By John Corrado

★★ (out of 4)

Renfield is a horror comedy that serves as a modern take on Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula, only telling the story from the perspective of the vampire’s assistant, Robert Montague Renfield (Nicholas Hoult).

For over a century, Renfield has been the servant to Count Dracula (Nicolas Cage), charged with finding victims for his boss to feed on, and bestowed with some of the vampire’s own powers which he can awaken by eating bugs.

The film is set in the present day in New Orleans, where the vampire and his put-upon servant have taken up residence in an abandoned hospital. When we first meet Renfield in the film, he is attending a support group for people trapped in co-dependant relationships.

Renfield is using the group as a way to track down the abusive partners of the participants so his boss can feed on them; he justifies it as a win-win so that “innocent” people won’t get eaten. But Renfield ends up on the wrong side of a brutal drug smuggling ring run by Teddy Lobo (Ben Schwartz), and gets mixed up with Officer Rebecca Quincy (Awkwafina), the erstwhile traffic cop who is trying to take down the organized crime syndicate that is running the city.

The idea of exploring the story of Dracula from the perspective of his assistant coming to terms with the co-dependant relationship he has with his boss is an intriguing entry point for a new adaptation. But, instead of being a straight monster movie, Renfield splinters off in too many other directions that feel undercooked. The film itself is oddly paced and tonally inconsistent, and feels like it has been ripped apart and reassembled into a fast-paced 93 minutes (likely the byproduct of studio meddling).

Directed by Chris McKay (The Lego Batman Movie), Renfield has a lot of pieces that never fully come together. Despite a pretty good opening sequence modelled after the classic 1931 Dracula (the film was initially being developed as part of Universal’s Dark Universe before the reboot of The Mummy tanked in 2017, forcing them to change course), it settles into being a mediocre mob movie, with Schwartz’s villainous performance pitched way too high. The film plays out with a number of action-driven set-pieces, which don’t skimp on the gore and gross-out comedy, but also end up feeling a little too goofy and over the top.

This is not to say that there aren’t some entertaining moments scattered throughout. Hoult does a fine job of carrying the film, and Cage is very good as Dracula, clearly having a ball camping it up in what is said to have been one of his dream roles. Aided by some solid makeup work, he delivers a very physical performance, with his mannerisms recalling both Bela Lugosi in the original 1931 film and Max Schrek in Nosferatu. Cage is the best thing about Renfield, but his very good take on this iconic role feels slightly wasted in a film that is ultimately a little too messy for its own good.

Bonus Features (Blu-ray):

The Blu-ray (dubbed the “Dracula Sucks” edition) contains a number of bonus features. A regular Blu-ray is also included in the package, which ships with a slipcover.

• Deleted & Extended Scenes (Play All – 17 minutes, 31 seconds)

• Open (1 minute, 42 seconds)

• Lobo Compound & Murder Room (3 minutes, 19 seconds)

• Renfield’s Dance! (2 minutes, 41 seconds)

• Mark Gives Renfield Advice (1 minute, 19 seconds)

• Newscaster (1 minute, 47 seconds)

• Lobo Gang Meet Dracula (1 minute, 58 seconds)

• Coda Kill (1 minute, 4 seconds)

• Apartment Fight (3 minutes, 46 seconds)

• Alternate Takes (3 minutes, 18 seconds)

• Dracula Uncaged (4 minutes, 48 seconds): Cage talks about some of his influences for this characterization, from Schrek’s performance in the silent classic Nosferatu to his own father.

• Monsters & Men: Behind the Scenes of Renfield (12 minutes, 35 seconds): Looks at various aspects of the production, from the cast to shooting on location in New Orleans.

• Stages of Rejuvenation (6 minutes, 15 seconds): A closer look at the various levels of makeup and prosthetics used on Cage over the course of the film.

• Flesh & Blood (5 minutes, 23 seconds): A look at the practical gore effects and liberal uses of fake blood.

• Fighting Dirty (6 minutes, 12 seconds): Focuses on the stunts and wire work behind the fight scenes in the film.

• The Making of a Deleted Scene: Renfield’s Dance! (3 minutes, 34 seconds): A behind-the-scenes look at a musical sequence that got cut from the finished film (but is included here with the deleted scenes).

• Feature Commentary with Producer Samantha Nisenboim, Screenwriter, Ryan Ridley, and Crew

Renfield is a Universal Pictures Home Entertainment release. It’s 93 minutes and rated 14A.

Street Date: July 11th, 2023