Jude, a college professor, is obsessed with Sophie, his student. She, in turn, is intrigued by his scholarly charm. Flirtation turns to lust and the two become lovers.

In the heat of an American desert, Captain Jean Farrell arrives at a secret military installation, run by the enigmatic Doctor Harlan Jessup. Jessup is conducting 'Operation Sandman', an experiment involving a group of soldiers who have volunteered to be injected with 'the Juice', a drug which enables them to function without sleep. The team of soldiers, led by gruff and abusive 'Gunny' Riggins continually takes part in Virtual Reality scenarios whereby they face terrorists, kidnappers, guerrillas and a plethora of other situations that demand split-second timing, and undying obedience in the face of danger.

Two African-Americans and two Puerto-Ricans (though one pretends to be Italian) go out on the town on a Friday night. They will be forced to get to know each other — and even worse, learn to like each other as friends.