Erik Toresen (Paul Muni), a simple Norwegian fisherman, finds his quiet coastal village shattered by the Nazi invasion. Untrained in the ways of war, the villagers use only their cold, sullen hatred as defense. But when an elder member of the village community is maimed and tortured, Toresen mobilizes the villagers and trains them to fight. Eventually discovered by the Germans, Muni and four others escape to England to lead British troops against the Germans, who intend to attack the Arctic supply lines.