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Synopsis:
Ben Randall (Kevin Costner) is the top rescue swimmer at the United States Coast Guard's Aviation Survival Technician (AST) program. Jake Fischer (Ashton Kutcher) is a hot-shot candidate for AST, who was ranked as a top competitive swimmer in high school with scholarships to every Ivy league college, but he opted to enlist in the Coast Guard. The film's title is introduced by a mythic tale: people lost at sea often claim they feel a presence lifting them to the surface, breathing life into their bodies while they are waiting for help to arrive. They call this presence "The Guardian".
Ben is confronted by his wife, who requests a separation due to his frequent time at work. He receives a page for an immediate rescue. Out at sea, he loses his rescue team in an HH-60J Jayhawk helicopter crash and, while waiting in a survival raft, his best friend, Chief Petty Officer Carl Billings (Omari Hardwick), dies. Shaken, Ben is forced to either retire or teach at a Coast Guard training school; he reluctantly chooses the latter. Here, Jake arrives as a hopeful AST candidate at "A" school, where Ben is considered a legend with a countless number of saves.
During the training, Jake meets a local schoolteacher, Emily Thomas, and they begin a "casual" relationship, as they both know their time together is limited. Once the initial weeks of training are over and most of the students have dropped out, detailed instruction begins at the academy. After sleeping at Emily’s house, Jake arrives late to class, and Ben confronts him. Although Jake is not expelled, he and the entire team are punished for his tardiness. Ben tries to force Jake to quit, but later sees Jake's persistence and dedication.
Meeting Emily in a bar, Jake tells her about his beating all of his instructor Ben Randall's records. However, Maggie the barkeep (Bonnie Bramlett), an old friend of Ben's, tells Jake of the unbreakable record Ben set at a rescue at a ship fire, where Ben worked tirelessly to save all the victims. With one man left and a broken winch, Randall held the man by his fingertips for the entire flight, through landing, resulting in extensive injuries to Ben's hand and shoulder.
Later, during instruction, Jake's friend Charlie Hodge is unable to cope with panicked victims in the water and is afraid of failing school, so Jake takes him out for a drink to cheer him up. After ending up in a Navy bar, they get involved in a fight and land in jail, thusly standing up Jake's girlfriend. Jake arrives back at base beaten and bandaged, and takes the blame entirely.
Ben confronts Jake about why he left his prospects as a competitive swimmer to join the AST program, and tells Jake what he learned about Jake's past: on a late night out, Jake, the designated driver, got into an accidental automobile crash, resulting in the deaths of his high school relay team. After a moment of sorrow, Ben and Jake share common ground; they both know how it feels to be the only survivor.
Instruction nears completion, and Jake takes to the role of leader during exercises. At graduation only a handful of the original candidates remain. Emily comes to see Jake graduate, but the two part ways because Jake is leaving town.
Jake is assigned to CG Air Station Kodiak, Alaska, Randall's previous post. On a mission together, they are sent to rescue two kayakers trapped in a cave. Ben experiences flashbacks and appears to be incapacitated during the rescue. Ben retires and tells Jake of his only record he kept track of – the 22 people he lost during his career. As Jake is sent out on another mission to rescue the crew of a sinking fishing trawler, Ben visits and apologizes to his wife and gives her the signed divorce papers. Meanwhile during the rescue, Jake becomes trapped in the ship after attempting to rescue the Captain and his helicopter is forced to return to base. Back at the station, Ben hears of the situation and opts to suit up to rescue Jake.
Once on scene, Ben finds and releases Jake from the hull of the ship. As they hook up to the winch and proceed upwards towards the helicopter, their combined weight causes the cable to begin separating. Knowing that the cable would not last, Ben unclips himself from the cable so that Jake can survive. As Ben falls Jake catches him by the hand and tells him he will not let him go. Ben sees that Jake will do anything to keep him alive and he says " I know...." but Ben does not want him to die, so he unstraps his glove, plummeting from a fatal height into the ocean. Ben does not resurface and his body is never found
Jake is on a rescue mission sometime later, when one of the survivors tells of a man in the sea who refuses to let go. Jake connects this to the legend, as well as Ben. He goes back to Emily and they rekindle their relationship.
