Review: Renfield 4K UHD
4K UHD Blu-ray: Renfeild (2023)
Taking two well known characters from Gothic literature and giving them a ‘new’ story could have been a disaster, but add a magic ingrediant – Robert Kirkman (The Walking Dead) and one of the best/worst actors alive today – Nic Cage, and you get a hugely enjoyable comic book film.
In Transylvania, English lawyer Renfield meets Count Dracula and becomes his familiar, which grants him, once he eats a bug, immortality and super strength.
Transferred to America, Renfield is fed up of being a slave and joins a self help group for people in co-dependent relationships and chooses victims for Dracula from the members horrible partners.
It’s a story of corniness, involving drug runners and the Lobo Crime family. Oh and there is blood and arm ripping. Nicholas Hoult as Renfield is a delight, as is Nic Cage, who lisps through a set of pointy teeth and doesn’t go FULL nutjob in the part.
Perhaps the only mis-step is Awkwafina as the cop who goes after the Lobos for killing her dad, then Renfield and Dracula. She just doesn’t seem a good fit personality wise for the part and I found her rather …annoying.
This looks – as you can imagine – wonderful on 4K UHD and even the ropey arm pulling off’s look like the worst CG ever, but the clarity just adds to it!
Watch Renfields dance in the extras, it’s such a shame they cut this out of the film!
SPECIAL FEATURES:
- Audio commentary with producer Samantha Nisenboim, screenwriter Ryan Ridley & other crew members
- Eight deleted and extended scenes (17 mins)
- Alternate takes (3 mins)
- Featurette “Dracula UnCaged” about Nicolas Cage as Dracula (5 mins)
- Featurette “Monsters & Men” behind the scenes featurette of RENFIELD (12 mins)
- Featurette “Stages of Rejuvenation” about the transformation of Dracula (6 mins)
- Featurette “Flesh & Blood” about the splatter effects (5 mins)
- Featurette “Fighting Dirty” about the stunts (6 mins)
- Featurette “The making of a Deleted Scene” about Renfield’s Dance (3 mins)
- Trailers & TV Spots
Review by Tina from a disc kindly supplied by Altitude Film via Fetch Publicity.
