to the ground and getting hurt. Elsewhere, Leilani tells Ioane that she's thinking about selling their house in New York to cover her dad's bills.

Ioane doesn't like this idea because it means they'll have to relocate to Hawaii, but Leilani mentions that she's only trying to help her dad. Ioane still disagrees with her and says that he doesn't want to lose the life he has in New York because Leilani still feels guilty about leaving Hawaii after Kua died. Leilani feels hurt by this, but before she can respond, Pili calls her to inform her about what happened to Kimo. Shortly after, Kimo gets taken to the hospital, and Pili feels sad about this.

Ioane then mentions that she should be worried about her social life because they could potentially lose their house and relocate to Hawaii. Suddenly, Leilani comes over to give an update on Kimo's health. She says the doctors are keeping Kimo at the hospital for the night, and that she'll have to stay with him. She also mentions that she can't believe Pili asked Kimo to take her to the Island.

Pili looks sad when she hears this, and Leilani tells the kids to go home. When they get to the house, Casper comes over to see Pili, and she blames herself for what happened to Kimo. Casper says that Kimo will be fine, but Pili thinks it's going to be hard because her grandfather still has a lot of bills to pay. As she says she'll fix the situation, Casper asks how she plans to do that because they don't have a treasure stashed somewhere.

Pili then gets an idea and tries to convince Ioane to look for Monks’ treasure with her. Ioane doesn't believe the treasure is real, and he tells Pili that he's not interested in going on a useless quest. Pili then steals the keys to Kimo's truck and tells Casper that she's going to look for the gold herself so she can help her grandfather. Casper thinks it's risky, but he eventually agrees to follow Pili when she’s ready to leave at dawn.

The next morning, Pili steals Ioane's phone while he's still sleeping, and she leaves the house with Casper in Kimo's truck. Pili doesn't drive quite well, but she still manages to get to a place called Kualoa Ranch, which is close to the mountain where the gold was likely hidden. After they get there, Leilani calls Ioane's phone, but Pili doesn't answer it. She then calls Kimo's landline, and Ioane picks it up just as he wakes up.

As Leilani asks about Pili, Ioane checks her room and realizes that she has left the house. He then lies to Leilani that Pili is in the bathroom, and that he's taking her geocaching. Leilani thanks him for doing this, and after the call ends, Ioane tracks his phone and finds out where Pili is. Meanwhile, Pili and Casper get caught trespassing on the ranch by a ranger named Ryan.

Casper knows who Ryan is, and he mentions that he was just showing Pili around. Ryan doesn't have a problem with this, and he allows them to continue their adventure on an ATV. After finding another marker, Casper shows Pili the things he brought for their adventure, and he accidentally drops his yo-yo. Almost immediately, they see a cave nearby, and they decide to go inside to check it out.

Elsewhere, Ioane gets Hana to come with him to find Pili. After telling her where Pili is, Hana calls Ryan to ask if he has seen her. Ryan then mentions that he saw Pili and Casper earlier, and that he's sure they're still around because he just tracked their ATV. After the call ends, Ioane sees Hana's application to a prestigious performing arts school in New York called Juilliard, and he asks if she's into singing or dancing.

Hana doesn't seem interested in talking about the subject, and she tells Ioane that she's not going to Juilliard. When they get to the ranch, they find the ATV near the mountain, and as they look further, they see Casper’s yo-yo just outside the cave. Ioane suggests going inside to look for the kids, but Hana says they can't just go in because the place could be a tomb. She adds that tombs are sacred and forbidden for people to enter.

Ioane says he just wants to find his sister, but Hana mentions that they have to make an offering before entering the cave. After they do this, Hana and Ioane go inside and start looking for the kids. Meanwhile, Casper and Pili keep walking around the cave until they fall down a cliff inside the place. Interestingly, there happens to be a skeleton next to them, and even though they initially look terrified, they realize that the dead person was likely one of the sailors who tried to find the treasure.

They also find a golden ring with the dead person, and almost immediately, Ioane and Hana see them. Ioane seems furious that Pili ran away from home, but she mentions that she had to find the treasure because it's real. Ioane doesn't believe this, but Pili throws the golden ring to him so he can take a look. After he sees that it's real gold, he asks for his phone, but Pili realizes that she has broken it.

As she apologizes for this, Ioane sounds pissed, but Hana keeps trying to get the kids back to the top. Ioane then offers to help her, but they both end up falling down to meet the kids. After this, Pili says that according to Monks’ journal, she knows where they have to go next. Hana happens to know who Monks is, and she mentions that if the journal truly belongs to him, they'll be able to get out safely.

Pili then says that they won't leave unless they get the gold because it will make them rich. As she says that the treasure will help Kimo pay his bills, Casper mentions that Hana will also be able to afford going to Juilliard. Since they all agree that they have to get the treasure, they keep moving around the cave to find it. On the way, they crawl through a small hole, and Ioane gets attacked by a poisonous spider.

As they get out of the hole hurriedly, it gets destroyed, and Pili realizes that the bag containing Monks’ journal is now stuck inside. They all look worried about this, but Pili says that she has already finished reading the book, and she knows what they have to do next. Hana then asks what's next, but as Pili talks about it, Ioane realizes that she's making things up. Pili then confesses that she didn't finish the book, and Ioane scolds her for bringing them down to the cave while pretending to be a treasure hunter.

As he seems quite frustrated, Hana drags him away and says that he shouldn't show the kids that he's scared. Ioane doesn't seem to get this, but Hana says that they have to be strong for the kids. Elsewhere, Leilani tries to call Ioane, but his number doesn't go through, so she leaves him a voicemail to ask if he and Pili are fine. After this, she goes to see her dad, who is with a nurse named Tina and his close friend, George.

Tina asks if Leilani is really staying in New York, and she confirms this. George also mentions that she left after Kua died, but Leilani doesn't look happy when she hears this. Tina then asks if visiting her dad has made her realize that she misses Hawaii, and Leilani mentions that she's actually thinking of moving back. George and Tina think it's good news, but Kimo asks why she would do that.

Leilani says she wants to spend more time with him and learn more about his tribe. However, Kimo doesn't appreciate this, and he asks what she even knows about his tribe. Leilani feels sad and leaves the room, and George scolds Kimo for acting like he doesn't miss his daughter. After a while, George goes to meet Leilani to tell her that her dad is actually happy to have her back home, but he just doesn't know how to show it.

Leilani doesn't think so, but George says he's sure of it. Shortly after, Leilani returns to Kimo's room, and he says sorry for making her feel unwanted. Leilani also apologizes for leaving him and staying away for too long. She then tells him that they can still make things right, and Kimo agrees with her.

Elsewhere, Ioane tries to make amends with Pili for shouting at her earlier. They also talk about their parents’ old picture, and Pili seems sad that she doesn't remember much about their dad. Shortly after, they get to a part of the cave with a really old rope bridge. As they think about how to get through to the other side, the rope snaps, and the bridge collapses.

Pili and Casper eventually find another way, but Hana looks terrified because she's scared of heights. Ioane eventually helps her get through by encouraging her and singing a nice song to lift her spirits. After they get to the other side, Ioane feels dizzy and suspects that something is wrong with him. He then calls Casper aside and shows him the blister he got from the spider earlier.

Casper looks shocked to see how huge it is, and he suggests telling the girls so they can quickly find a way out and take him to the hospital. However, Ioane says he wants everyone to focus on the mission, so he wraps the blister with duct tape. As they then continue their journey, they come across a small pool of water, and Pili remembers a quote from Monks’ journal. She then mentions that the pool is a tunnel, and that they have to cross it to the other side.

After they do this, they end up in another part of the cave, which is similar to one of the drawings in Monks’ journal. Pili says they're in Ground Zero, and as they look around the place, they see a way out that leads to a pool of water just below the mountain. As Casper and Pili then start looking for new clues inside the cave, Hana sits with Ioane, and he tells her that if they find the treasure, she has to send her application to Juilliard. Hana then says that her decision not to go isn't just about money.

She adds that Hawaii is a big part of her, and she doesn't think it's worth leaving just for a shot at singing. She also mentions that she thinks leaving will make her uncomfortable with who she is. Suddenly, Casper and Pili recognize another drawing from Monks’ journal. It happens to be a complex rope and pulley system, but the kids notice that one of the counterweights is missing.

The kids also see another dead body, and they start wondering if Robinson and Brown turned against their men inside the cave. As they think about what could've happened, Casper mentions that Robinson and Brown might've gotten Monks to work with them, but Pili says she doesn't think the sailor is a bad person. After they inform Ioane and Hana that one of the counterweights’ ropes was likely cut off by one of the dead men, they work together to balance the weights. Following this, they find a hidden entrance that leads to the treasure.

They all look happy about this, and they start taking some of the gold. Shortly after, Hana suggests taking a selfie, and as they do this, she spots a religious statue that was hidden inside the cave. This leaves her shocked, and she mentions that they're in someone's tomb. She adds that they can't take anything out of the tomb because they have to respect the place and leave it undisturbed.

Ioane doesn't get this, but Pili realizes that Kimo knew about the sacred tomb, and that's why he told her that the book was the treasure. She also figures out that he was likely the one who cut the rope to hide the entrance and make it hard for anyone to come in. Coincidentally, Leilani tries to call Ioane again, but his number doesn't go through. As she then checks his last recorded location, she sees that he’s in Kualoa Ranch.

She doesn't seem to get this, and as she asks Kimo why the kids would go there, he realizes that they went to look for the treasure. Leilani looks shocked by this, but Kimo says he didn't think Pili would actually go to the mountain. Leilani cannot believe that the kids went there because of a fake treasure, but Kimo says it's real. He adds that when he found it, he realized that the cave was sacred.

He adds that Monks also realized it, but he was attacked by the Night Marchers. As Leilani hears this, she quickly heads out because the kids are in danger. Back in the cave, Hana keeps telling the others that they can't take the gold because it's like an offering to the person whose tomb they're in. Pili and Casper drop everything they had already taken, but Ioane starts picking up some for himself because he doesn't believe that a dead person can still have control over the treasure.

Suddenly, they hear a strange sound outside the cave, and all the lights in the room go off before turning blue again. As they look scared, they quickly run out of the cave while wondering if the Night Marchers are really coming for them. Pili then knocks down one of the counterweights to make it hard for anyone else to find the treasure. After this, Hana tells the others that they mustn't look at the night marchers because they'll get killed instantly.

Finding ‘Ohana (2021) Ending Explained

Casper eventually suggests using the banyan roots to get to the pool of water below the mountain, and they do just this. Unfortunately, Ioane is too weak to swim, but as he nearly drowns, Casper and Hana save him. Hana and Pili then see the blister on his hand, and they look worried because it could be really bad. Shortly after, they continue moving around through the woods to make their way back home.

Luckily, Leilani finds them first, and she takes them into a nearby workshop to hide. Meanwhile, Kimo looks terrified at the hospital and starts praying for his family. Just before the Night Marchers enter the workshop, Pili lays down all the gold she hid in her bag. Almost immediately, the Night Marchers get to the workshop, but before they can do anything, one of them tells his colleagues that he'll handle the situation.

As Leilani hears his voice, she raises her head and sees that it's Kua. The kids also look shocked to see him, and they hug each other. After this, Kua leads all the Night Marchers out of the workshop, and they disappear into the ocean while Pili watches them. The next day, the kids go to the hospital to see Kimo, and Leilani mentions that they mustn't tell anyone about everything that happened.

After this, Pili asks why they didn't get killed even though they looked at the night marchers. Kimo then mentions that the Night Marchers recognized them as family because of Kua, and that he was the one who saved them. After Pili returns Kimo's gold pendant to him, she asks what really happened to Robinson, Brown, and Monks. Kimo then mentions that Robinson and Brown turned on each other because they didn't want to share the treasure.

As they kept disturbing the tomb with their fight, the Night Marchers arrived to take them down. Monks then jumped out of the cave just as he heard Robinson and Brown getting tortured by the Night Marchers. Pili then asks if Monks was a bad guy, but Kimo says he wasn't. He then returns the pendant to her and says that she can keep it.

Shortly after, Kimo gets discharged, and after he fully recovers, Leilani tells him and her kids that even though she has been the one making most of the impactful decisions in their lives, she now wants to get them more involved. She then talks about their current situation and mentions that they have to make a decision on whether Kimo should move to New York with them or if they should sell their house and move to Hawaii. Pili seems excited about this, and she tells Leilani that they can start talking about it already. After learning about a hidden treasure in a nearby mountain, Pili sets out on a quest to find it so she can help her grandfather pay his bills.

Even though it initially seemed like an impossible quest, Pili eventually found it along with Ioane, Hana, and Casper. However, they realized that they couldn’t leave with the gold because it was hidden in a sacred tomb. Despite knowing how much the treasure could change their lives, the kids chose to respect the tomb and leave before the night marchers can hurt them. Sometimes, doing the right thing means walking away, even when the reward might be tempting.