The Pacific

The 1st Marine Division lands at Guadalcanal. New enlistee Bob Leckie and his company meet fierce enemy resistance amid a lack of food and ammunition.

Heavily outnumbered, Sgt. John Basilone's machine gun units make a valiant stand against a ferocious nighttime assault on Henderson Field.

Hailed as war heroes, the Marines take leave in Melbourne, where Basilone receives the military's highest honor. Leckie makes a local love connection.

Eugene Sledge begins Marine Corps training. Traumatized by his combat experiences, an exhausted and heartbroken Leckie finds himself in the hospital.

Basilone sells war bonds on tour with a Hollywood actor. Sledge joins Leckie and the 1st Marines as they prepare for the invasion of Peleliu.

The battle for Peleliu's airfield results in high casualties. Sledge fights thirst, fear and an entrenched enemy. Leckie desperately seeks a medic.

Fighting Japanese forces for control of the rocky, desolate hills of Peleliu, Sledge and his company engage in harrowing hand-to-hand combat.

After requesting a transfer, Basilone becomes a drill instructor at Camp Pendleton — and falls in love with Lena, a fellow Marine Corps sergeant.

The bloodiest battle of the Pacific rages for months on Okinawa, where Sledge's company is horrified by the cost to civilians caught in the crossfire.

Homecoming is joyful but challenging for the Marines. Leckie asks a question long delayed. Lena meets her in-laws. Sledge endures a painful recovery.