Renfield (2023) – Film Review

Director: Chris McKay
Cast: Nicholas Hoult, Nicolas Cage, Awkwafina
Certificate: 15

By Roger Crow

Great horror comedy has to be about far more than just laughs and chills. With no subtext, a movie can fall apart like a vampire on a sunny day.

And yet so many horror comedies make the cardinal sin of neither being funny or scary. Those that tick both boxes become eternal favourites, whether it’s the sublime sixties offering Carry On Screaming, eighties classic An American Werewolf in London, 20-year-old smash Shaun of the Dead, or more recently the Zombieland movies.

It takes a couple of watches, but thanks to a few elements, Renfield can be added to that mix.

Created by Robert Kirkman (the man behind hit zombie series The Walking Dead), and directed by Chris McKay (The Lego Batman Movie), the smart thing about this re-telling of the Dracula legend is centring it on his long-suffering servant. And as Nicholas Hoult is always a great lead, having him as the eponymous hero rather than a character actor like Tony Haygarth (Dracula, 1979) or Tom Waits (Dracula, 1992) makes for a more satisfying watch. Hoult, surely one of the final 10 actors in the running for 007, never puts a foot wrong as the charismatic guy in a toxic relationship with the king of all bloodsuckers. And that’s the backbone of the story.

“Steals every scene”

The bug-chomping hero attends meetings with others in a sort of similar situation, which comes in handy when he needs to find victims for his master. However, when he gets mixed up in a turf war with coke-dealing gangsters in New Orleans, the scene is set for some kick-ass action scenes.

Awkwafina can be annoying in some projects, but here she’s spot on as the cop drawn into Renfield’s orbit, while good support comes from Ben Schwartz (Parks and Recreation).

Best of all is Nicolas Cage, who gives a career-best performance as Dracula. In a behind-the-scenes feature, he describes his love for the original Nosferatu movie, and how it affected his performance. And those bonus features are well worth a look. Yes, they’re obviously the usual studio fluff of ‘how marvellously everyone got on together’ and ‘what a thrill it was to make’, but still fascinating to see how the whole thing was put together.

Nic’s Dracula, in various stages of regeneration, steals every scene, and his soundbites are heaven. Just Cage pronouncing “Renfield” is a joy.

The 4K HD version looks and sounds phenomenal, the gags are great, stunts and effects fantastic, and it’s cut like an Edgar Wright movie, so there’s never a chance to get bored. Whisper it but Renfield might be your newish favourite horror comedy.