'Synchronic' Trailer: Paramedics Anthony Mackie & Jamie Dornan Stumble Upon A New Street Psychedelic That Will Mess With Your Reality

You might not know the work of filmmakers Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead, but one, you should change that, and two, will deliver some kind of mind-bending genre exploration that’s either laced with horror, sci-fi, or both. Benson and Moorhead, are known for strange mash-ups like the romantic body horror “Spring,” (2014) and the science-fiction horror about cults, “The Endless” (2014) and movies that are lower-budget, but inventive and resourceful nonetheless. Their latest, “Synchronic,” is another imaginative sci-fi horror about two paramedics in New Orleans whose lives are ripped apart after a series of horrific deaths, caused by a new designer street drug, devastate their night beat.

“Synchronic” stars Anthony Mackie, Jamie Dornan, Katie Aselton, and Ally Ioannides and earned rave reviews out of the Toronto International Film Festival last year (Jason Bailey raved in his A-grade review, “‘Synchronic’ is the kind of brainy, absorbing, all-out thrilling cinema that’s in dangerously short supply these days.”)

Here’s the official synopsis:

When New Orleans paramedics and longtime best friends Steve (Anthony Mackie) and Dennis (Jamie Dornan) are called to a series of bizarre, gruesome accidents, they chalk it up to the mysterious new party drug found at the scene. But after Dennis’s oldest daughter suddenly disappears, Steve stumbles upon a terrifying truth about the supposed psychedelic that will challenge everything he knows about reality—and the flow of time itself.

Indie distributor Well Go USA is releasing “Synchronic” in the U.S. and it’s possible the filmmakers ruffled some feathers when they recently urged their audiences and fans, via Instagram, to go see their movie at a drive-in theater, rather than a theater in-doors. Nevertheless, “Synchronic” opens in both regular theaters & drive-ins on October 23 so you’ll have to make the smart, informed, and hopefully educated choice yourself. Putting that all aside in the interim, watch the new trailer below, as it looks grimy, sweaty, psychedelic, and nightmarish in all the best ways.