Between Love and Honor depicts the clandestine romance between two male Marines during the 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' era. The film portrays their love with dignity, framing the military's discriminatory policy as the source of their suffering and the surviving Marine's unjust discharge. Despite a tragic outcome, the narrative critiques systemic prejudice and affirms the worth of their relationship.

The film portrays a Marine's love for a transsexual woman, Maria, with dignity and empathy. It critiques societal prejudice and institutional discrimination as external obstacles, ultimately affirming the worth of their love and Maria's identity through Joe's significant sacrifice.

The film, set within an Italian-American Mafia context, portrays characters who are nominally Christian (Catholic) but whose actions are deeply hypocritical, using religious rituals and symbols while engaging in violence and crime. This depiction, without significant counterbalancing positive portrayals or a clear narrative condemnation of the hypocrisy as a deviation from true faith, reinforces a negative stereotype of adherents and the practical influence of the religion within this specific subculture.