Capt. Karl Ehrlich (John Wayne) is the German captain of a tramp steamer in an Australian harbor. Cmd. Jeff Napier an old friend is showing off his new fiancée Elsa Keller (Lana Turner). From their eye movement it looks as though the captain and Elsa know each other. When the commander steps out, Karl confronts Elsa with her past and sends her packing.

Things heat up pretty fast from here. Even though the captain is an old naval officer he was dismissed when he opposed the Nazi régime. But he is still a German nationalist. With the invasion of Poland Australia is dragged into the war leavening Karl with only a small chance of sneaking the ship out in the fog. At the last minute the German Consulate hands him one of their best agents (spies). One guess as to who that agent may be.

Now the chase is on and Cmd. Jeff Napier has a professional and personal reason to track down Karl before he reaches Germany.

The real story is that of the action between the different members of the crew. The nature of the agent adds complications to the voyage. And there is a conflict of morals aboard.

Will Capt. Karl Ehrlich make it home?
Or will Cmd. Jeff Napier blow him out of the water?
What becomes of Elsa?

"What flag is that sir? It does not have a swastika."
"That is the German Imperial Battle Flag"

A fun side interest in this movie is that instead of the standard John Wane repertoire of actors, this is an interesting mix including, Tab Hunter, James Arness, and Claude Akins.

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