In the year 2005, we meet David Packouz (Miles Teller), a massage therapist residing in Miami, Florida. Struggling to make ends meet while living with his girlfriend, Liz (played by Ana De Armas), David finds himself yearning for a better financial situation. He makes a bold move by investing his life savings into high-quality Egyptian cotton sheets, intending to sell them to local retirement homes, but this ambitious venture yields no success.
At a somber funeral for a friend, David unexpectedly reconnects with his high school best friend, Efraim Diveroli (Jonah Hill), who had relocated to Los Angeles to work with his uncle in the arms trade. Having left that partnership, Efraim establishes his own company, AEY, which is involved in fulfilling arms orders from the US government amidst the ongoing War in Iraq. David's life takes a significant turn when Liz reveals that she is pregnant. Despite their shared opposition to the war, Efraim persuades David to join AEY, spinning a tale about providing the government with cotton sheets through his connections.
Efraim explains the mechanics of their business, stating that military equipment orders are public and open for bidding, allowing smaller contractors like them to tackle lucrative contracts that large companies overlook. With financial backing from a local business owner, Ralph Slutzky (Kevin Pollak), who mistakenly believes AEY is solely protecting Israel, the duo successfully acquires a contract promising to deliver thousands of Beretta pistols to US troops in Baghdad. However, their triumph is hindered when an Italian embargo threatens to block the shipment. To counter this, Efraim devises a plan to reroute the cargo through Jordan, leading to a tense journey filled with bribes to officials and close encounters with insurgents, culminating in their arrival at a military base where they successfully deliver the goods.
After this critical win, AEY's fortunes begin to soar, moving into larger office spaces and expanding their workforce, while David welcomes a daughter named Ella. Yet, cracks begin to form in the partnership as Efraim becomes increasingly erratic and reckless. They receive an opportunity to land a monumental deal—a $300 million contract from the US government to arm the Afghan military, involving an immense quantity of ammunition.
During their venture, they partner with notorious arms dealer Henry Girard (Bradley Cooper), who possesses a vast cache of unused weaponry in Albania but can no longer deal directly with the government due to his watch-list status. Although uneasy about collaborating with someone linked to terrorism, David goes along with the plan. They successfully place a bid that undercuts competitors, but personal strife brews as Liz confronts David about his continuous deception, eventually leaving to stay with her mother.
As the deal progresses, David uncovers the alarming truth that the ammunition they secured is illegal due to Chinese markings amid a current embargo. Efraim’s attempts to mask this issue lead to further complications, resulting in conflict between the two. When Efraim turns ruthless, attempting to cut Henry out of the deal and harming their partnership, David finds himself in grave danger. After a brutal encounter with Henry's men, where they attempt to keep David quiet, he realizes the life he has been leading is crumbling.
Returning to Miami, David grows desperate to escape AEY, but when Efraim refuses to compensate him, David reverts back to his initial profession while attempting to reconcile with Liz, disclosing the entire truth about his unsavory engagements. As tensions mount, David's leverage leads to a serious confrontation with Efraim which ultimately garners the attention of the FBI.
The arrests of both David and Efraim come as a culmination of their tangled web of deceit. David must navigate his way through legal troubles, enduring a sentence of seven months house arrest, while Efraim faces a four-year prison term. The narrative closes with David meeting with Henry, where an ambiguous exchange unfolds, leaving viewers questioning whether David will accept a suitcase of money in exchange for silence about their shared past. The movie intertwines themes of moral ambiguity, the absurdity of the arms trade, and the consequences of ambition, prompting reflections on choices made in the face of desperation.
