In 1939 a French policeman (Jacques Martin) is forgotten on a Polynesian island, during an administrative tour. When war broke out, he knew nothing about it and it was only when a German ship called that he learned of the gravity of the events. On the tone of comedy, this drama describes the relationship between this ex-policeman still imbued with administrative stupidity and the naive but joyful population of the island. The comedy prevails over the drama and the gendarme will not take long to acquire the joie de vivre of the natives.