Billy Tyne is a sword-fishing-boat captain out of Gloucester, highly competitive and stung by a string of poor outings. His crew is hardly back in port when he tells them he's going out again, even though it's October and the weather can turn ugly. Five join him: the young Bobby, newly in love; Murph, a devoted father recently divorced; Sully, a guy Murph despises; Bugsy, who's finally met a woman who likes him; and Alfred, a quiet Jamaican. They catch little, so they sail east, with Tyne ignoring storm warnings behind him. Finally, the fish bite, but the ice machine fails. Should they head home through the storm of the century, or wait it out and lose their catch? Fearful, the women wait.

Mark Wahlberg stayed in Bobby Shatford's room above the Crow's Nest bar and even checked ID's at the door one night.

Captain Billy Tyne:
I always find the fish. Always!

Anachronisms: The movie was set in 1991, but there is a newspaper with a Kia advertisement. Kia's first U.S. cars were sold in 1994.

(Theme from The Perfect Storm (2000))
Written by James Horner, John Mellencamp and George Green
Produced by John Mellencamp, James Horner and Michael Wanchic
Performed by John Mellencamp
Courtesy of Sony Music