A couple of sailors on shore leave fall for the same girl (Michèle Alfa). One of the men (René Lefèvre) is sweet and honest but awkward; the other (René Dary) is an abusive, philandering drunk but he's got a better looking mug. So guess which one the girl chooses. A further complication is that her father, who owns the bar where she works, is an ex-boxer with a short temper and a swift left hook.

There's not much of real life in this movie. The characters and situations feel like they've been lifted out of other, better films - about ports and sailors and their girls, and the bars and seedy hotels they end up in. There is some flat comedy involving the bar owner's favourite tipple (which he drinks ritualistically before knocking out anyone who annoys him) and Julien Carette and Raymond Aimos as sailors who switch personalities when they get drunk.

Lefèvre and Alfa are appealing if lightweight leads and have some pleasant early scenes together. Unfortunately, director Albert Valentin isn't up to the challenge of depicting the breakdown of this affair. The rejection of Lefèvre's character seems too arbitrary and cruel, and his rival too unsympathetic to make us feel comfortable with the outcome. Though the final scene has the rhythm of a happy ending, it's hard to imagine any of these characters living happily ever after.