Afterburn

Afterburn is a 2025 American science-fiction-action post-apocalyptic film, about a post-apocalyptic future caused by a massive solar flare destroys the Earth's eastern hemisphere, Jake, an emboldened treasure hunter for hire adventures to Europe to uncover the coveted Mona Lisa, only to learn the world needs a hero more than it needs a painting. Directed by J. J. Perry and written by Nimród Antal, Scott Chitwood and Paul Ens. The apocalypse isn't for everybody. (taglines) Jake [to King August Valentine] I don't wanna see the big picture. The big picture is ugly and cruel. [Drea has just defended herself, beating up and killing several armed soldiers; to himself] I shouldn't be aroused, I shouldn't be aroused, I shouldn't be aroused. [driving while fleeing Volkov's forces] "Fucking go get the motherfucking Mona Lisa in all its motherfucking glory. Make you a motherfucker of Appropriationǃ" Fuck you, Augustǃ King, my assǃ [venturing into a shaft] Fuck you, August. I knew this was a bad idea. Minister of cultural appropriation, my ass. [sees Mona Lisa merely a painting on a bomb] Fucking knew it. [driving away from Drea] Not your fight, Jake, not your fight. King August Valentine [to Jake's new title of siring] Motherfucker of Cultural Appropriation. [debriefing Jake, pointing to map] Now your insertion point's here. Outside this small village. Now, according to intel, it's been cleared of rebels. Now you'll hump it a little bit due north to Saint-Quentin. Now, that's a town under occupation. So you got to go inquietly. Like a whisper. [points] Like a baby fucking mouse. Now, make your way to the city center and a rebel liaison will mee you there. [to Jake] Ah, damn. Sounds like I gotta find me a new Motherfucker of Cultural Appropriation. General Volkov [before starting a game of chess] A worthy opponent is hard to find. This game taught me so many things. But the most important lesson is to revere strong adversary. You see, I learned how to play when I was incarcerated. And prison, by design, is a gladiatorial arena. One challenger after another, a consistent power struggle. In the beginning, it was terrifying. When I found chess, I discovered something life changing. Playing against those who were better than me made me better. [picks up piece] I only saw improvement when my skills were challenged and that's why I demand from you play your best. [opponent nods and Volkov sets down piece, opponent moves a piece, Volkov moves a piece then the opponent makes an illogical move] You don't even know how to play, do you? [Volkov shoots opponent] Next. [kneels down to tire tracks of Jake's vehicle] Flying truck, my assǃ [observing table map] We're going to the Nancy air force base. [corrected by Gorynych with blue light revealing Jake's fingerprints] No, we're not. We're going to Simserhof. And we're going to meet a very special lady. [holds up bomb key plug] Isn't it funny? They locked us up in cages like the scum of the world never to see the light again. But then the light liberated us. And now we rule their world. [toasting to Gorynych after killing train conductor] Some people just need a little push. [clinks glasses with Gorynych] Dialogue Jake: [meeting Bird Skull's gang after heisting a Stradivarius violin] All right. All right, the boys in blue are back. Bird Skull: Hello, mate. What you doing up here? Jake: Wait a minute. You guys aren't real cops, are you? [Bird Skull's gang guffaws and mocks Jake] Bird Skull's gang: What's he talking about?ǃ No, sirǃ Bird Skull: What's in the case? Jake: It's like... I dunno, violin, fiddle. I don't really know the difference. Why, you play? Bird Skull: Hand it over. Jake: No, you don't want this. [sets down violin case] But I'll give you what's in this. [holds up shotgun] Wash your mouth out with buckshot. [Bird Skull's gang jeeringly exclaims] Bird Skull: You won't be able to get us all. Jake: No, that's true. Just you. [gestures with shotgun] And you and you. Probably get you. But definitely you. Bird Skull: Get him, boysǃ Bird Skull's gang: Yeahǃ [lunges at Jake who shoots and wipes out all of Bird Skull's gang] Jake: [holds up finger with grenade ring to Bird Skull holding up machete] Shaped charge. [grenade on machete detonates in Bird Skull's face] Jake: Hey. Minister Fuentes: Did you get it? Jake: Yeah. Right where you said it'd be. Minister Fuentes: We sent out a handful of guys but they all came back empty-handed. Some didn't come back at all. [observes violin] Stradivarius. Brescian period, 1690-1700. Jake: Hmm. Minister Fuentes: Beautiful. [closes case] King August has another job for you. Jake: He's, uh... He's a king now? Minister Fuentes: We feel a monarchy is the most stable path to restoring normalcy. He wants to see you. Jake: Well, I almost got myself killed fetching that fiddle for His Highness. So, no, thanks. I'm gonna go home and work on my boat. Minister Fuentes: He's willing to compensate you. Handsomely. Enough for your dream boat. Jake: Where's the job? Minister Fuentes: Across the Channel. Jake: [turns] Oh. Nice doing business with you. Minister Fuentes: Just think about it, Jake. It could be a fresh start. Jake: If I wanted a fresh start, I wouldn't shoot myself in the head to get it. Minister Fuentes: No, we'll get you there safely. Jake: There's nothing there but disease and warlords and EDM. Ewǃ [walks away] King August Valentine: Jake. Come in. Have a seat. Sit down. Let's talk. Humor me. [Jake sits at table across August] Tell me. How do you do it? I employ dozen to do what you do. But yet you seem to be the only one who finds things others can't. Is it a special skill or gift? Ah, speaking of gifts, the Stradivarius... Ah, [raises hands] so divine, the music would make a grown man cry. Jake: Maybe you should start with food and clean water before you start building a symphony King August Valentine: Think we're not working on the food shortage, Jake? Jake: Says the man with a mouthful of steak. King August Valentine: [raises a fork of steak piece] I'm a pescatarian. you think fixing this shit's easy? It's not as simple as snapping my fingers and turning the lights back on. The whole fucking infrastructures was shot. We're busting our asses every day to rebuild this thing from the ground up, despite the efforts of people trying to stop us, like General Volkov. Jake: Right, the guy who wouldn't know culture if it smacked him in the face. King August Valentine: He's an agent of chaos. He'd rather see the world burn and rule the ashes. Jake: And you see yourself differently? King August Valentine: [chortles] Cynicism? Believe me when I tell you, Jake, this is not a job I wanted. When the solar flare hit, we lost our humanity. You saw what people did in the dark. No one anticipated the world would burn as quickly as it did. People panicked. Some became barbarians. Jake: Luck you. Those ivory towers that you're building will keep the barbarians at bay. And you'll all be safe. King August Valentine: Well, everyone's not as resourceful as you are, Jake. They don't have your skills or grit to survive in this new world. They need protection. Without these walls, more and more would have been slaughtered. Jake: What about the ones outside the wall? What about the one in hiding? You gonna let them in too? King August Valentine: All are welcome, Jake. [points] Even you. [gets up, an attendant takes off August's jacket, and August walks over to Jake] Minister Fuentes tells me you are reluctant to cross the Channel. Jake: No, I'm not reluctant. I'm... I'm dead set against it. King August Valentine: Maybe that's because you haven't seen the big picture. Jake: I don't wanna see the big picture. The big picture is ugly and cruel. King August Valentine: No. Not all of it. [gestures to Jake's boat] Minister Fuentes: We are spending a lot of time restoring her to her original beauty. King August Valentine: [places hands on Jake's shoulders] You'll be a free man, Jake. Unencumbered. Jake: And all I need is the wind. To fly away and leave the bullshit behind. King August Valentine: Hmm. The people and I want our world back, Jake. Jake: And what would I be hunting down for you this time? King August Valentine: Mona. Jake: The Mona Lisa? King August Valentine: In all her motherfucking glory. Jake: Hate to break the bad news to you, Your Majesty, but Paris was one of the first cities to burn down. King August Valentine: For sure, for sure. But here's something you may not know. It's that when the flare hit, the French government evacuated all its national treasures to a secret storage facility. Everything from fine art to the president's porcelain throne. Jake: How am I supposed to get there? King August Valentine: The King's plane flown by the King's pilot. Jake: And I get the boat? King August Valentine: All the resource and food you need. Hell, I'll even give you a title. Jake: Okay, well, if Fuentes is the Minister of Defense and, uh... and you're the King, what would you make me? King August Valentine: [leans forward] Motherfucker of Cultural Appropriation. [chuckles and clinks glasses with Jake] Jake: [meeting Minister Fuentes] I think this is a really bad idea. Minister Fuentes: You always seem to come out on top. Jake: Yeah, if I always come out on top, then why am I headed to the worst place on the planet? [referring to dog] Um, I left plenty of food and water for Smoke. Look, will you promise if I don't make it back, you'll take care of him? I don't have anyone to ask. Minister Fuentes: I don't think Smoke likes me very much. Jake: No, I'm sure he trusts you. Minister Fuentes: Well, try not to die. Jake: Make sure to make it back. Minister Fuentes: Always. [walks away] Drop off pilot: [to Jake seeing plane] Takes your breath away, don't she? Yeah, she's a right sort, this one. Jake: [takes off sunglasses] We're flying in that? Drop off pilot: Huh? Yeahǃ Jake: Is that safe? Drop off pilot: No, not technically. Jake: It's got bullet holes inǃ Drop off pilot: Them? No, them's from last weekǃ Little rendezvous with the boys. Drop off pilot: Oh, shit. Right. Jake: Is everything okay? Drop off pilot: Yeah, yeah. Er, just doing some sums. Er... Yeah, I'm not sure that gauge is working right. Er, :Jake: I mean, it's either that or we're gonna run out of fuel halfway there. So probably best to put on your parachute just in case. Jake: I pull this to open the chute, right? Drop off pilot: Whoa, hold on. You not done this before? Jake: No. Drop off pilot: Oh, fucking amateur. Yes, that's the cord that you pull. Jake: When do I pull it? Drop off pilot: I dunno, preferably before you hit the ground. Relax. Have a kip or something. I'll take us the scenic route, yeah? Relax. [referring to Volkov's forces flak] We've got a rendezvous with Volkov's boysǃ Come on, thenǃ Welcome to France, mateǃ Right? Tell you what, I'm gonna fly us through this. So gear up. Probably gonna have to drop a little bit early. Jake: Got it. Drop off pilot: Five minutes to bees and honey, mate. Let's make that money. Right, what I'm gonna need you to do, I'm gonna fly us down to 4,000 feet and you're gonna have to jump, right? Jake: Got it. Drop off pilot: Good to go. Red cord, eh? Jake: Deploy as soon as I open it? Drop off pilot: Yeah. Jake: Oh, I knew this was a bad idea. Drop off pilot: Come onǃ You've gotta goǃ [Jake takes the jump] Jake: I'm guessing you're my contact. Drea: Yes, I would. Guessing, Jake? Jake: Yeah. I could have taken that guy. Drea: You're welcome. Jake: If you were here the whole time, why didn't you step in sooner? Drea: Oh, just needed to see if you could handle what's ahead. Jake: I can handle myself. Drea: I'm Drea. Follow me. Jake: [referring to body in vehicle] Oh, gross. Drea: Now that I've cleaned up your mess, let's get going 'cause they'll come looking for those guys. Father Samson: [appears] A votre santeǃ (Greetings) Tank Commander: We know who you are. We know what goes on in here. You can't hide anymore, priest. Father Samson: I've nothing to hide. God sees all. Tank Commander: Where are the others? Father Samson: Others? There's no one else. Just me. [Tank Commander motions head to paramiltary hit squad] The only thing they'll find in there is the Lord's workǃ The church is closed right now but you're welcome to come in if you wish to confess your sins. Tank Commander: Ah, I'm an atheistǃ Father Samson: Oh, of course. Just as well. God's absolution requires a moral conscience and a yearning to be better. Qualities which you clearly do not possess. Because you are part of the darkness on the face of this world of suffering. And you will not prevail. For what I do now, may I be forgiven. Drea: [fleeing Volkov's forces] Did we just jump a tank?ǃ Jake: We just jumped a tank. Drea: [approaching a checkpoint] Shitǃ It's a checkpointǃ We can't get around itǃ Jake: Nope. We're going over it. General Volkov: What happened to your shoulder? Tank Commander: We were outnumbered, sir. Outnumbered and outgunned. Gorynych: By an old priest? Tank Commander: Some fucking priest, right? There were others, sir. General Volkov: How many? Tank Commander: Two. But they had a big fucking truck. A flying fucking truckǃ General Volkov: And you only had a tank and 20 men. Tank Commander: They took us by surprise, sir. They came out of nowhereǃ A big bastard and a girl in a truck headed east. Gorynych: Anything else? Tank Commander: We got the priest. [Volkov turns] Sir, I can still be of service to you, sirǃ You... you don't need me to kill meǃ General Volkov: [turns to him] I'm not going to kill you. [motions head to Gorynych] Tank Commander: Oh, no... [Gorynych shoots him] Gorynych: Understood. General Volkov: [to Gorynych] Tell the conductor we're taking the route to the bridge. [walks to door and referring to wounded goon] Well, I think he wants his reward. Gorynych: One thousand bullets. General Volkov: How many do you think he deserves? Gorynych: [gestures] Three. General Volkov: Agreed. [fires three rounds into goon] Jake: [in a bomb storage hanger] This is helping people? Drea: I wanted to tell you but August said you wouldn't help if you knew. Jake: You're goddamn right. Drea: The U.S. made two atomic bombs to drop on Japan, Fat Man and Little Boy. But there was a third, set aside for Moscow, [pulls out plug key of bomb] in case the Red Army didn't stop at Manchuria. The Mona Lisa. This bomb was meant to travel a long way, so there was a safety measure added. Without this plug inserted, this bomb can't go off. Jake: So August gets the bomb and you get everything else? Drea: August doesn't want this bomb to use it. He just wants to keep it away from Volkov. Jake: And you believe him? Drea: What choice do I have? Jake: You had a choice. You could've kept me out of itǃ Drea: But it would've been found. And you know it, Jake. I do trust August just a little more than I trust Volkov. Jake: They're both a part of the same hypocrisy. I trusted you, Drea. Drea: Look. It might be too late for me and the life I wanted. But maybe, just maybe, by stopping Volkov someone else can have that chance. Jake: And how many have to die while you're trying to stop him? [walks away] Drea: Jake, waitǃ Come on, just... just stay and fight with usǃ Can't you see, the Volkovs of this world, they win when good people do nothing? Jake: They win anywayǃ [walks away] Drea: Jake, Jake...ǃ Jake: [meeting Drea sitting on ground with wounded leg] Hey, hey. Can you hear me? Drea: Yeah. Well, you were right. It was pointless. You shouldn't have come back. [Jake wraps bandage on Drea's leg] I'm sorry I lied to you. Sorry I dragged you into this. Jake: You didn't drag me into anything. You dragged me out. But we got to get that bomb back. Drea: It's too late, Jake. Jake: You said you could build a bomb big enough to blow up a tank, right? What about a train? Drea: Jake... Jake: The train's headed back to the city. To get there it's gotta cross the bridge. All right, all I need to do is get that plug and make sure the train doesn't stop. You just gotta blow that bridge. Drea: That's all? Jake: Look, we can do this. But if we're gonna do it, we gotta do it now. Okay, you ready? Drea: Yeah. General Volkov: [with hand impaled to table] The Mona Lisa... is out of your leagueǃ Jake: I'm not here for the bombǃ General Volkov: What are you, August's assassin?ǃ Jake: No. I'm the distraction. [Drea implodes bridge] Nice beard. [walks away] King August Valentine: [Jake enters] Jesus, Jake. You look like you've been chewed up, digested and shit out by the War Machineǃ Jake: Yeah, sounds about right. Your fucking Mona Lisa's at the bottom of a gorge. [holds up plug key] I don't know what kind of shape she's in but she can't be detonated without this. King August Valentine: Ah, damn. Sounds like I gotta find me a new Motherfucker of Cultural Appropriation. Jake: Or not. You could just let it rest in peace. King August Valentine: Oh, no, no, Jake. You're not naive enough to believe there are no more Volkovs in the world. Jake: No. No, I just hope you're not one of them. King August Valentine: [sighs] Well, guess its time for you to sail away, Jake. [holds out hand for plug key and Jake hands it over] Enjoy your little boat. I gotta build me a kingdom to rule. [Jake walks away] Cast Dave Bautista as Jake Tom Tidiman as Kraken Foreman Phil Zimmerman as Bird Skull Eden Epstein as Minister Fuentes Samuel L. Jackson as King August Valentine Gyula Tóth as King's Guardsman #1 Lt. Col. Lùbomir Pavùk as Fortress Royal Guardsman George Somner as Pilot Olga Kurylenko as Drea External links Afterburn Afterburn on IMDb. Afterburn at Rotten Tomatoes Category:2025 American films Category:2025 English-language films Category:Films directed by J. J. Perry Category:American science fiction action films Category:Post-apocalyptic films