The film deals with the battle of Guadalcanal. Sergeant Tom Sloan witnessess his platoon commander Brady shoot one of his own men. Sloan believes that it was murder, but he keeps quiet because he can not prove anything. In New Zealand Sloan meets the widow of the shooting victim. Her name is Ruth and he falls in love with her. But then he recognizes that Brady is meeting the sister of Ruth to gain access to the family fortune. Both men are ordered back into combat for the invasion of Tarawa. Sloan and Brady head for a showdown.