Rutger Hauer as the knight Navarre and Michelle Pfeiffer as Isabeau, his young, beautiful lady. the lovers are being kept apart by an evil spell cast by the Bishop of Aquila (John Wood), who is in love with Isabeau. The curse transforms Navarre into a wolf at nightfall and Isabeau into a hawk at sunrise, so they are “always together yet eternally apart,” as they can never touch in human form.
The love between Navarre and Isabeau is so obvious and strong. After Navarre in wolf form nearly dies after falling through an iced-over river, Isabeau lies asleep beside the ailing wolf. As sunrise approaches, the wolf transforms into the human Navarre while Isabeau transforms into a hawk. For a split second, the lovers see each other in human form and reach out to touch one another.
Thanks to an eclipse, Navarre and Isabeau are able to take human form at the same time. They appear before the Bishop, which breaks the curse. The Bishop, in rage and jealousy, cannot handle this, so he tries to stab Isabeau. Navarre throws his sword, killing the Bishop. Navarre and Isabeau embrace, say each other’s names, and kiss. The lovers can finally be united without obstacles.