After his wife is killed during the Blitz, neurotic and suicidal Squadron Leader Bill Forrester (Gregory Peck) is bent on achieving one thing in the war: his own death. Fellow airmen see him as hostile, incommunicative and prone to nightmares and anxiety attacks. But when Forrester's plane crash-lands in enemy territory, he realizes that he must save himself in order to guide his two injured companions to safety. As they cross the Burmese desert, the WWII pilot is transformed by his love for a refugee nurse named Anna (Win Min Than). Anna helps Forrester overcome his grief and gives him the drive to survive the trek through the wilderness of Burma. A wartime film about character rather than combat.