“You say you’re an asshole? Well, what are you doing about it?” Dad Dan (Adrien Brody) asks Ralphie (Jesse Eisenberg) in a tense scene from Lionsgate’s new film Manodrome. Brody has worked alongside some of the finest directors and actors, with an Oscar trophy of his own under his belt. More recently, the Academy Award winner (for The Pianist) has taken on a variety of quirky and dark roles, with Manodrome easily making this list. Dad Dan, the leader of a mysterious all-male group that partakes in morally questionable therapy sessions at their upstate New York headquarters, is a role Brody simply nails.

Directed by John Trengove and also starring Jesse Eisenberg, Manodrome is out now, and we recently caught up with Brody to learn more about his juicy new role in the thought-provoking thriller about what it means to be a man.

Adrien Brody ‘Felt Immense Sadness’
Manodrome Release Date November 10, 2023 Director John Trengove Cast Jesse Eisenberg, Adrien Brody, Odessa Young, Philip Ettinger, Ethan Suplee Rating R Runtime 1hr 35min Genres Drama, Thriller
In our separate interviews with the Manodrome stars, both Eisenberg and Brody talked about how they each had a “strong reaction” upon first reading the script. “I felt immense sadness, I guess, for what this speaks to about how people relate — or don’t relate to one another, for that matter — and the potential for self-destruction, and how commonplace trauma is, and how a hurt mind poisons other hurt minds,” Brody told MovieWeb. “It’s the downfall of many people, and it’s a lot to surmount, and many people’s circumstances are quite brutal.”

Brody then discussed what exactly went into preparing for a uniquely mysterious persona like Dad Dan:

We went down a long path of researching not only the characters, ideologies, and how he could arrive at a place, but actual groups and therapy sessions, where people are kind of hands-on working through their own suffering and their own anger and their own destructive tendencies.

“And then we shot in upstate New York, which I love and is very dear to me,” continued Brody. “Upstate New York also offers the potential for further isolation, just proximity and lack of employment opportunities and lack of means. I’ve considered all of this stuff in my work before, and I felt like I wanted to delve into it, but it was very moving and relevant.”

Reuniting with Jesse Eisenberg After 20 Years

As pointed out in our previous interview with Eisenberg, he and Brody have actually worked together before Manodrome. M. Night Shyamalan’s early film The Village features both, and they each seemed excited to be working together again. “He’s a lovely actor, and he just was so disciplined and pure in his work,” said Brody about Eisenberg. He continued:

“I love to interact with people who, no matter what they’re doing, are committed to what they’re doing, passionate about what they’re doing. And, you know, it’s an intimate experience. It’s a collaborative experience. So when you look into the eyes of somebody and you see their commitment, that they’re present and they’re listening and they’re there, giving everything that they can give, it just builds up your own work. And I really admired his discipline, and his focus on this was great.”

Related: Manodrome Review: Jesse Eisenberg Will Make Your Head Spin

Brody’s Dad Dan and Eisenberg’s Ralphie — who joins Dan’s group after becoming increasingly uneasy with life during the pregnancy of his girlfriend Sal (Odessa Young) — have a number of memorable scenes together in Manodrome. “The group therapy session, where we kind of indoctrinate him, for lack of a better word, or integrated him into our community,” said Brody about Eisenberg’s Ralphie. “He breaks down in a way that he was kind of frothing at the mouth and convulsing. And it didn’t feel forced or superfluous. It was a real, pained thing.” He added:

And then, again, in the research, I’m sure Jesse had done the research as well… There’s a documentary called The Work that you might find interesting, about young men in prison who are doing group therapy sessions, and you witness these hardened criminals with pent-up torment and trauma. And I felt that Jesse channeled that quite accurately.

Truly Independent Film Is a ‘Dying Breed’

Also, as of late, Brody can be spotted on the small screen, in the masterful first episode of Poker Face and in high-profile HBO projects like Succession and Winning Time, where he plays legendary NBA coach Pat Reilly. “I’m a big fan of his and that era,” said Brody about the real-life basketball icon.

When asked about whether he gravitates more toward either TV or film these days, Brody said, “There’s more episodic content to consider. When I was younger, it was something I didn’t even consider. And now, there’s quite interesting work to be done. And it’s kind of great to have an opportunity to have a longer arc on a character, if you want to portray that character for a period of time.” He added:

“I think it’s very interesting and differs from what my life as an actor has kind of been — with the exception of a few films, much shorter intervals to live with a character, and you let it go. So that’s an interesting evolution, and I’ve enjoyed that. And then, obviously, looking for the great roles, no matter where that is, if it’s something that I’m yearning for, whether it’s a feature or not.”

Related: Jesse Eisenberg Was Surprised Manodrome Co-Star Adrien Brody Remembered Him After Previous Collaboration

And going back to his big-screen experience, Brody made some insightful points about the evolution of independent cinema over the decades of his career, especially in thinking about a smaller-scale project like Manodrome. “You know, it’s changed over the years,” Brody told us. “I mean, the sad thing is that there’s fewer really independent films, and real independent movies that are both made and seen, right? In the sense that when I was young, you could still catch movies in the theater and see interesting films or smaller movies that were full of — like this [Manodrome], basically.”

This film really is so much of a dying breed, which is sad because everybody involved in making it really kind of pitches in and struggles to make something, hopes that they’re making something meaningful and unique with a greater meaning and less of a responsibility to appeal to everyone. And that gives filmmakers greater creative freedom.

“They’re far and few,” added Brody about original independent films. “I mean, you can see [Manodrome] in select theaters, but it’s harder and harder to have access. And I think young people are less interested, or less aware, of those options. Or people just changed. And I do miss it, I do miss there being an abundance, I should say, of independent film opportunities.”

We miss it too, but thankfully, Manodrome reminds us that some of these films still make it through. From Lionsgate, Manodrome is in limited theaters and now on demand and digital. You can buy or rent the film on digital platforms like Apple TV, Google Play, Prime Video, and YouTube.

Buy or Rent Manodrome on YouTube

You can watch our interview with Jesse Eisenberg about Manodrome below: