While attending a fundraising gala, Sarah Jordan (Jolie), a naive, married American socialite living in England, witnesses a fiery plea delivered by an intruder, renegade humanitarian Dr. Nick Callahan (Clive Owen). His plea, made on behalf of impoverished African children under his care, turns Sarah's life upside down. Attracted to Nick and his cause, she impulsively abandons her sheltered life in England to work along side him in his effort to aid the helpless and anguished victims.

As Sarah's work takes her to these volatile areas, where few people have travelled and even fewer have survived, she discovers the harsh realities she encounters and her growing attraction to the charismatic doctor ignites in her a passion for saving lives while risking her own in the process...