Renfield
Universal PicturesConsidering the Universal Monster properties brought cinema its first cinematic shared universe, it only made sense that in the modern rise of connected stories, the magic would try to be brought back to life. Sadly for Universal Pictures, their promotion and hype for this, titled The Dark Universe, was thrown away before it even really could start due to the disastrous reception given to 2017's The Mummy which was positioned to be the grand kickoff for the project. As the concept of a shared universe faded away, individual stories twisting these classic Universal Monsters narratives began to pop up with the newest being Chris McKay's Renfield. Pushing the traditionally supporting character of Count Dracula's assistant, R. M. Renfield (Nicholas Hoult), to center stage where he comedically comes to terms with the concept of overthrowing Dracula, played here by the legendary Nicholas Cage, and starting a more normal life for himself, Renfield has some strong moments of comedy but overall lacks a needed bite.
When one describes Renfield, one is almost forced to immediately give attention to the casting of Nicholas Cage as the iconic Count Dracula. In a time where Nicholas Cage's filmography has become dominated by the memeification of his presence (The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent & Willy's Wonderland) and attempts at more grounded drama (Pig & The Old Way), it is beyond refreshing to see Cage return to a more even blending of comedy and presence. While the concept of Nicholas Cage playing Dracula is obviously funny, his performance feels more in line with his work of the 1990s in the best of ways. Cage is insane and over the top in a way that demands laughs without ever reducing his character or performance down to going through the expected modern motions of the actor. It is crafted and carries a wonderful blend of camp and intensity that is easily the most memorable part of the feature as a whole.
The supporting cast around Cage all fall into a purgatory between being iconic and painful with no one feeling overly memorable in either direction. Both Nicholas Hoult and Ben Schwartz have great comedic timing, but neither transcends what one would expect from these actors with Hoult especially feeling somewhat meek when sharing the screen with Cage. Shohreh Aghdashloo is properly devilish but her screen time is sadly rather short and her material never allows her to rise to a higher level in the way, for example, Margo Martindale was able to in Cocaine Bear. The weakest of the bunch is clearly Awkwafina who struggles greatly to find her footing as an innocent cop who is trying to bring justice for her family who has suffered a tragic loss at the hands of a local crime organization. Both her work when it comes to this more emotional drama and her romance arc with Renfield struggle to engage the audience and her performance does nothing to help the cause.
While Renfield has some fantastic ideas, the concept of Count Dracula working with a crime organization or Renfield trying to set healthy boundaries with the demonic figure are both inventive and seem like natural pathways to solid comedy, the film struggles to put these pieces together or really do the most with them. Renfield's arc toward facing his toxic relationship with Dracula can feel sluggish while Dracula's partnership with the crime organization is far too rushed to produce anything meaningful. Even at only 93 minutes, the film has long portions where the drama and deeper emotional arcs cause the film to drag with no meaningful payoff by the end of the feature. Renfield feels like a film begging for all-out chaos, but this is rarely actually found within the film with spurts of energy only further highlighting just how slow and forgettable large portions of the runtime actually are.
Most of the film's best moments come from its action. While some special effects are shockingly poor, the overall energy brought to these scenes gives the film breaths of fresh air. It is also great to see a film like this really embrace an R-rating which allows for plenty of bloodshed and foul language. While in a vacuum these are not enough to make a feature, they do help the film to flow and build with a more natural edge that is noticeable when it is forced to be suppressed in many PG-13 films that use a similar tone and style.
While it is hard to imagine many going to see Renfield and not finding at least a few solid laughs, it is also important to note that the film is far from being a masterpiece. While Cage steals the show, the rest of the cast and narrative leaves quite a bit to be desired with the film trying to provide something more meaningful without the craft and ability to actually pull it off. Had Renfield been 90 minutes of Dracula chaos, it could have been something really special. As is, the film is an enjoyable yet forgettable viewing experience.
