In search of a woman, the washed-up alcoholic vagabond and former convict, Ben Chamberlain (Henry Fonda), ends up in a God-forsaken and dusty rail-head town, where Sheriff McKay and his trigger-happy deputies rule with a heavy hand. Thirsting for answers, and above all, redemption, Ben begins his investigation, only to find himself wrongfully accused of murder. As Ben runs for cover in the wilderness, an angry posse of hateful gunslingers hunt him down before he can reach the borders. Can Ben make it out alive?