During the first half of the movie, American soldiers stationed in China often go to a brothel. One of them falls in love with a prostitute whom he aims to "free" from her owner by buying her liberty. The woman is frequently groped, stripped, threatened and sexually harassed by other men and a scene even features her "auction" like she was merchandise. She always seems very distressed by the situation. During the first scenes of the film and during its last minutes, several dialogues mention on-going or potential rapes by Chinese soldiers and warlords.