Genre: Thriller
Director: Roland Emmerich
Writer: Mark Newton
Cast: Gerard Butler, Rachelle Lefevre, Brad Leland, Carl Weathers, Clifton Collins Jr.
Plot: Benji Fontenot (Gerard Butler) is grilling up some catfish on his old houseboat along the Mississippi River when he hears a weather reporting stating that Hurricane Debby is bound to hit the area in two days time. Benji turns off the radio and looks out at the waters of the great river.
Oil prospector Guy Taylor (Brad Leland) is meeting with his accountants in New Orleans. They tell him that he's behind on his payments and the government will begin seizing properties unless he can come up with an influx of cash. Guy laments that the Mississippi delta seems like it's about plum out of oil to be drilled.
Orenthal Weaver (Carl Weathers) and Jacob Cesario (Clifton Collins Jr.) are the only workers left on a small oil rig located in a wide, rural section of the Mississippi River only accessible by boat. All of the other workers have already left before the storm hits, while Weaver and Jacob stay behind to wrap things up. Suddenly Jacob yells for Weaver to come and look at the gauges. Weaver comes over and announces that they've struck oil for the first time in months. Weaver gets on the phone with Guy to tell him the good news. Guy is ecstatic and tells them that he's going to make a quick visit to the rig to see the good news first hand. Weaver asks what they should do about Hurricane Debby, and Guy insists they keep drilling for now, but that he will make sure Weaver and Cesario are out of the area long before the storm hits.
Guy Taylor hires Benji to take him up river from New Orleans to his isolated oil rig. Along for the trip is EPA ecologist Cassidy Kleinsasser (Rachelle Lefevre), who has forced her way into the trip to ensure no indigenous species are at risk from the recent oil spike. Benji doesn't like the idea of spending too much time on the water with a hurricane due in a day, but Guy promises to make it worth his while.
When they arrive at the oil platform, they find Weaver and Cesario feverishly working. They tell Guy that they've hit more oil than a two-man skeleton crew can manage. Guy assures them that more workers will arrive after the storm and he hints that the two workers are in line for a bonus if they continue their hard work until right before the storm hits the region.
Meanwhile, Benji helps Cassidy take samples of the water. Cassidy asks Benji if he has any diving gear onboard his boat so that she can a sample of the river floor. Benji says that his gear wouldn't fit her. Cassidy charms him into diving down to the bottom of the Mississippi River and taking a sample. On his way back up, he is attacked by a bull shark. He narrowly escapes the shark and makes it back onto the deck of his boat. His boat is then repeatedly rocked by the shark trying to get to Benji. She asks what's going on, and he says that he has encountered an angry bull shark and that they probably should go onto the platform just in case.
Hurricane Debbie makes her way into the region a day earlier than expected. Benji tells the others that they need to leave and head up river immediately or they're going to be forced to brave the storm and the subsequent flooding on the platform. Even with the oil gauges going through the roof, Guy reluctantly agrees and tells Weaver and Cesario to close up the rig and turn everything off. They get to work on shutting things down while Benji hopes back onto his boat to get it ready, only to find that his boat is taking on heavy water. He inspects the boat and finds that the shark has punctured a large hole in the boat's hull. Benji hops back onto the platform and tells everyone the bad news. Guy is baffled that his boat could have possibly been attacked by a shark in the Mississippi River. Cassidy chimes in that bull sharks can thrive in both salt and fresh water and have been found as far north in the river as Illinois. Guy tries to make a phone call, but the service is down due to the storm.
Benji goes out to his boat to gather his gear to bring onto the platform. As he climbs back on to the rig, he notices several shark fins along the surface of the water. He asks Guy how well the platform handles flooding. Guy looks to Weaver and Cesario. Weaver says that the rig gets wet, but will still be structurally sound. Cassidy asks how wet, and Weaver holds a hand about waist high.
Sure enough, the rig slowly but surely begins to fill with the water from Hurricane Debby. Benji watches in dismay as his boat, and primary source of income, slowly sinks in the storm. As the water levels increase, the bull sharks become more brazen and try to get onto the oil platform. Cassidy asks why the sharks could be so angry. Benji suggests that they don't like that Guy and his crew hit oil in their habitat.
Cesario has to go outside to finish shutting down the drills, but he is attacked by the sharks, who bite off his legs. Benji rushes out and brings him inside, but he's already dead by that point. The group watch as the sharks circle the rig as if they are taunting them. Guy urges Weaver to finish what Cesario is doing or the equipment is going to be damaged by the storm. Instead, Weaver quits, saying no job is worth ending up like Cesario. Guy then tells him to leave the rig since he no longer works there. Weaver tries to laugh it off, but then Guy pulls out a gun. Benji takes the gun from Guy and tells everyone to not act stupid.
The remaining four people sit in the rig attempting to wait out the storm, but the water levels outside are now level with platform. With the raised water levels, the sharks start trying to break into the platform. Guy takes his gun back and wastes every last bullet trying, and failing, to shoot one of the sharks. Cassidy says she has an idea, although as an ecologist, she wishes she didn't come up with it. Benji tells her to spit it out, and Cassidy says that they could dump oil into the water around the platform and set it on fire, which would presumably kill the sharks. Weaver pipes in that it would probably blow the platform to smithereens as well. Benji looks around and asks if anyone has any better ideas. Guy objects to the idea of his oil rig, successful for the first time in years, being destroyed. Benji suggests that if they go onto the roof of the rig, they at least wouldn't be burnt alive and then can call for a helicopter once the storm dies down enough. The group is undecided until the sharks continue trying to break into the building now that the water is up to waist high on the survivors, plenty of water to allow the sharks to maneuver.
The group being pouring barrels full of crude oil into the water around the platform. Everybody then climbs a ladder to the roof of the structure. Benji fires a flare gun into the water, setting it ablaze. They hold on tight to the antennae on top of the rig as they contend with heavy winds and rain. When the storm finally dies down, a helicopter arrives, having been called out to investigate the massive fire. As they fly away on the helicopter, Benji tells Guy that he owes him a new boat.
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