Actor Nicolas Cage is back with yet another refreshing genre of horror comedy in the form of a film called Renfield. The film is a production of Robert Kirkman and Chris McKay, who also took part in its direction. They have claimed to have taken inspiration from the novel ‘Dracula’ written by author Bram Stoker and published in 1897.
While the film was supposed to come out way back in 2014, maintaining its connection with the then-released film called ‘The Mummy’ its production was postponed. After many changes, it was agreed to turn the film from a proper horror to a horror comedy. The movie finally got to premiere on April 14th, 2023, in the united states, though it also was released on March 30th, 2023, at the Overlook Film Festival.
The film stars actor Nicholas Hoult as Renfield, Dracula’s babysitter, and Nicolas Cage as Dracula himself. Awkwafina plays the role of a cop, Rebecca, in the New Orleans traffic police, and Ben Schwartz as Tedward Lobo, some guy involved with the gang. The film has a short list of cast acting in the film, trying to make it work though the critics and viewers do not seem fully convinced with the film’s premise.
The movie has actors that have proven their worth and talent previously, so when a film like this fails to work, you know it is not the actors but the ones working behind the scenes. The horror aspect of the film is predictable and mediocre, but the humor is definitely something that stands out as quirky and memorable. The romance line between Renfield and Rebecca feels forced and unnecessary, much like the entire movie.
The film’s premise is based on and shot in New Orleans with a lot of tragic incidents taking place during the time of shooting the film. Curious fans of the movie may find below the exciting places where the movie was filmed.
Renfield’s Filming Locations
New Orleans, Louisiana, United States
The entirety of the film is shot in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, with the filming beginning in February of 2022 and ending somewhere in the latter half of April. The city itself is home to various historical monuments and history and is filled to the brim with beautiful historical buildings that scream ancient-vampire-castles.
The town has the innate ability to make every shot in the movie look more aged and old. With the town drowning in the period vibes that the producers of Renfield were on the lookout for, New Orleans makes the perfect home for the age-old vampire.
The city is surrounded by the Gulf of Mexico and Lake Potcharen and looks beautifully eerie at all times, making it the perfect candidate for a movie like Renfield. Many critical scenes within the movie have been shot at genuine locations in the town, seamlessly including the town’s scenery in the film.
While the town looks gorgeous in the movie, everything was not that perfect for the filming crew in town. Turns out, when the crew was not looking, a total of twenty cars were stolen from an apparently safe parking lot that also had a guard. For a lot of the crew and staff, this one moment was enough for them to lose all attachment to the town and the film.
Charity Hospital, New Orleans
Though much of the film is shot in New Orleans, and the makers have included bits of the architecture of the town in the film, it is almost impossible to pin down what is what. But the one thing that can be pointed out is the run-down charity hospital where some significant part of the film was filmed. The hospital was shut and abandoned, weirdly adding to the aesthetic the makers were going for.
The hospital was transformed into Nicholas Cage’s vampire lair, his home sweet home. Out of all the historical places in town, the production people chose the hospital as the lair because it had an old and modern atmosphere to it. The battered place gave the ancient effect, whereas the fact that it had been a present-day hospital gave it the modern effect.
The outside of the hospital, too, apparently looked very much like a castle which made the production team give the place the green light. The crew revealed that the hospital was said to have been haunted though one can only guess how true that was.
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