The FBI..........surfers..................dead pres..............and bank robbers...........oh my.........

Plot summary[edit]

Johnny Utah is a former Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback and rookie FBI Agent. He is assigned to assist experienced agent and veteran Angelo Pappas in investigating a string of bank robberies by the "Ex-Presidents"; a gang of robbers that wear face-masks depicting former US presidents Ronald Reagan, Richard Nixon, Lyndon B. Johnson, and Jimmy Carter to disguise their true identities. They only raid the cash drawers in the banks that they rob—never going for the vault—and are out within 90 seconds. Pursuing Pappas' theory that the criminals are surfers, Utah goes undercover to infiltrate the surfing community. He concocts a story to persuade orphanedsurfer Tyler Endicott to teach him to surf, she having saved him from drowning. Through her he meets Bodhi, the charismatic leader of a gang of surfers comprising Roach, Grommet, and Nathaniel. The group are initially wary of Utah but accept him when Bodhi recognizes him as the former college football star. As he masters the art of surfing, Utah finds himself increasingly drawn to the surfers' adrenaline-charged lifestyle, Bodhi's philosophies, and Tyler. Following a clue retrieved by analyzing toxins found in the hair of one of the bank robbers, Utah and Pappas lead an FBI raid on another gang of surfers. Despite their criminal records, these surfers turn out to not be the Ex-Presidents and the raid inadvertently ruins a DEA undercover operation.

Watching Bodhi's group surfing, Utah begins to suspect that they are the "Ex-Presidents", noting how close a group they are and the way one of them moons everyone in the same manner one of the robbers does when leaving a bank. He tails Bodhi and his suspicions are confirmed when he sees Bodhi and Roach casing a bank. Utah and Pappas stake out the bank and the Ex-Presidents appear. Bodhi, wearing a Reagan mask, leads Utah on a furious foot chase through the neighborhood, which ends when Utah, by jumping into an aqueduct, causes the knee injury that ended his playing career to flare up again. Despite having a clear shot at Bodhi (locking eyes with him), Utah cannot bring himself to shoot—instead unloading his magazine into the sky in frustration—and Bodhi escapes.

At a camp-fire that night, it is confirmed that Bodhi and his gang are the Ex-Presidents. Their primary motivation is not profit, but rebelling against the system that "kills the human spirit". Knowing Utah's true identity, most of the gang want out but Bodhi refuses to fold. The next morning Tyler discovers Utah's secret and breaks-up with him. Shortly afterwards Bodhi aggressively recruits Johnny into going skydiving with the group. Utah, still without proof of Bodhi's crimes, tags acquiesces. After the jump, Bodhi reveals that he knows Utah is an FBI agent and has arranged for his friend Rosie, a non-surfing thug, to hold Tyler hostage. Utah is thus blackmailed into participating in the Ex-Presidents last bank robbery of the summer. During the robbery Bodhi breaks his own rule by going for the money in the vault, taking too much time. As a result, Grommet, along with an off-duty police officer and a security guard who try to stop the robbery, are killed. Angered by Grommet's death and by having to kill the police off, Bodhi knocks Utah out and leaves him at the scene.

Defying their senior officer, Pappas and Utah go to the airport where Bodhi, Roach, and Nathaniel are about to leave for Mexico, where Rosie is awaiting them with Tyler. During a shoot-out, Pappas and Nathaniel are killed, and Roach is seriously wounded. The pilot reveals the group's destination within Utah's earshot, jeopardizing their escape plans. With Roach aboard, Bodhi forces Utah onto the plane at gunpoint. Once airborne and over their intended drop zone at , Bodhi and Roach put on their parachutes and jump from the plane, leaving Utah to take the blame again. With no other parachutes available, Utah jumps from the plane with Bodhi's gun, managing to intercept him before he lands, but Bodhi forces him to drop the gun so he can open their parachute and land safely. Upon impact, Utah's knee gives out again, allowing Bodhi to escape Utah's grasp. Bodhi meets with Rosie and releases Tyler. Roach dies of his wounds and Bodhi and Rosie leave with the money.

Nine months later, a long-haired Utah, still surfing, tracks down Bodhi at Bells Beach in Victoria, Australia, where a record storm is producing lethal waves. This is an event Bodhi had talked about experiencing, calling it the "50-Year Storm". During a brawl in the surf, Utah manages to handcuff himself to Bodhi. Bodhi begs Utah to release him so he can ride the once-in-a-lifetime wave. Knowing he will not come back alive, Utah releases him, bids him farewell and sees him step towards the wave. While the authorities watch Bodhi surf to his death. Utah walks away, throwing his FBI badge into the ocean.