Jake is a college kid who comes home to find his parents have spent his college fund on their poodle, Miko. He moves out, and one of his friends accidentally kills Miko while trying to make-out with his girlfriend. Much chaos ensues.

Unable to serve in World War II because of a heart condition, a barber moves his family adjacent to a Wisconsin army base and prisoner-of-war camp to provide his services. But even in rural America -- far from the frontline -- the war finds victims.