Axel Heyst a dreamer and a restless drifter believes he can avoid suffering by cutting himself off from others Then he becomes involved in the operation of a coal company on a remote island in the Malay Archipelago and when it fails he turns his back on humanity once more But his life alters when he rescues a young English girl Lena from Zangiacomos Ladies Orchestra and the evil innkeeper Schomberg taking her to his island retreat The affair betw...