On the eve of his seventy-seventh birthday, ailing New York writer Levi Rockwell invites his three daughters, Aggie Rockwell, Rose Black, and Ruby Hanson; his movie producer son, Rolo; and their respective families to his Sagaponack, Long Island, beach house for a weekend celebration. As they settle in, Rose’s husband, Crow Black, laments that a shoulder injury has handicapped his career as a professional baseball player, while Ruby’s husband, Dwayne Hanson, fears he has lost his edge as a stand-up comic. Frolicking on the beach, Rose and Ruby tease the still-single Aggie about her promiscuous lifestyle. Later that day, Rose’s youngest son, Cy Blue, admires his grandfather’s model of a Norse Viking ship. Levi captivates his grandchildren with a story about the Vikings’ elaborate funeral rituals, in which the bodies of the dead were set on fire and pushed out to sea. The next morning, Cy Blue finds an old fishing boat called the Rocket Gibraltar hidden in the sand dunes and suggests they fix it up so Levi can use it for his eventual funeral. As the grandchildren begin repairing the dilapidated vessel, Cy Blue has a psychic premonition about his grandfather, and rushes back to the house to find Levi unconscious next to his hammock. Levi revives, and Cy Blue telephones the old man’s physician, Dr. Bonicker, but agrees to keep the incident a secret from the family. Suspicious, the other children eavesdrop on their grandfather’s meeting with Dr. Bonicker, and discover he suffers from a terminal heart condition. That night, Crow sneaks out of bed to practice pitching in the backyard, eventually regaining his ability to throw his signature curveball. His confidence restored, Crow says goodbye to his relatives and catches a helicopter back to play in that day’s game. As the adults finish setting up the party, the grandchildren brainstorm how to present the refurbished Viking ship to Levi. They ascend to Levi’s bedroom, but discover he has passed away peacefully in his bed. Keeping their parents distracted, the children wrap Levi’s body in a quilt and carry him outside. Cy Blue pilfers a canister of gasoline, while the eldest boy, Kane Rockwell, steals the catering van to use as a getaway vehicle. Once the adults realize Levi and the children have gone missing, Dr. Bonicker reveals the truth about Levi’s poor health. Accompanied by a police escort, they begin their search along the beach, but find the children have already pushed Levi into the ocean aboard the Rocket Gibraltar. Kane shoots a flaming arrow into the boat, and the adults stop to watch as Levi’s body slowly catches fire. When the sun sets, the families sit together through the night until the boat disintegrates to ash and disappears into the water.