How ‘Renfield’ Director Chris McKay Reanimated a Classic Universal Monster (And Convinced Nicolas Cage to Play Dracula)
thewrap.com“Renfield,” an outrageous new take on Bram Stoker’s “Dracula,” told from the point of view of the count’s perpetually put-upon manservant (played here by Nicholas Hoult), the notion of being too over-the-top is considered and then hastily breezed by.
In the opening sequence alone, an ancient curse is placed on the dark prince (played, with much scenery-chewing, by Nicolas Cage); when Dracula is freed he turns into a vaporous mist and explodes a priest from the inside.
Then Dracula catches on fire and is turned into a crispy skeleton.The sequence is telling both for its bold tonal shifts and for the manic approach to action.
It’s the type of scene you would say could only be devised and executed by a man well-versed in animation. (The crispy skeleton bit could have been out of an old “Looney Tunes” Roadrunner cartoon.) And you would be right. “Renfield” was brought to life by Chris McKay, who last directed the Chris Pratt alien invasion movie “The Tomorrow War” but is most known for his animation credits – he served as an animation co-director and editor on “The Lego Movie” and then directed “The Lego Batman Movie” on his own.
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