Equipped with a painfully dull story and a hopelessly meandering message, “Aftermath” is a generic action-thriller, salvaged only by its well-choreographed action set pieces. Written by Nathan Graham Davis and directed by Patrick Lussier, the film loses momentum whenever it tries to be more than a “Die Hard” rip-off. The evasive non-commitment in its unserious commentary over a serious issue like armed human resources being manipulated by decisions taken from an armchair makes the film’s attempts to take it as something else than your usual run-of-the-mill hostage action thriller futile. It does work when you accept it for what it is: your usual run-of-the-mill hostage action thriller. There is some B-Movie schlock to be enjoyed, in that way.
Aftermath (2024) Movie Synopsis and Plot Summary:
A Veteran’s Battle on the Homefront
Eric Daniels (Dylan Sprouse), a young war veteran, tries to get his life on track in the ‘normal’ world. A couple of flashback scenes establish Eric’s suffering from PTSD. A particular memory of a young Afghan girl seems to haunt Eric. The film starts with Eric driving his sister to catch a movie together. His sister, Maddie (Megan Stott), who prefers to be called Madeleine, is chirpy and takes Eric’s mind off the horrors of his past.
Meanwhile, a couple of things happen in parallel. We see three Police officers prepare a prisoner to be transferred. This woman (Dichen Lachman from “The Severance”), whom everyone calls ‘Doc,’ seems to be a tough nut. After the exchange of a few generic wisecracks, the vehicle, carrying a shackled ‘Doc,’ sets off. Simultaneously, we see a gang of six or seven armed people get on board multiple vehicles. The gang’s leader, a seemingly unhinged man named Jimmy Roken (Mason Gooding), gives a rousing speech before they start their journey. It becomes obvious that Doc’s transfer is not going to be as smooth as she hoped for.
Can One Man Turn the Tide?
And it does not. Roken’s gang targets the Tobin Bridge, knowing Doc’s van will have to cross the bridge. With a couple of blasts, Roken has the van isolated in the middle of the bridge. However, along with Doc’s van, many vehicles carrying innocent people get trapped with these terrorists. One such car is the one with Eric and Maddie. Eric, immediately recognizing the danger, asks his sister to comply and turn their phones over when one of the terrorists asks for it. But Maddie keeps another one hidden. When the terrorist named Tango zips Eric and Maddie’s hands to the car’s steering wheel, Eric admits that there is nothing they can do.
But Maddie’s face, laden with disappointment, changes something in Eric. He realizes that there is something he can do. Furthermore, he has the particular set of skills (Yes, Liam Neeson-like) to allay the situation and help the innocent hostages. So, he sets off on his “Die Hard” mission. He immediately neutralizes ‘Tango’ by slitting his throat. He takes Tango’s clothes and passes off as one of the terrorists. As Eric moves through Roken’s gang, Roken broadcasts his demands.
Aftermath (2024) Ending Explained:
What Did Roken’s Team Want the Shattered Dove Files for?
Through his broadcast, Roken reveals the identity of his gang. They are skilled guns-for-hire who work on a contract basis. In fact, they were known as Retcon 13. This militia is accused of war crimes by the government. Based on the testimony of Samantha ‘Doc’ Brown, the government has incarcerated four members of this Retcon 13 squad, something that has not sat right with Roken. It is Roken and his team’s belief that they were being patriotic and the government threw them under the bus when it became tricky to navigate the path of warfare.
Roken and his team now want the entire Retcon 13 squad to be vindicated. And they want to do that with the bonus of killing the traitor in their eyes. Apart from the death of Doc Brown, Roken also demands the release of something called the “Shattered Dove.” Shattered Dove is the name of the program where Retcon 13 was permitted to use brute force, against civilians if necessary, to carry out highly classified tasks. The release of these files in the public domain will prove that the government was always behind Roken and his team’s actions. There was no unsanctioned war crime. Everything was sanctioned.
What Was Roken’s Motive?
One of the key problems of “Aftermath” is that it could not decide which way to go with Jimmy Roken. Roken’s reasons are often shown in a warmer light. There is a hint of Roken fighting the right fight. But it is also claimed, especially by Doc, that Roken has a bloodthirst. He was known as “Captain Chaos” in the field. Certainly, Roken’s actions on the bridge prove he is not above spilling innocent blood. In addition, there is a predictable layer to Roken’s situation.
It is revealed that Roken has brain cancer. He does not have much time left. If he was known to be chaotic before, he is now fully committed to insanity. With his clock ticking, Roken rigged the entire bridge to blow up, if required. Just to prove his point. There is not much difference between him and the ‘jehadi’ terrorists he swears to protect his countrymen from. His contempt for the government and authorities has corrupted him to become hateful.
How Did Eric Kill Roken and Save Everyone Else?
As Eric takes Roken’s gang off one by one, he goes into an alliance with Doc. With Eric’s help, Doc gets out and she returns the favor by helping Eric shield Maddie. With help from two more hostages, Eric manages to defuse all the bombs. However, Maddie and Doc get captured by Roken and two of his remaining team members. To save them, Eric turns himself in. Doc also reluctantly agrees to read a statement on live television that would clear Retcon 13.
As Eric stalls Roken’s broadcast with some confused ramblings of his own, one of the hostages blows a car, causing a diversion. This helps Eric kill the final Retcon 13 members and get into a fight with Roken. Roken reveals his final trick. When Eric tells him that he has taken care of the bombs, Roken shows his truck full of C4 explosives, which is enough to blow most of the hostages around the truck.
Eric sees no option but to let him go, as Roken’s extraction team arrives at the bridge from the river below. As Roken starts to drop the extraction boat, the bomb’s trigger with his hand, Eric drives the C4-filled truck towards the extraction point. Then he maneuvers the truck to fall off the bridge, on top of Roken and his boat. The truck blows up at a safe distance from the bridge, killing Roken and his crew.
What Happens to Samantha ‘Doc’ Brown?
In the final scene, we see Samantha ‘Doc’ Brown getting released from her incarceration. It appears her heroic effort to save the hostages, along with her cooperation to bring the Retcon 13 crews to justice lessened her punishment. She is received by Eric and Maddie outside of the prison, signifying that they have become friends.
