惊险的海盗夺金故事，浪荡的谐趣，均被波兰斯基凌厉精妙的手法传奇般复活。影片讲述为了抢夺金冠，海盗们与西班牙官员展开了一次又一次的战斗。兜兜转转之间，原来一切又似乎回到了原点。
Dramatic retelling of the fateful last voyage of the Nantucket whaleship Essex. When the Essex is attacked and sunk by a sperm whale in November 1820, her crew take to three fragile whalers. Alone in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, the men must decide whether to head for the nearest islands - a thousand miles downwind to the west - or set out on an epic journey of almost three thousand miles to reach the South American mainland. Fear of cannibals forces them to choose South America. Almost three months later, the first whaler is rescued by another whaleship. Only three men are still alive. A week later the captain's whaler is also rescued, with just two men aboard. The third whaler is never found. This is a story of human endurance and what men in extremis will do to survive.
During a whaling expedition in the late 1800's, the aging Captain Bering Joy (Lionel Barrymore) and his new first mate, Dan Lunceford (Richard Widmark) engage in a battle of wills concerning the education of the captain's struggling grandson.
本片叙述了一位名为哈肯的挪威男孩，他为了要协助父母双亲，因此小小年纪就跑去当水手远赴重洋，开始他的艰险旅程。但不料途中船只却被一位假冒的英国海军官员约翰·麦里克劫持，后来又意外遇上了强度飓风的侵袭，整艘船因此触礁沉没。哈肯侥幸逃上临近丛林密布的小岛，但是船员们却已失去踪影。在好朋友和一偷渡女孩的帮忙下，他们必须共同合作，不但要在荒岛上冒险求生，还要跟凶恶的海盗周旋到底。
Director Bernard J. Durning's silent seafaring romantic melodrama
A wealthy invalid tries to add his hard-working cook to his will, but the conniving butler gets in the way.