This is an action packed drama that occurs during WWII.
The story is a moral dilemma that men in war often have to face. There are always local civilians in about any war.
Van Heflin plays a low life punk who happens to be in the U. S. Navy, and who gets a chance to be more.
James McArthur plays a well to do son of a rich plantation owner, who gets a chance to be less.
It is also a chance for McArthur's character to be "more".
As "Joe", Heflin has every chance to behave as a human towards the people of another country. Instead, he abuses them in every way, but with the motivation of it being for his own pleasure.
Joe is a hedonist, though not a sadist. It's one of the few "evil men" roles Heflin played on film. Joe is a bit like Heflin's villain in "Gunman's Walk", but actually isn't quite as evil as that character, but Joe does more terrible things by virtue of being totally without regard to other people.
There is also probably a prejudice Joe has against Asians, but we never really know if he wouldn't do the exact same thing if given a chance against Europeans.
Unfortunately, Joe is given command and stewardship by an officer who respects his "bravery", a huge mistake.
That's one of the hidden motifs of this story.
The main theme is how other characters react to Joe. As "David", McArthur finds he is the catalyst who is challenged to "do the right thing" in regards to the crimes Joe commits.
David has many chances to turn Joe in for his crimes, but tries to be a "comrade".
In watching this, we think we would "do the right thing" immediately, but in a war, one finds it hard to turn in a comrade for crimes of passion and lack of restraint.
The other characters are depicted quite well. This is an excellent drama, and teaches us to "do the right thing" before too many wrong things happen. David's indecision costs some lives, and he regrets it. It's a movie to learn from.
The story is a moral dilemma that men in war often have to face. There are always local civilians in about any war.
Van Heflin plays a low life punk who happens to be in the U. S. Navy, and who gets a chance to be more.
James McArthur plays a well to do son of a rich plantation owner, who gets a chance to be less.
It is also a chance for McArthur's character to be "more".
As "Joe", Heflin has every chance to behave as a human towards the people of another country. Instead, he abuses them in every way, but with the motivation of it being for his own pleasure.
Joe is a hedonist, though not a sadist. It's one of the few "evil men" roles Heflin played on film. Joe is a bit like Heflin's villain in "Gunman's Walk", but actually isn't quite as evil as that character, but Joe does more terrible things by virtue of being totally without regard to other people.
There is also probably a prejudice Joe has against Asians, but we never really know if he wouldn't do the exact same thing if given a chance against Europeans.
Unfortunately, Joe is given command and stewardship by an officer who respects his "bravery", a huge mistake.
That's one of the hidden motifs of this story.
The main theme is how other characters react to Joe. As "David", McArthur finds he is the catalyst who is challenged to "do the right thing" in regards to the crimes Joe commits.
David has many chances to turn Joe in for his crimes, but tries to be a "comrade".
In watching this, we think we would "do the right thing" immediately, but in a war, one finds it hard to turn in a comrade for crimes of passion and lack of restraint.
The other characters are depicted quite well. This is an excellent drama, and teaches us to "do the right thing" before too many wrong things happen. David's indecision costs some lives, and he regrets it. It's a movie to learn from.