A good trailer doesn’t have to communicate the story of a film. Sometimes, just capturing a mood is enough. And, boy, does have a mood.
Directed and written by Adam Egypt Mortimer (Daniel Isn’t Real) and starring Joe Manganiello (our brief Deathstroke), Archenemy is, according to the short blurb released with its latest trailer, the story of Max Fist — a man who claims to be a superhero from another dimension, whose powers were lost in transit. No one believes him, except for Hamster, a local teen. What proceeds from that premise is unclear, but it seems violent, uneasy, and intense.
This trailer has bad vibes, and I mean that in the best way possible. Archenemy is produced by Legion M, a “fan-owned” entertainment company that uses crowdfunding for its productions, alongside Voltage Pictures and Spectrevision. Notably, this collaboration produced Mandy, the ultra-gory hallucination of a film starring Nicolas Cage that was immediately heralded as a cult classic. Archenemy’s trailer here clearly wants to tap into the same vibe, emphasising blood and style, promising something a good deal more grindhouse than standard superhero fare.
Slated for release in 2021, the film also stars Glenn Howerton, Skylan Brooks, Zolee Griggs, and Joseph D. Reitman. It looks like a nasty, fascinating time.