While it was originally developed in 1995 as a sequel to David Fincher's Se7en, Solace has since evolved into an original murder-mystery drama starring Anthony Hopkins (Westworld) as the psychic doctor John Clancy. In the film, Clancy is tasked with tracking down notorious psychic serial killer, Charlie Ambrose (Colin Farrell) and aided in his investigation by close personal friend and FBI agent, Joe Merriweather (Jeffrey Dean Morgan. Solace is directed by Afonso Poyart based on a script co-written by Ted Griffin and Sean Bailey.

Given Hopkins' outstanding legacy as an Oscar-winning actor - with his recurring role on HBO's Westworld currently serving as a reminder of that - some filmgoers might be more than willing to give Solace a chance, just based on his involvement alone. Lionsgate has now released a new trailer for Solace (see above) that should give everyone a better idea as to whether or not this movie is, in fact, their cup of tea.

The Solace trailer does its best to paint the film as being a thrilling tale about a serial killer with unusual abilities and the detectives intent on tracking him down. After being forced to come out of retirement following the tragic death of his daughter and subsequent divorce, Hopkins as Dr. Clancy must come to terms with an opponent whose own psychic abilities far outmatch his own. For more on the film's story, read the official Solace synopsis below:

When FBI Special Agent Joe Merriwether (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) is unable to solve a series of homicides, he decides to enlist the help of his former colleague Dr. John Clancy (Anthony Hopkins), a retired physician with psychic powers. The reclusive Clancy, who shuttered his practice and retreated from the world following the death of his daughter and subsequent break-up of his marriage, wants nothing to do with the case. He soon changes his mind after seeing disturbingly violent visions of Joe’s partner, FBI Special Agent Katherine Cowles’s (Abbie Cornish) ultimate demise. When Clancy’s exceptional intuitive powers put him on the trail of a suspect, Charles Ambrose (Colin Farrell), the doctor soon realizes his abilities are no match against the extraordinary powers of this vicious murderer on a mission.

Keeping the fact that Solace was originally concieved as a sequel to Se7en, it should come as less of a suprise that many of the scenes and scenarios teases throughout the trailer for Poyart's film owe a great debt to the tropes and aesthetics of Fincher's acclaimed serial killer flick. Whether or not the new movie will prove to be anything more than a watered-down variation on what something like Se7en did so well, that remains to be seen. Hopkins, Morgan, and Farrell's involvement as cast members should help to liven up the affair, if nothing else.

Solace may well prove to be a solid serial killer thriller that pleases fans of the genre - and perhaps remind viewers of Hopkins' own past turns as a serial killer, in the form of the iconic Hannibal Lecter. Poyart definitely has the right talent involved in front of the camera to make his latest directorial effort work, but only time will tell if the movie is equal to (or greater than) the sum of its parts.

Solace opens in U.S. theaters on December 16, 2016.

Source: Lionsgate Premiere