A former military interrogator, who now goes by the name "H," is called in by the FBI after a terror suspect named Steven Arthur Younger threatens to detonate three nuclear bombs in various U.S. cities. Younger, once a military specialist with extensive knowledge of explosives, has converted to Islam and become disillusioned, leading him to this extreme act. Faced with a time-sensitive crisis, the authorities set up an undisclosed facility where H employs increasingly brutal and morally ambiguous tactics to extract information from Younger, who remains defiant and cryptic. FBI special agent Helen Brody is brought in to oversee the situation and ensure that due process is followed, but she quickly finds herself at odds with H's methods.

As the interrogation intensifies, tensions rise between H and Brody, who wrestles with her conscience and the ethical implications of torture. The ticking clock creates an atmosphere of escalating dread and urgency as they navigate the thin lines between right and wrong, morality and necessity. The film challenges viewers to consider the lengths to which they would go to prevent an unimaginable catastrophe, while also exploring themes of human rights, the nature of justice, and the psychological toll of extreme measures. Through its tightly contained setting and focused narrative, the story builds relentless suspense until it reaches its dramatic midpoint, where the true stakes and moral dilemmas come into sharp relief.