Guy Hamilton (Mel Gibson), an Australian reporter on assignment in politically unstable Indonesia, joins forces with a savvy photographer (Linda Hunt). But it's Guy's affair with the beautiful British attaché Jill Bryant (Sigourney Weaver) that complicates his life. As the country moves to the brink of civil war, Jill warns her lover to leave, but Guy insists on pressing on to expose the truth ... even if it comes with a high cost.