Cage’s Dracula Best Part of ‘Renfield’
by Jamison Feeley
“Renfield,” a horror-comedy with Nicolas Cage as Count Dracula, will have you wanting more of Cage. The film, directed by Chris McKay, stars Nicolas Hoult as the count’s assistant, R.M. Renfield, who is trying to make a change in his life through a support group for people with relationship issues. However, his situation worsens when he begins to hear Dracula's voice in his head, leading him on a terrifying journey of self-discovery.
While the movie's concept is intriguing, the execution falls short in key ways. The picture is unimpressive, with a jumbled premise and excessive action scenes. Despite these flaws, Cage's performance is a standout and keeps the film afloat.
As Dracula, Cage is spellbinding, giving a performance that is both enthralling and terrifying. He expertly captures the character's insanity and brings a frenzied energy that ups the intensity of the movie. Without question, Cage's performance is the film's high point and takes the script to new levels. He does this through his humorous intensity as well as hilarious one-liners.
Hoult portrays a victim very well and adds a nice quirkiness to the character.
Unfortunately, the supporting cast falls short. While Awkwafina does a fine job as a hot-headed yet respectable cop and Renfield's love interest, she doesn't quite stand out. The rest of the cast is unmemorable, and some of the roles seem underwritten and superfluous. For instance, the villains of the movie are Ben Schwartz and Shohreh Aghdashloo as a son and mom duo running a crime family in New Orleans. Schwartz is OK as a comic villain to an extent, while the mom brings little to the film.
With a slow-burn style that increases tension and lays the groundwork for what could have been a fantastic horror comedy, the first half of the film shows promise. The action scenes take center stage in the second half of the film, which loses its balance and feels excessive and overdone. It gets hard to follow the plot as the story becomes muddled and the pacing suffers.
Scenes involving toxic-relationship counseling and the pitfalls of being Dracula's henchman are funny, but the excessive action scenes turn “Renfield” into more of a money-grabbing movie trying to make a killing at the box office.
If you're a fan of Cage or horror comedies, it's worth a watch. But don't expect a masterpiece.
Nicolas Cage delivers laughs as Dracula in “Renfield.” (Universal Pictures)
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