Synopsis
Throughout WWII, the USS INDIANAPOLIS is known as one of the fastest ships in the entire US Navy. Under the command of CAPTAIN MCVA, its crew fights bravely in every major US campaign in the Pacific. As President Truman negotiates Germany’s surrender, he gives McVay a new mission. The US Government has developed a secret weapon, which McVay and his crew are to transport to Guam.
The mission goes off without a hitch, and McVay is ordered to take the crew to an island in the Pacific where the men are to report for training. But along the way, disaster strikes. A Japanese submarine under the leadership of COMMANDER HASHIMOTO, surprises the Indianapolis and launches several torpedoes into the great ship.
In only twelve minutes, the ship goes down. Of the 1,200 men onboard, only 900 survive the sinking. They wait in the water, spread out over miles of ocean, believing that their rescue is imminent. When day breaks, the weather turns unbearably hot. Thirst and hunger set in. And the attacks begin.
Hundreds of sharks surround the men and attack without mercy or provocation. Though he knows the odds of survival are high, McVay remains positive and mobilizes a group to search for survivors. CONNOR MCPHERSON, bonds with his greatest rival, RODNEY GARRISON, as they team up to save lives and find survivors.
Meanwhile, LT. SCOTTY STEVENS stationed on a Naval base, notices that McVay and his crew have yet to arrive. He implores the Navy to look for them, but is told that their arrival is not a priority. Another US ship receives the distress call, but its captain is told not to search for them. The distress call is written off as a prank, or a Japanese trap. The Japanese military, on its last legs, celebrates the sinking of the Indianapolis as proof that they might mount a comeback against the US forces. Hashimoto is hailed as a hero. But he secretly wonders why the Indianapolis was so vulnerable. What’s more, he grows more and more disillusioned with the Japanese government’s refusal to believe US claims of a secret weapon that will decimate the Japanese population.
Meanwhile, in the water, the attacks continue. An abrasive officer, LT. KENNEDY, challenges McVay's decision to wait to be rescued and leads a team to locate an island. After several days in the water, the men start to lose hope. Overwhelmed with thirst, many begin to hallucinate and turn on each other. BRIAN SMITHWICK keeps his best mate, MIKE D’ANTONIO, alive by encouraging positive thoughts on his bride-to-be, even though Brian wants her for himself. Stevens continues to pressure the Navy, but to no avail. As the days mount up, and more die, the survivors find a new determination to survive. But will their sheer will be enough?
USS INDIANAPOLIS: MEN OF COURAGE, tells the remarkable true story of survival. Filled with tense action and brave heroes, it is the ultimate untold story of WWII.