At Camp North Pines for boys, the campers stage a revolt against the camp director, Mr. Warren, locking the counselors up and taking over the camp for themselves. But when boys also lead a takeover of a nearby girl's camp, the revolt soon spirals out of control. The leader of the revolution, Franklin Riley, declares himself a "General" and ranks others in ways that he sees fit, using manipulation to keep his peers in line. When a rape and a murder occurs, some of the kids become more deeply involved in the revolution and others start to have second thoughts.