The Nordic countries have proven to be a curious pocket of genre films over the years. From Evil Ed to Dead Snow, apparently while the rest of the world has been quietly imploding, Norway, Finland and Sweden have been honing their genre film-making game.

Now comes Rendel, which from the trailer and the press release appears to be Finland’s answer to The Punisher or Grunge Batman. Take a look:

The press release describes the plot as:

When a worldwide corporation known as VALA launches an untested vaccine called Nh25 into the market by bribing, threatening, and killing every official opposing them, a dark avenger is born.

Rendel, a man driven by revenge and hatred, unleashes his own special kind of hell against the firm, threatening to put an end at the distribution of the deadly Nh25. As blood spills and money burns, VALA recruits a group of violent mercenaries to do what they seemingly can't: eliminate Rendel permanently...

Apparently, despite the appearance of the trailer, I am reliably informed by the pr company behind the movie that:

“Rendel” isn’t all dread and brooding however, matching the thrilling ultra-violence with refreshing injections of genuine humour, like goons debating the meaning of “take care of him”. While our titular hero excels as a stoic defender, actor Rami Rusinen brings a chaotic likeability to our foe, the wannabe gangster heir frustrated by his ambitions meeting the black mask of justice.

Does that sell it to you? nope. Me neither. What does sell it to me is it’s Finnish, it looks bonkers, the camera operator appears to own a tripod and some idea of shot competition and I love a good, mad, grungy action film.

Director: Jesse Haaja (“The Rasmus: Wonderman”)

Writers: Jesse Haaja, Pekka Lehtosaari (“Dark Floors”), Miika J. Norvanto (“Bunny the Killer Thing”), Timo Puustinen (“Time to Die”)

Stars:
Kris Gummerus (“Aalonmurtaja”)
Matti Onnismaa (“The Kiss of Evil”)
Ramu Rusinen (“Donna”)
Johnny Vivash (“Devil Town”)
Bianca Bradey (“Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead”)

Rendel is out on DVD and Digital 25th February 2019 in the UK

Rendel is already available in the United States, buy it here: