In a story inspired by real life, Carl Brashear, played by Academy Award winner Cuba Gooding, Jr. (Jerry Maguire, Pearl Harbour) plays the son of a Kentucky sharecropper. The story follows Carl, who leaves home for what he expects will be a better life. Upon leaving his father told him, "Never quit... be the best," and Carl takes those words to heart by not letting anything stand in his way. Joining the US Navy he applies to become a naval diver in the elite division used for search and rescue. Carl's training officer, Billy Sunday, played by Robert DeNiro, wants no part of Carl or his ambitions. He drives Carl beyond normal human endurance in an attempt to get him to falter and quit. Over time, the two men establish a respect that will ultimately see them battling alongside each other as they must fight to protect their honour and their lives.