It's 1950, and for WWII ex-GIs, their war is over. Some, however, are recalled for the Korean War. One former officer finds himself on orders to the famed 1st Marine Division in northern Korea, at a desolate camp where winter is settling in. The Marines face Chinese "volunteer" divisions set to strike the ill-planned U.S. advance to the Yalu River. The officer loses his command under Chinese attack, and together with his first sergeant, and a woman correspondent, withdraws in "Hellfire Valley." The trio is captured and freed by an unusual source, and two try to make it to the port for rescue by an unusual quarter.