In the 1920s, a young sailor named Jake Holman embarks on a tumultuous life on the Yangtze River in China, aboard an old and worn-out American warship. The mission of the ship is to protect American citizens and maintain order amid the growing political tension in a country on the brink of radical change. Jake, played by Steve McQueen, feels out of place both on the ship and in the surrounding culture, but soon finds himself caught up in a world of conflict and moral dilemmas.
As he adapts to life on the ship, he becomes surrounded by a series of endearing characters, from his tough crew to a group of missionaries whose idealistic vision of the world clashes with the harsh reality they face. As the Chinese revolution intensifies, tensions also rise aboard, and Jake finds himself fighting not only for his own life but also for the humanity of those around him.
Through his experience, Jake begins to question his place in a complex world and confront his own beliefs. The arrival of conflict weaves an almost poetic narrative of struggle and redemption, where Jake's destiny and that of the ship's crew are intertwined with the fate of a nation in crisis. The film is an explosion of action, drama, and a deep exploration of morality in times of war.