It's 1952 Saigon and Thomas Fowler (MICHAEL CAINE) is a reporter for the London Times who does not intend to return to married life in England. That's because he's become entranced by the beauty of the land as well as that of his mistress, Phuong (DO THI HAI YEN), who he's been seeing for several years, much to the dismay of her sister.
She feels that American Economics Aid worker Alden Pyle (BRENDAN FRASER) would be a better catch for Phuong. Bitten by the love at first site bug, Alden thinks the same thing upon meeting her and Thomas.
The reporter has more pressing problems, however, as his paper wants him to return home. Needing a story, he travels to a remote hot spot where he not only runs into Pyle, but also witness the aftermath of a massacre that may or may not have been the work of the communists. Upon a trip to interview upstart General Thé (QUANG HAI), Thomas once again encounters Pyle and begins to grow suspicious of whether he has dealings with suspected government operatives including Joe Tunney (ROBERT STANTON) and Bill Granger (HOLMES OBSORNE).
With such suspicion growing along with his jealousy toward Pyle trying to win Phuong's heart despite knowing she's involved with Thomas, it's only a matter of time before things come to a violent head, all of which eventually involve Inspector Vigot (RADE SHERBEDGIA) investigating a serious crime.